This is the start.

I'm giving this a try. I love old designs, especially Imperial Chinese and Peranakan Straits Chinese. I love the boldness of color and form, and how each symbol or color has been honed by literally centuries of use. It is rarely subtle, but it is grand. I have been toying on how to reinterpret these designs, while resurrecting an old art form. I stumbled onto this quite by accident at a wedding procession with my friend Benjamin, he was wearing a pair of beaded slippers which took him 3 years to make. 3 whole years! 2 hours every night, faithfully beading, and the result takes 3 years! It is very beautiful. I gave it a try, taking classes at a local bead shop. My hands are not made for beading, that's my conclusion. But the designing of my shoes sparked off the interest to reinterpret old designs using beads instead of silk.

So here I am, 3 months later. I will have the first few prototypes end Oct, God willing. But as a start, here's a Ming Dynasty princess badge that I spent a few weeks working on. :) Enjoy! I'll update this as I go along. Who knows? If it takes off I might turn it into a little business.