I have been featured!

I have some news to share with you. Lots actually! I was recently featured by two different wedding planners. (If you click on the photos, they will take you to the posts)
On October 9th, Mary of 'Very Merry Wedding & Design Planning' did a feature on me. She put together some of her favourite creations by me in a nice collage and wrote some nice stuff about my work - which always makes me happy :).

Mary is a new talent in the wedding industry, based in northern California and got interested in wedding planning as a career, while planning her own wedding. Her background in visual merchandising, I am sure helps her in her current profession. Thank you very much Mary, for featuring me.

After that, I was featured on Sugar Blossom Wedding's blog. Sugar Blossom Weddings is a Luxury Wedding Planning and Coordinating company based in UK. I wanted to write a bit about them - and I will in future. But right now, here's what one of their client says about them and its worth reading:

“When I forgot to provide the caterer with our napkins, I carried on getting into my dress and you sorted it out.
When I realised that I'd made a mistake with the seating plan you fixed it.
When the photographer needed assistance, you stepped in.
When the DJ arrived and we were still eating, you met him.
When it started to rain you even appeared with a smart umbrella!
These are just the things that instantly spring to mind and I know that there were so many other things that you did entirely behind the scenes.”

I don't think there can be a better testimonial for a wedding planning company! And I am really honored to be featured by them. Another thing that makes me very proud about Sugar Blossom Weddings is that they are all for Eco-Chic Weddings. And my product falls in line with what they believe in.

I really wanted to share these features with you. Do read them up. As for me, I shall go and take some well-deserved rest :).

I've been tagged!

This Tagging is a fun thing that's doing the rounds in blogland :). I was having fun reading all the other 'tagged' write-ups, but Linda's tagging me came as a surprise. But writing weird things about me, shouldn't be tough at all. This is what a 'tagged' person is supposed to do (copied and pasted from Linda's blog): 1. Link to your tagger and list these rules on your blog. 2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird. 3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by including links to their blogs. 4. Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blogs. Here's a link to Linda. Linda is an ETSY artist. Her shop is named LindaButterfly. She creates wonderful ACEOS and watercolor originals as well. Also, she is a self-published author, who is also a retired teacher. A very accomplished lady I would say! Linda shares her pearls of wisdom with me and I am only grateful that she is able to do so with me, because I really have so much to learn from her. (Hugs for you Linda)

Ok, now here are the 7 Random/Weird things about me (I am keeping out my clay flower crafting out of this, because I write about it all the time. Through these 7 points, you can perhaps know a little more about me):

1. I can remember exact incidents (day to day happenings) from when I was a two year old. My parents are surprised too :). Okay, the photo is from when I was a few months old, but I just wanted to give an idea :) and also let you see how cute and cuddly I was once ... hee hee!.


2. I miss my grandpa all the time, even though it is 25 years since he passed away. I often have dreams of him talking to me. In the picture above, he is the person to the extreme left. He used to work with Paramount Films and in the photo above is apparently receiving Alfred Hitchcock and his wife at the Calcutta airport. The photo above is one I found a couple of years back, while rummaging through old photos in my grandmother's closet after she passed away.
My grandfather was an excellent vocalist. He had also fought in WWII as a part of the Allied Forces. His army mattress is something I still have and treasure.



3. I love big doggies. I had two German Shepherds. But after they died, I am too heartbroken to have any more doggies at home. They become family members and best friends. Even today, I cry when I think of them or see their photos.

4. I am trained in Indian Classical Music (vocals). People who have known me for long will vouch for my singing more than they ever will for my clay flowers.... LOL! I have been training since I was four, but even now, it gives me the jitters to perform in public. :)


5. When I was a child, there were three of us (Nayana, Anuradha and I) who stuck together. Till date, they are the closest friends I have outside of my family. Luckily, we all now reside in the US (Boise, San Diego and Honolulu respectively) and are in constant touch. Recently we had a grand reunion.



6. One of my favourite books is 'The Adventures of the Wishing Chair' (and its sequel, 'The Wishing Chair Again... I consider them one book) by Enid Blyton. She was my favourite author for a long long time. Unfortunately, I can't find her books in American Bookstores.


7. My husband means the world to me. We have an interesting little story (about us, of course) which I'll share some other day. But its been 3 great years with him so far...

Okay, so I was required to write 7 random or weird things about myself.... this ended up becoming quite personal :).

Links to other blogs:

Mommy Lion Design
Whimsical Creations
Its Very Merry
Vivace Crafts
Bright On Early
Holistically Heather
Sarang

Wedding Photos

I am so excited today! I am finally able to share Nella's wedding photos with you. A lot more are in the pipeline. But for now, I have four. Enjoy them! (On public demand, I have put larger pics now...)

The one above in black and white is of course, the bride - Nella. My wonderful Nella! Over the wedding project, we struck up a friendship that I am so proud of! She is a doctor and also a crafter herself. An ETSY-crafter at that! I love the way just the flowers are highlighted. Its so elegant. I had seen a couple of photos like this before and was hoping that I get one too. It was like the photographer - John Carroll - read my mind.

The 2nd one has Nella and her Maid of Honor Ruth. Ruth is a very close friend and a colleague of Nella. It was around Ruth's gown, that the wedding theme was created; including of course, my flowers.

The third photo is that of posies that Nella decorated her wedding table and aisle with... This was a HUGE project- bouquets, posies, a vine for the wedding table, centerpieces, boutonnieres, corsages! And I was a little nervous as to how they would turn out. My FIRST full wedding order, after all. But as I know now, I didn't need to be that nervous. :) Of course a big thanks goes to Nella for that. She put her complete faith in me and my craft. Without her, I wouldn't have been able to achieve what I have.

The last photo is of course, of Nella's shoes and her wedding bouquet. I love it how the bouquet, the shoes and the lovely quilted background go together. Maybe that is why professional photos are so treasured :).
Okay, that's it... for today. Let me know what you think.... your words mean the world to me.

A BIG Move and some great news!

Ok, so its not really a BIG move, per se. We are still in Hawaii. We just moved to another apartment. But in terms of hassle, its been a really big one! LOL! We are still setting up our new place. I had no idea that we had bought so much stuff over the past one year. No more shopping for the next one year! :) And I really need to get rid of things. I get attached to stuff pretty soon, so I have an older pressure cooker, that I really shouldn't be needing... because my mom's gifted me a brand new one. I have two boxes full of my practice flowers! Can't use them (because they are all different) and can't throw them (because mostly, nothing's wrong with them!) . I have beads, that I don't use anymore (I used to dabble in jewelry once, no time anymore. But I have beautiful and pretty expensive beads...). A whole lot of extra stuff? Do all ladies have these... unused things, which we just can't throw away? :) Or is it just me? It would be interesting to know.

Even while we were moving stuff, I'd keep doing my flowers whenever I had a few minutes. My husband - Sarang- got so mad at me! :) LOL! Somehow I have this dreadful feeling that if I don't do my flowers for even a day, I will forget how to do them.
Now, coming to the new apartment - Its a beautiful place. And its got central A/C (not such a common thing in Honolulu) and a DISHWASHER (that makes me want to dance .... its one housejob less!) too. These we did not have in our previous apartment. We also have a peekaboo of the Pacific Ocean in this one . And we have a much needed Lanai (that's what we call balconies in Hawaii). A lot to love in this new place. But we will sure miss our old one as well... it had red accent walls and was open on 3 sides. But well, you gain some, you lose some. I have put up some photos of my new place. I hope you like them.

Oh! I forgot to tell you the BIGGEST news from the past week... Nella, my bride from the United Kingdom... sent me links to her wedding photos. I was so thrilled! As I mentioned before, she got married in a Scottish Manor. And my flowers looked so grand there. For a moment, I thought, "Wow! Those flowers look great!", when realization struck me that I actually MADE those flowers and being tough on myself, I reminded me - that I shouldn't get carried away, and I shouldn't get complacent and that I have to do better and I can do better :). Its something that has been instilled in me... that if I feel proud about what I have achieved, I will never improve on my achievements. So, I just feel happy, do a reality check and move on... striving to do better the next time. Ok, now I don't want to sound like a pompous fool! So I shall stop talking about how wonderful I am :). Anyway... coming back to Nella, she will be sending me a CD soon. As soon as I get it, I shall upload some photos for everyone to see!

Alright, got to get back to work now.... the setting-up-home kind of work. Not the nice flower-making kind of work :(. But I'll be back ... and soon.

PS: I think this is the longest post I have ever written. LOL!

All-White Bouquet

This is an order I received via ETSY. My client wanted a bridal bouquet for her tropical themed wedding. Her theme colors are white and almost Tiffany Blue (with a little less green than Tiffany Blue). We decided on an all-white bouquet with blue ribbon. The flowers are Gardenias and Stephanotis. Gardenia in a bunch look so wonderful together! I had no idea it would look so fluffy and fun too, despite being elegant. Here's the 'sneak preview'of the bouquet, actually not even that. I just wanted to share this bunch of gardenia and stephanotis with you! But there's lots more to do :) - add more flowers(these are probably just half of the flowers), plug gaps, put them all together into a bouquet, add leaves and then finish it off with a pretty blue ribbon. I am so excited to be doing this. I hope my bride likes this one! If not, well, I can always make changes for her :). And, as always, let me know how you like it.

Feedback Please

Hello Readers of my Blog....

I have updated my blog in a lot of ways recently and have been giving it a lot of time. For instance, I have changed the colors, I have added some extras on the right side, I have linked my favorite stores and blogs and so on... I would love to know how you like the new additions and if you would like anything changed. Unless you tell me, I won't know. So please take out some time and write to me. Your feedback is highly appreciated.

Thank You!

Cake Topper Photos! Yay!

I am so happy! And I have reason to be.... These are the first professional photos of my flowers and they are my photos from a real wedding too! Really, how alive the flowers look. A big thanks to Todd Kuhns of Studio12 who made this possible. I just had to send an email to him and he sent me the photos rightaway - all those that I wanted. How wonderful these will look in my portfolio!

If I sound excited, it is because I now know how my flowers look in the environment of a wedding. Pity, I couldn't be there myself ... Some day.... some day.... ha ha!
I wish you will visit Studio12's website. It has some awesome photography by Todd and his wife Amy. I am sure, if you live in the Dayton Ohio area, you'll want to give this husband and wife team a try. What I found great about his photographs was that, the photos captured the natural flow of weddings. Emotions were the main focus and I am sure, the wedded couples and their guests will treasure the photographs.

Eve, Thank You!

This morning was very special for me. My ETSY friend and soon-to-be neighbor Eve -about whom I had written a few days back, was the one who made it special. As mentioned earlier, Eve is a wonderful photographer. And she offered to click some photos of my flowers! The photos that I have clicked in the past, often haven't done justice to the passion and hard work I put into my flowers :). So, when Eve said she could help me out, I jumped at her offer. And not just did she click some awesome photos, she also picked me up and dropped me off and also bought me breakfast :). Really, how sweet can a person be!

We went to two different locations - first a beach park(where we were having a lot of fun, until the sun started came over our heads) and then we moved to a garden, complete with Taro Patch and a lovely Hawaiian Koi Pond. The day was hot and not too breezy, but we had lots of fun! Here are a few photos from the session, but these are clicked by me (I don't have Eve's beautiful hair, so I made her tie her hair in a bun and shot these pics). I am waiting for her photographs and as soon as I get them, I shall be able to share more of her work with you. Meanwhile, please take a look at her shop again.... I am going to!

I made it to the Lollishops Guild featured items list!

My Pink with Bling item made it to the featured list in the Lollishops Guild. It is one of the most popular items there. Yippee! My oft-repeated lament is that I don't have money for promotions and I don't know too many people here :), but 'word-of-mouth' publicity is really helping me. Thank you all you wonderful people out there! I know I can't thank you enough, but each one of those good words that you spread about me, helps...

For those who still haven't heard about Lollishop, please take a look here. If you ask me, I would say- if you are one of those ladies who love girly things (and I believe there is that trait in all of us!), if you are one who swears by pink and never get tired of it, if you are a true romantic, then Lollishops is for you. You are going to LOVE it. It is a super-cute online marketplace for handmade items! Within a fairly short time, this site has created a lot of interest in buyers and sellers alike, as is evident from this study published on Lollishop's blog. I am sure, when it finally gets started, Lollishops is going to be a big hit! Stay tuned girls...

Time for a Big Thank You!

My blog and my gardenias.... have created a big stir! But I have to thank the person I couldn't have achieved this without. She gave my company a very professional look and created for me, patiently, just what I wanted - a feminine, flowery yet simple and striking look. I have had a number of friends and family write to me about the way my blog and my store looks! And the lady that I really need to thank for this awesome response within such short time is the awesome, the super-talented Brandy Jaggers. Brandy has a shop by the name Oblivious on ETSY. She is a graphic designer and a totally mindblowing photographer. I haven't told her about this write up to her yet... so, I don't have any photographs to share. But, do visit her etsy store and her photography website - www.brandyjaggers.com and you won't be disappointed. She photographs expectant moms, infants, toddlers and children. And she creates magic with every click!
So, if you are looking for a super-duper graphic design package or a photography session that you will be proud of all your life, Brandy Jaggers is one person you should keep in mind!

Glorious Gardenias

I am writing in to show off my recent Gardenia creations :). I am so happy with them! There are different things I have done with them here.

This one here is attached to a long-ish , smooth bobby pin that slides onto the hair and stay there without irritating you :). I don't know why, I find the wiggly ones quite annoying. I used to hate them as a kid and have never used them again. These ones are smooth and have rounded ends, which make them very comfortable. I have made some of these for a lady who wrote nice, kind words on theknot.com about the sample flower that I sent her. More flowers followed. And more nice words too from another client of mine. And, their referrals even got me a couple of orders from the Knottie brides. I really can't thank Kathy enough for the rave on my hair flowers and I thought this blog is one way I can let her know how much I appreciate it. Mine is a new business and every little nice word helps - sometimes by getting me new orders, sometimes by making me smile and most importantly, by letting me know that I am making someone happy.


Then there is this, which is on an alligator clip. I am not personally fond of alligator clips, they always seem to hurt me :). But I have them in stock anyway, for clients who swear by them. This one turned out pretty nice I think.

This gardenia hair comb is something of a new idea that I have tried out. I had been thinking about it for a while and finally created this. An all-white cluster of hair flowers, with Gardenias, Stephanotis and tiny little Pikake (Hawaiian for Jasmine) on a silver colored metal comb. I would be glad if you let me know how you like this creation of mine. It is something I haven't attempted before. So feedback, is not just appreciated, it is necessary :).

Unveiling my Logo

I finally have a LOGO to call my own. Let me know how you like it. I am sure you have noticed that the banners are new too :). So how do you like the new look?

My multi-talented ETSY friend

Eve of vintagetrading is a proud Aquarian. Her aquarian traits show up in her etsy stores. Her items are whimsical, classy and unique. Eve found me through ETSY and we realized that both of us live in Honolulu and we are both Aquarians! :) What makes Eve more special for me is that she is the only ETSY member I have met ever since I joined this wonderful site. And by sheer coincidence, we are soon to become neighbours when we move into her apartment building later this month :).

Talking further about Eve's talents, she is an immensely gifted photographer too and loves 'working away on photoshop'. Cacahuete is the name of her ETSY photography shop (I still have to ask her what 'cacahuete' means). But now she has decided to focus on vintage stuff and sadly is closing her photo shop :(. Eve was raised in Hawaii and her photography has a lot of Hawaiian influence. Do take a look. Maybe you'll find something that you'll like.

Her vintage shop is very interesting. She has dresses, purses, brooches, jewelry amongst other things. One of my favourites is the jade bamboo brooch pictured here.

Everyday on ETSY is a new experience and I am so glad to have found this awesome website which not only sends business my way, but also people who help my business and most importantly -Friends!