in my studio | category

Oct
31
2011

nursery 101 | update 1

This is Aliya’s room/nursery 6 months ago. Since then, we have installed rolled blinds and changed the curtains to a light grey blockout. Her room is still in a work in progress as I haven’t exactly finish what I had originally planned out . For example, this wall next to the toddler bed was supposed to be the feature wall painted in grey. But we didn’t get around to it, I don’t think it will (ever) get painted as she sleeps in this bedroom full time now. So toss away the idea and lets decorate it with something else. I was thinking of an oversized hand painted canvas. Hmm, am I going to get the time to sit and paint it myself? Maybe. Perhaps. Ok, I’ll try. I’ve already bought the canvas (over 3 months ago!) so I just need to find the time and inspiration. Any suggestions? Hubby was saying why not make it an Arabic canvas with Arabic alphabets, what a brilliant idea!

Right: DIY painted bedside table by hubby. White plastic pot and and flowers from Ikea. ‘Aliya’ painted wooden name sign, a sweet gift from CUE Designs and DIY curtains by me!

Left: Vinyl wall decal from eBay. DIY painted rattan hair by me, you can read the post here to see before/after photos!

After a long and tiring hunt for a nursery pendant lamp, I finally found the perfect one!. This was the second lamp. I originally bought another one but then had to refund it simply because it looked good at the showroom but NOT when it was hung up here. And thank God its one of those DIY, at least I didn’t have to call the sparky*! So it took me another couple of weeks to find this. I should’ve taken a picture of the other one that I returned. Oh well. But isn’t this pretty? Even prettier when lit up!

Stay tune for the next nursery update. Hopefully by then, we can see pictures of her cot/sheets, DIY clock that I recently made for her and her oversized canvas. Oh and her gorgeous white chic wardrobe! And rug!

*sparky is an Australian slang for electrician

4 lovely comments
Category: architecture/interior, baby, bedroom, before + after, décor, house 101, in my home, in my studio, nursery

Oct
24
2011

rmit | rmitis

RMIT or Monash?

That was me [thinking] back in 2003 after graduating from High school.

pamphlet islamic design

Interior Design. I knew exactly what I wanted to do. It has always been a passion of mine since I was 12. I just needed to choose somewhere that would fulfil my childhood dreams. I crossed out Swinburne Uni. So it left me with either RMIT or Monash. At Monash, they call it Bachelor of Interior Architecture. Sounds posh. And smart. But its just a name and the structure of the course is very similar to the one offered at RMIT, except they call theirs Bachelor of Interior Design. Monash’s IA has only been around recently whereas the course at RMIT has been around since way before the 80’s. In fact, one of my dad’s friend graduated from ID there and is now a very successful interior designer, and no he is not gay!

pamphlet islamic design

So I chose RMIT for many reasons. 1.-Established for a lot longer. 2- Recognised nationally and internationally. 3- A lot of successful designers graduated from that course. 4- Easy to get to from where we used to live (direct train line) 5-Loved the fact it was right in the heart of Melbourne CBD, so that means a lot of shopping and eating in betweeen classes! Now, when I look back, I loved every single moment even during the bad and ugly. Yes. There were times when I felt like my brains were ripped apart, my eyes became water bags and my body turned into a dead vegetable. That was how the course drained the energy out of me. But I still thoroughly enjoyed it. For those who aren’t familiar with ID, its not what you think it is. Its not about cushions or curtains. Its quite the opposite. Its about spatial architecture and design. Exploring the relationship with its environment/society and how it affects our sensory. They really do squeeze your brain to think outside the context of interior design. The course is heavily theoretical based than a practical one. But urm, if you’re into hands on stuff like colours, furnishings etc…RMIT Tafe offers a Diploma in Interior Decoration. Check ’em out!

Besides studying, studying and more studying, I had a social life too. It was the beautiful sisters (friends) I had met at RMITIS (RMIT Islamic Society) that changed me into who I am today. I started practising Islam. Not that I wasn’t practising prior to this, but it made me truly understand the beauty of this religion. I even met my husband through the society. So can you see how it has changed my life? Alhamdulillah, to a better one. I am forever grateful to Him.

The prayer room at RMIT became my second home. A place to hang out and to catch up on sleep (from those sleepless nights spent at the lab)! So if you’re at RMIT, join the society! Contribute a little for dawah purposes. Run some activities. We had the best of times during our years spent there. We organised paint ball trips, horse riding, sisters social nights, sisters lectures, games, bbq’s…oh and so many more! One of my small contribution to RMITIS are these pamphlet covers. Now these were from 5 years ago. If you’d like a copy of a current one with colour, IISNA’s pamphlet team (may Allah reward them) have developed their own set of pamphlets, printed and distributed hundreds and thousands world wide. You can check them out here. They have 15 titles so far and counting…

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Category: architecture/interior, graphic, in my studio, in my world, volunteer/charity work

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.