Upcycle Living

The virus is showing no sign of retiring, which means, we need more reusable face masks to go around. They are especially useful for when we just need to go out to sort something out in the garden or just to receive something from the delivery guy. Can you imagine wearing a disposable face mask just for that few minutes or so then dispose of it? By the time this pandemic is over (if that's ever going to happen), we will have another pandemic of trash mountains made out of disposable face masks! This has been put aside for quite a while now as I have been rather busy for the past few months and had not much of a DIY motivation, plus, I couldn't find any suitable material such as a good, used fabric. However, while going through the chest drawers, a used pillow case caught my eye. It's tough enough, it's cotton, and it's grey - just great for the design I had in mind - an embroidered Batman logo 😁 The good news is, the old embroidery frame that has been in the family...

During these movement-controlled days, besides worrying about the shortage of surgical masks, the accumulating disposal of the one-time use masks is also a concern - not to mention the money we would have to keep spending on buying them. As I have more than usual free time on my hands, there is really no excuse why I shouldn't look into learning to make some washable reusable face masks for ourselves. After studying the structures of the existing surgical masks and what other people have shared online, I have made a few for the people around me. What I have done is to add a pocket to some, in order to slot in a filter pad if needs be. Another add-on feature is the adjustable clip-on straps so that there is no need for elastics bands over the ears. The main reason for this is that the elastic bands would dig in to the back of the ears and could be painful over time. Secondly, I am making all these with existing materials I can find in the house, and I just do not have them at hand. ...

It's been more than 30 years since I last practised my Chinese calligraphy, as well as last owned a Chinese brush or ink! But Lunar New Year is just around the corner and I really want to put up a spring couplet (春联) on the door, just to get into the mood. I've even written a few sets of my own couplets - not from the usual ones that had been published for many years which everyone else is using 😁 There are or course, professional calligraphers at shopping malls to write these on the spot for any paying customers; but as usual, I'm cheap 😜😂! And I still hold on to the idea that - if I can do it myself, I shall try not to pay someone else to do it. So I thought I'd try - with or without the calligraphy tools. I began with the sourcing of the "Four Treasures of Chinese Study" (文房四宝) around town, in all stationers and book stores I can get to by public transport (yes, I don't own a car), but to no avail. Well that's a lie - I did find the brus...

Forgive me God, for I have been lazy... I started making my very first DIY Advent calendar in April, thinking that I have all the time in the world to finish it. But I was wrong. As I'm using 100% reused and recycled material from everything readily existing in the house, it means that all forms and shapes are made from scratch. And my plan is to make 24 individual little bags with hand stitched numbers on! The moment I started, I encountered a problem: my embroidery skills are nothing to shout about so stitching the numbers on with threads is out of the question. Thankfully, a solution came soon enough, which is to shape the numbers with colourful ribbons or strings then stitch them onto each bag. Phew... the plan went on... During the first few weeks of its production, I was gung-ho and adamant about it, watching Hallmark Christmas movies while stitching away; then I got tired because it took way longer and more complicated than I expected it to be 😭 ! Then I got busy...

Been really lazy since Chinese New Year. And thanks to the extreme heat, it's painful to sit down for hours trying to make something. But there has been some occasional rain recently so I've managed to steal a few cooler hours here and there to get something done. I was given a Depeche Mode vest (bootleg one by the way, but still loved it!) a few years ago, but it never fit me properly- or should I say - it's my weird-shaped body that couldn't carry it off 😅 I would usually give away my old clothes to charity collection but definitely not this one - no way! Couldn't bear to see it gathering dust so I decided to turn it into a bag. And yes I haven't had too many bags yet 🙊 All I did was sewing the bottom together to make a base with gussets, trimmed off the shoulders and hemmed them; then finished with straps made from an old knackered neck tie. Took me one rainy evening 🌧 plus two punctured fingertips. I'm now ready to go shopping with my new p...

Compared to Christmas, we're not that big on Chinese New Year decoration. However, this year we've moved back to the old folks', and we shall just join in the tradition. As usual, I'm not keen on the shop-bought decorations as they are often too horrible looking - too much gold or glitter - just make me cringe. Apart from the 2 sets of lanterns I made out last year but didn't get a chance to put them up, I decided to do my own calligraphy decoration for the front door. I say calligraphy, but I'm really using a craft knife and a few sheets of coloured foam I had from past projects. Main reason being, I no longer own any traditional Chinese calligraphy tools such as brush and ink - but being an ex-advertising creative, I will always have my craft knife with me 😁 It wasn't a very difficult task, although I would wish for the weather to be cooler to make it easier.  Just draft each character on rough paper, cut them out to make stencils, then trac...

When I arrived at the airport last June, I realised that the rubber grip on both my luggage handles had broken into pieces - disintegrated - literally! I ended up tying my scarf (I happened to be wearing one for the travel) around one just so that I could carry it without hurting my hand. I (and the luggage bag) survived the 3 weeks. This is mainly due to it being left in the spare room for the previous 2 years (that was how long I went without a holiday), and exposed to the very hot morning sun for hours on a daily basis. The cheapskate that I am, throwing the bag away is definitely not an option, let alone a Hush Puppies! It was the first time ever in my life that I bought such a high end luggage - for my kind of standard - and obviously, when it was on a really great deal. Being a 5-year-old luggage, it still is working really well except for the broken rubber grips. So the next option is to get them repaired, or at least just the handles replaced. I found a bag repair cent...

Ang Pao envelopes  a.k.a. the red packets , a must have's for Lunar New Year but also a thing that will become clutter over time. We can never get the right amount of a certain design, and we'll often be left with too many unused/odd ones. Although I've handmade some this year but there is still a stack too many from previous years and some of them have specific year or zodiac design on which can't be used for the following year. Growing up, we used to lots of fun making little lanterns with old red packets as festive decoration, and I think it's time to relive that sentiment. Instead of the usual squarish designs, this is one in a spheric form, using just 1 basic modular shape: Cut red packets (ang pao packets) into equal circles (about 8cm diameter) and draw an equal triangle on the reverse side. Fold on the triangle outlines, then glue the shapes together to get these: The 2 round shapes are for the top and the bottom, whilst the long strip goe...

Walking through the Lunar New Year decorations in the shopping mall yesterday, reminded me that we'll need to get hold of some Ang Pow packets (little red envelopes for new year money). We usually get them free with purchase from departmental stores and supermarkets, but you'll often end up with too many or too few of certain designs/sizes. I'm not entirely keen on making unnecessary purchases just for those red packets, let alone advertising for corporations who are already making money out of us. That's when these pretty backing papers springs to mind: I got these lovey looking backing papers from the Diamond Jubilee issue of Crafts Beautiful (UK magazine). One of the many perks of buying crafts magazines is the little craft-making tools or craft materials that came with the magazines. But the downside is: they can become a clutter too. I had used them to wrap quite a few presents and made a couple of gift bags; yet several years on I'm still having p...