The Fruit of the Spirit - craft for cambodian children

while i am not able to go, PP and a team of church friends will be travelling down to cambodia for a mission trip in Sep. thank God though, for the opportunity to serve :) a few of the sisters mentioned that it would be good for the children to have canvas bags (as seen here). while children here in singapore may take them for granted, we are certain bags will come in handy and mean alot for children over there. it is a major project though, procuring 160 bags and considering how the children can enjoy this hands-on activity.

there were many factors to consider. for example, the ink has to be water-resistant, it has to be as fuss free as possible, and yet at the same time, the activity ought to engage and bring out the theme. you can check out some of the ideas i got from the internet here. 

it's a time like this im EXTREMELY grateful for the silhouette cameo! it cut transparency PERFECTLY and with the help of it, I have 10 stencils for everyone to pre-paint a base (the brown parts) on the 160 bags! 

then, i used a scissors to cut a leaf shape and a heart shape from the foam, and mounted them on cardboard. 

stamp stamp stamp! *jiang jiang* the end product below :) a fabric pen was used to label the fruits of the Spirit.

i used fabric-resistant stamp pads (same as the ones i used here) for the sample above...but to cater to the needs of 160 children, we will be mixing acrylic paint with textile medium and pouring them on disposable plates + paper towels. this make-shift stamp-pad was an idea i picked up here. 

praying that the preparation will go smoothly, and it may be a meaningful and memorable activity for the children. the cambodian words say "The Fruit of the Spirit". Before they add the leaves and the fruits, the tree is essentially, barren and fruitless. hopefully, this will remind them of how a Christian's life is really empty and meaningless if we do not bear the fruits of the Spirit. 

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. Gal 5: 22-23

gender reveal!

the question on the tip of the tongue of almost every other person is.... so, do u prefer a boy or a girl?? 

oh dear, what a question to ask! at this point of time, you just wish for the baby to be healthy and growing well, and deciding your preference would create room for disappointment, wouldn't it? 

all that said, i have to admit we were really excited to find out, and so were our loved ones! just like how we broke the news of baby E's arrival, we wanted to leave time for us to capture the expression of our loved ones, and so with some brainstorming, PP and i decided to make use of marshmallows :) marshmallows are affordable, small and easily acessible, and they aptly come in various flavours. We thought of using strawberry-flavoured marshmallows to represent a girl, and chocolate marshmallows to represent a boy. then, we spent about 20 min composing this little poem :) 

We printed this image on sticker paper, which we cut up and pasted onto little white bags (readily available at Daiso). then, we took the marshmallows out of their original packaging and tucked them into little ziplock bags before putting them into the white bags. all these were completed within one hour, very simple and fuss free! 

here' s an image of the sticker. i used a watercolour texture from August Empress, with scrabble tiles from Fuzzimo. the fonts i used: Lullaby for the poem, and Discipuli Britannica for the verse at the bottom. 

so, are you eager to know the gender as well? :) take a peek here!

it's chocolate, which means..... it's a.....

Boy! :) how we really loved the reactions of our family and friends! :) watching them chew, and witness their eyes open up in surprise at the revelation :) it's moments like these that im grateful to capture :) 

i've been busy

oh dear, it's been a really long time since i updated this space, isn't it? the truth is, I have been busy. or rather, something really BIG is happening to me. here's a hint :)

 

God has given us a gift, a wonderful blessing! we are now a family of three :) God-willing, we will meet baby E in about 4 and a half months time. the first time we went for a check-up, the EDD given to us was 01012013. Doesn't this just show that God's plans are perfect? 

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. James 1:17

We are thrilled, but of course,we take this on with much fear and trembling too. do pray for us! 

p.s. I do mean to keep this blog going. perhaps it will take on a new direction, no longer so much about crafting, but it will always, always, always be a testimony of God's goodness to me and remind me of the wonderful blessings He has bestowed on me. 

paper pinwheels

this paper pinwheel was the very first thing i cut with the silhouette cameo, which i received from my sister for my birthday. it's such a nifty toy  and i really went "Aaaaaaahhhhh!" when i found out what she got for me. THANKS JIE!!!! :) anyway, this was a craft for pre-school kids. many thanks to vera, from paper party, who gave me many insights as to what exactly was needed and even helped me by drawing out a diagram ^_^ do check out her fb page here!

here's the instructions i typed out for others to follow. will just copy and paste them here for future reference :)

Materials needed:

a. Pinwheel Paper (Coloured cardstock)

b. Whitepaper(withJohn3:30)

c. Brown paper (rectangle with two slits in middle)

d. Wooden Dowels (long wooden sticks)

e.Pins 

f.Beads

g. Colour Pencils/Crayons/Markers

Steps:

1. Bring all the holes on the 4 corners of the pinwheel to meet in the centerhole.

2. Take out the pin from the wooden dowel and poke it through all 5 holes.

3. Continue to poke the pin through one bead. (Result: the paper pinwheel is between the pinhead and the bead)

4.Poke the pin into the wooden dowel.

5. Thread the dowel through the slits on the brown paper.

6. Ta-dah! You have your pinwheel. May you be reminded of Christ and how you want to add to His glory. Just like how the wind enables to pinwheel to spin, God can enable us to obey and glorify Him when we are willing vessels :)

 

p.s. the silhouette machine comes with a pinwheel template which can help you cut the pinwheel paper. it should look somewhat like this :)

counting my blessings in Public Garden May 2012

What a lovely experience it was at the Public Garden! Like i shared with some of my loved ones, this bazaar was a time when i really experienced God's goodness in so many ways :) here are some pictures! I was too exhausted to take any but my dear PP helped to take some :) 

let me count my blessings here:

- for countless lovely people who came down to show their support: auntie, 107, XW, HL, WX, CW + J, YR, R, K, K and M, EJ and family, ZH and family, Ade + friend, V + friend, DK + CYL + EO! and of course my dear parents, brothers and sister (+ Z!) ! 

- for how these lovely people made the process so much more enjoyable and fun with their presence :) 

- for a great helping hand in my sister, who made a great deal of awesome products :) 

- for the extra muscles from my two brothers ^_^

- for the many food, bought by many people, meant to stuff me TTM!

- for wonderful weather! it was drizzling around 3pm on sat and I was kind of worried. but the weather cleared and the rain brought a cool and refreshing breeze :)

- for the lovely people who stopped at our stall and who encourage me in what i do by their smiles and encouraging words

- for safety, strength and sustenance through the entire event

- for my mother's "xue ge"

- and last of all, always, for my dear PP who supports me in this whole-heartedly and always does what he can to help me.

for all these, i thank God! God is so good :)

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. James 1:17