Welcome to Zhen's DREAM Machine...

The short of it:

Italian design. German engineering. Japanese build. Swiss precision. Swedish simplicity. American marketing. Welcome to Zhen's Dream Machine! ;) ;)

The long of it:

Italian design. (Specifically? Milan...)

German Engineering. (Call upon Swiss precision for any timing devices ;)

Japanese Build

German Quality Control hehe

Swedish simplicity/Ease of Use(...definitely no "how to manuals" out of China!!!)

American marketing/presentation/advertising campaign...just for a bit of "slick and suave", lol)

This Girl thinks GLOBAL ;)

ze world is my oyster! :D

Not cut out to be a....

So this is kinda interesting...I did something pretty unusual today. I woke up tired of wearing out the leather soles of my pretty Handmade Brazilian shoes...so found enough drive to go about making my own leather houseslippers! So I finally got around to tackling that difficult task of ...with mere thread&needle, leather scrap, a pair of scissors, and a pair of pliers...

So I finally have a right shoe. *Phew! Who knew shoemaking could be so tiring...I am friggin exhausted...and my head actually HURTS from all that concentration and my body aches from all that physical labour. I think that one slipper took almost 5 hours...and that was as a rough prototype quality experimenting from scratch, lol I don't even know how to sew...hence with sheer bravado I was half way to attempt to cut a paper pattern first but then I just thought eh stuff it...that is the way I am...so I made it up along the way...not very professional...in fact I am so ADD-like that I had no discipline or interest to sew neatly or uniformly...it was too boring so I stitched "creatively" and cut as I pleased(cos I always NEED to add my own individualised creative license somehow...lol)...surprisingly it actually turned out...reasonably functional and okay looking...kinda like a dark brown Birkenstock slipper! And the best part is it's ALL leather!

So anyway...I'm just waiting for a day I have enough energy to have finished a pair...after that I think I'm throwing in the towel...I'm not cut out to be a shoemaker!

"Fou-Jolie" Mandala

Colouring Mandalas is a luxury of people who have LOTS OF TIME to sit around...this little beauty took 3-4 hours! In any case Mandala colouring is really beneficial for the following purposes:

a) Fostering one's Yin energy and all related aspects relaxing, patience, calm etc
b) Developing concentration & mental discipline
c) Colour therapy & Expression

In any case I thought this was a kinda eccentric colour scheme...but kinda pretty too. So now it's a wall decoration :)

The Re-Formation of "Art"

When does art become "Art"?

So, what happens when you take an untalented punk that can't draw anything for sh*t and give her two different sized brushes (so cheap the hairs come off and stick to the canvas),a few tubes of paint and mini sheets of canvas?

...Exploration of Line, Texture and Colour!

Which is what I did.

Nothing Spectacular.

HOWEVER. This morning I cut the six dried panels to size, arranged them onto some white paper and housed the lot into a black frame....wow, although it was only meant to be a "prototype" and very amateur, Reformatted and presented it looks pretty darn *spiffy*...I like how on a wide angle view it enlivens a white wall and on the eye level there is enough interest in the textures, lines etc enough to warrant a closer look.

Whatever the case, I reckon it makes good living room/office wall decoration and people might actually buy it for $150(but I'd only sell it for $250...maybe).

ANYHOW, for 2.5 hours of labour, not a whole lot of skill and minimally expensive resources...that makes me One Happy Camper! :) Now my very sad Living room looks slightly more funky, and it's so easy to do! I can make another one later for my office/treatment space - yay! :)

I have a good feeling this is the year my creativity comes back. Hopefully, this was just the humble prologue to much bigger and more impressive and beautiful things...

There is Creativity In Angst

Wow. I am (unusually) quite impressed by myself. I haven't tried to graphically design in a veeeery loooong time...except that now it's...needed. I had a great super talented friend working on designs for me however she wasn't able to manifest my creative vision, so Miss Lazy Ass had no choice but to try and do it herself with very limited technical ability. It is just amazing how user unfriendly programs like Photoshop really are...how the hell do I even draw a shape outline?!! SHEESH.

In any case with some little tricks I was able to fudge "the look" for mockups and hopefully my techny friend can help me convert this into something professionally printer friendly.

In any case I just have one last design w/ variations to knock out...and I am very very pleased aesthetically with what I've managed to produce in a couple hours considering my significant designer deficiencies and limitations right now.

Which leads me to conclude, there is great creativity that can be harnessed out of Angst. Since it seems like I will be this way for AWHILE, I am contemplating picking up a canvas and paintbrush...hell, maybe even charcoals and pastels! LOL, it would be VERY VERY COOL if I somehow managed to un-excavate the long lost "artist" in me. The drought needs to be broken damn it-

Come Glorious Wellspring, Arise from this Barren Earth!

Z.

edit: so I have a couple of designs...in fact they're actually pretty nifty! only trouble is my indecision...I tried surveying others but nobody can agree! I guess it all comes down to personal preference...anyway going to visit the print place tomorrow...maybe they can look through my designs- sheesh, at this rate maybe I should start a portfolio!

Oh-o, I think I've started something now...

Something triggered me and I was inspired to not only unload cash at my favourite music store (my favourite emotional salve) but also to go splash out on...PAINTS!

Anyhow...I just wanted to document a significant moment.

I just picked up a paintbrush for the first time in 14 years and just finished putting on my first layer of primer...*wow*, even that in itself was...a joy...

I'm anxiously awaiting to see if this marks the beginning of the end of creative repression for me...anyway I'm kind of excited...

And now I'm trawling Ebay for a second hand easel...maybe I should just exercise some restraint before buying up all this stuff I might never use again...just in case this is one of those signature irresponsible moments of transient, fleeting...enthusiasm...lol.

Even if this "hobby" is for real, I really doubt I can store too many canvases...good thing I have plenty of desolate white wall I guess ;)

Who's a Work Nerd?!

So I got up bright and early this morning for the first time- I'm not sure whether it's cos I've spent the last few days crashed out or whether it's excitement about trying out a new clinic today.

I think it's funny that I was so happy to be on official holidays but less than one week later I am already happy to be dipping my finger back in!

It's great when you love what you do and have a passion for your work- I feel sorry for the people who have to live any other way!

The last couple of days I've been unbelievably exhausted- I think perhaps it's that whole...your body knows when it can finally crash after a sustained intense period of work. I ended up skipping out on functions Friday, Saturday and Monday night! Saturday I was meant to do dinner with some classmates but we were all so equally exhausted we postponed. Friday I just felt plain urgh by dinner and Monday I completely forgot and only arose from a much needed nap at 6pm....blah, why do we allow our bodies to get so run down in the first place?! I guess this is what "modern life" is all about! And the reality is, it's only a privileged few who have cleaners, cars and fat wallets at their disposal.

The last fortnight or so has been pretty interesting- I think it had something to do with some astrological shift but a lot of creative ideas started free flowing...so now I'm just trying to work out which project to pursue...I also want to create a couple of pieces for my wall but don't know which one to start first... although I picked simple do-able things I still think it's pretty ambitious since I haven't picked up a brush or done anything particularly creative voluntarily in Yeeeeears!!

Apart from my mandala digital print project, I wanted to transfer a very simple graphic mandala with acrylic onto canvas...then I also wanted to try a simple blobby textured rendition of something whimsical like Drinking Water. Hopefully the more I get back into it, the more skill will come back...so I can produce more original stuff.

Apart from that, I'm still busy with lots of stuff that got laid by the wayside during the crazy hectic period and I'm also in a pretty contented period for the following reasons:

I'm living life how I want, doing what I want when I want and on my own terms.

I've stopped trying to fit myself into the neat categories defined by generic society.

I'm going with my intuition and listening to my body.

Oh on another strange note, I think my blogaholism has been cured too...I actually feel capable of not needing to blog or read blogs at all! ;) Good Timing, cos soon I won't have the means...

p.s one last thing I'm excited about...I'm going to start reading the much anticipated "The Fountainhead" by Ayn Rand...I hope it's as good as everyone says...

The Middle Path

So I managed to get to a screening of documentaries by amateur film makers...was pretty cool being back in that scene- really felt "familiar" and took me back...after all my first love after visual arts started with videography not photography but I think I kind of lapsed into photography cos that suits my lazy nature - I just don't have the patience for countless hours in post production!

Anyway it was inspiring, maybe if I could find like-minded co-conspirators I wouldn't mind getting back into film making...the only thing is both TCM and film making require a huge commitment so having so many interests to dabble in I can only take on one that requires a big commitment so TCM will have to win out for now!

Anyhow by the end of it I was starving so I went in search of food...craving dumplings I rocked up at the shop only for the man to shoo me away and say it was closing time...far out! Anyway it was that point I wished I lived in a bustling 24-7 metropolis like New York or at least somewhere which has more of a night culture like Spain or Asia...cos things not being open and not being able to find decent food at 10pm is THE PITS! So in the end I had to settle for...fast food in a doggy bag-Berk!:P

Anyhow this thought train progressed into the following self analysis and reflection on the fact that I am such a paradoxical creature...and find it so hard to negotiate the polar forces within...as follows...maybe I'm just hard to please!

*I love the worldly, switched on, accessible and cultured nature of a bustling metropolis BUT I also love the wide open spaces, care and friendly intimacy of a small regional town.

*I need ALOT of personal space and take real comfort in alone time however at the same time I really need the constant mental stimulation that you can only get from interaction with a whole variety of people.

*I really feel the need to engage with creative dreamers but at the same time it can sometimes get a little airy fairy and I appreciate a bit of hard headed rationalism, groundedness and appreciation for everyday sensibilities in the people around me.

*East-West: the asians say I'm a pathetic excuse for an asian, the westerns think I'm asian but then get disappointed when they realise I'm not exotic, agreeable and subservient after all.

*Factual Realism vs Dreamy Possibility - can they really co-exist?!

*Logical and apathetic Detachment vs Passionate and Enthusiastic Engagement

Eh...I can hear the voice of friends...You think waaaay too much! LOL

Synchronicity...

I'm part of TUT.com- basically they send you nice emails all the time :)

I never cease to be amazed at how much the messages seem to speak to my direct circumstances each day- if the founder, Mike Dooley honestly writes them...sheesh, he either has amazing timing or else he's like some kind of divine psychic!

Today I got one which said:

Someone's getting a life, Ms Cheery, someone's getting a life!!

TOO RIGHT! LOL

BTW please check out My Mandala Quilt Project.

My Favourite Thing on The Web

THIS has got to be THE MOST entertaining, intriguing, amusing and creative-minded blog and blog personality I've come across so far...there are some *absolutely side splitting* laughs in here so have a good look around!


edit: oh this is waaay too much fun- it's like your one stop shop for fun on the web!!! :-D

So far I've discovered The Scribbler. Arghhhh it's Instant Love!

Introducing my first ever creation:

Ohmygosh I feel a compelling urge to start a scribble blog(!!) I can already see this adding to my pre-existing HEAP of unhealthy addictions and unnecessary distractions! :-p

In any case be sure to check out all the other cool "talent" ;) that abounds at The Scribbler Gallery...HAVE FUN!!!

p.s is this not the cutest little alien animal you've ever seen?! it's a kangaroo rat apparently...mail.com for more details!