Take Time to be Holy

1 Peter 1:13-16 - "Be Holy, For I Am Holy"

What does holiness meant to you? I never seriously considered this, until I read this song/poem written by William Dunn Longstaff (1822-1894)

These r very simple to follow, & down to earth thoughts which I believe many of us can relate to. Enjoy, & be blessed :)

Take time to be holy,

Speak oft with thy Lord;

Abide in Him always,

And feed on His Word.

Make friends of God's children;

Help those who are weak;

Forgetting in nothing

His blessing to seek.

Take time to be holy,

the world rushes on;

Much time spend in secret

With Jesus alone;

By looking to Jesus,

Like Him thou shalt be;

Thy friends in thy conduct

His likeness shall see.

Take time to be holy,

Let Him be thy guide,

And run not before Him

Whatever betide;

In joy or in sorrow

Still follow the Lord,

And looking to Jesus,

Still trust in His Word.

Take time to be holy,

Be calm in thy soul;

Each thought and each motive

Beneath His control;

Thus led by His Spirit

To fountains of love,

Thou soon shall be fitted

For service above.

CRAZY SALE Section

I've decided to put up a CRAZY SALE section in a small corner of The Laughing House. This will be the place where I'm letting go (of the below described) items at prices beyond crazy! hehe...

- Older stock which r not moving fast enough & taking up space in my storage space.

- Items with minor defects (which I'll state in the item's descriptions).

- Trial items we've made that didn't turn out quite as expected.

I've thought of letting them go even for free (almost), simply putting it up at $0.20 to make up for the listing fee. However, time & effort + materials have gone into each of these single items. And for that, I do love every single one of them :)

So, it'd be nice to know that someone paid something for it & is bound to treasure it cus she parted with her money to purchase it, even if at such a heavy discount.

Check back this SECTION often, & enjoy ;)

Best regards,

Winniel

Natalie's 1st "Home-made/handmade" top ^^

I'm really happy to have completed making Natalie's sleeveless top ^^ Not quite sure if she likes it though, cus I had such a hard time persuading her to try it on! hehe...

She was so giggly & wriggly, I had a hard time adjusting the bows on her shoulders. Eventually, I had to resort to bribing her with some cookies in exchange for the "photo-shoot". What a difficult model! lol...
I bought this pattern from danslalune on Etsy early June. But since it's my first attempt at making a top, I decided to wait till my mom's in Singapore, so that she can guide me along.

First, we had to piece the patterns together, & it became pretty straightforward from then on. We both agreed that this is probably a good beginner's project. No frills ^^

The cut out, with the inner layer sewn on already.

The completed piece ;) So happy with this, I've decided to do a second piece. Longer this time, so that it can be worn as a dress ^^ Hm... & I'd probably make the pocket bigger, & put it at the centre. Oh, & instead of tied up bows at the shoulders, I may wanna modify it as clip on buttons there.

But first, I have to finish up the custom orders I have at hand first, b4 my 2nd "dress Natalie" project :D
I love how the bows tie up so pretty. But it's a different story when putting it on Natalie as she's quite giggly when I'm doing this. I had to re-do it several times so that both sides are positioned well. Only to be tugged by her little hands once she's free from me :P

Oh Natalie!!!!

Customer's "Eye"

Organizer Wristlet in Yard Scene (Green) fabric, with red/white polka dot interior & trimmings.

Once again, I'm amazed at what a customer's preference in colour scheme & fabric combination can bring out in a product!

For the above item, my personal choice (safely) will be paired with a light yellow fabric, or olive green for a (not-so-sweet) appeal. Those with stronger taste & preference may wanna go with dark brown.

From a business point of view, I'd definitely choose a combination that's safe. Not something "bizarre" such as red/white polka dot to go with it! Granted there's red/white tiny flowers in the print. But.... huh??

Anyways, my customer insisted on this combination, as she's sure it'll look good.

Of course, customer is KING ;) And, as a custom order, this was made especially for her.

It turned out to be such a DELIGHT! So bright, cheerful & "alive" ^^ It makes what we're doing looks realllly cool! :D

An Organizer Purse Set requested by a customer in this combination of Divine Damask (Grey) + Dandelion in Lime fabric.

I was happy to oblige with the Divine Damask exterior + Lime interior & trimming. But when it's put the other way around for the Mini Accordian Purse, my "natural" instinct rebelled a little, as I felt the grey/black trimming & interior were too "harsh" for the Lime fabric.

And I frankly pointed this out to my customer, who decide to take the risk anyways.

But now that they're completed, it actually looked really cool together isn't it? She now has a matching set of Wristlet & Purse, in matching fabrics in the opposite direction.

As a small home business owner, I tend to be more conservative & careful in my colour/fabric choices. But as long as I'm willing to give my customer the freedom to "create" their dream combination, I know that I'll be led on a loooong learning journey in the "art" of colour scheme & fabric combination.

* For more pictures of previously made custom orders, pls visit MY FLICKR page. Thank you ;)

iPhone Case/Purse (Bubble Burst)

My very first iPhone Case/Purse in sweet Bubble Burst fabric.

It was initially made as a key-holder purse, with card slots & zippered section. But I realized it fits my iPhone perfectly! ^^

The "original" idea, hehe...

I've finally jumped on the bandwagon & gotten myself an iPhone! ^^

With that, I wanted a case specifically made for it, instead of the usual leather/stiff cover with a flap over it. And I was already starting to think of various patterns & designs for my very first iPhone case.

Coincidentally, my mom just made me a key-holder purse (as a sample) which was modeled after my very own purse, and I realized that this measurement is perfect for my new iPhone! ;) So, we'll start making a few more to stock up at The Laughing House, & I'll select one of them to be used for myself :D

This iPhone case has a zippered section for small change or little trinkets. 2 Card slots were added (a total of 3, with 1 more behind the zippered section) to hold I/D, credit cards etc. When used purely to hold your iPhone, 1 of those small section will be really useful to hold the earphone that comes with your iPhone ;)

Aside from this being an iPhone Case, it serves well as a mini purse with a sewn in key ring inside. Me, being a person who don't like bulky/big purse, likes to go around with a small purse this size ^^ &, I've tried it myself.

I put in ALL the cards I need (I/D, bank cards, credit cards, library cards, discount cards, transport cards... you get the idea, I do carry A LOT of cards ^^), coins in the zippered section, & some dollar notes.

Initially I was a bit concerned if it'll be "safe", as the main zip opens full on 3 sides of this case. However, I found another way of "using/opening" it, which is to simply unzip along the top & side only. It gives me room to comfortably look inside & get what I needed without exposing the whole content inside this purse/case.

A mini "hook" is also created on one corner of the case/purse so that a wrist strap is easily attached there if the need arise.

Enough said. It's COOL isn't it? :D

Pls contact me at The Laughing House, if you'd like to custom order this iPhone Case/Purse in YOUR choice of Fabric ^^