(fingers against steel pins and wooden blocks)

Here are a few pictures of my hat-making class today. More to come tomorrow - yay! ^__^


Millinery is demanding on fingers, as steamed materials need to be stretched into place with a multitude of metal pins against a wooden base. Some of my classmates' hats are covered with pins they start to look like hedgehogs.


Long nails turn out to be some sort of a blessing in disguise, as they either act as pliers or are callously wedged against thimbles. Pliers are useful to pull pins out, and we do have metal pliers in class so... I'm trimming mine off tonight.

Alright then, another long day is ahead of me tomorrow! Have a good day :))

From The Neck Up

I'm immersing myself into millinery this week.

Fashion shows are not merely about clothes; it is also about how images are presented to the public. Invariably, models will be clad in accessories that complement the clothes. Accessories are mainly grouped into four major groups: footwear, headgear, bags and other fashion accessories - mainly belts and jewellery but may also include things like gloves and digital cameras.

Hats sure cost a lot to make - the base materials need to be purchased first, then hand-moulded and hand-finished. Oddly enough, despite the perennial demands for headgear in London (bowler-hatted policemen and Ascot-going ladies are two prominent customer groups) the shops aren't well-stocked... and the prices are exorbitant. A classmate of mine, who came all the way from Sydney, told me feathers cost $4 back home and £6 here. I feel... robbed D;

Headgears aside, Mag is moving away tomorrow, so I won't have any neighbours around >__< *sob sob* I'm planning to stay the night over at her place, although I won't be able to help her move tomorrow.

(can't live without - part 1)

This isn't a definite or exhaustive list of what I *actually* need to have to live; it's just a consumerism-based list I came up with. It is a bit like a visual dictionnary of things around me. These items aren't listed in the order of importance. Okay, so here we go:

#1 - The art stash (in top drawer)


This stash contains most of my art kits (save the palette, brushes and stationery I'm using right now.) On the far left end the watercolour palette is sitting atop two envelopes of tracing paper and a green tin of watercolour pencil... and lots of other things (mainly in boxes or tins). There are a box of acrylic paints in tubes, a huge container of acrylic medium, sable brushes, adhesives (of all sorts), drawing pens and tape measurement on the middle ground. The box of Pantone markers sits squarely towards the back of drawer. On the right hand side, inks share their space with threads and other haberdashery supplies as well as the ubiquitous can of spray mount.

After looking at my art stash, I conclude I'm a maniac of adhesives. Scotch tapes, u-tac gums, sticky labels, three types of glue stick, multi-purpose liquid glue... yet I still 'borrow' Helen's masking tape. Also, I tend to use water-based paints and markers.

#2 - The rain-proof shoe spray


I look after my shoes to make sure they last. London's weather is unpredictable, and this is the thing I use to keep my shoes from turning into some sort of disgusting heap of leather. I keep reaching for this spray from time to time. Just a word of warning, use the spray in a well-ventilated area if you don't want to end up in a room full of nauseating fumes.

#3 and #4 - The laptop and the roll of satin ribbon


The laptop's function is quite clear. It's currently being used for entertainment (hence the position), and it usually sits on a pre-allocated end of the desk. Satin ribbons are indispensible to me since I was three, and this roll (purchased last Christmas) should last me a while. Holding onto a satin ribbon helps me go to sleep. I tend not to cut ribbons off the roll lest they fray.

Okay, that's all for now. I'm in the middle of cleaning my room, so let me get back to it, 'kay? :D

(this summer's sweatshop)

What do you call a working group of fashion students? A sweatshop.


(Featuring Helen, Anne, KY and an unseen Jeanne.)

I didn't help them much today; all of them have finished their garments and are doing the paperworks (illustrations, technical drawings, compiling, binding etc.) There wasn't much I could do other than cooking and cleaning - for me, I was being more of a domestic helper than lending a hand to help finish their work. Nevermind, I'm quite happy with the helper role, and I'm going to see them submit their work tomorrow. I might be able to sneak in and have a look at what other students do, too... ^.^

Mmmm. The hunt is on; ...I wonder, who stands in my position this year? The internet yields no news so far... and the night is less than a week away. I wonder whether these ladies are being grilled through the routines right now, who is the artistic director, and who would have enough guts to speak up against him/her... :s

Also, if Barbie was a real-life figure, her body would be attainable only through plastic surgeries and tightlacing. Yes, you can try to grow naturally to 5'9"... but there's no way a waist circumference of 45.72 cm is naturally attainable (this comes from a girl whose measurement 'grew' only 5 cm since she was six.) And no, you can't possibly support all the above-mentioned attributes on a pair of European size 33 feet. I wonder why Mattel has not adjusted Barbie's unrealistic proportion, since the doll is one of the earliest female body image role models available to children in today's postmodern consumerist society.

Oh well... here I rest my case.

(to learn)

Mmmm. I found another similar, opinionated girl on the other side of the world... well, not that far, but Finland is still quite a distance away.

I'm glad we both agree that learning isn't limited to classrooms.

Have a nice day! ^__^

(anime-inspired food)

It's been such a wonderful weekend wrap-up today... erm, yesterday (Monday?)

I went out with Apink and his friends from work (one even came from as far as Zambia!), and walked around town with them. Pictures will be uploaded on flickr later... that is, once I get them from Apink. Oh, and by the way, he left UK way earlier than I thought he would, so I ended up having a free day today. Armed with some reviews, I ended up watching anime all day long. Yes, you... thanks to you xD

Amusingly, while watching Claymore I suddenly craved for the smell (and taste) of my mom's homemade sukiyaki. It consists of sukiyaki beef and sliced onions marinated in soya and Worcestershire sauces, and cooked on a pan with a hearty knob of butter. I better try to recreate this dish in the coming weekend! It'll be splendid when served on top of rice :D

For poinkys: y'know, if you've got that 3PM syndrome, you can always get your own tagboard... that way we can chat and bicker all we like without having to resort to e-mails or chat programs. It'll save you 10 minutes and you can zap home on your pet dragon :E

Have a nice day! ^__^

Di Atas Normal

Eugh, didn't like the look of the previous post as a prominently displayed post, hence this act of post dislocatement.

I'm now onto Elizabeth & Leicester, partly because my cousins used to live on Leicester Street (alright, okay, it's a genre I like!) This book's a non-fiction, which would provide an antidote to those Philippa Gregory historical fictions I've been nursing myself on... not to mention a more objective outlook on what really happened.

...ooh, and the song's quite random - I haven't listened to it for a good while. My dad would definitely remark that this song belongs to those genres which I like "yet sounds awful" - keeping in mind his preferences for grandiose classical music and choral pieces (and Bee Gees.)

Oh, ku mencari
Tetap tak dapat kutemui
Ku mencari hati yang kubenci

Necropolis: London and Its Dead

I was quite suprised to read this book, and even more when I received a link to this scheme.

Due to the 1665 plague, pits were dug in Hyde Park (now a destination for leisurely strolls surrounded by genteel neighbourhoods) to dispose of cadavers of plague victims. Please bear in mind that back then Westminster Abbey was outside London's borders, Camden [possibly] used for grazing sheep, and Knightsbridge nothing more than a village. When the Tube network was developed in the late 19th century, the route from Hyde Park Corner to Knightsbridge had to go around these pits as the construction hit a pile of human remains that was too hard to dig through.

The curves of these pits can still be recognised today.

Signs of mortality is available in abundance around us. I have gotten myself into deep discussions on "what organs you'd donate", the highs and lows of "how you'd prefer to dispose of your body" and other seemingly gruesome topics with friends. I'm glad my friends at school are aware of one of life's two great unavoidables (the other being taxes.) I'm not a morbidity-loving person though, so I wouldn't really get into the kind of mourning cult Queen Victoria sparked one-and-a-half centuries ago.

Gee, what started as an innocent attempt to read outside my genre turns out to be quite a colourful learning experience. I'm going back to modern Middle-Eastern feminism, Elizabethan-era intriques, children's illustrated storybooks, picturebooks and celebrity cooks' cookbooks till I can move on to other 'unrelated' books (see Pact #4 for details.) At the end, I admit this book is still inspiring. I just hope I won't be Victorian enough to splurge on black crepe or bombazine 9__9

I'm going to meet up with Apink and Rudy tomorrow, so better hit the matress now. Take care! :))

The Rabbits

The ability to present a stale issue in fresh ways is amazing.

I came across this illustrator's recently released book in Borders. To put it simply, it's one of the most awe-inspiring picture books I have ever come across. The quality of artworks he produces easily puts me to shame, too, as he's got such a meticulous way of working to back up great research.

When it comes to The Rabbits (which turned out to be CBCA's Picture Book of the Year in 1999) I can't stop picking up minute nuances on the artworks even after going through them many times. Spending £4.99 on what turned out to be a treasure is not regrettable.

On a subdued note, the books reivigorate me and inspire me to do more imaginative works and stop trying to design for a specific market. I need to practise how to approach a stale subject matter in different perspectives. I guess that's why I still have a long way to go.

Have a good day! ^__^

(I grow old!)

Er, yeah... I do grow old.

Didn't do much today. Woke up, painted, went to read books in the library, bought millinery wire at this haberdashery store, treated myself to scones and tea, and went to Anne's intending to decorate my own birthday cake... until I got there and realized nobody turned up for the pre-planned sweatshop workshop session. The weather was really pleasant, but Anne's kitchen was unbearably hot hence no self-made cakes for today <"6__6">

Liberty managed to give me a birthday surprise in form of... new china sets, and a hike in price for cream teas. It was priced at £8 last month ^.^;




Anyway, thanks for the birthday greetings! My birthday didn't have an overly celebratory overtone, but I did have a good time indeed. I never thought that I'd be able to ask for mixed doner (an 'unlisted' dish) from Bangla Village, and I didn't feel like eating anyone alive today. Which is... jolly good.

I probably should've felt more jumpy or acted euphorically, but I didn't... I don't feel like it. I really am growing old.

Beautiful Star

This would possibly constitute the last post I write on my 23rd year of life.

As a way of improving myself, I have a few pacts I would like to make. And here they come:

Pact #1 To not delay or be late for anything
To be honest, this is a major thing to accomplish for me. Currently I am a bit short on the discipline departement, and although I always manage to pull things off on time, I would like to have less hectic moments that occur as a result of earlier delays. Plus, I don't think it's fair for me to feel cross if people turn up late when I also turn up late. I also want to have concrete follow-ups to the many things I have planned beforehand. This pact boils down to two simple reasons: more discipline for me and zero tolerance on emotional hypocrisy.

Pact #2 Stop wasting time
Living without those unproductive hours spent doing nothing much on front of a computer. Be more organised when it comes to blogsurfing on weekdays. There is not going to be enough time in this world if I spend it unproductively.

Pact #3 To first listen, then think, and speak last
Just a way to curb those 'speak first, think later' moments. I don't have a lot of them, but I wish I have none of them at all. Moreover, since my comments often have conclusive overtones, I better let others pull out their brilliant ideas (out of their hats) rather than throw mine out and have no exchange of thoughts.

Pact #4 Read more non-fashion and non-design books
Vivienne Westwood once famously remarked that if a school leaver asked her whether to study biology or fashion, she'd always say biology... "because then you will get a better understanding of life." An open mind comes from a broader understanding of life, and life does not boil down to one or two small industries; it is a melange of various aspects of life. I want to read more books about applied psychology and adolescents' education. Oh, and by the way, Dame Vivienne was a schoolteacher.

Pact #5 Be more friendly
...and consequently, make more proper friends. Make proper efforts to link people's facial images with their names (duh, and I call myself an art student?) Friends are invaluable.

Pact #6 Live healthily
No no-sleep nights, down two litres of pure water everyday, no Twix lunches, no Pringles quasi-dinners... and constantly exercise, exercise, exercise. I would grow taller this way :q and have more energy, too.

Alright, I think that's all for now... these are the goals I want to stick to for the rest of my life. Have a good day, everyone! ^__^