Atelier de Soyun

Knitting night with lovely girls and something extra sweet...

2010-10-12T02:17:00.000-04:00

Weather here in Korea finally has been cooling down... and my knitting group gets more excited!
We meet, talk, cook, and ... surely knit!!!
This time we made an applepie from scratch.. Look at how gorgeous it is! Heavenly sweet, too!
I love my all girls in my group and enjoy our knitting night so much.

So, all my friends, how're your knitting groups going? I'd love to hear what you guys are up to in this wonderful knitting and crochet season! Why don't you share with me here?
Happy stitching and have a beautiful day!!

Before saying good-bye to 2009

2009-12-31T00:30:00.004-05:00

Today is the last day of the year. Oh, well. Looking back, I had a lot of things done and many things I could not even begin. Still, my year was pretty good and I achieved a number of things, so I am happy.

Before saying good-bye to 2009, I managed time to create my new line of knitting needle organizer. Many of my customers liked my needle cases, but they suggested some improvements they’d like to see. So, here it is. My new baby features

- About 14.5"(37cm) tall by 19.5"(50cm) wide when opened, rolls down to about 5.5"(14cm) wide when full of hooks and needles. (It is fully adjustable.)
- 3 rows and 33 pockets from 1/2”(1.5cm) to 5.5”(14cm).
- The Biggest pockets (5.5” by 11”) allow you to keep cables for interchangeable needles, scissors, measure tapes and other large materials.
- Small and medium pockets hold crochet hooks, afghan hooks, circular hooks, knitting needles and other materials.
- An extra pouch (5” by 4”) keeps small materials (such as pins, darn needles, crochet hook protectors, and small parts for interchangeable needles) and fits in the big pocket of the organizer snuggly.
- Adjustable straps make perfect closure.
- Double interfacings and reinforced lining make the case sturdy enough to protect your needles.

I hope this new version could impress my customers and help them knit more efficiently. You know knitting should be fun and enjoyable with all big and small supplies well organized.

So, it is your turn. How’s your year? Working on any projects before it’s gone? Share with me here.

Ready to Celebrate Holidays~

2009-11-30T12:43:00.004-05:00

I've been working on something special this season. Something I haven't done so far. As some of you know, I love natural fabrics and pastel tone colors. I am not much into anything too synthetic or artificial. But, this time I tried playing with something new.

I usually play with cotton yarns, but after creating a lot hats for local charity, I had a bunch of acrylic yarns left. So, now what? First, I made some motifs for fun and found their size is just perfect for scrubbies. So, I dishwashed with one of them. (Yes, I know they are too pretty to wash with. But, I believe dishwashing should be enjoyable in some level!) Oh, what a magic! This scrubbie was much better than the ones made with cotton I've been using. It gets all the dirty greasy stuff so easy and dry super quick! I bet there's some special function in this synthetic material.

Then, I remembered I had some festive and a bit stiff yarn somewhere in my closet. I didn't really like these, but mixed two different yarns together and it turns out just gorgeous as well as works absolutely perfect!!! I made some more and .. many many more for my mom and friends. How much I love those~ If you do crochet or knit, you must try this. Use acrylic and some hard yarns together! You'll be surprised~

Well, so I listed some in my shop also. In case someone would be curious and purchase them and voila! She'll think this is a holiday miracle!

Look, what I am up to~

2009-11-12T03:20:00.005-05:00

Recently, I found a lot of relaxation in crocheting. Well, I love knitting, but I am so NOT patient. I cannot wait until my knitting finally turns out something wonderful. It takes a great deal of time and efforts. Yes, I DO love knitting, but you know, crocheting gives me somewhat different satisfaction that knitting does. It goes so fast, real fast!

Strangely enough, this year, autumn in Korea is pretty longer than before. It would’ve been pretty cold, dry and windy by this time of the year, but we’re having such warm and sunny days recently. How much I am thankful for that. Still, a bit chilly in the morning and night though. So, I need something around my neck not too heavy, but not too light. So, here we are. I finished this lovely flower motif scarf within a couple of hours. Isn’t it sweet? I love the colors and the texture. Oh, I am so excited to take her out soon. What’s in your project bag?

Such a colorful season, here in Korea!

2009-11-03T09:13:00.008-05:00

I don’t remember when was the last time I was complaining about the hot and humid weather. God is faithful. He never forgets preparing new season for us. All of sudden, I’ve noticed how beautiful environment I have. I have been too busy to complain something I don’t have or someone I am not happy with. But, here there’s something I forget to be thankful for. How bad I am… and I nice He is.. Look at all the colors. Who can make those gorgeous things every year..
* If you’re interested, visit my Photo Album. You can find many beautiful scenes from Korea where my dreams grow.

Congratulations~

2009-09-13T21:41:00.001-04:00

Hi everyone,
Thanks for participating in my renewal giveaway.
I appreciate all your support and comments. I enjoyed reading all your blogs also.
I am glad I met many new faces through this event. Hope everyone keeps visiting me and getting chances to win other giveaways I am planning~
So, the winner of my first giveaway is…
Velvetwoods!
Congratulations! Please contact me at atelier.de.soyun@gmail.com with your mailing address.
I’ll be right back with my autumn story from S.Korea~

Soyun.

Let's Celebrate!

2009-08-29T02:51:00.003-04:00

Hi, everyone~
Long time no see. I am very sorry that I have not been able to see you often. The summer was pretty hot and busy here and I was out of town for a while with my family. Well, everything is in place now and I am ready to back to work.

Some of you might notice my blog has a fresh face. Yes, I found this beautiful template and jazzed up a bit. Looks pretty nice I think. Still I am working on some application though. Yes, there are so many things to learn and practice in our lives.

Enough about me. Now, it’s your turn. How’ve you been? What’s new? Let me hear your summer story. Let me know what you think about my new blog design. Here’s fun part!

* What: Atelier de Soyun blog renewal free give away
* How & When: Leave a comment on this post by Thursday, Sep. 10 and come back Sunday, Sep. 13 to see if you are a winner!
* Why: Winner gets wonderful organic gift that Soyun creates. It is an adorable pouch that you can carry everywhere. Organic linen, hand-dyed and then, carefully texturized by me. Just great for the coming autumn. If you have someone special this is a great chance to show how much you appreciate the person.

Sounds great? I think so! Read, comment, visit my studio and get inspired!
I wish you all best luck~

Summer, here she is.

2009-07-04T02:48:00.004-04:00

It is hot, but it is beautiful out there. I love summer for its vibrant colors, unexplainable freshness and fullness of life. All wake me with the idea that life is beautiful and exciting. If someone feeling blue or discouraged today for any reason, I hope you feel summer and get excited at what you have. Life is short and we should be able to enjoy every and each moment given to us. God bless you.

P.S. I don't know anything about the flower above. I found it when I was out with my family the other day and just thought it was so pretty, juicy and vibrant. I am going to talk more about the picnic later...:)

A cup of hot coffee or tea in the hot summer afternoon~

2009-06-23T03:25:00.007-04:00

Well, I am a beverage addict. Coffee, tea, juice, smoothies… Um, now I realize I have too much appliances to make beverages also. J Ha! From coffee makerS, espresso machineS, juicerS to blenderS especially used for my smoothies. Yes, I know. My kitchen cabinet is messy..

But, do you know what is funny? I really enjoy hot beverages even in the hot lazy summer afternoon. I don’t know why. But, I my body needs more heat even when the weather is hot. Well, so I made those lovely things. For me they are just perfect in every way. Looking good, saving the earth (even though the paper sleeves your coffee house give you say they were made out of recycled paper who knows? Also, you’ll though it away after you finish your coffee, which is not so great), most importantly, protecting my hands from seriously hot beverage~ (But, I still Love it!) What is your taste for summer drinks? Tell me your stories!

Small Smile, Big Joy

2009-05-30T00:15:00.003-04:00

Today, I’ve been grocery shopping in the mart near my place. There’s a snack section I sometimes stop by to treat myself and today I just felt like having something special, so I headed there. I ordered something to go and I picked up the bag from the middle age woman working there. All of sudden, this woman started talking to me, “You’re always smiling, you have such a beautiful smile. You seem always happy. I remember you from your smile. I really like that”. Well, I did not know. Umm, have I been happy? Well, actually the opposite… The situation and environment around me are getting worse. I felt fear and discouragement more often recently. Then, how come was I smiling? On the way back home, I’ve been thinking and was not able to find an answer. But, you know what? I was just so happy once again. It was a great feeling that someone gets happy because of my smile. That’s what God intended! He commended us, “Rejoice in the Lord, always!” So, I decided to be joyful again even if the situation looks dark and hopeless. I have a reason to be happy because God is still working for me behind the scene He even uses my smile for other’s good.

Inspired from a little song.

2009-05-17T06:55:00.007-04:00

Sometimes I am surprised by the fact that we can be inspired by something unexpected. Browsing through ‘You tube’, I found this little song I’ve been looking over. I don’t know why I took so long time to find this: The Clime sung by Miley Cyrus. It is so inspiring and encouraging that I want to share with you.

I love, LOVE the lyrics. When I heard, “Ain’t about how fast I get there, Ain’t about what´s waiting on the other side, It´s the climb”, I had a aha moment. How much time did I pushed myself to be in hurry to achieve something? How often was I frustrated by the emptiness of success? That’s it! The climb. The process that I have to experience to reach my dream! Struggles, sufferings, trials and all the tears. Those are the key things that make me as me. So, now I decide to change my focus. It is not about my time schedule or the goal itself. It is about the process and HOW I make it. I may be behind my schedule and my results may not the one I exactly planned, but no matter what I’ll enjoy evey moment of my life and cherish all the process I have to get through because that’s the very best way to become me.
Click the picture, and be inspired~

Photos taken from The Climb by Miley Cyrus music video

New face for my Twitter Home

2009-05-14T04:08:00.006-04:00

I am still learning how to use Twitter properly. I think this is a real fun tool and want to make a bunch of cool friends through it. Today, I recreated my home page. A bit fresh and summer like mood using one of my summer edition. Even though I am in love with organic and natural colored items I cannot live without vibrant shades and tones.

So, here it is. If you’re in Twitter Land, visit me (http://twitter.com/AtelierDeSoyun) and say hello. I’d love to hear from you. Oh, by the way, the items I used for the page are my newest hemp coasters. Great for your summer parties and picnics. You can find them here.

Happy Birthday to Me and Our Two Dogs~

2009-04-26T04:54:00.004-04:00

23rd, April was my birthday. Oh, the weather was just gorgeous and I had wonderful time with my family. I adore all times I can spend with them. I realized I have even stronger relationship with them after I came back from the US.

My mom prepared such a beautiful and absolutely delicious fruit cake and my dad took me to the great restaurant near our home. What a lovely day I had with them. I really hope I can spend more time with them.

BTW, two of our dogs have the same birthday as mine. It is awesome that we celebrate the same birthday! I shared my cake and lunch with them. They are getting healthier and prettier. I hope they live with our family forever. Having a birthday is great, but celebrating with family and lovely dogs is something much more than that.

A Cool Experience~

2009-04-21T01:22:00.008-04:00

Last Tuesday, I found myself on the front page of Etsy. I usually work very late and that means wake up pretty late, too. But, remember my morning is night in the US and vice versa. The first thing I always do is checking out my dear Etsy shop. When I opened the Etsy home I found something so familiar and.. scrolled down the page. Oh my goodness~ What a sweet surprise! One of my hemp pouches was sitting there! What a great kickoff for a day! I received a great amount of hearts, not a sale though. But, certainly, it was a fun and awesome experience. Hopefully, all of you got exciting start-offs for your days just like mine~

Food Journey in My Life

2009-04-07T02:02:00.009-04:00

Well, I am Korean, so it might be natural that I enjoy food from where I come from. But, since I stayed NY pretty long time, my eating habit changed a lot. Right after I move to New York, most of the food I got was instant American style. You know, burgers and pizzas something like that. Wow, big burgers. Super-sized burgers. Don’t laugh at me, but I used to spend about one day to finish an American burger combo set. To me, it was too heavy, but basically I liked it.

After that beginning period, I figured out how to get some Korean food ingredient and A LOT of Chinese’ ones. Since I lived in Lower Manhattan, it was just a walk to China Town where I got so excited~ Great prices and countless selections. Then, I started to enjoy cooking by myself.

Slowly I arrived somewhere like between American and Korean style. I found farmer’s markets around my places and it opened a new world. I still remember all the vibrant colors, turf smells, and big crowd in Union Square. I got so excited whenever I visited there. I bought a lot of vegetables and sometimes gorgeous flower bouquets for my table setting. Oh, and then, the organic market, “Whole Food Market” just opened near my place. It was like a playground to me. A lot, really a lot of great gourmet veggies, fish, and dairies. I was super happy for browsing them as well as having some. I’d call it ‘Golden Age in My Food Journey’.

Now, I found myself somewhat like fusion. Yes, that might be a good word to describe my style. I mix many many different ingredients from all over the world and create something I am not sure where its origin is. I’ll tell you they are basically all great, but I found one thing. Proper mixing is awesome, but it is no good to mix just everything. You’ll get burned.

BTW, the pictures shown is one of my favorites. If you know Korean food a bit, you must know what it is. Hot and Spicy Rice Cake it is. Lovely color and unforgettable flavor. You must try mine someday!

Spring is just around the corner~

2009-03-21T12:01:00.006-04:00

Until just a few days ago, I remember it was pretty chilly. But, all of sudden, it was all spring today. Well, to be exact, it was more like summer. It was about 74 degree according to news. People said it was the highest March’s temperature in last 89 years in Seoul. Wow~ (I actually worry about coming summer now. I cannot stand the humidity here and it’d be my first summer after my staying in NY several years.)Anyway, without knowing the weather, I went out to do some exercise (finally..) and I could not pass those precious things.

Oh, how lovely~ I really wanted to pick out some to take home, but I left with those photos. Now, the yellow bud is my new desktop background and I just love it. If anyone still was not able to feel spring, here you go. Enjoy and if you have any chance, go out and try to find some hidden spring near you.

Snow, Snow, and Snow...

2009-02-01T04:03:00.002-05:00

For most Koreans, Chinese New Year’s day is the one of the most celebrated days. It is almost like Christmas day in Western World. Preparing a lot of food, getting together with families, having great dinner, talking and playing, and expectedly gaining some weights.

This year, I celebrated the day with my family, “finally”. (As some of you know, I have been away from my home country several years.) It was just awesome to see all of family members and enjoy all the delicious food my mom prepared with love. (I don’t know how she does like that while fighting against cancer. I just admire her so much.)

However, the journey to my hometown wasn’t so pretty at all. Generally, trips on those dates are painful for notorious traffic jam. But, this year there’s something special. – snow, a bunch of snow. I thought I’ve never seen this a lot and I’ll never see this anytime soon in the future. As I measured, it was about 9” high. I’ve been grown up, raised up, and living in pretty big cities and never had seen this tremendous amount of snow. So, it was awesome to see it falling and accumulating, but just tired for the long and boring bus trip to the hometown.

Well, but the warm welcoming and wonderful hearty food melted all my fatigue just right away! Yes, that’s what family is for~ I’ll definitely come back soon.

Where are we inspired?

2008-10-31T06:06:00.003-04:00

Recently I am crazy about little pouches and working on new designs to add to my reopening shop. As you know I love to create anything with my hands – sewing, knitting, crocheting, and really anything. But, I found designing is almost everything for my gift shop business. Most of my time for projects is spent for designing not crafting itself. Design is the very foundation of the process of crafting. It is something like a blue print that guides every step of my work. More importantly, it is a reflection of what I am actually making. It determines what the final piece would look like.

So, here’s my point. Designing is very critical, then where we’d get inspired? Just like everyone, I usually inspired by my surroundings, especially families and friends. However, since I’ve been away from them for a while, I am depending on something else. – What I eat.

Yesterday, I went grocery shopping. The weather here is getting colder, but just wanted to eat something fresh, crispy, and green. Oh, you know what? I found such a fresh little guy. A tiny Roman lettuce. Since I am eating alone, the size was just right and it looked too cute to eat. Anyway, I took it home and played (?) with it for a while before I made it into fresh delicious Caesar Salad. While I was having a great time with it, I found its shape is really gorgeous and has something special. After dinner, I started to create new patterns inspired by the lettuce. A perfect 3-dimension pouch. Oh, you never imagine how much I was excited after I finished this project. I love, love this and wanted to show you here. Can you imagine what the lettuce looked like from this?

What am I worried about?

2008-10-26T04:31:00.009-04:00

What I hear and see about economy makes me disappointed and worried. Well, we can say, yes, that’s a life. There’s sometime we think we can do anything while there’s some other times when we feel we are so miserable that we cannot do anything at all. Facing many trials, I realized I am getting just more negative day by day. It seems like there will be no sunny days forever.

Today listening to radio I heard a message from other listener who survived from a breast cancer. The story ended like this. “Life is too short to fight with someone we cannot change, to be discouraged with something we cannot resolve, and even to feel worried about something that will barely happen. Every life is worth living and we have to fully enjoy whatever we have.” That’s so true. I’ve already known that. But, strangely enough, all of blue this hit my heart. Actually nothing happened yet. Everything around me seems not so good, but that did not hurt me at all yet. So, now I am asking to myself, “Soyun, what are you worried about? What is bothering you?” Well, I don’t know. Nothing. Really nothing at all. I’ve been just worried because I’ve seen other people worry.

You know what? I realized that is totally silly to be discouraged because the situation around me makes me feel bad. There are so many hard times in our lives, but as the Bible says, His plan for us does not mean to hurt us, but give us future. I know so and believe so.

Then, that’s it. There’s no reason why I have to be blue or even worried. I determined to feel better and get rid of all those dark circles in my mind. So, I choose my favorite color from the fabrics I got and started to make a little gift to myself. Here you see my little hope pouch. Whenever I use this cute purse, I will remember I still have hope and He still has plans for me. The situation may be threatening from time to time, but there’s nothing to worry about.

Restart~

2008-10-19T07:13:00.005-04:00

Finally, I am settling down. I got a small but cozy studio near Seoul and prepared almost everything I needed. Actually, I have been overwhelmed with purchasing many many things. Well, right. I like shopping. I love it. But, nowadays it is too much. I only owned some of my clothing from NY and my dear sewing machines (I have two. I cannot live without them. They are my everything~) So, I have to buy from spoons to a bed to survive here. At the beginning, it was absolutely fun thing to do, but now? I am tired and to be exact, I am scared! If you had any chance to live alone, you’d know what I mean. There’s nothing different in the number of stuff we need whether we live alone or live with a whole family. A difference is we need small size when we live alone. So, I got everything. Even a new TV and a freezer. Wow… I am not sure how I can manage them later when I move out or more likely when I get married and move to somewhere with my man. Well, but so far, I need all those things, so.. have to get them.

I need something more than anything. Which is… fabric, fabric and more fabric. Call me crazy, but that’s so true. Many of you sewing will understand what I mean. I am fabricholic. If I find one I really like, I got to have it. It does not mean I don’t have enough, actually… I have a lot. Frankly speaking, my closet is full of fabrics not my clothing. But, nobody can stop me from purchasing fabrics. Whenever I have a chance I buy, buy and buy. Nowadays I am crazy about fabrics imported from Japan and all kinds of cotton ribbons.

While I was busy for moving in, I sneaked into fabric stores and found a bunch of great Japanese fabric. You never imagine how much I was happy and excited. Such cute designs and gorgeous colors. I was super thrilled.

Still I am in the process of moving in. So I have to go back to clean up my nest now. Well, new studio? That’s sweet. But, new fabric? That rocks! Please tune in~ I will come back with my new project made out of those awesome babies.

Home, sweet home…

2008-10-06T08:10:00.001-04:00

It’s been about 1 month since I’ve come back to Korea after 5 years of the journey in New York. Many things have changed, but there’s one thing still hasn’t changed… my family. Full of love, care and warmth. During the first month, time flew and I had wonderful time with them and enjoyed great things they prepared for me. – Especially awesome Korean food. No wonder I already gained 5 pounds.)

Oh, here’s one new family member I have to introduce. What a beautiful smile she has. Her name is “Suni” pretty old name in Korea. I wanted to change her name to something different, but I thought she would be confused if I do that. So, “Suni” remained. She is very friendly and outgoing. I am very pleased that God added her to my family and gave me a great chance to make friends with her. How can I not get excited for my very first pet?

I will talk to you more about how I live and work here. Not much different from NY I guess, but there’s always something interesting in my life. So… please visit my blog and the store more often. Also, if you’d like, don’t forget to leave any comments and let me know how you are doing.

XOXO, Soyun.

Counting Down

2008-08-19T10:32:00.004-04:00

Finally, the time is coming. As some of you know, I’ve been studying and working in NY for a few years now. I am planning to open new era of my life moving back to my home country. I only have 10 days until I leave and that gives me a lot of mixed feelings. It’s been five years since I’ve come here and so many things happened during the time. I still remember at first it was pretty tough to live and study in a big foreign city without knowing anybody and understanding foreign language well. Still, I am not sure how I was able to get everything done by myself. Surely, I spent a number of days crying missing family and many things I left in my home country. But, I am glad that I came here and I am absolutely sure that I was truly blessed that I had a chance to stay here. Everything was so strange when I arrived New York, but now I got used to most things here and feel so comfortable that I hesitate to go back.

New York is a great city. It is dirty and noisy, but it is a real beauty. It is very accepting and therefore, tremendously diverse and colorful. Once you come here, if you are not comfortable with things people bring (such as noise, waste, and difference) you would think you cannot live here. However, once you learn how to live here you cannot live without things people also bring (such as diversity, convenience, and freedom). So, I would say people might give us tough time, but it is also people that give us wonderful and unforgettable memories. I will miss NY and especially all the people I’ve dealt with. I believe I will miss all the freedom I enjoyed and colorful diversity I experienced here. I found I’ve learnt a lot from living here rather than attending the school. My school might offer some knowledge which I would not remember much, but living here gave me a bunch of wisdom and confidence for life which I would never get from any where else.

Nonetheless I am very excited to meet new people when I go back to Korea. 5 years. It’s been long time I haven’t been there. I bet many things have changed. I would feel the same way as I got here when I arrive there. Everything might strange and I would feel lost, but I get used to it very soon and love it.

After all, I am very happy for what I’ve gone though in NY and absolutely excited for what I am going to face when I go back. By counting down, I am thinking life is really really … really short. My time’s up here and I have to move on. I will make another 5 years even more enjoyable and fruitful as I did here. The important thing is not where we live, but how we live and how we deal with people around us.

You Don't love it? Then, make friends with it!

2008-08-09T01:51:00.007-04:00

How are you doing? Are you enjoying this summer? Me? Complaining about the hot and humid weather. Being easily tired and sleepy. Thinking about ice-cream, iced coffee, and air-conditioning rooms all day long. Exactly: A true description of myself recently. I found myself so much vulnerable during summer. This year, the symptom seems even worse and I have been avoiding going out if possible. For me, summer is the worst season that I have to almost fight against. (Please don’t laugh. But, I am worried about next summer during winter.) However, today I found somewhat different point of view and thought you’d like it.

I had to go to my library to return books (It’s been pretty long time since I’ve visited there. To be exact 6 weeks. I am super happy that they allow me to renew my books more than 1 months. What a great city!). On the way back home, I passed by a small park where I enjoyed reading during spring. To avoid the sunshine, I carefully walked along shadows that big trees created. When I got to the middle of the park, I found something new. Beautiful dark green ivy. Not just a few, a whole center section of the park. The leaves are so fresh and lovely I had to take a moment to enjoy them taking a lot of pictures. In the afternoon I talked to my friend about the gorgeous leaves I adored. And.. shockingly enough she said, “Oh, you saw them today? They were there all the time. Every summer. Last year and even before that…” Huh? I could not believe what I heard. I’ve been proud of myself for an exceptional sensibility. How did I not notice the huge change of the park? I’ve visited there hundreds, thousands times.

You know what? I did not have to think to figure it out. It was me. Every summer when the green magic flourished, I got tired and sick of the heat and did not go out enough. Even if I went out I usually hid myself in the shadow walking fast and looking at the ground. As a result, I missed all the beautiful changes during summer.

Well, still I cannot say I like summer. Summer makes me TOO hot. I don’t like heat. Nonetheless, I found summer is a great season. I cannot forget wonderful green ivy leaves (I bet I will go back tomorrow). Now I can see such great things summer creates. A bunch of different kinds of fruits and vegetables in the market cannot be with me without summer (See my last blog. Notice the wonderful plums). I cannot even imagine marvelous autumn harvests without it. So it will be truly boring and dry if there were no summer. Now I am thinking and thinking hard. I might not love summer, but I cannot live without it. If so, I have to learn how to make friends with it just like I did today rather than try to avoid it. Hope you all enjoy this summer, too.~

Have to do vs. Happy to do

2008-08-03T02:33:00.006-04:00

Today, I met one of my best friends who had an unpleasant day. Recently, she is making room for her new semester selling many things that she barely used. She is crazy about sewing, owning 3 different sewing machines and decided to sell one of them. So, finally she sold the machine and arranged a pickup service at USPS today.

She was shipping two big boxes – the sewing machine (over 20 pounds) and hardcover books (over 15 pounds). She found the Priority Mail offers a free pickup, so she paid a great amount of money to buy it. So, in the morning the shipping truck driver showed up. My friend asked politely. “Could you please come up. It’s 3rd floor.” The man replied, “No, I can’t” She asked again, “Please, those are very heavy. Could you please help me?” He almost yelled at her, “No, I can’t. You have to come down.” So, my friend had to come down with the heavy big box barely walking down to the stairs. The driver was not even in front of the door to help her. He was just looking at her in front of the truck and walking to the back of the truck and opened the back door. He did not even try to touch the box. The man was a big man with well-shaped body. My friend? Skinny small barely five feet tall girl. Well, the story continued. My friend asked him again, “Please, please help me. I have one more. You’re a big man.” He said. “I don’t have to. Also, my back is not good.” So, as you imagine she had to do one more time. Alone. I am wondering if his back is a problem, how come he is in charge of this kind of job which demands a bunch of pressure on his back.

Well, I know. I am her friend. My sympathy goes out to her. However, as a seller and service provider, I just could not help thinking about this very seriously. I am selling my product, and service, but more importantly myself as a whole. I sure can live doing something I have to do only. But, I do something I don’t have to for my customers because I want to be a better person and I want them to be happy and actually that makes me happy as a result. So, my whole business is not just about my product but is all about my personality and attitude.

I think our life is the same. Certainly, there are many things we don’t have to or we don’t feel like. However, very often, a very small tiny thing we are willing to do makes the world much much better and brighter. Well, my friend got hurt and I feel so sorry about it, but this case gave me such a great lesson, so I’d like to share with you. (You see plums? I bought them for my friend today in the farm’s market. She just got so happy for them. I see a little child in her face. Her story taught me invaluable thing, so I did reward her..:) Anyway, here’s the point. Let’s be wise when we have to choose between “happy to do” and “have to do”. Your little gesture can make a big difference.

Beyond face to face

2008-07-26T21:40:00.007-04:00

Rest Stop - Colour Photograph by ItalianGirlinGeorgia

Yesterday, I got a nice surprise mail from a fellow Etsian. She was such a sweet girl writing me generous compliments about my creations. They were exceptionally personal and thoughtful. I had been so depressed and discouraged by all circumstances I faced, but all of sudden I got nice chills and unexplainable positive energy from this mail. We started to convo each other back and forth and I found her works are so romantic and sweet that I just fell in love with them. It turned out that her little message opened a beginning of lovely friendship I truly wanted to keep.

La Truffe - Colour Photograph by ItalianGirlinGeorgia

I remember a few years ago, people said the Internet would keep people from socializing. Well, maybe many things are done without meeting people nowadays. However, it is absolutely true that we social with many people we would’ve never known without the Internet. I appreciate this unique foam of relationship beyond face to face and am willing to expend it.

If everything should go up...

2008-07-10T12:02:00.003-04:00

Gas prices go up. The temperature goes up. The humidity goes up. The stress level goes up. .. and the price of my dear cappuccino goes up "again"...
If everything should go up day by day, I believe I should get my hopes up, too.
HOPE - Trust, Reliance. Desire accompanied by expectation of fulfilment.
I start my day with big hopes and will get them up high every minute I live today.

Recycling

2008-07-03T00:13:00.006-04:00

Hi everyone,
I know it’s been long since I’ve written last time. So many things happened and also, so many things to write about. One of the biggest things - I moved (Not far from my original nest though, it was pretty a big deal to me. It was such a stressful thing to deal with in such a short time period. Now, I learned something. It is always good to be prepared before I actually do something:). The weather is getting hotter and stickier, but I tried to make myself busy and sweaty. However, I know there is no excuse about being away from writing so long. Guys, I am very very sorry. Please accept my sincere apology. But, I promise I will be writing something enjoyable regularly.

Today, I’d like to talk about my new projects. If you know me, you know I am all about colors. I am crazy about vibrant, vivid, and juicy colors. I cannot help it. So you see here a bunch of colorful things I’ve created while I have been disappeared. In my home country, Korea, people consider autumn is a perfect season for reading. But, I love to read (especially, colorful photo books, you know.:) all year around. For some reason, I enjoy reading on hot humid summer days. (sounds strange?) I used to grabbing a cup of ice tea and sitting in the patio in my back yard. With a good book, lazy summer afternoons just fly.

I am wondering what you guys use for your bookmarks. I am super into recycling so you could imagine I would reuse something second hand for my bookmarks. I found I had a bunch of scrap fabrics from my projects, and wondered if I should throw them away when I moved. I hated to take them to my new home but also hesitated to let them go. So, here I found something I can do with them. The old tiny fabrics resurrected as beautiful bookmarks. – wonderful colors, great texture, and most of all, an awesome way of recycling. You have to touch them to see how they turned out~ I made one, and two, three… and actually a lot~ well, kind of addicted. I am absolutely delighted for those bookmarks and thinking of reading more this summer~ What is your plan for this sizzling season?

Take me to Green Wonder Land ~

2008-05-18T15:28:00.015-04:00

It’s been long that we started to think about “Going Green”. I’ve been always a city girl. But, strangely the nature (Not just green, but all the vibrant, unexplainable colors) always drew me. I don’t know why, but I’ve always missed it. And, more importantly, the nature happens to be the main inspiration of my work.

As usual, I went out to explore this big, diverse city in the lazy Saturday afternoon. You wouldn’t believe what I found. You wouldn’t believe what I am going to show you here. You wouldn’t believe I found those amazing creatures in the middle of the island of Manhattan. Once I saw them, I could not stop running into them, smelling them, shooting them and finally taking them with me. I am not sure how I explain this kind of excitement. But, I have to say it must be something like a garden in the heaven if we can imagine. They are super fresh green, delicious red, dizzy purple, cool blue.. you know, you’d be overwhelmed by a thousands of wonderful colors, scents, and shapes.

For your maximum enjoyment, I decided to talk less and show more in this issue. So, please feel free to enjoy them and let them gently take you to “Green Wonder Land”.

Got to have RED~

2008-05-12T17:25:00.012-04:00

Last weekend, I've gone to one of farmer's markets to smell something SPRING.. (I know spring always starts from farmer's markets and leaves a bunch of wonders until the end of the year. That is one of the reasons I love the markets.)

Voila! Guess what I found? Oh~ You have to see them. I could not miss those gorgeous flowerish peppers. They even have a sweet mouthwatering fragrance. I got to have some of those. So, I bought a lot, not just some. :)

Well, at first I wondered. What could I make with those irresistible babies. Something fresh, but something perfectly goes with the bold color. Browsing my kitchen closet, I found small boxes of pasta which I usually consume for a super simple lunch. This was the perfect time to have fun with special ingredients. So, I cooked a reasonably simple, but absolutely bold weekend lunch!

It was just delicious. But, more importantly, I just felt so good about eating a bunch of colorful veggies. Yeah~ I am getting healthier. :) I hope I can keep this habit (eating something beautiful? healthy? or beautifully delicious? well...) at least once a week. What is your habit that you want to keep long, long... long time?