New Year's Cross Stitch Exchange

My facebook and cross stitching friend, Linda, had an idea to do a cross stitch exchange the end of this year. So, she gathered some Indonesian facebook friends (and cross stitch lover) to do so. And earlier this month she arranged to whom everyone send the cross stitch item. The item can be a bookmark, card, coin purse, pillow, and so on. So I began to pick a design and stitch it.

Last week, my cross stitch package arrived!
Well, we are not supposed to post about it until January 1, 2011. By then, we will post about it in a predetermined facebook group.

Ooooh, I cannot wait that long!! So, here is a preview...



And, this is my package I will send today.

Bali Dancer, Done!

Nothing makes me happier than seeing my stitch finished.. *I am being hyperbolic*
Last weekend, I have finished my Kebyar Duduk dancer...

I have been through a lot of things...!!



Here is my finished piece..



I have a pair of dancer.. yaaay!

Another Side of Bali (3)

I visited one of the famous ceramic manufacturers in Bali, the Tanteri Ceramic. This company exports its products to foreign countries, such as USA, Japan, and France. I have to admit that its designs are very smooth and refined.

















Although the crafters use several types of machines and tools, the details are still done by hand. They carve, shape, and twist the clay carefully and neatly.




The products are very fascinating...

...as I finish writing this post, I realize that still there's no beach pictures in my camera.... just like the last time I went to Bali...

Another Side of Bali (2)

While in Bali, I stayed in Kuta area, one of the famous beaches of Bali. At night, the atmosphere is full with excitement; the loud music, the hectic traffic, the bustling cafe visitors, and so many more activities along the street. But in the morning, it is rather quiet. And this is the view from my room balcony.



And the Balinese people say that their building never exceed the height of coconut tree. And I am pretty sure about that (after observing the surrounding).




At Pejaten village, I visited the workshop of Wayan Kuturan, one of the pioneer in pottery-making. I tried to gather as much information about the pottery-making activities in this village. And I could not help to notice his shack's ceiling. It was beautiful. The wooden bar was decorated with carving.



And I just love the gold color.

Another Side of Bali (1)

Last Wednesday, I got a chance to visit Bali again...(unfortunately) for work. Well, I haven't had a chance to go there for vacation.. :-(
But then I thought that others do not necessarily have the opportunity to visit Bali for free, so I just enjoyed the trip and did my tasks at my best.

I always pictured Bali as an island with beautiful beaches and rice fields, thousand of temples and attractive dances. This time I got to know another side of Bali by visiting small handicraft industries at Pejaten village, Tabanan Regency. They produce ceramic handicraft and pottery. I was there to identify what kind of training that they need to improve their products quality and sales.

They used to make roof-tiles.



But in order to increase the added-value, some of them switched to handicraft making.


Many interesting things I observed here.. I'll be back with another post..

Kebyar Duduk Update

I'm working on it.....
Metallic thread is fun...... knotted, tangled, loose, you name it.. :)

Birthday Hedgehog

Hi Stitchers!
I have finished stitching my Birthday Hedgehog at the end of September, but then I didn’t have much time to finalize it. The chart is from CrossStitcher magazine #230 (October 2010).

I decide to give the piece to my daughter’s classmate, Siti Alifa Aulia a.k.a Ifa. She will have her birthday coming up in November 11.

After downloading the mount from this link, I decide to frame it instead of making birthday card.



It has been quite a challenge stitching this piece, because it has so many fractional cross stitches to form the flowers at the hedgehog back… My eyes really work hard… LOL…

Starting My Kebyar Duduk

Reunion, done. Report, done. Housework, done. Project presentation, done.
Yippie... it is time to start stitching again!!

This is how far I have stitched, my Balinese Kebyar Duduk Dancer..



Well, I can't help to do some research about this traditional Balinese dance. Here's the search result from Bali dance and drama. They even provide a video of the dance at the website.

In 1925 I Ketut Maria (also known as Mario’) the most famous Balinese dancer of this century, debuted his Kebyar Duduk a dance performed entirely while seated on the ground. With no narrative to tell, the Kebyar dancer presents a range of moods from coquettishness to bashfulness, and from sweet imploring to anger. Mario himself performed this while playing the trompong (a long instrument with 14 inverted kettle gongs), using theatrics and flashy moves to coax sound from the instrument.

(Kebyar Duduk Dancer photograph courtesy of Farl, 2008)

Big Reunion

It has been very hectic weeks... Me and several friends organized a reunion party for Industrial Engineering Department, as part of Bandung Institute of Technology - Class of 1990 Big Reunion. It has been 20 years since the first time we walked into our campus, known in Indonesia as ITB (Institut Teknologi Bandung). Our friends had spread to various parts of the world. Most of us are rarely met. But thanks to social networking and technology, we were able to track down our long lost friends.

We held the reunion on October 9, 2010. We have been preparing the event since April!! Tracking down friend's locations took the most time. The physical preparation began in August; collecting funds, designing T-shirt, selecting the menu, choosing kid's goodie bag, and so on.





We were very excited when we met, off course. Some of us change, some of us still look the same (except the size and weight, perhaps...).

And at the final event of the reunion, our department got several award from the reunion committee. Industrial Engineering were the first department to collect the required reunion fee. And our friend, Teddy, was the one who traveled the farthest to get to Indonesia. It took him 24 hours to get to Indonesia from Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA.

And after the reunion, I felt so exhausted but happy. But then I had to deal with my deadlines at work. That was why I didn't have time for my needle and flosses.. :)

Now, things are slowing down a bit. Maybe it is time to get back to my WIP(s). Wish me luck !!!!

Another Traditional Pattern

I am excited... Yesterday, my Kebyar Duduk Dancer kit arrived safely at my office.. This time I bought the kit directly from the designer, Mrs. Aryati & Mrs. Niniek D from Crossstitch Point, Jakarta.



I was disappointed the last time I bought the Pendet Dancer kit from H***y C***t-Bandung, because the designer's name didn't mentioned on the kit. And I think H***y C***t just re-print the pattern and sell it (I mean, no royalty for the designer). And besides, the price is more expensive there.. heheheheh

Margaret Sherry Lovers Giveaway #1

Dear Stitchers,
My dear friend Nia of Caixinha de Pirlimpimpim who is also an author of the Margaret Sherry Lovers blog, is offering a giveaway. It's the "Make a Wish" cross stitch kit designed by Margaret Sherry.

If you want to participate, simply post about it on your blog or twitter. Then leave a comment where you post about it on this blog post. You need not to be a follower.

Well, I rarely win any doorprize, giveaway, or lottery. But, it's worth a try isn't it?

Anchor - DMC Conversion Chart?

I just received a September Stitch Along invitation from the Cross Stitch SAL group at my Facebook. So, I think I will continue to stitch my table-cloth at this event… (Well, I need to refresh my eyes and working on some colors instead of the monochrome).

Then I decide to do this in-between project.. The Margaret Sherry’s birthday hedgehog from October edition of Cross Stitcher #230. I think I will give it later to my daughter’s 5th grade classmate.











But then I hesitate when I convert the Anchor’s color number to DMC’s. It doesn’t fit the color on the sketch. You can see that MS always use Anchor instead of DMC. At the local stores here in Bandung, they only sell DMC and Blue Moon floss. I rarely find another brand, such as Anchor, Madeira, Coats, etc.







Here is what I have done so far. I wasn’t sure about the color of the background and the cheek… Maybe I should browse on another conversion chart. Any suggestions stitchers?

Table-cloth Update

I stitched like a snail... sooooo slow.....
More than one month from my 35% finished, now it's 50% finished...



Still need much spirit & energy towards my hectic days..!!
@_@

Coffee and Cuddles, and it's mine..!

I love Margaret Sherry's Coffee and Cuddles. I have made several birthday gifts for my daughters classmates between 2008 to 2009 using this chart (this post) . And earlier this year I finally made it for myself. I haven't had a chance to upload it, so this morning before starting those never-end house-works I simply grabbed my camera and took a picture of it. Phew..!!



And then I realized that I need to learn a lot about photography to have better images of my cross-stitches LOL..

Cooperative Fair 2010

In order to commemorate 63th "Hari Koperasi" (Cooperative Day), Dinas Koperasi, Usaha Mikro, Kecil dan Menengah Provinsi Jawa Barat (Department of Cooperatives, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises of West Java Province) held a Cooperative Fair in Gasibu Bandung.

This 7th Cooperative Fair which runs from August 4 until August 8, 2010, involving approximately 500 cooperatives, micro, small, and medium enterprises from 26 cities/regencies in West Java and all of the 33 provinces in Indonesia.

I always take some time to visit this Coop-Fair, because I love to browse and buy ethnic products from all over Indonesia. I always love traditional and unique fabrics of each region in Indonesia. The sasirangan of Kalimantan, jumputan of South Sumatera, ikat of Bali/Lombok, ulos of North Sumatera, and so on. And off course, batik from several regions of Indonesia with their own unique patterns.

And today, I manage to leave the office for a short break and go to Gasibu. Wooow, this Coop-Fair is full with batik booths..!! Batik fabrics, clothes, bags, pillowcase, bedsheets, and lots more. And there are lots of visitors; choosing, discussing, considering, and bargaining.

One thing that draw my attention, many visitors are wearing batik today... Well, it's friday and government officers are required to wear batik clothes. And their offices are located in the Gasibu vicinity. The exhibitors are also wearing batik.

So, this is the result of my Coop-Fair visit this time. Purple batik of Cirebon and three brooches.. Although I promised myself not to buy another batik, I just couldn't resist the temptation... :)

Pendet Dancer

I have finally finished my pendet dancer cross stitch. It was quite a challenge using metallic thread. I thought I was experienced because I did the metallic stitches on Lesley Teare's oriental Peacock and Peonies. But still, I went through a tangled and knotted yarn. But I enjoyed every stitch and observed the shape of the dancer appeared on my Aida.



Then, I will need a suitable frame for this, with a traditional touch perhaps ;)

Now, I'm getting back to my postponed tablecloth... :)

Aug 3, 2010
I was just googling around and I found out that the original designer of the pendet dancer pattern is Mrs. Aryati from Crossstitch Point, Jakarta. Well, it's too bad that the Hobby Craft shop doesn't mention it in the kit :(
And here's the preview of the complete set from Buletin Bisnis Website about Crossstitch Point.

Traditional Pattern

I always feel envious to see traditional cross stitch patterns published in the magazines or sold in the craft shops. There are lots of geisha, washi doll, matryoshka doll, hungarian motifs, dutch windmill, african dancer, you name it. I had never seen a cross stitch motif or theme of Indonesia. That is why I fell in love with this Balinese Pendet Dancer cross stitch kit since I first saw it.

Pendet is a traditional dance from Bali, Indonesia, in which offerings are made to purify the temple or theater as a prelude to ceremonies or other dances. Pendet is typically performed by young girls, carrying bowls of flower petals, handfuls of which are cast into the air at various times in the dance. Pendet can be thought of as a dance of greeting, to welcome the audience and invite spirits to enjoy a performance.

Here's the result so far. Two things left : gold stitches and backstitches.


Actually, there are 6 patterns available. But, I need to save some money first to buy the other 5.

(Pendet dancers photo from Wikipedia, courtesy of Christopher Michel, San Francisco, USA)

Mayday...mayday... Running out of floss...

I'm nearly halfway finishing the tablecloth, but I'm running out of floss #938..!! Ouch.. I'll have to do some shopping tomorrow...


In the meantime, maybe I'll stitch the Pendet Dance of Bali which I already have in my stash.

Cross Stitch Tablecloth

Belasan tahun yang lalu, saat aku masih sering bepergian untuk urusan pekerjaan, hal yang paling aku suka adalah mencari oleh-oleh yang khas dari suatu daerah yang dikunjungi. Entah itu makanan ataupun kain khasnya.

Satu daerah yang dikunjungi tahun 1995 adalah Sumatera Barat. Tempat yang sempat dikunjungi waktu itu adalah kota Padang dan Bukittinggi. Waktu itu aku survey mengenai fungsi jembatan timbang di daerah pinggiran kota Padang. Bukittinggi memang gak bisa dilewatkan dari daftar kunjungan. Selain tempat wisata dan masakan khasnya, buat ibu-ibu yang menarik adalah bordiran khas Sumatera Barat untuk oleh-oleh.
Tempat yang sempat dikunjungi waktu itu adalah Ngarai Sianok dan Jam Gadang.






Untuk urusan oleh-oleh, dicarilah bordiran khas setempat dan jatuhlah pilihan pada kain pink untuk baju kurung. Tapi tanpa disadari, memang cross stitch sudah jadi kegemaranku sejak lama. Begitu melihat taplak ini, tanpa aba-aba aku membelinya juga... Cukup menarik buatku..


Makanya kemudian aku terinspirasi untuk bikin taplak meja dari cross stitch juga. Setelah dapet polanya, mulailah dibuat taplak dengan kain dan benang yang aku mau.





Years ago, when I traveled frequently for working, the thing I like is the search for unique souvenirs of a region visited. Whether it's food or signature fabric.

One region that is visited in the year 1995 is West Sumatera. Places that I visited at that time was the city of Padang and Bukittinggi. At the time I did some survey on the use of weigh stations at the suburbs of Padang. Bukittinggi is a must-to-visit city, besides the tourism places and foods we can also find unique traditional embroidery of West Sumatera. But I could only visited Ngarai Sianok (Sianok Canyon) and Jam Gadang (Gadang Clock).

And it's time to look for some souvenirs. I chose this pink fabric with embroideries to be made into a tunic dress. Unwittingly, cross stitch has become my favorite since a long time. So when I saw the tablecloth, I also bought it without a prior plan. It was quite pretty...

So then I was inspired to make a cross stitch tablecloth as well. After I got the pattern, I started to pick the color that I want and started to stitch it before I lost my anxiety.

The Kanagawa Wave

Last night, while I was opening my Mozilla Firefox, I was redirected to Mozilla's web-page and faced several options to dress up my browser with 'Personas', the browser's themes. And there was a theme which caught by my eyes. The title is 'Kanagawa Wave'. Here's the captured image of some theme-options.


I seemed to be reminded again of similar images... Then I recalled that it was one of the cross stitch design I've had in my library (..still cross stitch matters on my mind this past few days....).
Here's the preview of the cross stitch design. The wave is on the right.



These wave images stick in my mind because I've also seen similar designs in one book given by my younger brother. It's an interior book Contemporary Eastern by Alice Whately. The wave is applied on a tea set.























Then earlier today I started to browse about it, because it seems that the wave is so popular.. Then I googled 'Kanagawa Wave' on my browser....




So, it is popular...!! Here's the result from Wikipedia.

The Great Wave off Kanagawa (神奈川沖浪裏, Kanagawa Oki Nami Ura, lit. "Under a Wave off Kanagawa") is a famous woodblock print by the Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849). It was published in 1832 (Edo Period) as the first in Hokusai's series 36 Views of Mount Fuji and is his most famous work. It depicts an enormous wave threatening boats near the Japanese prefecture of Kanagawa. As in all the other prints in the series, Mount Fuji can be seen in the background. While sometimes assumed to be a tsunami, the wave is more likely to be a large okinami. (Japanese "ocean wave".) Like the other prints in the series, it depicts the area around Mount Fuji under particular conditions.


Copies of the print are in many Western collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the British Museum in London, and in Claude Monet's house in Giverny, France.

Like other well known Japanese prints, the Great Wave has been frequently copied using the same techniques, as well as reproduced by photo-mechanical means. These copies are often confused with the authentic original print.

The print is one of the most reproduced artworks in the world, and was one of the subjects of the BBC documentary series, "The Private Life of a Masterpiece", which detailed the fascination surrounding the work in the East and West, its influence, and the artist's insights into a number of different areas, as revealed through the piece.

The print is the subject of episode 93 of the radio series A History of the World in 100 Objects, to be broadcast in September 2010.

The logo for Quiksilver, inc. is derived from the Great Wave.

There we go... No wonder I've been loving the cross stitch design since the first time I saw it, so I kept the file of the design in my folder. I think it's very bold and dramatic image... Could this be my next project? Mmmmmm.. let's check my DMC's stock first...

Memory of Paris

Since I was an elementary school student, I loved to read very much. I visited several bookstores regularly. My favorite bookstore was Toko Buku Jawa (Jawa bookstore) at Braga Street where I could browse and buy some books. Maybe it's because the bookstore location is near my school at Merdeka Street and also around the corner of my parents offices. Back then, I'd love to read Herge's The Adventures of Tintin, The Adventures of Asterix (by Rene Goscinny & Albert Uderzo), Tanguy & Laverdure (by Jean-Michel Charlier & Albert Uderzo) , and Michel Vaillant (by Jean Graton). It seemed that colored comic books are more interesting to me.


Maybe it was a coincidence that the original version of those books was in French language. And the story settings was France, except Tintin's location setting was Belgium. So at that time, I became acquainted with city names, landmarks, and maps of France and surroundings.

After reading, I used to daydream about those places... what would it be like to go there and experience the adventure of traveling abroad... :-P

When I went to college, I started to have a passion about being able to speak French. But I haven't had a chance to register myself to a French language course because a lot of circumstances (lack of time & money to be precise). But then I managed to get busy learning French after I graduated from college and started to earn my own money by doing several research projects with my professors. The language was quite complicated in writing and pronouncing.. but that didn't stop me from learning.

But still I have never imagined that someday I would be able to travel abroad until I worked on a national transportation survey project at Ministry of Communication and Transportation at 1995. It was a big project and at the end of the project we (me and the whole working team) were given a bonus, not an amount of money but a traveling package... yaay...!!

So, the next year (February 1996) I went to Gold Coast, Australia. Waaaw the first time going abroad made us quite nervous.. but we were having a good time.

The next year, we got the 2nd phase of the project, also at Ministry of Communication and Transportation. So we were beginning to wonder if we could get another bonus at the end of the project. And we were lucky to be able to bargain for it, and we decided that we want to explore Europe this time.....

So, this was August 1997, and I finally stepped on the romantic land, PARIS....


The Eiffel Tower is a must to visit and photograph, off course. Unfortunately at that time we were still using a conventional camera with negative films. Oh yeah, we were worried about the result of the photographs we took, is it in a proper lighting, did we pose our best smile.. etc. Not the same as the instant result of digital camera nowadays.

The adventures that we've been through that time could take hundreds of pages... The time was too short to explore the countries; France, Swiss, Germany, and Netherlands. But all I can say now that the memories still remain...

So, back to my other passion, the cross stitch, those memories caused a side effect to my preference on the cross stitch design. I always love to see all those designs about the Eiffel Tower. Feels like I want to express the memories which stored in my mind. And I can't help to love these designs.

This Maria Diaz design was from The World of Cross Stitching






This one was designed by Karen Brittan and published on Cross Stitch Crazy








And this is another Maria Diaz design, Sunset Over Paris, on Cross Stitch Gold