Square Art in Urbanscapes 2011

So we've been rather quiet lately steering away from our usual one post in 2 days routine. That's coz we were preparing and now, resting from one of the largest event Square Art has participated to-date: Urbanscapes 2011. If you weren't there for this fun-packed festival, don't worry, this is an annual event. Just keep your ears and eyes open for it next year!

This is an event of many firsts for us. First time:
1) using display stands for our tiles,
2) showing sample displays on ceramic, paper and wood,
3) offering diy kits we assembled ourselves,
4) standing up for 13 hours straight!

The main draw to our booth was our Mosaic-ed Angry Birds displays (surprise, surprise!). I must admit we were leveraging on hot trends to draw the crowd and looks like it did! It drew various types of reactions, from being surprised and amused to being disgusted and "angry birds again?!" Though we didn't sell any of the kits (this crowd preferred ready-made ones), it did allow us to explain what mosaic art is all about and it being not as hard as it looks.

We met all kinds of buyers that day. Of course, most of them were ladies but there were some men lurking on the background trying not to be seen looking at mosaic tiles, that's right, I saw you! (Note to self: find out ways to market mosaic tiles to men as well). And there was the occasional sweet boyfriend buying for his girl. The most memorable one was a couple looking at our photoframe kits and the conversation went something like this (if you are the couple and you are reading this, I hope you don't mind! I thought it was really sweet!):

Him: (holding photoframe kit and looking at it) Are we there yet?
Her: Huh?
Him: (still holding kit) Are we there yet?
Her: There what?
Him: Are we ready to have our picture together in a photoframe? *grins to her*
Her: (smiles and walks away shyly)

*Melts!* I found out later they have been together for a couple of months now and I guess this is their way of taking it one step further? Anw, I wish them all the best and thank you for the warm feeling that day :)

So here's some pictures we took with some mini captions for you. Enjoy!

We are here!

Setting up shop with our new display stands and bunting.

The Marketplace- visitors started trickling in quite early.

This is how our little table looked like - most of them were our sample displays.

Stuck at the back of our booth reminding us that all buyers are our friends :)

Liyana Fizi in action!

Artists doing their thang.

This was at the 8TV booth near us which had always something fun going on :)

Our family coming to visit us - my nephew had rosy cheeks from the heat! 

How our booth looked like at night when we started packing.

Hubby was such a big help that day! I'm in the bg doing some major
action and talking to Kricia of Notbook-Notbuk fame :)

Probably the BEST highlight of the day - my nephew, Travis, born on 16 July  :)

If you have taken pictures of our booth/items that day, please send them to us too so we can put them up on our blog. Thanks and good day all!

Stay Angry, Get those Pigs!

So now we would like to reveal to you, Square Art's Angry Birds series - presenting to you the Red Bird, Yellow Bird and Blue Bird - ta da!

They look so angry! Well, except for the blue bird.

Some of you would have already seen it on our FB Wall and also seen the little hint we gave on a free giveaway. Yep, you read that right! And this post is going to tell you how to get FREE pdf mosaic patterns of ALL THREE of the birds, all designed by yours truly.

What do you have to do to get them? It's simple, just follow these instructions:

1. Like us on Facebook (if you haven't already!)
2. Follow us on Twitter (again, if you haven't already!)
3. Follow our Blog through Google Friend Connect (see the tab on the right?)
4. Share this blog post with your friends using any of the social media sites above (e.g. share the link on your wall or just RT our tweets on this free giveaway!)
5. Finally, send an email to squareart.my@gmail.com with your name and Twitter moniker with the title, "I'm angry! Gimme those birds!". 

And voila! You will receive the pdf template within 24 hours of us receiving your email (after following all the instructions above!). It's that simple! Now, start sharing!

This giveaway will go on only till before the 9th of July in respect & honour of the brave birds standing up for what's right this Saturday. 

Feature: KiraishiShoppe

The best thing about joining the crafting world is getting to know people with the same passion as you. I've yet to meet a person who did not turn out to be a "kindred spirit", as Anne would say. So today I want to introduce to you Melissa, who sells "kitschy, cute, colourful accessories and crafting supplies". Besides that, she makes some  mean cinnamon choc chip cookies, I tell ya! Here are some beautiful items from her shop:

Such a lovely Swarovski heart crystal. 

The items that showed me she had talent - beautiful peas in a pod.

And yes, she does Angry Birds coasters too! Niice!

Mel actually inspired our newest kit series on Square Art - the Angry Birds series. I thought it best to feature her cute birdies and other beautiful items on sale on her shops as a prelude to introducing our 'lil birdies. Thanks for letting me use your pictures, Mel! Watch out for our next post - freebie alert! ;) 

You can find Mel's awesome items here:

Facebook Page

Etsy Shop

Happy Days are Here Again...

Need an energy boost? There is nothing else that can speak better to the soul than music. Here's some of my selection of motivational music and pick-me-up songs to get you going through the day. Hope my age is not telling in this selection ;)

Tutorial: How to decorate a wooden frame with mosaic tiles and grout

In this post, I would like to show you a step-by-step guide on how to use our tiles to pimp up a wooden frame. If you have any questions about the steps, do submit them in the Comments section below.

1. Make sure that the surface area of your frame (or any other object you are working on) is clean from dust.

2. Proceed to stick double-sided tape on all sides of the frame, so that it fills up all surface.

3. Work on section by section for easier management and slowly attach the tiles. Leave about 1mm of space in between tiles for grout (depending on your design).

4. It is advisable to use the right tools for this. Sometimes I use my fingers, but something as common in the household like an eyebrow tweezer would come in handy.

5. Once your tiles are done, it is time for the grouting process.

6. Grouting is not difficult but it does require some attention to the mixing process. The ratio of grout to water is 2:1 or until you get a smooth batter. Too much water and it becomes too runny.

7. Use a flat tool to apply the grout onto the tiles, making sure it fills up the joints nicely. Spread evenly onto the whole frame.

8. Once grouting is done, leave it to dry for at least 45 mins or until grout is hard to the touch.

9. Don't start washing it away too early or the grout will not stick.

10. Once it is dried, prepare a small bucket of water and a damp sponge.

11. Proceed to wipe away excess grout gently over the tiles, making sure to clean the sponge periodically in the water.

12. It is advisable to wear latex gloves during this process as grout can be irritable for sensitive skin. Otherwise, make sure hands and the underside of nails are washed thoroughly after cleaning grout.

13. Once you have fully washed off the grout on the tiles, there will be a dust haze left over the tiles. Simply use a clean, dry cloth to dust the surface.

And voila! Your frame is all ready to use!









If you would like to know more about mosaic tiles and grouting or information on how to get the right tools, just write to us on squareart.my@gmail.com or visit our Facebook Community for pictures of our products. I hope you enjoyed this tutorial as much as I enjoyed making them! :)

Mosaics in interior design

(Note: This post was written yesterday when Blogger was down)

Today has been a rather productive day for me. Been pushing around a Step 1-2-3 tutorial for the blog and finally I got around to doing it. Just two more frames to grout and and that's it! Can't wait to share it with you once it's done :) So I'm taking a short break now (and we know how "short" my breaks go...) with my Old Town coffee and Jacob biscuits and started surfdaydreaming (you know, surfing the net while day-dreaming).

If before I have been dreaming of french windows and clean, airy workspaces, today I am dreaming of a new home furnished with high-end interior design using what else, mosaics! Take a walk with me as I go through this house I'm dreaming of...


Firstly, wouldn't it be great to wake up to the birds chirping and the sun shining on... a textured mosaic backdrop?

It does make  you feel like royalty, doesn't it?

Now, on to the kitchen. I've always had a weakness for white built-in cabinets for the kitchen so this marble mosaic wall with white cabinets just hits straight to the mark.

So bright and airy. Love that it looks out into a garden.

Or what about something out of the ordinary?

Can you say "tropical paradise"? 

Another pet love - a window over the kitchen sink.

Besides the kitchen, I think the next most important personal space is the bathroom. And I'm just loving this minimalist design using ceramic mosaic tiles. I've never been a fan of dark walls but this just works - it feels like I can pull a mattress in and sleep on the tiled floor!

Can you feel the warm love? :)

Oh, be still, my beating heart.

View the designers' links here:
DecoDIR
Posterous
House Design Buzz