Wednesday, February 6, 2013

it's red, everywhere I look

Dear friends,
I walked to Chinatown (Petaling Street) yesterday, and all I saw was red. Four more days to Chinese New Year, the old little shops are full to the brim with the brightest decorations!. Flowers, oranges and lanterns, you name it. I got a few shots from the street :).




I wished that these flowers were real.



And I saw handsome birds in wooden cages. I feel bad for them though, but they sang so beautifully :).

This guy moved so much, I couldn't get a good picture of him. 

Then I went into an old book shop and bought me a receipt book, a Chinese calligraphy manual and some kind of Chinese payment cards. I shall like to turn them into sketchbooks!. 


My kind of treasures :).

I bind the loose green cards into a book and embellished the cover with tissue paper, some stamping and decoupage. 


I decoupaged tissue paper roses, added word strips from old storybook and used 1" coil binder (Zutter) to hold the cards together. Trying to make the cover looks oriental :).


I sponged some gold acrylic paint to the sides to make it look like the yellow tussles I often see on Chinese lanterns.



Drew Chinese wooden clogs on the very first page;

As for the receipt book; I applied gesso to the very thin cover, distressed the edges with brown Stazon, stitched pieces of fabrics and added a button. 


A fabric heart for February :).

Then made a sketch with pencil and later finished it off in watercolor.

The thin papers didn't take watercolor so well and my page crumpled so badly. Oh well, life goes on :).

I love the scenery/painting on the cover of the Chinese Calligraphy book, so I didn't do anything to it. Shown here is a lotus flower sketch I did on the first page.


Not too crumpled, good news. I shall paint on them more.

I feel good that my walk yesterday made me pick up some brush & paint again :). At the moment, I'm having too much fun making small fabric-paper collage, which I will share soon :). HUGS.

6 comments:

  1. Ahhhh.... I just LOVE your sketch book with all those treasure, I hope we have something here like that, I am not even sure we could find those in Singapore these days. Your art on the caligraphy paper is my fav!!!!
    Thanks for sharing those festive photos too!!!!

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  2. WOW, Shahrul I'm so thrilled with all you made. First the photos from your walk are gorgeous and yes VERY RED. How nice to walk and see all that beauty everywhere. So glad you shared those with us.

    Your little journal/sketchbooks are beatiful, loved each one. How creative you are for turning anything into a book. Those clogs are so pretty, I use to have a pair of them. Loved everything here.

    So can't wait to see what you will share next. HAPPY DAY TO YOU!!

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  3. Oh my gosh, I'm so jealous!! If I go for a walk, I end up in a corn field or a dead end...You are sooo lucky!! :D Those pictures just evoke inspiration and what you've done with your finds is so you and so perfect!! :)
    Thank you for sharing them.
    hugs,
    Lisa xx

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  4. Oh what a gorgeous walk!!! Love all the glorious red and those lanterns too!!(I'd feel a bit sorry for the caged birds too) You made some nice purchases and did such wonderful things with them already.I love how you immediately bound them and started arting in them.Good for you-nice sketching!

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  5. Looks like you had a happy walk to me. I really enjoyed seeing your photos. Lots of color. And I just love all the different medium you found to work with. How fun. I always love seeing your paintings. Cant wait to see more.

    Hugs

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  6. Gong Xi FA Cai! Hehe..wish I can have the whole week off! Great work! Your paintings are awesome!

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