Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas
Originally uploaded by desireux.

Wishing you a blessed holiday season and a great year ahead.

Ps: Go easy on the eggnog :)

Front page yeah!

Front page yeah!
Originally uploaded by desireux.

Starry Night made it to the front page of Etsy today. I'm not sure how long it was on, but saw it around 2.30 pm, and by 4 pm it was no more there. It's my first time ever being on the front page of Etsy so it was quite a thrill.

Thank you very much Terbear for including me in a treasury with all the beautiful paper art.

Click here and it'll take you to my flickr where you can see a larger image and admire the other creations on the front page.

Pasadena here I come

Pasadena here I come
Originally uploaded by desireux.

I'm so excited!

I managed to get Rose Bowl tickets!

Initially when the tickets went on sale for the season ticket holders, there were a couple on Craigslist going for 500/pair. I thought they were a good deal but didn't get them.

So, on the 11th the ticket sales were open to the public. Around 23,000 tickets reserved by Illinois were already sold and there were only 2000+ left. I was contemplating going the night before to queue up, but then decided i wasn't willing to do so :P

Woke up at 6 something that morning, the weather was horrible. Cold icy rain.. so I snuggled in bed a little while more and then took the bus to Assembly Hall. Reached about 8am, expecting to see a long long line, but to my *joy* I saw that the line wasn't too long! A little smile was appearing on my face.

Although they were supposed to sell the tickets at 9am, they started early and by 8.20 am I was jumping up and down and calling my friend because I had the tickets (actually just receipt at that time) in hand.

This morning, the UPS guy came knocking and I tore open the envelope to see my shiny crisp tickets. I'm going to be in the Rose Bowl with 97,000 other fans. Hopefully I'll be with the other Illini fans, can't wait to go get a new orange shirt with maybe an orange hairband!

Can't wait!! .... but I've to get through two more finals. Yay.

Holiday Card Project 2007

deviantART is organizing a Holiday card project where anyone can send in a greeting card to be given to people who are hospitalized during the holiday season. It's the fourth year they are doing this, it's a great way to bring a little cheer to patients in hospital.

The idea behind this project is to do something nice for others but if you still need another reason, deviantART members who submit a card will receive a months free subscription to deviantART and a chance to win prizes.

It's a easy way to make someone happy at this time of the year, so if you're interested (I hope you are!), read more here. The card has to reach by the 17th though, so it's probably best to send asap.

Chicago Thanksgiving Parade

Big Yellow Bird with red tights :)
Originally uploaded by desireux.

I've finally edited this year's Thanksgiving photos and uploaded them to Flickr. This year I did something different. I visited Chicago to see the annual parade. It's been a tradition for the city since 1934, and also has large helium cartoon characters like the Macy's parade. It was my first time seeing these giants, so I was rather thrilled. The weather was so cold though, but it didn't seem to deter anyone.

For more photos you can see the whole set on my Flickr.

Things people do.

:O
Originally uploaded by desireux.

I was going out this morning when I looked down at my car and saw this! One of my neighbors must have been too free/ too loving/ drunk!

The past two days were kind of snowy. But it was nice because for once, the 'feel like' temperature was actually warmer than the real temperature. It was -1 Celcuis but felt like 1 C. I couldn't have been happier after the few super freezing days. There's supposed to be freezing rain tonight and through the weekend, so that's not too good. Hopefully the roads won't be trecherous because I need to do groceries and run some errands.

Finals week is next week and it's going to be tough. I feel like I haven't had a chance to breathe since the beginning of October with school, experiments, the Halloween rush, a commission, Christmas ... But this winter break I think I need to go somewhere and do something fun just to re-charge for the next semester.

Anyway, I'm probably going to set up my Christmas tree tonight. Will post photos!

Red Nosed Rudolph

Unveiled: 180 pop-up cards
Originally uploaded by desireux.

Here's little Rudolph with his nose so red ... :)
So this is a special holiday design from my new line of 180 degree pop-up greeting cards which I was so excited about yesterday. I've listed them on Etsy and hope others love him as much as I do!

These 180 degree pop-ups are made with a special technique, it lies totally flat on a surface so it functions very well as a lovely piece of decoration. I'll be uploading more designs so stay tuned.

Sneak Peak

Sneak Peak
Originally uploaded by desireux.

On 1st December, I will be unveiling a new kind of pop-up for Christmas. I'm pretty excited because I've been working on the prototypes since a few months ago and finally they are all set to go!

They will be available on my Etsy, so do stop by and check them out. I'll be posting photos of them here too, so stay tuned!

Stevy Snowman

Stevy Snowman
Originally uploaded by desireux.

So I've finally had time to design another holiday card, so here's my adorable Snowman affectionately known as Stevy. I had him in mind for quite some time and when I saw the scraps of red and white polka dot paper left over from the cover of some other designs, I knew it had to be his scarf. It's definitely something I myself would wear! I think this is the card which I'll make to send to my family and friends this Christmas.

The 300

The 300
Originally uploaded by desireux.

For the past 22 nights, these 300 shimmery maroon lovelies have taken up my full attention. It was quite emotional parting with them, but they'll be going to wonderful people, so all's good. And as someone said, there'll be more ;)

Happy Thanksgiving

Tommy Turkey
Originally uploaded by desireux.

Have a great Thanksgiving everyone!

Holiday Greeting Cards

Christmas Tree Pop-Up Card
Originally uploaded by desireux.

I've started listing my holiday greeting cards on Etsy, and will be adding more designs over the next week. I'll also be offering them in sets, so do stop by if you like them.

I came across this article in the Storque about this MOO card competition. It's a cool idea, they are collecting images to make a People Powered Holiday Card store where anyone can submit images on flickr to be made into holiday cards. Even better still, to encourge submissions they are having a Super-Duper Holiday Card competition where the winners of different categories can win $2000. Go check it out!

Falling Leaves

Originally uploaded by desireux.

Yesterday, I was walking along the quad at and I saw leaves every where just like my card! ... except maybe heaps and heaps more. It was really pretty too, there were two guys with powerful blowers blowing the leaves into piles, and the leaves were just flying here and there.

That Special Flower

Originally uploaded by desireux.

I was really lucky to witness the blooming of the Epiphyllum flower last night. It's my lab mate's plant and we were all very excited because it was the first flower for the 3 year old plant, and for most of us, it was the first time seeing the flower live. So, this special flower took about 2 hours to open fully and then lasted for a few hours before it closed again. The flower is very beautiful and its sweet scent is quite strong too. Now, we'll wait and see if it will bear fruits. I hope it does, it will be another exciting event!

Yay for an extra hour

Originally uploaded by desireux.

I just watched my computer clock change from 2am to 1am. How nice to have gained an extra hour. Should I make more cards or go to bed? I think I'll sleep soon :)

Happy Halloween!

Originally uploaded by desireux.

Have a blast treat-or-tricking, dressing up, scaring people, getting spooked!

Finally the leaves are changing

Originally uploaded by desireux.

I was just thinking to myself a few days ago how fall seems to be coming a little slow this year. Most of the trees were still green and the weather was fluctuating rather drastically. Yesterday it even reached 27C in the afternoon (but no, I'm not complaining!). This morning, after a night of rain, it was chilly but nice and I looked up and saw yellows, oranges, reds, and bare branches. Is it possible for the leaves to change color overnight?

Curtis Orchards

Baby pumpkin
Originally uploaded by desireux.

The pumpkin patch is beautiful, all the bright orange pumpkins of all shapes and sizes scattered on the ground, with little kids and big kids with their red wagons searching for the perfect pumpkin. But what I find so hilarious about pumpkin picking is that all the pumpkins are actually all harvested from the plant already. When walking around the patch today, I was just imagining how every morning, the workers will drive to the patch and lay the pumpkins all over the place, ready to be 'harvested' by us. How cute especially for the little ones, thinking that they are harvesting pumpkins :P

Anyway, for those around Champaign-Urbana who want to go pumpkin picking, visit Curtis Orchards. They have very good apple cider too.

Etsy commercial on Youtube

Check out this awesome video about Etsy on Youtube. Too cool!

Spotlight: Featured in The Storque

Spotlight: Featured in The Storque
Originally uploaded by desireux.

Leah from Leah's Glass Creations (go visit her, I've got one of her mobiles and it's so cool!) convo-ed me one morning to tell me I was featured in The Storque. I was so thrilled! I think Adam did a very nice little write-up and loved his choice of cards to feature. Thanks again, Leah and Adam! Here's the link to the 'spotlight' if you would like to read it.

Daddy Long Legs ... finally becomes a reality

Daddy Long Legs ...
Originally uploaded by desireux.

For the past two weeks, daddy long legs has been swimming in my head. I had the idea and was looking for the spider- either a sticker, small plastic toy or even a small spider puncher but I just couldn't find a suitable one. They were either too big, too crude, too expensive, or just plain ugly. Then, I was playing around with making it out of wire.. and so on. Finally, I just 'saw' how daddy long legs could be made in an efficient way, not to mention so adorable! Well, I made him and his web earlier tonight, took some photos and now it's on Etsy. I'm happy :)

Also, I'll be in the Etsy Halloween Showcase today, for 24 hours so do check it out. There'll be other cool Halloween creations too.

PS: look at daddy long leg's eyes.. the punch (see last entry) is proving useful.

Tool Time

Bats in progress
Originally uploaded by desireux.

Finally got myself two different sized punches. One's 1/16" and another is 1/8". I've been debating whether to get them for the longest time, because many times, I have bought tools thinking they would help but I end up not using them. So this time I thought hard and long, and decided that yes, they will save time and make my work better. They have been rather useful, I use the 1/16" ones to make my bat's eyes, yay! no more hand cutting dozens of little orange circles. Plus, I think they make my work look so much neater and more professional. The punches I got were from McGill and I'm satisfied with the quality of their punching; clean smooth egdes on cardstock. They do seem a bit tough but I also think that's because my hands are small.

Happiness x2

Boardwalk on the sand dunes
Originally uploaded by desireux.

One of the greatest rewards for making my handmade cards is the feedback I get. The especially touching ones are those that tell stories of how a card made someone dear to them smile, or how a card would be perfect for a certain person in their lives. I love how cards are usually bought to be given away, so it's even more meaningful. Ever since I was young, when I create something, I would imagine the person I'm making it for, and their reaction when they get it. So now when I make the cards, I think of the person who buys it, and then of the other receipient of the card. That's like twice the happiness and twice the fun :)

Look towards the east

Originally uploaded by desireux.

I'm glad that as I was heading out this morning, I looked towards the east and saw such a beautiful sight. It was foggy, and the sun's rays were shinning though the trees, making the 'messy with construction' street, actually look dreamy! I walked a little slower, felt a little happier and was 7 minutes late for class. But it was all worth it :)

In preparation

Many uses of Miller lite
Originally uploaded by desireux.

My exams are finally over (for the time being) so I used the weekend to shop around for supplies, get up to date on figures, make more cards, and prepare packaging materials. I'm now using empty cereal & beer :P cardboard boxes (which have never been in direct contact with food, of course) to protect my handmade cards. It's a good way to recycling, they look nice and colorful, and best of all are not too heavy, which brings down the shipping cost. The cardboard, pop-up card, name card and a little note of thanks all go inside a ziplock bag for further protection against the elements; and of they go to their new home.

Tomorrow is October and only 30 more days to Halloween! I want to dress up as a decapitated ghost like this very cool Marie Antionette I saw on Gizmodo last year. If I'm serious about doing it, I better start soon as it looks rather complicated.

Also, I'm very happy that more people are showing interest in my Bats In The Dark and Cats In The Dark pop-ups. Do have a peek at them ... and they'll all be looking back at you :)

Bountiful Harvest? at Pontious Farm

Bountiful Harvest
Originally uploaded by desireux.

Last weekend, I went to Pontious Farm, hoping to pick some blackberries. After looking high and low, that was all we brought back :) Even getting those few berries was a challenge. The blackberry bush is covered with thorns. The thorns are on the leaves and branches and just sticking my hand in there was rather painful.

The funny (and unfortunate) thing is we brought the precious few berries back but forgot to eat them. By the time we realized it, they were growing mouldy in the plastic bag :(

Anyway, if you are in Champaign-Urbana, and feel like picking berries, go to Pontious Farm. Here's their website. It's near the end of the berry season so I'm not sure what's left but they probably still have blackberries. Go early though or you'll end up with just a handful like me.

Ps: They have a llama too!

Message in the bottle (cap) & wierd rules.

Originally uploaded by desireux.

"A person is not old until regrets take the place of dreams."
-- John Barrymore

We got a bottle of Lambrusco Reunite (nice, fruity wine btw) at Mejier. I wasn't paying for it, just standing beside the counter and was also asked for my ID. I was shocked and asked why. The cashier said "oh, sometimes people buy alcohol for other people". As far as I recall, only the person buying had to produce the ID. The more I thought about it, the more ridiculous this 'rule' seems. What happens if a mother is doing her grocery shopping with her two little kids and wants to buy a bottle of wine? She can't? That is just ridiculous. What about a situation where a 34-year old mom goes shopping with her 17 year old son and wants to buy beer? Not allowed? So is this a real law or was it some Meijer clerk who was very mis-informed? Let me know if you've experienced this before.

Amazing set of Waterdrops on Flickr

Chrysanthemum dewdrop refraction #2
Originally uploaded by Lord V.

I stumbled upon this beautiful set of waterdrops by Lord V on flickr.
Do check it out.

I had no idea there was a special technique to take photos of these waterdrops with flower refections. I've seen others do it and would always think how lucky they are that a bright, gorgeous daisy just happened to be reflected in the waterdrop. Now I know that there's a careful set-up there :)

Anyway, here's the tutorial, also written by Lord V if you are interested.

Ramadan

Eid ul-Fitr Pop-Up Card
Originally uploaded by desireux.

To all my Muslim readers, may you have a blessed Ramadan.

Message in the bottle (cap)

Originally uploaded by desireux.

From the bottle caps of Honest Tea (pretty nice tea btw):

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.
-- Confucius

Last year, Honest Tea sold 7,998,654 bottles of tea. This is the same amount of Coke sold in 9 minutes.

Love those quotes and little bits of info.

Reminder for Prison Break fans ~
Season 3 starts tomorrow!! 8/7 central on FOX.

Making a little difference

Originally uploaded by desireux.

I do my weekly grocery shopping at Meijer. One thing that has always made me a little unhappy was their 'generosity' at using plastic bags. It was not uncommon to have 10 plastic bags for a batch of grocerys. And in each bag, sometimes there would only be 2 items. So, I got a huge reusable tote bag to carry the groceries. Initially, I was afraid the checkers would not be too happy to have to do something different. Some do seem abit, just dumping the items outside and then I would have to either ask them if they could please put it inside the bag. But most are okay, putting them nicely into the bag. One young man was particularly nice, going as far as to arrange the bottles and boxes so they were standing upright in the bag. Last week, I had a rather pleasant surprise. Meijer has implemented a 0.05 cent deduction for shoppers with their own bags. It's a small amount and I'm not sure of the effect on other shoppers but it makes me happy to know that they are encouraging people to use less plastic bags. So if you head out to Meijer, do a little bit for the environment and bring your own bag.

The Case of the Missing Grapes

Tammy Turtle
Originally uploaded by desireux.

We bought a new box of grapes last weekend at Meijer. Huge juicy black grapes. On Tuesday, I was informed that the grapes were missing. How wierd. I looked in the fridge and true enough, the box of grapes was no where to be found. Today, I opened the container cabinet and saw the the grapes!! Apparently someone (not me.. ehem..) put it in there after taking out a container to bring some grapes to work. My my....

Making it on Explore

Peas
Originally uploaded by desireux.

I have always thought that it was the coolest thing to appear on Flickr's Explore. A few days ago, I was in a discussion with another Etsy/Flickr member, FortCloudy and she mentioned a website that let's you check if any of your photos have ever made Explore. Turns out that three of mine actually were, but have since been dropped. Pretty cool!

Anyway, here's the link if you didn't know about it. It let's you create nice posters of your Explore photos too. Mine didn't look too good with only 3 :P Also, if it shows none, you might want to click "recently dropped" to try. Just means that your photo is no longer in the list but was there.

Flickr Scout by BigHugeLabs

Enjoy, you might get a pleasant surprise like I did!

Food Network

Originally uploaded by desireux.

I'm watching Paula's Party on Food Network now and Paula Deen's son was on her show making a dessert. He was telling how he met his wife on his first date and knew at that moment that he was going to marry her. So after dinner he slipped her fork and napkin into his jacket. True enough they got married, and while cutting the cake, he whipped out the fork and napkin; and told the story to the guests. Definitely an "aww" moment.

A whole lot of corn

Originally uploaded by desireux.

Finally finished a special order for my pop-up mini's. I have a soft spot for these mini's because not only are they cute, but I can think of so many uses for them. From business cards, to invitations, little note cards to place-cards and stocking stuffers. These here are for putting into goody bags for a programming language conference.

Speaking of corn, I've been using my mom's way of cooking it in the microwave and it's the best way! Just rinse your ear of corn, and then wrap it in a paper towel. Sprinke some water onto the paper towel and put the whole thing in the microwave for 2 minutes on Hi. That's all there is to it. No more bringing out the big pot, boiling the water, boiling the corn. Best of all, you get the sweetest corn which is not the least bit soggy! And in 2 minutes. What could be better?

So I just had a nice big corn for lunch. Rubbed it with butter, sprinkled it with salt.. yums!

Social Networking

Originally uploaded by desireux.

I've been busy ...

Finally signed up for 3 new networks: Facebook, Indiepublic and Gluestickgreetings by Ning, and boy, are they keeping me occupied.

I was very surprised at the speed of replies I got after adding old friends on facebook. Within one night, almost all my requests were authorized. I knew Facebook was popular but didn't know it was that popular.

Anyway, I've finished the book by Trump. It was an interesting read, especially if you are an Apprentice fan. If not, the last half of the book might be boring because it gives a rather detailed account of the finale of the 1st season and the first few episodes of the second. Other than that, I like Trumps outlook on life and his writing has a nice sense of humor to it.

Going to start on a second book soon, The Tipping Point, by Malcolm Gladwell.

Currently reading ...

Lucky Trio
Originally uploaded by desireux.

"Being good in business is the most facinating kind of art ...
Making money is art and working is art and good business is the best art." -- Andy Warhol

I just visited the Urbana Free Library today and picked up a total of 7 books. 5 art books, 1 light young adult fiction to read before bed, and the book I've just started on "Trump: Think Like a Billionaire. Everything you need to know about success, real estate, and life."

The quote above is from the introduction of the book. I've just read a few pages, but it's managed to capture my interest. So if like me, you not only like designing and creating, but love the business aspect of it, check out your local library for the book. Even though I think he talks more about real estate, there's bound to be something aplicable. Not to mention some snippets about The Apprentice (I LOVE it!)

Bats In The Dark

Bats In The Dark
Originally uploaded by desireux.

This is the second design in my Halloween series of pop-up cards. I have to say, this is my favorite so far. Will be going to cut another card I designed last night, this time it's for sweethearts ...

Once when I was living in the dorms, I opened my door and lying outside was a baby bat! I had no idea how it got in there, the whole place is air-conditioned and the windows are hardly opened, and there is netting too. It was rather adorable, furry body and beady eyes, but it was dying. I didn't know what to do so I reported it to the front desk, but no one seemed to think it was a big deal that there was a sick little bat lying outside my door. Unfortunately, it died soon after that.

By the way, I just discovered a new group, Plain White T's and I love their song Hey There Delilah!

Pop-Up Cards for Halloween

Cats in the Dark
Originally uploaded by desireux.

Last night I designed two new cards for my Halloween pop-up card line. I wanted something unique and remembered a design from ages ago when I was probably 10 or 11.

When I was a little girl, I used to join art competitions and was rather serious about them. My parents were very supportive, and rather serious about it too. Before the actual competition, there would be brainstorming and practices. One competition was organized by the Sarawak Cat Museum and of course the theme was "Cats". I remember trying to draw cats, but my cats were not the pretty cats that would win competitions. My mum came up with a brilliant idea of having a totally black background and just having the eyes glowing. Oh what a great idea that was, and I had a great time drawing and giving those cat's eyes different colors, shapes and sizes. And "Cats In the Dark" won the first prize. It even was made into a post card sold at the museum. So if you go to the Sarawak Cat Museum and see a child's drawing of "Cats in the Dark" on a postcard, its most probably mine :)

Stay tuned for more halloween pop-up cards. I'm excited!

'Baby' by tracy

Carriage for a baby girl pop-up card
Originally uploaded by desireux.

Introducing my new line of super sweet pop-up cards.

I had a great time designing these baby-themed cards, perfect for baby showers, baby announcements or congrats for a newborn.

Interesting read: Hallmark- Success is in the cards

Originally uploaded by desireux.

Hallmark started with one 18 year old boy, selling picture postcards from two shoeboxes in a room at a YMCA. Today, according to a write-up on Apple's website, one out of every two cards sold is a Hallmark card. Amazing isn't it?

The article can be found here on Apple's Pro's profiles.

A great opportunity

Featured on Daily Candy
Originally uploaded by desireux.

The first thing I did when I returned from a great Sunday night at Asilomar was check my Etsy, and was very pleasantly surprised to see that all but one of my pop-up cards had been bought. I had no idea where the sudden buzz came from until I received a message from a fellow flickr member congratulating me on my appearance on that day's Daily Candy: Chicago edition. Here is the write-up for July 16th. Up till then, I had no idea what daily candy was, so it was definitely a happy moment. I still do not know how I got featured, but thank you Daily Candy and anyone who might have played a part in this great opportunity.

A city girl?

Lake view
Originally uploaded by desireux.

A friend just moved into the heart of Chicago. Looking out of his apartment, I thought about how I would love to live in the middle of a big city for a few years. I imagined my own place, decorated with my own designs, precious finds from thrift stores, and not forgetting unique pieces of art from Etsy. I imagined walking fast, with the crowd along the busy streets. I imagined sitting in a park or a cafe during weekends looking at people rushing by. But I also thought about how lonely it might get if one was alone in a big city. Looking out of the window, looking down at the park below, all the smiling faces, happy voices, and to be alone in an apartment just watching.

A million stars raining down on me

Originally uploaded by desireux.

Taken with the iPhone's camera. I'm quite impressed with the quality of the photos.

I have some inspirations for more pop-up cards for the coming holiday season. Hope to get some made soon :)

Can't wait for Thursday, California here I come!

The iPhone

Apple store, Chicago
Originally uploaded by desireux.

The iPhone is beautiful. My Etsy looks great on it. But the iPhone is not mine.

One day I will have my own. I think it will be a great, portable way to show people my Etsy store and my Flickr.

On Friday we went to the AT&T store in Savoy, and was very much surprised to see about 80 people in line! There was a lady attending to the lines but she refused to say if they have enough phones to go round, saying instead "we've got quite a few boxes, but we have no idea how many are inside" and that was after they had started selling them. Not surprisingly, they ran out of phones after only a few customers, and after we had stood in line for 50 minutes.

Next stop, Chicago Apple store on Saturday. The phone was actually in stock. There was a crowd but it was a happy, controlled crowd. Check out my flickr set to see more.

Love Completes Me

Love Completes Me
Originally uploaded by desireux.

I bought a simple circular cutter from Michael's and this is my latest design. Perfect circles symbolizing completeness and the heart, for love of course. There were different fancy circular cutters at the scrapbooking section, and they all cost close to ten bucks. What I wanted was a simple compass-like one. Fortunately, a nice lady knew what I was talking about and led me to the section that sells materials for making hobby cars and I found the exact cutter I was looking for.

I've been trying to read more now, a few pages (or a chapter or more ... depending on how interesting) before going to sleep. The latest book I finished was "No more ramen: The 20-Something's Real World Survival Guide: Straight Talk on Jobs, Money, Balance, Life, and More" by Nicholas Aretakis. Although a lot of advice in the book sounds quite cliche, there's definitely some that makes good sense. One of the more useful parts talked about the importance of setting defined milestones especially career wise. I thought about mine so now if people ask me the usual question "So what do you plan to do after grad-school ... ?", I can tell them what I want to achieve by 27, 30, 35, 40 and so on.. :D

107 hearts in 2 months. :)

107 hearts in 2 months. :)
Originally uploaded by desireux.

I think hearts are a great feature of Etsy. Its just uplifting to see new hearts being added, especially for new sellers or when sales are in a slump. Its a reassuring feeling to know that other people like your creations. I've also seen the work of some wonderful artists through this feature.

Red Alert

Originally uploaded by desireux.

These berries were taken at University of llinois' Robert Allerton Park. I don't know what they are but I know they are not poisionous because a rather daring friend popped one into his mouth!

Allerton was recently voted as one of the Seven Wonders of Illinois, congrats! Here's the Allerton flickr pool by various photographers. There are some photos in there that really capture the best of the gardens.

Its been nearly 2 months since I joined Etsy and I have to say a big thank you to everyone who has given their support and especially to the new owners of my cards. You guys are the greatest!

Also, I googled myself today, and was very pleasantly surprised to find out that my designs have been mentioned in several blogs. Thank you so much to those blog owners.

Good read

Sayuri
Originally uploaded by desireux.

This article on Businessweek.com is a very good write-up about Etsy.

Do take a look at the slideshow too for some very creative pieces and good advice from successful sellers.

Paper frenzy

Long Island Ice Tea
Originally uploaded by desireux.

Today I went to Michael's to return a dollar punch that was not working properly. It turned out that they were having a good paper sale! And so I just had to add to my pretty paper collecton. What I love is that I know they will be turned into beautiful pop-ups so I don't feel bad buying so much.

In the photo is one of my recent designs to add to the cocktail pop-up card collection, available at my Etsy. Its a design I am very very happy with. The orange really goes well with the purplish-blue.

Also, on a happy note, some of my creations found new homes last week =)