My friend, Debbie, the founder of Crafty Heart Online Store, has one of the best craft online stores in Malaysia. She sells a lot of things that all you creative crafters need -- ribbon, brads, stamps, etc.. She also does pre-orders and it is doing very, very well, I must say.

Anyways, she also recently created the Craft Supplies Malaysia (CSM) group on Facebook, so if you're interested in getting to know other crafters and find the right suppliers for you, I think that's the perfect group to join. Whether you're into beads, scrapbooking, knitting or any other type of crafting there is out there. I personally don't have much of a creative bone in my body, but I do like meddling with some digital scrapbooking once in a while.

Here was one of my few attempts at creating a digital scrapbook page of my daughter and I.

I know, I know.. I still need to improve a lot. But time is not a luxury that I have right now to be sharpening my creative skills! But one day soon.. I promise! Anyways, happy crafting, everyone!

I know it's only Tuesday but this actress has raised the bar in the red carpet department that I couldn't wait until Sunday to announce my Look of The Week. 

Biased? Perhaps.

Nina Dobrev who plays Elena Gilbert in CW's smash hit series, Vampire Diaries, looked stunning in her Donna Karan Resort 2012 gown during the recent 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards held in Los Angeles. Red was the color of choice for many, many celebrities that night, but I personally thought she looked the best. She complemented her look with a gorgeous Neil Lane necklace, Brian Atwood heels and a clutch.

To think the same dress could look so different when you just change the color.


It also really doesn't hurt to have Ian Somerhalder on your arm, too!


Oh and how cute is this tweet?


I adore her.

I'm house hunting right now, but it's becoming one big giant ball of stress. Every house that I like, is either unavailable or just too darn expensive. Whatever is in my budget range is either too far, or not to my liking.. which means that I will just have to "settle" for it. I dislike settling. So perhaps I might just have to wait longer to move out until I find that perfect home, which is perfect for my budget.

I'm not looking for a mansion. I just want to feel safe and comfortable while having the convenience of having my son's school and other amenities nearby. Is that so hard to ask? :(

The prices of homes have just skyrocketed unbelievably these past few years and if motor homes and trailers were available in Malaysia, perhaps that's the only thing I can afford right now.. and maybe, I won't even be able to afford the rv repairs. I know for most people, buying a home for 700k isn't a problem but I'm not in the "most people" category. Even THAT is just for an ordinary intermediate 2-storey terrace link house. I guess the location is to blame. But still, this house hunting thing isn't as fun as I thought it was gonna be.

Art by Tina

I guess, that no matter where I end up, I've just gotta be grateful that I have a roof over our heads.

The guitar was probably the first musical instrument that I learned to play. My older brother is a genius at the guitar.. he picked it up when he was in his teens, after my eldest brother brought a guitar home and it was just his "calling". He became one with the instrument, no classes needed. During the times when he wasn't so impatient, he did teach me a couple of things and if only I were more interested and invested, probably I would have been good at it.

Although I'm not big on playing the guitar, I love listening to it, I love looking at it and when I go to a music store, I can't help but pick one up and strum the strings (in what I hope is not annoying to other patrons).

There are two main classifications for guitars -- acoustic and electric. Under those two classifications, you'll have a myriad of types of guitars, ranging from classical guitars, flamenco guitars, archtop guitars, 12-string guitars, etc.

My brother has a number of guitars but to have full-fledged guitar collection would be a dream of his. The best of the best creations by luthiers of our time would be such a dream to collect. For my brother to own limited edition pieces from luthiers like Orville Gibson for Gibson guitars, Leo Fender for Fender guitars and Les Paul (to name a few) would make him beyond ecstatic.

Nowadays, the Manzer guitar created by luthier Linda Manzer is also a hot commodity with guitar collectors. Working with the world famous jazz guitarist, Pat Metheny, Linda Manzer has created a number of world class guitars, making her one of the world's respected luthiers today.

If you're looking to start a collection of your own, you might want to check out my post on tips to starting a collection.

With that, I leave you with a great guitar number by personally, one of my favourite guitar heroes of all time, Eric Clapton.

I don't know what it is with some guys and asking for directions. They act like they're a garmin trucker gps but end up more lost than a chest of gold treasures. I was listening to the latest song by Kelly Clarkson, Mr. Know It All and it reminded me strongly of someone I was in a relationship with, once upon a time. It makes me feel so blessed that despite his imperfections, I don't have a Mr. Know It All for a husband and he doesn't have qualms asking for directions! :P

By the way, this is a great song by Kelly Clarkson and I'm glad that she's back with a new single! She has great talent and I hope this gets her career bouncing back! Hope you all enjoy it.

Mr. Know It All is the first single for Kelly Clarkson's 5th studio album, Stronger. The album is set to hit stores worldwide on October 25th via RCA Records.

Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. Rules are simple. Leave ONLY the ACTUAL LINK POST here and grab the code below and place it at your blog entry. You can grab this code at LadyJava's Lounge Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted without prejudice.

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Ever since I was a little girl, my parents encouraged us (my siblings and I) to keep a hobby. My parents were avid collectors. My late dad collected coins (he even had a silver dollar in there), stamps, vinyl discs and much more. Now that I think of it, I don't know whether they were avid collectors or hoarders. LOL!

Anyways, my sister and I soon followed suit and began collecting Enid Blyton books in hardcover, and when we grew out of that, it was Sandylion stickers -- the fuzzy ones were the best! We then had our fair share collection of costume jewelery and during our post-teenage years, we had a great collection of candles. My parents always went traveling so they always brought back cool and interesting candles for us.  I also seemed to always get candles for my birthday.

Unfortunately, while my sister and I were away at college, one by one our candles went missing, or was used up during a blackout, etc. It totally disheartened us and from that moment onwards, we just stopped collecting anything.

I thought of picking up a new collection, but I don't know what to start with. My friend, Debbie, collects postcards from this cool postcard exchange site, Postcrossing, where you get postcards from people all over the world while my other blogger buddy Mariuca has a perfume collection worthy of a Sephora corner.

I've gotta say.. collecting just ain't that easy! So here are some tips to look out for when you want to start a collection:

Sustainability and Durability - When choosing a collector's item, you'd want to pick something that will have durability and can sustain it's form over the years. Sturdy items are good -- e.g. coins, books, paintings, seashells, marbles, etc. Liquid -- not so much. Have you tried collecting nail polish just 'coz you think it'll look pretty in a myriad of rainbow colours on a rack? Well, nail polish tends to separate and it goes thick and gooey that you can't even use them.



Cost - Think about how much you're willing to invest in your collection. Paintings and art are definitely really pricey and things that I'm passionate about, like movie collectibles, get pretty pricey too. Try getting all the Harry Potter wands now, that the movie is over and done with! Crazy expensive!


Passion - You must have a passion for the things you're collecting. Or else, you're just gonna get bored of whatever you're collecting or there'll come a time when you grow out of it. Then half way through your collection, you're just gonna get stuck with a bunch of wolf drawings. I'm just saying. *cough* twihards *cough*

Space - When you start a collection, make sure you have enough space to put and store your collection. A sticker, stamp or coin collection only requires albums which takes a while to complete and take up so little space. Sneakers, figurines, train sets, etc. on the other hand, needs at least a couple of rooms to fill. Living in this time of limited square feet like small apartments and condos, big collections are just not feasible. Or else, you'll just end up on an episode of Hoarders. Don't say I didn't warn ya!


Well peepz, whatever it is that you're looking to collect, I say Good luck and have fun! As long as you don't collect debts, I say you're on the right path! ;)