Woohoo!!! There are now eight out of the nine handmade dolls promised for the Project18 Orphanage ready to be packed and sent to Bali! Just waiting for one more to arrive from overseas :-)

I finished up this little one over the weekend:

And I received this absolutely gorgeous doll by Karen D. I was SOOOO excited when I opened up the package to find this doll inside. She’s so beautifully and lovingly made. The hair, facial features, her outfit and even the shoes – such wonderful detail and crafts(wo)manship!! Thanks so much Karen!

I recently had the awesome opportunity to go on a sponsored trip to Hong Kong for the weekend and visit the “Kindergardener” exhibition by Hong Kong street artist, Michael Lau, at the Times Square mall in Causeway Bay.

It seems that malls in Hong Kong love to put on unique events during Christmas and many have hosted exhibitions by independent artists during this time of the year. I still have wonderful memories of my own little exhibition at the APM mall in Hong Kong two years ago – a definite highlight in the life of One Red Robin so far :-)

Michael Lau is an artist most known for his urban vinyl art and a force behind the designer toy movement. He opened his “Gardener” exhibition in 1999 in Hong Kong, which consisted of 101 12-inch action figures in a ‘Garden’ representing urban/street culture and individuality. The “Gardener” exhibition has made its way around the globe over the last 11 years.

“Kindergardener” hopes to the bring the spirit of “Gardener” to a new generation. You’ll find a whimsical and humorous array of characters starting just outside of the Times Square mall in the piazza:

And more of the 12-inch characters (or ‘dolls’ as I like to call them :-)), Lau’s sketches and drawings, and his paintings on display inside the mall in the atrium:

I enjoyed this exhibition and really related to the artist’s desire to give each action figure/doll a unique character and personality, reflecting his own passions and lifestyle. There is actually a lot to see and the display outdoors is interactive and wonderfully colourful and festive – a good place for kids to see (some of the action figures inside, however, may not be so appropriate for the little ones!).

The exhibition will continue at the Times Square mall, Causeway Bay, until the 26th of December.

You can more photos from the exhibition (plus other touristy photos I took whilst in HK) on my flickr HERE. A quick but awesomely fun break in Hong Kong :-)

I made this little guy for the baby boy that is currently being cared for by the Project18 Orphanage as part of the handmade doll appeal:

The fabrics come from the amazingly generous box that Dawn sent me almost two years ago :-) I always struggle with boy dolls, so hopefully he’ll get lots of cuddles from his new owner. A little girl doll is also in progress and should be wrapped up soon.

Also in my creative space, three vintage owl ornaments I managed to snatch up from Agnes Darling’s cute etsy shop – lots of goodies there, be sure to check it out! These will be the newest additions to my (growing) owly collection. They are quite special, me thinks :-)

More creative spaces over here!

Thank you for all the fantastic suggestions on IKEA How-to Seminar topics! I’m sure IKEA is very grateful for your input and ideas :-)

As promised, here are the three winners of the IKEA Goodies Giveaway, randomly chosen:

Congratulations to the following commenters – I will be in touch with you very soon to get postal addresses:

• Comment #37 from Mariella: You will be receiving the Art Pack!
• Comment #4 from Beck: You will be receiving the Fabric Bundle #2!
• Comment #24 from Jean-Sophie: You will be receiving the Fabric Bundle #1!

Thanks again to IKEA for generously providing the prizes!

In other news, I recently had the opportunity to go on a sponsored trip to Hong Kong to visit a Christmas exhibition at the Times Square mall by Hong Kong artist, Michael Lau. Here’s a sneak peek:

More on the exhibition and quick break in HK in an upcoming post!

Yippee!!! Three more dolls have been received for the handmade doll appeal for the Project18 Orphanage in Bali.

I think you’ll agree that Amy L. put a lot of thought and love and care into her doll:

She used my Baby Chibi doll pattern and modified it to incorporate a beautiful felt applique of the Bali Starling – an endangered bird only found in Bali. Thanks so much Amy!

Selina made a fabulously colourful and fun doll:

I love her outfit – puffy skirt, rainbow stockings and cute bows in her thick hair :-) Thanks so much Selina!

And Jennie made this amazing little one:

Such wonderful detail – retro fabric and trims, flower buttons in her hair, and oh that face! Beautiful! Thanks so much Jennie!

That brings us up to 5 dolls received so far. I’m working on two dolls that are almost done and I’m just waiting for two more to arrive. Can’t wait to see them too!

P.S. The winners of the IKEA giveaway will be posted up mid-week. Thank you for all the great how-to seminar suggestions!

As promised, I have a few Ikea goodies to giveaway!! In total, there are 3 prizes on offer:

2 awesome fabric bundles – each bundle has two pieces of fabric and each piece is roughly 1 metre by 1.5 metres in measurement, and is 100% cotton.

Fabric Bundle 1:

Fabric Bundle 2:

I also have on offer an art pack for a little aspiring artist you may know, consisting of a make-your-own-cards/stationery pack, water colour paint, markers, crayons, and pencils, and 2 pairs of decorative-edged scissors:

To enter this Ikea giveaway, all you need to do is leave a comment on this post before midnight Sunday, 21st November (Australian Eastern Standard Time) with the following details:

1) Which prize you’d like to win – a fabric bundle OR the art pack,
AND
2) As mentioned in the previous post, Ikea Family will be holding how-to seminars in the near future. What’s one how-to topic you’d like to see Ikea do as part of their seminar series?

THREE WINNERS (2 people will receive one fabric bundle each, and 1 person will receive the art pack) will be drawn randomly next week and I’ll post the winners up next Wednesday. Looking forward to reading your ideas!

I was invited by Ikea to visit their store in Richmond and spend a few hours with Mark (General Manager of Ikea Family, Australia) and Sarah, to discuss the new Ikea Family program and to have a look at some of their products for kids and storage/craft rooms. How could I resist?!

I’m quite sure you’ve heard of Ikea and perhaps you’ve even got one (or two or five, or ten) of their products in your home. I use a lot of their storage solutions for my craft room and for the girls’ room, so I was really excited about a new program that they launched this past September for Australian customers – the Ikea Family. It’s free to join and these are just some of the benefits:

• Free bottomless coffee every visit
• FAMILY discounts on meals in the IKEA Restaurant
• Exclusive savings on lots of products
• Exclusive seminars and events
• 10c donated to charity every time you swipe or scan your card
• Free store to home insurance
• Extended 12 month return policy
• Free IKEA FAMILY LIVE magazine home delivered
• Ask any questions you like online and have experts answer them

Now if you are an avid Ikea shopper (like I am!) you’ll actually reap the benefits very quickly – and you’ll also be donating towards a charity at the same time. When I got to the store and met up with Mark and Sarah, I was able to join the program on the spot by signing up via these in-store kiosks.

Of course, you can just as easily sign up online. Sign-up instore took 5 minutes and at the end I was given a receipt, which was my temporary card (the actual card will be sent to you a few days later).

With the receipt in hand, I was then able to enjoy a free (and bottomless) cup of coffee straight away. Then it was time to tour the store for a little browsing and shopping!

I couldn’t wait to get to the fabric section!!! Well, this is a no brainer for me! A really great range of 100% cotton fabric in graphic and vibrant designs.

These were just a few of the other things that caught my eye:

Top to bottom:
>> Retur – okay, so this is meant to be a waste-sorting bin, but I reckon it’s a fantastic stackable storage solution! Made up of different sizes, this would be perfect to store crafty notions and materials. And you can make them pretty with decals, wallpaper, etc :-)
>> Skojig – cute toadstoolesque lamp for the kid’s room
>> Vika Glasholm – love the design on this table top
>> Vika Blecket/Vika Artur – something a little more adaptable. I could use this flat as my sewing and cutting desk, then clear it and adjust the height for painting/drawing projects
>> Alvine Flora – smitten with this cushion and the embroidered design (in fact, this one is now sitting on my bed!)
>> Duktig – super cute, gelato-coloured, ceramic 10-piece tea set! (not all pieces shown)

After picking up a bag of goodies, I used the receipt at check-out, which meant an instant donation to charity. I then went home and logged into my Ikea Family account and filled in further details on my profile. By doing this, I’m helping Ikea send me information, offers and news that will actually be relevant and interesting to me. The other great news is that Ikea will be running events in the new year for Ikea Family members – from social events to how-to seminars.

So if you love to shop at Ikea, I’d highly recommend joining the Ikea Family!

Thanks to Mark and Sarah for their time and company :-) And thanks to Ikea, I have a few goodies to give away! So please pop back here mid-week to see what’s up for grabs!

I was in Sydney on the weekend so crafting has kinda ground to a halt at la casa de One Red Robin. There’s been a little movement on a baby chibi doll:

I’m actually more excited about the second doll that has been received for the Project18 Orphanage handmade doll appeal:

What a total sweeetie!! And her dress is just gorgeous (fabric is from Indonesia, which is very fitting). Thank you so much Magdalena! Please do check out Magdalena’s wonderful blog for more handmade goodness: The Craft Revival

The quick Sydney break was exactly what I needed. It was soooo good to be able to catch up with my friends again . . . and talk heaps, laugh heaps, and eat heaps together :-) It’s hard to believe that we’ve been friends for just over 22 years now – since Year 7 in high school. We’re now in our mid-thirties. How time flies!

They’ve stuck with me through thick and thin, and have kept me laughing during the toughest and darkest moments in life. Amazing women. My hope is that both of my daughters find the same kind of genuine, resilient and lasting friendships too.

More creative spaces to see at Kootoyoo.

Happy Chibi doll for a happy little girl is done (just missing the shoes) :-)

And the first handmade doll for the Project18 Orphanage Handmade Doll appeal has arrived!

Isn’t she just wonderful?! She is sure to put a huge smile on a little girl’s face. Thank you so much Donna!!! You can find Donna’s beautiful Steiner dolls in her etsy shop – Riverside Dolls.

More creative spaces at Kootoyoo.