While in Penang....

Been wanting to post pictures taken while we were in Penang (Island) but didn't realize I took so many of them.
I ended up spending way too much time choosing and editing these photos.

While in Penang I also realized the StatCounter on my blog shows the figure 300,000 +.
This generally means my blog been visited/hit for more than 300 thousand times!
Thank you to all my readers and followers (new, old, not yet discovered, etc. :) for being so loyal and for reading my blog.
I hope you bare with me as I have not been able to post as frequently as I like.
Got to think of something to celebrate this :)...Soon.......

That aside, here are highlights of our Penang Trip.
First and foremost - FOOD! FOOD! FOOD! (click pic to enlarge)

Whenever people say they are going to Penang, they are (always!) reminded to EAT! EAT! and EAT!
So! dear hubby and the boys started eating while on the plane and at the Penang Airport while we waited for our transport on arrival.

There are varieties to choose from, either at home or outside home :)
Hawker food is very popular in Penang.
You find them in every available corners.
We were told half of Penang's population (out of 800k, density of 2.5k every km square) is involve in food business/preparation. So, you can imagine, practically surrounded by food.

Be brave and adventurous with food and you will not regret.

....ehm...I don't mean adventurous with these dead lizards though (bottom right pic)
This street vendor is selling lizard poison at Air Itam. Lizards anyone?....:D

One of the places we visited - must visit is the Kek Lok Si Temple, the largest Buddhist Temple in South East Asia. Few weeks before our visit, there were reports in the paper that there is terror plot to attack temples including Kek Lok Si Temple. Anyway, I am not delving into that, it just news.

Penang also has many old historical buildings.
Many of them are "Heritage Buildings", left by the British Empire about 200 years ago, restored and turned into tourist attractions.

Last but not the least are the "People" of Penang.

After all, this was our main purpose for the trip - visiting and getting to know the families and relatives.
This is our boys' first proper introduction to them...ermm actually mine too...ops!

The boys really love their "Chek Kong" (middle bottom pic).
Overall, it was a fun, too short trip, great food and AWESOME "People" :)

Wire Wrapped Ring - Steel Rose

Made a few rings last weekend but my camera ran out of battery after only a few shots of these wire wrapped rose rings.
Battery is now fully charge but I have to put off taking pictures of the other two rings - emm...busy with other things :)
Maybe tonight!
Anyway, here's for your viewing pleasure.

If you are curious about how to make this wire wrapped rose rings, check it out here - Wire Wrapped Rose Ring Tutorial at Etsy
Its in the low cost tutorial category (USD3) and caters for beginners in wire jewelry.
Relatively easy and a quick project. Great for last minute project/s :)

Shall be posting some pictures from our Penang trip on the next post and then ...
....a free wire wrapped jewelry tutorial, still in the making...give me a bit more time...

Till then, have a great week all.

She Did it Again! - Wire Wrapped Cross Pendant & TAW Bracelet

Hi all. I am back but been feeling tired for the last three days.
Not enough sleep and lots of work to catch up with.
Have not been touching my stones and beads for a couple of days and I am missing them already.
But weekend is very near.
Since I don't have anything to share for the time being, here is sharing with you what the very talented Emily of Emily Secret Passion been up to <3
This time around she made the Swirly Wire Wrapped Cross Pendant based on this Wire Wrapped Cross Pendant Tutorial.

and the TAW Bracelet based on the TAW Bracelet Tutorial.

Like many of us, Emily is self-taught and she is very very talented.
Just look at her pretties on her blog here - Emily's Secret Passion.
Thank you for sharing Emily and I am very proud of you.
Happy weekend folks :)

Back to Basic Wire Wrapping

In the next few hours we will be flying off to Penang.
For what? Lets just say to meet the relatives :)
We will be there over the weekend + Monday and Tuesday.
Lets see, the last time I was there was about 20 years ago when I was still a student.
Now you can guess how young I am...LOL.
That trip was an unforgettable one but I leave that story for another time...
ahhh...you know how students life was...so innocent and curious...happy and carefree...
At that time, I didn't know that one day I will have relatives in Penang...that's life...

Anyway, back to wire jewelry, its Back to Basic with this bracelet.

This involved mostly basic wire wrapped shapes. Anyone can make this.
Let loose, have fun with the wire and it will not disappoint you.

Two types of stones here - Amethyst and moonstone.

Love the hook and wire wrapped water lily attached to the clasp.
Been a while since I last made similar clasp like this one. This one is really sturdy as I wire wrapped it with 28ga wire so that it won't straighten due to wear and tear.

Simple wire swirls bent on the opposite directions to form a link. Use thicker wire for this - 19ga.

Lets see whats interesting in Penang after this.
Meantime, have a great weekend! I sure will :)

Blissfully White and Winding, Wire Wrapped Jasper Ring

There are many ways to wire wrap a ring and this is one of the methods (Winding Elegance) that got me wondering how on earth it's done?

I don't remember exactly when I purchased this tutorial (roughly more than a year ago) but I do remember being curious about the method. Very stunning indeed and original. Since then, I have seen many similar tutorials (both free and paid) but I just can't seems to find them at the moment (mental note: must bookmark these sites in future).

Here is my take on this method with a bit of modification as my bead has holes and I use all round wire. The stone is Jasper and it turned out ok :)

Szarka! Magpiegemstones - They are here, Clay Jeani, Turquoise & Pearl

The rocks are here :D Thank you Szarka! I love them all especially the Clay Jeanie pendant and Turquoise beads. If you are wondering what I am talking about, they are the free gemstone beads giveaway that I won from Magpie Gemstones, an online gemstone beads and accessories supply shop owns by Szarka, who is also a very talented and one of a kind jewelry designer.

I always drool over her gemstones........you would too if you are at her shop :) .....and today they are here.....Turquoise, Clay Jeani Pendant and Pearl.

Close up of the Clay Jeani Pendant....just awesome and fine workmanship!
I never own anything like this before. So, so, so happy ;D.
Now I got to think of how to wire wrap and assemble them into a beautiful one of a kind piece of jewelry.
Looks like it won't be easy. There are just so many ways and possibilities.
Got to find "that" wrap :)

I got to know Szarka back in 2006/07 when I just got hooked with wire jewelry. Though I've never met her in person, I know she is a very friendly, honest and nice lady...with lots of sense of humor too :)

If you would like to have the opportunity to win some free gemstones beads (monthly) or free shopping spree (worth $200, twice a year) or free jewelry making tutorials, or free information or just want to make friends with Szarka, check them out here - http://www.magpiegemstones.com/freebeads.html

Thank you again Szarka.
Will post the finished piece when I am done with it :)

To all readers, have a great weekend.