Sponsor contest: Card Stories
Posted by Amy on Tuesday November 22, 2011
I love adventure games of the 1990s (point and click anyone?) and I’m constantly finding new games that are also based on creativity.
So it was a lovely surprise when Deborah of Tartaruga Feliz sent me an email about her latest game called Card Stories (which was made by Farsides), I was curious to see how it played out! The premise was simple:
- Pick out a card, and then you write a story for your card (think of it as illustration commission, but in reverse.)
- Other players will have to pick a card as well to add to the mix, based on the story told by you (this is to confuse other players while they figure out which one is the real card later!).
- After the rest of the players have picked out their card, it generates the cards that they have chosen (a max of 6 players = 6 cards).
- Voting begins and the person who picks out the original card is the winner!
To celebrate the soft launch of Card Stories, Deborah is giving away physical copies of the cards to 2 selected participants!
All you need to do is to craft up a story (think of it as an illustration brief!) so that Deborah can illustrate it into a card. The best story will win a pack of 36 cards + the one you helped create!
This contest ends on 29th November 2011, so write down your idea for a card in the comments below! Hint: Short stories are best!
Head over to Card Stories to play a round and test it out for yourself!
The contest has ended and the winners have been picked – Kirsty and Zack! :) Thanks everyone for joining in the contest!
Comments [21]
Loco for local: Eechinghandmade
Posted by Amy on Thursday July 21, 2011
This week, we look at a plush-toy maker whose shop is well known here as EeChing Handmade. Kho Tain Ching is from Sarawak, East Malaysia and her toys are one-of-a-kind collectible beauties! She also has something she’s giving away at the end of the interview — read on!
Name: Kho Tain Ching
Location: Kuching, Sarawak, East Malaysia
Website/Shop: Etsy
Blog: eechinghandmade.blogspot.com
Illustration media: pencil, pen, color pencil, marker
You live in Malaysia — what stands out about living here, and what is your daily schedule like?
I love that there is less natural disasters such as earth-quake, tornado, and volcanoes here! I help my parent in an old grocery shop during the day, and the rest of time I’ll do anything I like such as drawing, reading, making doll, updating my blog, taking picture of my works & playing with my dogs.
And does being in Malaysia influence your art in any way?
Yes, especially the artists from West Malaysia… but we still have much opportunity to improve the art scene in Malaysia.
In Malaysia, I find that the progress of the art and craft community has yet to catch on. What do you think can be done to increase awareness of art and craft locally?
We should have more art & craft markets which can provide a platform to support & help to expose artists & designer; and also media such as magazines, newspapers & websites, education and exhibitions all play a part in spreading news about our art.
How did you get your start?
I can’t remember when I start drawing… when I was young, I like to draw characters from comics like Doraemon, LaoFuZhi & Yomiko
CLICK HERE to read Ching’s entire interview!
Comments [8]
Loco for local: Oh & Ah
Posted by Amy on Thursday July 14, 2011
This week, I’m proud to present Oh & Ah, a collective of five artists, illustrators and designers who have been running their studio for the past 4 years right here in my neck of the woods – Malaysia. I’ve been a fan of theirs for some time now, and was happy to hear that they now have a dedicated space where they can show off all their wonderful things. Read on for more, and at the end of the interview, you’ll find a coupon code for use at their fun online shop!
Name: Oh&Ah
Location: Malaysia
Website/Shop: www.oh-and-ah.com/store
(physical shop) Cova Square, Kota Damansara, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia
Blog: www.oh-and-ah.com/blog
Illustration media: Mixed-media
Tell us a little more about yourself.
We are five playful Malaysians with different backgrounds who join forces to produce design items with an objective in utilizing our creativity to bring joy into our daily lives. Started out at the end of 2007, Oh&Ah is the place where we sell items we make + design + collect. We were inspired by the indie design scene in London, Taiwan and Bangkok thus found our interest to form Oh&Ah.
We produce delightful, eccentric everyday objects ranging from small to big scale, with a wide variety of products from fashionable accessories, tees, paper goods, stationery, toys to home décor. Our creations are inspired by Zakka, the art of seeing the savvy in the ordinary and mundane-ness; with a touch of playfulness!
Oh&Ah’s online store is now up and running, along with a studio/shop that is located in Cova Square, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.
You live in Malaysia. What stands out about living here, and what is your daily schedule like?
The opportunity to learn multiple languages and to experience the different culture here has given us plenty of advantages in understanding and exposing to how other designers/artists work in other parts of the world. While the contemporary handmade market is still considered new to our local community, interest has definitely been generated, so there has never been a more perfect moment for people like us to sow our seeds!
We work together every Saturday (yes, Saturday because each of us juggle a full-time job). There is no fixed schedule; we take that time to hold discussions, update each other on work-in-progress as that is the only time that we can congregate once a week. Also, we make use of that time in brainstorming, creating and photographing our products. Saturday is also a business day for us as our shop only opens on that day. On other days, our work is based solely online, like updating our Facebook page, our blog, online store as well as our Etsy page.
…and does being in Malaysia influence your art in any way?
Yes, definitely! We thought about our ‘Rojak’ culture! (Rojak is a local salad that incorporates a wide variety of fruits.) Being in Malaysia enables us to get along well with other races on a daily basis. We learned the art of respect as well as appreciation for all cultures present in our country. Just like the five of us-we come in different personalities, but we complement and complete each other as a whole. We are often excited by the curious hybrid of our creativity and design style and the endless possibilities it transpires. A huge part of our work comes from a joined effort as a team, and that usually makes the end result worthwhile.
As Malaysians, we are blessed with the advantage of our four main languages of the country: English, Malay, Chinese and Indian. And this has helped us in easy accessing to information on the internet, leading us to unbridled inspiration for our ideas and designs.
In malaysia, i find that the progress of the art & craft community has yet to catch on. What do you think can be done to increase awareness of art & craft locally?
A community for the exchange of ideas and resources! Also, we need more effort in changing the mindset of people’s perception towards handcrafted items as something traditional and old-fashioned. ‘Group power’! We would suggest that the art and craft community to work closely by supporting one another. We will be able to fashion a stronger identity and image of the value of art and craft to local community if we are presented in the form of alliance or group.
CLICK HERE to read Oh & Ah’s entire interview!
Comments [5]
Karolin Felix
Posted by Amy on Monday May 2, 2011
Hello there everyone! You have to forgive me for my abrupt absence last week — I had to go out of town for some personal matters and didn’t quite have the time to prepare something to tide you all over the weekend.
So let’s start off the week with more illustration loveliness shall we? Today I’m enamored by the transformation of one Bearded Lady character from Karolin Felix’s arsenal of beauties into a 3D toy. Behold: The Bearded Lady giclee print, and now, a collectible folk art doll! And of course, no folk art doll is complete without friends — some of which you can win by finding out how over here.
Comments [3]