o v e r f l u o

  Yesterday and today's exploits. Yesterday's – a copy of Viktoria Astrom's work, copying to learn and try. Today's – a part copy and part adaptation of Anada from A Piece of Rainbow's watercolour flowers, trying to paint with more saturated colours and mix to get different shades of green.

Borrowed a learn-how-to-draw book from the library and learnt by copying. I lack patience. I need to do this more.

E was helping out at a wedding so we had to be there early. With a sketchbook, pen, and phone, this happened.

Random things I draw with whatever stationery I can find, sometimes while watching a drama or video. Probably should be more intentional about this and building this up. Improve my skillz mans. Grateful for art and for beauty. And even randomness. #youcanfindgoodineverything

So the other day I was thinking – I'm so blessed. I never have to buy what I want because I will eventually receive it. It's like how I've been craving chips yet resisting the temptation to buy it. And eventually, my friend brought some over when he came to our house, like... 5 weeks later. Haha. Well, like I said... eventually. You just have to wait... patiently, if you can. #random #lame but also, #lifelessons if you think deeper. Anyway, other than that, I have been up to something exciting called WORK! A full time job! Which is awesome! But I will leave the details for another time. Meanwhile, here are some things I created at work to help people learning English: I drew it with a marker, then coloured and did the layout in Photoshop.

Here's Mary Poppins in the longest word ever, in a little bit of colour and calligraphy. Super-cali-fragi-listic-axpi-dali-docious. That's how I memorised it many years back. 

I used to love art classes in school. They were one class I was better at. I even did art during computer class – by drawing random things using Paint (oops). Once, our teacher asked us to buy watercolour pencils for class. My parents brought me to Popular store, and I picked out the 32 set Faber Castell tin watercolour pencils and begged my mum to get it. My dad was like, so expensive!! And my mum was like, shh let's just get it. Hurhur. So I got it :D It was only later than I realised the tin set was way more expensive than the ones in cardboard boxes. But OH WELL. I GOT IT. And I was proud to own it. And I have no idea where it is today ha ha (well, it's now about 15 years later). The other day I was in Popular store again in Singapore, and chanced upon Faber Castells. I bought the 24 pack (not the tin one hurhur) to play with. Googled for basic watercolour pencil lessons and followed this one here . Pardon the light – I did it at night with my lamp for better lighting...

^ One of the all time very-important-to-me verses. ^ It's been a busy and tiring week, which has included a nine hour work day with just a 15 minute lunch break. Still, I am thankful for everything that has come my way. Truly. Please pray for me as I prepare to do a workshop next weekend for some young adults. Two things I prayer-prep most for are before I lead worship and before I conduct a workshop. It's possibly because I know those are things that I super super super need to rely on God for. It's not that I don't need to rely on God for other things; God is in our every day and every thing. But perhaps, these are two things close to my heart – worship and passing on of "heart". I will not be leading worship this time, but talking about worship. To bear any fruit at all, everything indeed needs to stem from "the vine". Apart from Him, I can do nothing. So please do say a prayer for me and the workshop participants as you read this, that ...

Trying to get better at calligraphy, trying to shine brighter like a star. Both are a journey of practice, patience and perseverance.

"The medium is the message", said Marshall McLuhan. I didn't always agree with that. But I think I understand it better now. Nowadays, many of us use multiple platforms – face-to-face, instagram, facebook, blogs, phone calls. While some spam every message on every medium, others choose what messages to place on which medium.  The writing changes at times, because we write for our audience. Even if it is just an audience of one. Like my mom, for instance. When I message her, there are no "lols" and "btws", because it would probably take longer for her to process them. So I write proper, for her. I appreciate some doses of inspiration. But I admit, sometimes it gets tiring to keep seeing the same posts over and over again. Then it stops. And a month later, those posts pop up again when someone rediscovers them. (Still, good job with sharing the love, buzzfeed, huffingtonpost, viralnova and more.) We are not so much creators of content, as curato...

Christmas cards! Anytime is a good time to bless and be blessed. But Christmas reminds us of that especially. That's one reason not to diminish the importance of occasions and traditions. It's a day to celebrate the One who brought us happy things like rainbows and makes life colourful and worth living. Merry Christmas folks!

Oh my. When you work, time really just passes by so very quickly! But anyway. I wanted to share about bubble moments. For times when I need something therapeutic - perhaps when I am a bit down, listless or emo-ish (not a fan of that word), I blow bubbles. It's not so much that they make me happy, but more that they are sort of something calming-ish? They accompany me in my "moment" and bring some sort of tranquility. God really does have a way with things, doesn't He? Even things like bubbles :) - There isn't any bubble solution at home. But that's okay. I've realised that another therepautic thing for me is watercoluring. I don't watercolour like the pro Miss Hand Made Love does, (please don't judge my amateur watercolouring skills, plus, these are incomplete! :x) but I just do a bit or it every month-ish or so. It's good for me, I thinks. And the friends I give them to. Accompanied with some words of course :)...

And I am shouting it out loud! I do love You, Lord (:

just earlier today. teehee (:

A peek into my journal- two things stood out today (: And, just for fun, a peek into my daily planner (: I know that as He has been for me , He will be (or rather, is!) for you , too.

From The Vine today- Isaiah writes, "… I have set my face like a flint, and I know that I will not be ashamed" (Isaiah 50:7 NKJV). Make up your mind to let no one stand in the way of doing what God has called you to do. Your first calling is to please the Lord, not others. ("like a flint" = like a stone; hard and unyielding) A few days ago I wrote- I must get this straight: I am not a people-pleaser. I am, instead, a God-pleaser, ie, a true worshipper. It's not always easy, you know - to be a God-pleaser and not a people-pleaser. But when we see things in light of the bigger picture, when we know our priorities and set ourselves "like flint", determined, then it gets easier to choose what is necessary over what is, well, nice. And sometimes I have to tell myself - oh who cares what people say! So long as I know I'm doing what is right! Who are you to judge (me)? And who I am to judge (you)? I am a God-pleaser. Well, I want to be (: -- A rec...

It's like ironing. I was ironing, with my mind a bit blank, and sometimes just humming along to the songs playing on the laptop, and I asked God – teach me something through this ironing I'm doing. You're the God of everything. A lesson can be learnt from anything. So teach me something. Then I continued singing in my head. Awhile later, I began thinking about some things. And I thought - it's like ironing. Creases (on the shirt) put under heat (of the hot iron) are smoothened. Me under trials (being smoothened) becomes smooth. -- Smooth (New Oxford American Dictionary) adjective 1. having an even and regular surface or consistency; free from perceptible projections, lumps, or indentations 2. without harshness or biterness verb give (something) a flat, regular appearance by running one's hand over it. thesaurus even, level, unwrinkled, polished -- So it's okay. I'm just getting smooth(ened). And so are you! We are getting more beautiful each day, becomin...

am i being sanctified? i cannot say the word "sai kang" anymore. literally translated, it means, "shit work". we used to say it for fun - like, hey let's be sai kang warrior! said it in a positive way - go and serve by doing whatever needs to be done. but. i dunno. i suddenly can't use the word anymore. not without unease. maybe that's how God works. like, you keep your eyes fixed on Him. and HE does the cleansing. you don't quite have to do that much; it doesn't require that much of an effort anymore. cos all you have to do is keep your eyes fixed on Him. and He does everything. He washes me clean (: now i have to find a replacement for "sai kang warrior". what sounds cool enough? hm. Worship is the submission of all our nature to God. It is the quickening of conscience by his holiness; the nourishment of mind with his truth; the purifying of imagination by his beauty; the opening of the heart to his love; the surrender of will to his ...

Hello G! This is for you! Hi everyone else - I got bored of my wallpapers so I had to make a new one. Considering that it's exam time, I most probably spent far too much time on it. But um. Whatever (or shingz), cos I had fun! Actually, I prefer cleaner, plainer wallpapers in general. So I made not just this, but a few. \m/ -- Have you ever felt you were "jack of all trades, master of none"? Or worse still - neither jack nor master? Well I'd just like to share today that I've felt that way before. And sometimes the feeling is pretty yucky because you don't feel special at all. But you know what? (: I've learnt (and am still learning) that at the end of the day, it is not about our gifts or talents, but about our surrender to God. And hey when we give God these things like how the little boy gave his five loaves and two fishes, and come in the name of the Lord Jesus with our equipment like how David did with simple sling and stone, and knowl...