Strange Machines

The moment I read that plants can remove household chemicals from the air, I went and Googled which ones. Turns out the Areca Palm, Lady Palm, Bamboo Palm, Dracaena (”Janet Craig”), and English Ivy are the top rated house plants among 50 that can purify your air. This comes from a scientific source, Dr B.C. Wolverton who published the must-have book How to Grow Fresh Air.

Now, since we are a multi-cat household, I have to make sure that the plants are safe in case the cats decide to chew on them. I Googled and cross-checked the safe plant list from the plant sciences department at UC Davis and printed that out.

Then I acquired a copy of Wolverton’s book and pored through it. It is worth buying as it tells you how to care for the plants too as well as the crucial which plant removes which chemicals better (aha!). Important for well-intentioned brown-thumbed people like myself who can kill cactuses (my 2 are dead) and have a memory made of cheese. Anyway, I got mine off Amazon but Kinokuniya sells it too (they brought it in too late and I got impatient).

Armed with all the information, I consulted my godmother, who can keep bonsais alive without watering them (evidently she got all the gardening talent in the family) and she told me to buy the plants from the nursery or Ikea. Pouncing on the opportunity to spend nagless hours at the nursery, she volunteered to take us to Far East Flora and in a win-win afternoon, we browsed to our hearts’ content while my godpa wheeled a thrilled Jack around in the plant carts.

That day I picked an Areca Palm, Boston Fern, Basil and Mint (to ward off the flies who love the kids’ poo pans), and a Janet Craig plus 2 cactuses which are dead now. So are my orchids. Okay, that’s another story.

But anyway, not long after, I went to Ikea and picked up another Janet (the one plant that is flourishing), Areca Palm (which Boy and Buffy love to chew), and another Janet-like plant that I still can’t identify but it was $1.50 and is still alive. I got a mini-Boston Fern or Kimberly Fern (they look alike but the Kimberly drops less) and to date it looks like Batman’s nemesis Two-Face (half dead half alive).

My sister donated a large flourishing Boston Fern and that lucky plant showers with me every few days (it loves to shower) and cleans the air in my room very well. Day time I take all the plants out to sun and in the evening I bring them in to clean the air. Incidentally, the plant which is thriving the best is interestingly, the Janet. Lush leaves are sprouting every day and it is growing taller than a weed.

I’m happy to report all the plants, save for those reported dead already, are still alive and seem quite happy living here, despite the occasional rude chomp from a hungry cat. Perhaps even a brown thumb can turn green with enough information, love and care, and the right amounts of sun and water.

Hmm… maybe tomorrow we’ll go to Ikea with my large Reisenthal bag…

Our world is becoming increasingly fractured.

Humans, social animals by nature, are sequestered from the better world by crazy work hours, social obligations (not usually for pleasure, or so it seems), and an idle inquiry in the unimportant (aka TV).

People are turning to counsellors to their problems. Few have time to listen and few feel compelled to open up to their friends, especially if they haven’t spent enough time nurturing their friendships with work hours getting ridiculously longer. And those are the lucky ones. Many turn to drink or worse vices. Heck if you need to find someone to talk to in person, check out a Counseling Services List or a Counseling Services Directory.

A friend of mine once said, if you want a happy life, move to Australia where people finish work at 4 or 5, have time for outdoor activities, their families, have barbecues with friends and overall, lead a more peaceful life. You can actually have a family life.

And it is true. Friends of mine there are happily taking at least a year off to nurture their children. Fathers have time to spend with their children. They live in a nice house with a garden (with actual grass). No one feels hurried or caught in a rat race to compete.

Here, we’re in the thick of it. But it is possible to live in the rat race but not compete. What is a rat race but an unending loop which no one ever wins. Heck even Bill Gates got toppled with Warren Buffett (my idol) this year. It is possible to exist in the system but live out of it. And believe me, we are much happier than when we were both working and getting home at 9-10pm every night.

We don’t go to fancy restaurants, drive a fancy car, buy that spanking new condo, or buy any branded stuff. Everything’s made in China nowadays anyway - what’s the difference but the tag? My $3 Old Navy tee feels more comfortable than the $50 (see I can’t even remember the brand) top I bought years ago on sale. Plus, having modelled before, I am used to people paying me to wear their label, not me pay for their label and wear it for them all the time!

Good quality food and books are what we spend our money on, as well as paying off our home and car. The rest, we spend with family and good friends. Jack changed it for us. We want a better world for him. A better life. A happy life. Children do that I think. He has changed us for the better.

I try to cook more, to create a sweet family environment for Jack to grow up in. To remember his Mom in the kitchen cooking for him, Dad coming home to hug and kiss him. Us having dinner and talking together. Mom and Dad reading to him, sharing a cuddle before bedtime. Those are the things I want him to remember. A loving happy home.

Sometimes I wonder if I am made for the business world at all. I have no urge to put my craftwork out there and sell them.

I feel content just hugging my sweet homemade softies, carrying my homemade bags, and staring for hours at the mini playsets I have been making for Biscuit and Gray and their brethren (yes, the final design for Blue Biscuit is complete! See pic on left).

Yes I even make toys for them! There’s something about creating a stuffed animal that makes me feel all motherly over them. Must be the act of creation!

But the idea of setting up shop has been daunting (especially since my personal time is from 11pm-4am, interrupted, and I spend most of it unwinding by snacking, reading, surfing, then think about crafting and maybe selling - a lot of it has been thinking).

Here’s the legwork:

1. Print business cards.

2. Design a logo and make fabric labels for bags, dolls, etc.

3. Stock up on shipping envelopes.

4. Make fabric bags to store items (for packaging - this seems the most environmentally friendly choice).

5. Plan trips to the post office (with Jack and pram in tow) through blinding heat and roads - at least we can walk there so it isn’t terribly environmentally unfriendly.

6. Making some merchandise that I won’t end up wanting to keep for myself or giving it to the first person who says, oh so nice, or as a present I think a friend whom I’m meeting tomorrow will like.

7. Designing a shopfront banner and crafting the text.

8. Updating the Biscuit & Gray website!

I already bought the weighing scale from Ikea… Ok, maybe I’ll start with #6 first then we’ll get the rest in order.

What do you think? Where’s the best place to start? Ahh!!! *runs away screaming*

I have a confession to make.

I am an Etsy addict.

I bought my craft supplies and that Singer 8280 and so far have made at least 15 bags and 5 plushies including a tree last night. I’ve given away 4 bags and 1 doll but have kept the rest for myself! How the heck am I going to sell anything like that (the same reason why I should never work in a bubble tea store - I can imagine me saying, “sorry, we’re out of pearls *burp*”).

After I gave her Big Blue Biscuit, Angie commissioned me to make a Biscuit & Gray pair for her baby nephew but I loved the Big Blue Biscuit (BBB) v2.0 I made (photo forthcoming) that I decided to keep her for myself. Okay, actually after I sewed on the face, Jack decided he liked it and has kept it for himself. He actually asked for his friends just now when he woke for the second time this evening. I gave him Biscuit, BBB2, and Gray. He grabbed the first two, turned around and slept.

I have a third BBB who hasn’t got a face yet. I will keep that nice soft rabbit for Angie’s nephew. I swear.

Then there are the bags I promised Carol and Sarah. If only I can stop keeping the ones I make. But they are just right. I use one set a week and wash the other. I guess I just need to make 2 more sets for my friends before I can start selling any. At least the girls agreed on Sunday that they’re pretty, especially the cat one. And I haven’t taken any plastic bags at all since I began making my own bags. That is 2 months now and at least 50 plastic bags saved. Not bad huh? <- good consolation for procrastination.

So those of you kind people who have gone to my Etsy page, sorry it is still empty. I wanted to make a few items before selling any. There is still the black and white cat purse I made which is my first “merchandise”, waiting to be placed for sale.

Meanwhile I should spend less time shopping on Etsy (see sparklerama’s too-cute Tiny Kitty driving Jack’s fave car on right) and making stuff. I’ll start tonight. Honest. Oops it is already 3.34am. I’ll start tomorrow. Really!

Gray looks awed by his tiny brethren, made by the super talented artisan sparklerama.

I never realised it but I was schooling Jack about needs vs wants from the day he could say Toys R Us some one year ago.

Before we go into Toys R Us, I’d tell him whether it is a looking trip or a buying trip. He’d nod okay and proceed to thrill himself looking at all the cars. It is roughly one buying trip per 10 looking trips and usually he can choose something small for himself that costs under $10.

Initially he’d buy something cos he can but more recently he would choose something that he really likes. If he doesn’t like anything, he wouldn’t buy anything since I tell him he can carry a buying trip forward to the next trip.

Of course there are the sums too. He’s been more fascinated about bigger cars because the doors can open and close and sometimes he asks if he can buy those. I’d point to the price and say, that costs $49 and it is way more than $10.

My friend Sarah tells of a trip she, her boyfriend, dear hubby, and Jack had at Toys R Us. Someone asked if Jack wanted to buy anything and he proclaimed, “no need”. His Dad was so proud, he said, “that’s my boy!” I was so proud too!

On a separate note, I started reading Chinese books to him and he seems to be learning the Chinese characters faster than English words, although he can read most of the alphabets by now. His memory is amazing! He can cite some of the moons in the Solar System, some galaxies, and many nebulas! It is so thrilling to watch.

So the past couple of weeks I have been shopping at Spotlight and buying tons of crafting supplies. All fabric and threads are 100% cotton and ribbons I got for making tags (or there lack of) are washable satin (but still polyester). I’m thinking no tag or cloth tag. My feeble attempts at embroidery got even the cats laughing.

Anyway, out of laziness I picked up a rotary cutter and a cutting mat. It was some Birch combo for $39.95 so I thought why not. Then this evening I opened it and the smell made me sick all night. I have since packed it back into its packaging to be returned to Spotlight tomorrow. If they mention the opened packaging, I’ll ask them to take a whiff. Man, I haven’t felt so nauseous since I ate those 5 bags of chips at one go.

I spent the better part of an hour Googling for an answer: what the heck is causing that godawful smell? Nowhere do they tell what the cutting mats are made of. The closest hint is that some cutting mats are made of PVC. And yeah, we know that smells and is toxic. Apparently, some smell and some don’t. A forum mentions that some mats just smell and it most likely won’t go away or will take 5 weeks.

I don’t think I can wait that long. Already the smell was seeping into the hallway so I quickly put it back into the packaging and double bagged it in an Ikea bag. There is a solution though but I don’t I’ll survive the smell long enough to do it. I still feel horrible sick as it is. So no cutting mat for me. It isn’t very green, being made of plastic anyway - the smell made me think of vinyl. I think I’ll stick to the good old scissors.

After about 10 bags, I think I have one that is in a saleable condition and of a shape women will carry (I am still working on a shape a man will carry but the husband had very politely refused to be seen carrying all the other 10 I have made). It is made out of a lovely black and white cat fabric I got last week (made in Korea) with black threading and handles, which make it quite pretty.

I like the idea of carrying cloth bags. The polyester ones, while strong, feel really plasticky against my skin. I have assigned one small black tote (which rolls up and ties on the side of my larger tote - now the main bag) for bread and those delish Spinelli oatmeal and raisin cookies. I usually carry another organic produce bag inside just in case.

Now the first cat bag I made I decided to keep for myself. The sewing was pretty and all, but I just wanted to keep that first cat bag for myself. And I just repeated myself repeating myself. That contains all the stuff I need when I leave the house. And that sweet tiny bag sits inside the main black tote, which incidentally was just finished today. That one was perfectly sized. Jack’s car bag (picture forthcoming too) with his diaper, spare clothes, wipes, snacks, and random toy sits beside that.

So when need be, I can whip out both bags, have Jack carry his cute car bag, I carry my cat bag, and the black tote bag can carry shopping! And won’t we look a hip mom and Jack pair. I haven’t taken a single plastic bag in 2 weeks! Feels great to refuse all those plastic bags they give at Bread Talk. The girl happily placed all the bread in my cloth bag.

Incidentally, I made a new large blue Biscuit out of lovely 100% cotton fleecy but since Jack “borrowed” the one we gave Amber, he is happy to give it to Aunty Angie when we meet her on Saturday. I used the Singer this time and the curves took a while to get used to but before long, I was swivelling the fabric like a pro. 3 hours on a machine instead of 8 hours by hand. Definitely a time saver!

Now, if I can only stop the nausea…

Biscuit with Big Blue, first rabbit made on my sewing machine.

She’s gone to live with my dear friend Angie who uses her as an eye pillow.

Here’s Gray with Blue Biscuit and Biscuit.

The Porsche Carrera S’s side mirror was poking his back.

Blue Biscuit came back for a week-long visit.

Biscuit & Gray have their own website now! Please excuse the mess while we hang the stuff up. But if you can’t wait, go visit them at Biscuit & Gray dot com.

Here’s a pic of Biscuit and Blue Biscuit, whom I made for Amber, my sister’s daughter for her 8th birthday. As you can tell, Biscuit was thrilled to have another rabbit friend and the two pals enjoyed 5 lovely rabbitty days together. (I think Gray felt a little left out.)

Jack was also ecstatic to have another Biscuit and was sad to let him go in the end. He still asks if I will make another Blue Biscuit and one of these days I will.