in my studio | category | do-it-yourself

Nov
14
2011

sew your love

I like being creative in my spare time, not that I get much time to myself, but when I do, I make use of it even if it means doing something small around the house.

A few months ago, we bought a second hand two seater fabric couch on Gumtree Melbourne. It was the perfect couch and I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw the ad said ‘Freedom couch $60’. Freedom! Freedom is one of my favourite furniture stores in Melbourne, but with a price tag of course. Our first couch we bought was from Freedom when they had a massive sale and I vouch its one of my best purchases. If (God forbid) something would happen to my house, I’d drag the couch out with me-darn I love that thing! (pictured above)

So back to this Gumtree couch, its a beigy grey colour and came with 2 matching cushions (seriously, who would put cushions on a sofa in the exact same colour and fabric?!!) Anyhoo, I gave it a good scrub & wash, got out a needle & a thread and started sewing my love on…And of course, filled it with a new fluffier cushion insert!

2 lovely comments
Category: before + after, décor, do-it-yourself, in my home, in my studio

Nov
07
2011

what’s the time on the clock?

Hickory Dickory Dock,
The mouse ran up the clock.
The clock struck one,
The mouse ran down!
Hickory Dickory Dock.

This Piro clock was originally bought from Ikea many months ago. They are no longer selling it now, so I was glad that I managed to get one. I knew it had potential rather than just using the default pattern that it came with but it never crossed my mind to use it for my daughters room. As I was reading to my daughter ‘numbers’ one day, it clicked to me that maybe I should design her a clock with huge colourful numbers. And so I did. I’m really pleased with how it turned out, bright, colourful and really child friendly… the opposite to the ‘dull’ black that it originally was. Now, my daughter knows how to point with her finger number 1 (and slowly showing number2) whenever we say 1,2,3 and mashallah she is only 15 months!

To view more on my baby’s nursery in progress, click here.

1 lovely comment
Category: baby, before + after, décor, do-it-yourself, graphic, in my home, in my studio, nursery

Oct
19
2011

taking the joy

frame-joy

into a frame!

Chalk is so versatile that you could be so creative with it. Not to mention how cheap they are too. Kids, teachers, artists even the homeless uses chalk! I like it because it gives me the freedom to re-create as many times as I want. Rub, delete, draw.

frame

Chalk and blackboard go hand in hand. But I didn’t want to use any ordinary blackboard, that would be boring. So I paid a visit to the junk yard and got myself this frame. Still wrapped in its own packaging, there was no sign of age or damage. In fact it was brand new but I only paid a few dollars for it, so I couldn’t be any happier. Now I don’t need anymore dark colours in my house, so I hesitated whether I should really paint it or not. And so I did. It turned out fantastic and exactly as what I had in mind. Its now found its place on our mantel piece.

Note: To paint the frame I first had to seal it with a white primer and then my chosen colour. I used Dulux Acrylic ‘Taupe Stone’ as we’ve painted some walls in the house with this colour.

1 lovely comment
Category: before + after, décor, do-it-yourself, in my home, in my studio

Feb
28
2011

event planning // my sister’s married!

I’m excited to introduce to you, my first wedding (as an event planner)!

A few weeks ago, I was literally up every night till 5am! I was busy working on my sisters wedding that I had planned, designed and executed. I spent countless amount of hours on the intricate details of her wedding. She is my only sister. She is very special to me. So it was an outdoor garden setting and the theme was a floral, vintage, DIY recycled wedding.

Event: Fairuz & Omar’s Garden Tea Wedding
Date: 27th February 2011
Time: 2.00pm – 5.00pm
Location: Warrenwood Private Estate, VIC
Guests: 40 family and friends

Upon arrival, guests were greeted with a sign that informed them where to head next. I wanted to create a journey to acquaint them with the relaxing ‘garden’ atmosphere before heading towards the actual ceremony . Using a blackboard sign coupled with a few “wedding” arrows, a pathway was created to guide them towards the event which was held at the bottom of the garden (guest had to take the stairs downhill). The fresh air, the beautiful flowers, the greenery and the rusticness of the wood; all combined for a unique adventure.

Entrance “welcome” for guests arrival greeting. Bride and groom’s name printed on doily and mounted onto brown paper cardboard. A rustic vintage elegance.

The end of the “journey” but the start of the ceremony. At the bottom of this lovely garden stairs, was where everyone gathered.

Spectacular view of the event before the ceremony (view from high above).

Lovebirds signage made out of wood and painted in white. The sign was placed in front of a birdcage on a little table with other ornaments such as a vintage bell, old books and a cup and saucer….and of course, flowers!

The end of the “journey” but the start of the ceremony. At the bottom of this lovely garden stairs is where everyone meets.

Since the theme was ‘garden’, I wanted to strip all the glamorous lifestyle that is usually associated with weddings and go back to nature. Hence the use of twigs. They were used for guests seating arrangements. Most of the stuff that I used for this wedding are found and recycled objects.

You wouldn’t call it a DIY wedding if the bride didn’t make anything…so these scrumptious and gorgeous cupcakes were made by the bride. Yes, you heard me. She made them. Check out her blog, Made with love and sugar!

This is her wedding floral bouquet. Its a bunch of blue and purple orchids tied around with some natural fibre string on a bed of green ferns. Rustic yet simple.

Bombonniere gifts for the guests. A piece of fruit cake wrapped with brown paper packaging that has 4 languages printed on it and tied with natural fibre string. It signifies the culture of the bride (half Malaysian/Chinese) and the Italian groom.

Italian – Grazie

English – Thank You

Malay – Terima Kasih

Chinese (cantonese) – Dojeh

It was such a special and unique event; the weather was perfect and it was a dream wedding that the bride & groom will surely treasure forever. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be a part of it. It was a truly memorable day.

All wedding design/decorations; including table + flower arrangements and event planning: Iva Izman

Photography: Iva Izman

1 lovely comment
Category: do-it-yourself, graphic, in my studio, in my world, marriage, photography, relationships, wedding + engagement

Feb
02
2011

nursery chair

A few of months ago, I was on a hunt for a nursery chair. I knew what I wanted, a white rattan chair…but didn’t want to fork out big bucks for it so I decided to make a trip to my local op shop (second hand shop). It took me a couple of weeks to finally spot one. It was an ugly dull green chair. Oh well, I couldn’t care less about its colour as I knew it had potential, a few spray cans later and ta-da, totally transformed!

Second hand chair: $15
3 White spray cans: $9
Total: $24

Now that’s a bargain. They retail for at least $80. Give it a try the next time you’re thinking of buying something new.