My daddy's birthday

April Fool's Day was my daddy's birthday this year. You are probably wondering why I phrase it that way. Just like the date for Chinese New Year, my parents' birthdays change every year too. This is because these events and many other important Chinese cultural celebrations depend on the traditional Chinese calendar for the date. If you remember, Chinese New Year was in January this year but it was in February last year. Yeah, this is all so confusing. Since I am still trying to learn the calendar, I have been missing my parents' birthdays almost every year. Mame Babee, I am sooo sorry! To make up for my stupidity and ignorance this year, I made an e-card for my dad.

Here's the story: My daddy used to eat the Chinese coconut cream bun quite regularly. Then ... his evil blood test with a BIG red stamp saying "HIGH CHOLESTEROL" came and took all his favorite fatty creamy foods away from his diet. So sad! Well, in addition to another piggy card I mailed to him, I made him an e-card with his favorite bao.  

It was after I showed the card to my daddy that what I did was actually pretty cruel because now he can only look and not eat his favorite coconut cream bun. So sad!

Poop Obsession

My friend said I have an obsession with poop. I thought, "Na...[long pause], really?" I remember my first "successful" drawing (one that I have no shame in showing off) was of a flying poop - basically, a poop with wings; thus, angelpoo. Yeah, go figure. I was even comtemplating on tattooing myself with this flying poop. What the hell was I thinking? I don't have a digital version of the poop since the time I drew it was way back when I didn't even know how to use a computer (but way after potty training, mind you). One of these days, I will recreate it digitally and see what you guys think. So, back to the poop obsession. I didn't think I was fascinated with poop until I began looking back at my previous artwork, specifically the character that I designed for my friend's birthday this past January. You guessed it, it was poop. His name is Poki Poo, named after her dog, Poki. So, her husband called me on a bright Sunday morning (I think) and said, "Oh, sorry for the late notice but Emily's (his wife) birthday is this weekend. Would you guys join us for dinner at Mac Grill?" I was really happy that he called but dude, only one week in advance? It was a huge challenge but I decided to make my friend something because if I were to choose one person in the world who would appreciate my artwork, she was the one. So, that entire week, I drew, bought, sewed, bled, ironed, bought again, printed, glued, and wrapped. It was a totally awesome week!

Here he is, the infamous Poki Poo with similar patterns as her dog, Poki. He is a little devious looking but cute, just like Poki. I absolutely love this guy, the winking, the devious smile, and the shape of the poo. Sometimes when I draw a character, I have reservations - a feeling that something is missing. Poki Poo is perfect.

The quote "Will poop for 5 dala" is just my way of teasing Emily's hubby. He is Chinese and he somehow truly believes that anything around $5 is considered cheap and worth buying. I love shopping with him because he cracks me up.

So, here's how I battled my one-week-homemade-gift challenge. I bought a large and a small natural-colored canvas bag. The small one is for miscellanous stuff (e.g. notepads, chapstick, pen, etc...). I used felt to make a large and small Poki Poo. The eyes and the mouth took the longest as they were sewn on instead of simply using black felt. I sewed these guys on the canvas bags, then attached the iron-on felt letters. I also made Poki Poo notepads and chapstick.

Then I stuck all these in a flat box, tied a red ribbon (recycled from a previous gift), and pinned a mini Poki Poo stuffed animal on the ribbon. I really hope my friend still uses this bag.