a weekend of making.

i was almost thinking that i had one of the most unproductive weekends but come to think of it, i kind of went on a diy frenzy starting with so many impulse buys at michaels craft store on saturday. i actually had only intended to buy a couple of ends to work on a simple leather wrap bracelet but ended up buying a bunch of beads, elastics, leather cords, embroidery floss and fake flowers and what not. it was all kind of random and exciting. 

i realized that i have no skill what so ever in making pretty bracelets but i did make some good ole summer camp style friendship bracelets and also a few beaded ones as well. they now sit happily on my wrist probably for the rest of the summer. i love how colorful they are. bright reds, oranges, yellows, blues and greens. 

on sunday morning i ended up waking up super early and while i was waiting for everyone else to wake up, i ended up making a tiny flower crown for piri. i think he hated it but he sure did look cute in it. 

hope your weekend was wonderful. it's an exciting week for us this week. friends from new york are visiting us for fourth of july weekend. yangkyu and i bought a new board game too over the weekend so we can subject them to playing with us while they are here. we picked up cranium. it should be loads fun. i think i'll also bake a batch of cookies in time for their arrival as well. macadamia with chocolate chip. yum. 

have a good week ahead everyone! 

clay jewelry dishes on a friday afternoon.

it's a slow friday afternoon. i like it. there is a slight breeze outside. we have all our windows open and some of the dragonflies are dancing just on the other side of our screen. i think they want to come in, but i'm a bit scared of them. it's hard to think that when i was younger i used to catch them by their wings and even tickle them on their tummy. 

anyway, i just finished up a quick simple diy that i thought to share on a blog before the weekend fun begins. i had been meaning to make these clay jewelry for a while but i just never found the time and patience to do them. but i finally started on them yesterday. 

what you'll need

 + clay {i used fimo clay that hardens over night} 

 + tin foil {to use as a work space while handling the clay}

 + rolling pin {to flatten out the clay - but i actually just used a flat smooth glass bottle}

 + a bowl {to cut out a circle and to place inside to dry over night}

 + scissor {to cut and smooth out ends}

 + decorative pieces {i used a couple of stamps, paint and also these cute mushrooms i found at michaels}

 + glue {if you are gluing anything on to your clay dish}

 + optional: spray paint {i used flat white and also used a gloss finish on two of the dishes} 

first working on top of a piece of tin foil, i kneaded my clay and using a smooth even glass bottle i rolled it out flat.

then i took a small bowl {the approximate size i wanted my clay dish to be} and place it over the flattened clay and pressed down. while the bowl was still over the clay, i trimmed away excess clay. after removing the bowl, i took a scissor to smooth out the circle. 

if you are stamping something on to your bowl - initials, a part of a doily or what not - this is the step where you will do this. i used a robot and heart stamp. 

next, i placed the clay into the small bowl and let it harden over night. i used three different types -- one flat dish, one that had a slight curve and a final bowl that had a slightly deeper curve. 

the following day, i took my hardened clay dishes and gave them a nice coat of spray paint. i used a flat white finish on one of them and a gloss finish on the other two. i think i could actually forgo this process. perhaps spray painting them wasn't really necessary. 

finally, i painted the heart and on the flat dish i glued on these mushroom decorative pieces i picked up at michaels. 

and they're done! 

what do you think? i thought this could be nice gifts to make. i can even picture making wedding ring dishes poking two holes in the dish and slipping a pretty ribbon through to hold the rings. 

thanks for reading. and hope you have a wonderful weekend. there is a dc capitol fair happening that i hope we can make it out to. if not then we'll probably share a bowl of popcorn and watch the secret life of walter mitty. that netflix disc has been collecting dust on our tv stand for a few weeks now. i think it's time we watched it already! 

something cool.

we received a message from the tumblr korean language team saying that our blog - "a day with piri/피리와 하루" has been featured on their blog. we thought that was pretty exciting. we haven't been updating in that space for a while so it came as a surprise. we'll sure be getting more active on it for sure. 

the whole introduction on their blog is in korean, but if you're interested you can find it here.  

thanks tumblr korea! 

life lately, according to my iphone.

"life is a lot like jazz... it's best when you improvise." -- george gershwin

flowers for piri.

i saw this japanese movie a long time ago. it's called "all about my dog". it has interwoven short stories throughout the film - each story featuring a different dog and its relationship to people. the last story features a girl named mika and her dog marimo. the first part of the short is letter from mika to marimo and the latter part is a letter from marimo to mika. it chronicles their years together, as a little girl and a young puppy to present day where mika is a teenager and marimo a senior dog. the whole short actually is their farewell to each other. it's so very touching and i literally cried my eyes out watching. and i manage to cry every time i re-watch it.

in mika and marimo's story, marimo recalls when mika taught her the names of flowers. i recollected this scene a few months ago and wanted to do the same for piri. i know. it's silly. dogs probably don't know the difference between one flower to the next, but i like having these conversations with piri. and i think he likes it too. 

if you're interested, you can see the different flowers i've been showing him on instagram using the hashtag #flowersforpiri. 

you can also watch mika and marimo's story on youtube here. but just make sure you have a box of tissues on hand. i just cried again watching it. 

 // linking up with blogpaws wordless wednesday blogshop. 

from where i stand {making friends with kevin bacon} by sam.

this "from where i stand" post is from sam who blogs over at samantha heather.

this incredibly talented lady weaves words with photos so beautifully. it's always a treat to go to her blog and get lost for a few moments. you'll know what i mean when you head on over there. 

 // shoes: sandler - corey brown oil // 

from where i stand, 

at the grounds of alexandria ; sydney, australia. 

we woke up early and headed to the grounds for some breakfast and market wandering. we had to wait almost 2 hours for a table but even though it was busy and crowded, we enjoyed each others company and the company of all the farm animals in their pens. i made friends with a pig named "kevin bacon" whom i hope to visit again soon. 

###

thanks, sam!

*** see other from where i stand posts

*** click here to see how you can submit a photo as well! 

this series is inspired by the instagram hashtag #fromwhereistand 

miyeokguk (seaweed soup).

in many korean and korean american households you eat a bowl of miyeokguk {seaweed soup} on your birthday. 

this is something that women who just gave birth eat as well because it's healthy and seaweed has crucial vitamins and is rich with calcium. the tradition of eating a bowl of seaweed is then passed on to the child and every birthday the child will have. 

i didn't have the ingredients needed to make this for yangkyu on his birthday on friday but i made him a bowl last night. i only knew how to make this a couple of years ago. before then cooking and the kitchen intimidated me. i didn't even know how to follow the simplest of recipes. now when i am able to make something and it tastes remotely in the same ballpark as the ones my mama used to make i think to myself, "i'm all grown up." 

recipe here. 

benefits of seaweed here. 

sometimes we live inside our own little bubble.

just us and no one else.

and then monday comes knocking at our door. 

hope you had a good weekend.