pp's birthday card + bottle

a long time ago, two very dear friends thought of me while they were shopping and bought this little bottle for me.

it was very very cute and the words on it were rather meaningful, but i did not know what it could be used for. now, on hindsight, it has served its perfect purpose because it has been turned into this!

its the perfect size for PP's birthday card. creating this is very similar to how friendship pens are made, with some weaving involved.

here are the materials i used:

hemp twine/rope

jersey string (made from an old tshirt. find the tutorial here!)

double-sided tape

scissors

(optional) a red fabric pen

1. start by deciding on the text you want, because that determines the amount of jersey thread you need. i usually work with odd numbers. if the characters are less complicated, i use 5 threads. in this case, i wanted the alphabets to be big so i used 7 strings. i stuck them on the bottle using double-sided tape.

2. Coat the threads with another layer of double-sided tape

3. Now the winding starts! paste the hemp twine diagonally, then wind the twine around its end so it will not come loose easily. (see photo) keep winding so the end of the hemp twine is hidden.

4. imagine the bottle to be grid paper/pixels. weave the jersey thread in and out accordingly so it will show through when necessary. you may need to do some sketching if it is confusing :) each "pixel" involves the hemp twine going round the bottle twice. as you keep progressing, keep sticking layers of double-sided tape so your pattern will stay.

5. When you reach the end, snip of the excess jersey thread, leaving about 1 cm allowance.

6. Seal the excess jersey using double-sided tape.

7. Continue to wind your hemp twine to the end of the bottle. i chose to do something similar to how i started (see step 3) so the end of the hemp twine will not fray or come loose so easily.

The end product looked like it needed some colour! i used a fabric marker and coloured the heart red. 

ta-dah! a pretty, personalised case for the card. really thank God for the inspiration because i was really stumped initially how to decorate the bottle and what materials i should use :) to my surprise, hemp twine and jersey thread go so well together! here's the final product and a little glimpse of his card, which tells our story ^_^

blessed remembrance day, PP :) indeed, it's so good to remember God's goodness and what He has done for us, each year :)

on aging

age is always subjective, isn't it? if an elderly woman looks at a young woman in her mid 30s, she'll reminisce her youth. if a young teenager looks at a working adult, she will admire her independence and maturity. i suppose i was that young teenager once. longing to be free, longing to work for myself, longing to earn a living and find some way of success. now that i look back, it's such vanity! the older one gets, the more responsibilities. the more burdens. and yet, it's still sweeter as the years go by with the LORD my God who keeps me each step of the way!

26! my heart sank once in a while when reminded that i have crossed the 25 mark and now, im nearer to 30. now i completely understand why some people desire to remain young and claim to be "forever 21". hahahaha. nevertheless, aging is good. time waits for no man. as i age, it's always good to remember God's goodness and sustenance to me each day, each month, each year.

He hath made everythingbeautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end. Ecc 3:11

God has appointed me to be 26 years old, and hence i will embrace it and God-willing, live out my 26th year for His glory!

that's why PP coins "birthdays" as rememberance days. this makes birthdays so much more meaningful, as we remember one year of blessings, joys, sorrows, events.  and this year was a wonderful time where i truly experienced the tender love of those who are just so precious to me.

looking at these pictures make me smile many times over. i've been blessed by the loving hands of many. may God help me, also, to be a blessing to others in the same manner!

april, a happy month

april is a happy month. not that it does not come with its set of worries, but there are many reasons to rejoice. for one, Easter is always a blessed and wonderful time to reflect on what my Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ has done. Our church choir sang a song on Good Friday, taken from Isaiah 53: 4 -5:

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

Have you ever experienced healing before? Sometimes when you are sad, a sweet word from a friend can do wonders in comforting your heart. or maybe when you are sick, you take a panadol pill. when you are afflicted with the itchiest rashes (tell me about it urgh!!), antihistamines really become your best friend ;)

What Christ has healed, with his stripes (wounds), goes beyond the afflictions of this world. He bore our griefs and carried our sorrows. For our transgressions, he was wounded. All these, he did, so we no longer have to carry the burden of our wrongdoings and the punishment we deserve for the sin. He healed our guilt, the burden of bearing the guilt and the judgment we should have faced. All these, he went through, that we might have life, and have it more abundantly! (John 10: 10). Indeed, Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. John 15:3

Thank you, Lord Jesus.

and Easter brings with Good Friday a more wonderful news, as we remember how Christ triumphed over the grave and did not remain dead. Hence, we worship a true and living God! my dearest readers.... if you have never heard of this wonderful gift of salvation, I pray that you may be moved to desire to know more. very often in life, we wonder what life should ultimately mean and what purpose we ought to have in life. salvation has brought to me such clarity in life's perspectives. suddenly, the pursuit of success, status, riches become second place and there is this peace that passeth all understanding. As a child of God, i know i can rest in the assurance that i am in the care of the LORD God, Almighty. Life is worth the living, because my Saviour lives and loves me. Would you like to know more? You are warmly invited to attend my church's service:

What Am I Really Living For?

Rev Prabhudas Koshy

29th April, 2pm

here's a map of where my church is :)

on another note, april is also a happy month because my husband's birthday falls in april and this is also the month i have chosen to take a step. more about those another time :)

wedding rings

let me share with you a little secret. i hope it will encourage you, as it has encouraged me :)

(ring shots, by Bryan Jean Photography)

i would like to share with you what is engraved within our wedding rings.

Within the inside of the rings is the phrase "Mk 10:6-9", which is also short form for:

Mark 10:6-9

But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female.

For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife;

And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.

What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.

 

Before we bought the wedding rings, PP thought very hard about what was to be engraved inside the rings that we were (God-willing) to be wearing for the rest of our lives. thank God for showing us to this passage. while the rest of the verses consider the beauty and intimacy of marriage, verse 9 brings special comfort to me, especially when PP and i go through tense moments. "What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder."

by "man", it meant anyone, including ourselves. meaning, not even our selfishness, our pride, our expectations, our anger should separate us. Sometimes these things do get the better of us and overwhelm me.. causing me to doubt and lose hope. but this verse comforts and reminds me that no man, not even ourselves, can separate what God has put together :) :) thanks be to God for this wonderful assurance in His word!

the more i wear my wedding ring, the more i like it. i like what it symbolises. so couples, as you choose your wedding rings, choose one which you're not afraid to scratch, yet good enough for you to wear for the rest of your lives :)

“Much” Happenings in “March” - from the PP

“Much” is an apt word to describe the month of March for us, note that it is not “too much”. Why? Because our good Lord never gives us beyond what we can take and has given us all things in His perfect measure:)

It began with a blessed and meaningful family trip to Penang (my dad-in-law’s hometown), where the time spent with the family was indeed very wonderful. Not to mention the feasting that we had *saliva-drooling* Thank God for boy-boy who planned the whole trip (not so “boy-ish” after all, heh).

Then i went on exercise for two weeks, where much time was spent away from home. We both knew that it was be tough and demanding in more ways than one. A precious time of leaning on God and learning to love each other even circumstances are tough. God’s grace was sufficient.

Right in the middle of the exercise was our YAF Retreat at Changi Aloha Fairy Point Chalet. Apart from the threat of the mozzies, the messages and fellowship that we had were wonderful times.

Towards the end of the month, God’s appointed time came for us to remember His goodness and love through a very precious little boy: Zachy! It was his 2 years old birthday (or we like to call it “Remembrance Day”). His loving parents booked a place by the sea for families to gather and remember the goodness of God. Despite a little fall (as a result of pp’s clumsiness), I believe the boy and all those around him enjoyed the evening of remembrance!

What will April look like when we reflect in another month? Not for us to know fully at this moment, but one thing is for sure “If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith?” Luke 12:28. We all need to have more faith each day – don’t we?