Pink Pouch from Zarina!

I received this so very cute pouch from a good stitching friend, Zarina, when I met up with her and her hubby for breakfast a few weeks back, during one of her trips to KL.

I just love the fabric, inside out! 

And, the fact that it is PINK makes it even more adorable! LOL!

Thanks, Ina!

You just gave me an idea what to make as gifts!

It does not look too difficult to make. 

Maybe I can get them done in a jiffy...if I can find time to try making it, that is.... *grin*

A Birthday Gift from Carla!

This is a post long overdue. In fact way way long overdue! Carla must think I am not appreciative for her gift to me for not blogging about it. But, the truth is, I have been exceptionally busy these last few months. I have loads of work, and I have been travelling more often than usual. In fact, I have been travelling weekly, when before this, I only travel every 2 weeks.

This coming week will probably be one of those few weeks that I will actually be in the office, or, rather, I am not outstation. I am hardly in the office even if I am not outstation as I can sometimes be chairing project meetings back to back.

A driver asked me the other day how do I remember everything about each and every project that I manage as he is usually the one that takes me from meetings to meetings. I currently have about 30 odd number of projects to handle.

Now, I can’t be telling my ‘trade secret’, can I, when I know I have a few readers of my blogs here who are people I know from work. *wink*

Anyway, back to the current matter in hand, this year, once again, I participated in the Birthday Exchange at NNC and for this time around, my partner is Carla from the United States. Her birthday isn’t until November though I am about ¾ done already on her present. I don’t want to suddenly end up rushing to do her present like what happened last year when I had Diane as my partner. I kept it to almost the very end before finally deciding on what I wanted to do.

At the end of the day, I ended up sending Diane’s present 2 weeks late. *blush* Headmistress Margaret wasn’t too pleased. *head held low in shame*

I can’t show what I did for Carla until after she receives it in November, but, in the mean time, here is what I got from her.....

I got from Carla a box of variegated silk ribbons in 2 lengths of different width, a bag handle in black and white and a pink pincushion with my name stitched on it.

Here’s a closer look of the very sweet pincushion.

I don’t know what bag would suit the handle just yet. It is so lovely; I think I might just keep it in its packaging so that I can keep on admiring it. *grin*

Thanks, Carla, for all the lovely things. Sorry it took me so long before I blogged about it. Do know though that I did not forget, but time was simply not on my side. Thanks again and hugs!

More embroidered towels!

I had a couple of orders for embroidered towels, and I have been busy working on them the past few weeks. Take a look at what I have managed to come up with.

I just love seeing how the designs come to life as Em, my faithful embroidery machine, works on the designs. It’s like you are painting a picture, but instead of brushes, you use threads and needles, and it is a great feeling to see the results of your, well, rather, Em’s piece of work.

Embroidering is like an extension of my architectural training, when before this I feel great seeing how the buildings that I have designed becomes a reality, it is the same feeling too, though on a much smaller scale, and with less the stress, rather, very much less the stress of seeing a building come to life! I don’t have to deal with difficult contractors! LOL!

Any of these designs are available for orders at Uniquely Aznique, or, make a request for a special motif, and if I can get them or is available, I will surely fulfil your order.

Thank you to Rosni and Bakiah for your orders.

Been busy embroidering......

I have been busy...well, ok, since when have I not been busy? LOL! *grin*

OK, make it, I have been EXTRA busy! LOL!

Besides work and doing the household chores, I have been quite busy lately doing embroidery work on my Em, embroidering towels as gifts and also to fulfill orders. Yeah...orders! Sounds like I have loads of orders, right? LOL!

I do, actually, though not many, but enough to keep me occupied after my son goes to bed, and while I keep my hubby company (or is that the other way around? LOL!) whenever he watches one of those war movies. I have fun playing around with the beautiful designs available online and personalising it with names for that special someone.

You know, it does make a lot of difference when you gift someone something personalised. It makes that person feel special that you actually took the trouble to have it personalised.

I made these for a friend who got married on the second day of Hari Raya.

I made these for my brother and SIL for their 17th Wedding Anniversay. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, Nik Ai and Eli! Miss you guys!



These are for my brother, Ayis and his family. I just love the colours of the towels that he had chosen! And, I just love the motif for FATIN and FAWZAN. Cute, don't you think?

Don't you just love these personalised towels? Well, guess what? I am offering sets of embroidered towels at my blog shop - UNIQUELY AZNIQUE  (http://uniquelyaznique.blogspot.com/).

Do drop by to take a look on what I have  to offer and to get further info and more details.

Birthday presents and birthday treats!

I was in Ipoh on my birthday, 8th June 2010, attending a conference. My hubby had driven me there with my son on Sunday, 6th June. My hubby left with my son on my birthday itself as he had to work the following day. It was sad that he had to leave, of all days, on my birthday itself, but I understand that he has other commitments to attend to and he promised me that he would treat me to a good birthday dinner on Saturday after I come back from Ipoh.

As he left Ipoh in the morning while I was still in the conference, I came back to an empty hotel room during lunch, and I felt a pang of sadness, missing my son and hubby tremendously. What a way to spend a birthday! *sigh*

I couldn’t help but cried *grin* the minute I heard my son’s voice over the phone, but had to keep my cool as I did not want my son to know how much I miss him as it might affect him too.

My son had given me a soft toy cheetah the day before which he made my hubby buy for me at The Lost World of Tambun, a theme park where he had spent the whole day with my hubby the day before. The cheetah too looks lost and forlorn, so that makes two of us feeling lonely! LOL!

There was a family dinner organised as part of the programme for the conference, but since my own family had gone home, I did not feel like joining the dinner. I am glad that at least I had made dinner plans earlier with Janet.

Janet picked me up at precisely 7.15 pm and we made our way to this restaurant called Restoran MP in Greentown.

It offered all-you-can-eat BBQ Steamboat Buffet, complete with ice-cream and many other desserts. I would have taken some photos of the food that we ate, but since we were seated quite centrally, I decided against it as I did not want to end up being told off by the waiter/waitress like what happened at this restaurant in Kelana Jaya when we went there for my father-in-laws birthday in February.

I think many people are still very ignorant of the power of IT and the publicity it can bring had that restaurant (in Kelana Jaya) allowed me to take photos and blog about it. I was practically promoting the restaurant free of charge! But, I guess the Manager just lost his chance, and for sure, I am not going there anymore!

Anyway, back to the dinner with Janet, the only photo I managed to snap was this plate of mini cakes Janet had taken for me as she wished me Happy Birthday. *smile*

After dinner, Janet showed me around Ipoh town and the area where she is staying. I realised that Ipoh isn’t such a small town after all! LOL! I thought that the only shopping complex in Ipoh is Ipoh Parade, but I also found out that Ipoh has a huge Jusco and the area surrounding it was so full of life! *grin* It seems that the area where we first arrived in Ipoh was the old town area which was more subdued, it being where most of the offices are.

Janet sent me back to my hotel at about 10.30pm, where, after a good warm shower, I headed straight to bed, hugging my cheetah.

Thanks, Janet, for such a lovely dinner! See you in July when we have our next Stitching Bee!

When I got home the next day, after a much needed rest from all the travelling and two whole days of sitting in a conference and going project site visiting, I opened up the much awaited birthday presents which I got at the Bee in May from Rose, who is my partner for the Birthday Gift Exchange, and from Janet and Margaret.

From Rose, I had received this box full of treasures filled up to the brim with a pair of slippers, two balls of pink yarns, a plastic container for knicks and knacks, a Lizzie Kate chart, a chart for beading works, 3 skeins of yarns, a packet of beads, a packet of needles, a length of pink and brown fabric, a birthday card and this very lovely pincushion.

Here’s a closer look at the lovely pincushion/biscornu. I just love this pincushion and it is already sitting in my showcase of all the lovely things my stitching friends had given me.

From Janet, I received this lovely handmade set of beaded necklace and earrings, a mini birthday card and a lovely piece of pink fabric. I must go through my closet to see which clothes will suit this lovely set of jewellery!

From Margaret, I received this very lovely pinkeep, 2 pieces of pink fabric, and a packet of dark red ric rac.

Here is a close-up of the lovely pinkeep.

Thank you, Margaret, Rose and Janet, for all the lovely gifts!

Next posting – the birthday dinner treat from my hubby!

A Raya cum birthday gift for mum

On Saturday, July 25, 2009, under the heading “Going up in smoke smocking!”, I mentioned that I was making a bag for my mum from the pattern she bought when she was in the US visiting my brother from April to May 2009.

Well, I completed it at the end of July, but I did not want to post photos of it because I want it to be a surprise for my mum.

So, when I went back to Kota Bharu recently, I decided to present the bag to her as a Hari Raya cum birthday gift. Her birthday is on the 10th of October, but as I am uncertain if I will be seeing her on her birthday as it depends on whether I get to make a trip back to KB for work, or if she would be here in KL.

So, here it is.......

Not bad, huh? *wink*

I love the colours of the fabric and the japanese motif.

Look at the inside of the bag! It’s got a pocket for a handphone!!!

I am definitely going to make one for myself…..someday! *grin*

I already have the fabric, but, knowing me, I might change my mind and use another set of fabrics instead as I can be so fickle minded sometimes......err.....or, is that always! LOL! *grin*

On another craft note, in the same posting dated July 29, 2009, I also mentioned that I was learning how to make a smocking dress at my Epal class. I was going no where on the dress as the teachers at Epal did not actually go through with me the proper procedure of how to do the smocking like how much fabric do I need to make the pleats to fit into a certain size of a body of a certain size chest etc.

Having gotten frustrated from not getting the answers that I was looking for despite surfing the internet, I decided to drop by Craft World (formerly known as Yee's Button House) in SS2, last July 2009, during my smocking craze days, as June said that they carry quite a number of the Australian Smoking and Embroidery magazines.

I sure went crazy looking at all the ASE mags and if the sky was the limit when it comes to spending, I think I would have bought the whole stock! LOL! *wink* However that was not to be (a blessing really *grin*), so, I ended up with these....

With the books and mags I bought, plus with June's helpful tips, I managed to make progress on the dress, but only a little bit as I had to put it down when I suddenly had to attend my PTK in August.

This is as far as I got....

I am no longer allowed to do this project in class as the month for doing the smocking dress is over. I will have to wait till next year when the class is offered again. I just hope that my niece will still be able to still fit into it by the time I get it completed! LOL! Luckily, I made it a size bigger!

BTW, in my search to find out more about smocking, I found in my collection this book my mum had bought many many years ago and gave it to me when I moved out of her house after getting married.

I remember doing many of the projects from the book, and as proof of frequent flipping of the pages to get ideas to do the projects, the book is so worn out!

Just look at all those scribbling on the book!

Was I one of the culprits? LOL!

A raya gift and a present for getting a 4.0!

I received the loveliest gift from Radha on 15th September 2009 in the form of a soft sweet pink hairpinlace neckscarf!

Radha said that it is a raya gift as well as a gift for doing well in my recent PTK! I feel like an excited kid that just got a gift from her mummy! LOL! *wink*

It was a gift I never expected, and it was so sweet and thoughtful of Radha to think of me during her recent holiday trip to Europe as she told me that she bought the wool for the scarf at Hobbycraft, a shop I hope to someday visit, but when, only God will know!

Thank you so much, Radha! It is so lovely and sweet! Really love it! It's so PINK! It's so sweet! It's so ME! LOL!

But, I was quite shocked when I saw the packaging. The box came wrapped in plastic and chopped "Dijumpai terbuka/terkoyak dan ditampal semula dengan rasminya pada 4 Sep 2009" (Found opened/torn and rewrapped again officially on 4th Sept 2009).

The postal people in Kedah must be one curious lot as Margaret told me that a gift she received from Radha also had the same notation.

I wonder what were they hope to find.....

Anyway, I am glad that nothing is missing, and I received the package safely, after all the hard work that Radha had put into it.

Thanks again, Radha! Hugs!

An unexpected belated birthday present!

I received a very lovely belated birthday gift from Tini and Paul on Wednesday morning. Well, rather, it arrived on Tuesday, 25th August, but I wasn't in the office on Tuesday.

Paul smsed me while I was on leave on Tuesday asking if I had received a POSLAJU package from him which he had sent on Thursday. He wanted it to be a suprise but he must have gotten worried as it should have arrived latest by Friday, it being a POSLAJU package, as I had said nothing on Friday or Monday. Either that, or, he must think that I must be really rude not to acknowledge the gift from him. Oopps! *blush* LOL!

Anyway, I am not to be blamed *grin* for not acknowledging the gift as it only arrived on Tuesday while I was away, but my assistant smsed me to say that a package had arrived for me and that he had placed it on my table in my office when I inquired about it from him on Tuesday.

So, you see, Paul, I wasn't being rude *grin*. But, I am mad with the postal clerk at my office who had failed to deliver the package to me immediately when it arrived on Friday according to records at the POSLAJU center.

Doesn't he or she knows the meaning of a POSLAJU package? I sometimes feel like shaking up the clerk at the postal counter if I could!

Anyway, back to the gift that Paul and Tini gave. It's a very lovely bag made with the sweetest fabric of english flowers and a crocheted lace.

Since I know Tini hasn't actually tried crocheting, I pressume the lovely crocheted lace was made by Paul, and Tini made the bag using the lace Paul crocheted. The combination is really awesome.

If I may add, as awesome as the couple who combined efforts to make it? *wink*

Love the maroon colour bottom for the bag.

Here's a close-up of the lovely lace. Awesome, wouldn't you agree?

Love the inside of the bag - it's so sweet! I think the bag is also reversible.

Oooohhhhh! I love everything about the bag! It's going shopping with me the next time I go shopping!

Thanks you so much, Paul and Tini! It was really unexpected!

So, my birthday lasted longer this time around with a gift arriving in August when my birthday was in June! *wink*

Thanks again! Hugs!

What a load of gifts!

My mum just came back from the United States of America after an almost 2-months stay at my brother’s house in Ann Arbor, Michigan, who is doing his Masters and PhD there. She was there since March. 2009.

She safely arrived on 27th May 2009 at about 7.30am, but only cleared customs an hour later due to a lot of paperwork as a result of the influenza virus that is currently going around.

She looks well, and happy, and had lots to tell, so, we all, my sister, Lin, and two brothers, Ayis and Azan, met her for a belated birthday celebration for my brother, Azan, an early birthday celebration for my sis, Lin, and a welcome home dinner for my mum at Tony Roma’s, Sunway Pyramid.

Even before dinner was served, my mum gave away the gifts that she brought back for us, and, oh my, I love them all! Look at what she brought back for my hubby, Aiman and me!

For my hubby, a Jones New York Neck Tie, and for Aiman, a sports shirt and pants. I got the most presents, but, of course! LOL! *grin*

I got a book, “The Perfect Bag” by Linda McGehee, a pink Coach handbag, a dark pink Liz Clairborne purse from my brother and Sister-in-law for Mother’s Day cum birthday present, and a pair of Jones New York sunglasses! Wow! My birthday just came early! LOL!

This pink COACH handbag is perfectly me!

My mum knew that I was looking for a pink handbag as the current one I have is all worn out already, and anything PINK always gets me excited! LOL! So, this dark pink purse from my brother and SIL suites me very well, and goes well with my new Coach handbag! What more could I ask for? *wink*

I love this book, “The Perfect Bag” by Linda McGehee, and could not stop flipping through it during dinner while waiting for the food to be served.

However, I realized that the book came with the patterns missing as there were traces of a pattern being attached to the back cover of the book.

When I got home, I made a check online with the publisher, and they offered to send me the patterns. Now that’s what I call great customer service! You think we can find that kind of service here in Malaysia? Yes, but not very often, and very far between. *sigh*

We have a very long way to go when it comes to customer service. When in the US (since I spent most part of up growing up years in the US, I know the level of customer service offered there), the saying goes that the customer is always right, but, in Malaysia, the shop assistant/owner, and everyone else in the business is right, EXCEPT the customer (remember the entry dated Saturday, May 23, 2009, "JELITA it is not! - A lesson learnt......" being one very good example).

I have found a few nice shop owners/sales assistants, but they are a very rare species. We need to breed more of those, and I hope, under the new Prime Minister, steps will be taken to improve this part of our service, as it goes a long way in bringing in more investors to our country.

Oopps! Sorry! I am digressing! LOL!

Anyway, back to the gifts that I got from my mum, I also got this lovely pair of Jones New York sunglasses. This must be my most expensive pair of sunglasses thus far! *blush* Thanks, Ma!

My mum also bought a very lovely casing to go with it, and I bet it is going to make me look stylish, no, make that very stylish! LOL! *wink*

Thank you so much, Ma, for all the lovely gifts! Thanks, NikAi and Eli, for the lovely purse!