So I've been getting many emails asking for miniature food tutorials and
videos etc. And that's definitely a project I'm working on! Yes, I know I say that always and the to-do list is just horrendously long now. :(
Monday, October 22, 2012
Thursday, October 11, 2012
It's a hot dog, no a sausage, no waitt a bratwurst!
Never mind what it's called, it's just really tasty eh. And I love them meat when it's packed in a bun and with a squeeze of mustard and chilli. Mmmm.
Miniature hot dog/sausage/bratwurst bun handsculpted by me.
Miniature packaging designed and handmade by me too.
It's about 2cm in length by the way.
I put it in the store on Sunday midnight, and I woke up the next morning and checked my email as usual. Somehow I had this feeling that the Paypal fairy has arrived and it really did! And took away the miniature hot dog bun and gave me oh sweet cash instead. (just kidding, I'm not that in love with money haha)
That was the fastest I've ever sold something, got me smiling that whole day. :)
But I've got a few of them hot dog buns, so here's another one in store!
Today was the first official day I introduced someone new into the AiClay team (hello Jackie if you're reading this!), and she came over to my workspace for a training session and to help in painting some miniature baskets for next week's workshops.
Picture of the mess we made, from my instagram.
Follow me there, my username's joceaiwei!
It was really awesome to have someone to chat to while working on AiClay, and I'm already envisioning a bigger workspace next time with a bigger AiClay team. Working on sculptures, marketing, packaging etc. Of course, there is still quite a while to go before AiClay reaches that, especially with the staggering rental cost of a workshop in land-scarce Singapore.
But I can always work towards that right? ;)
P.S The workshops are held by Hwa Chong Institution so they aren't open for the public. To everyone who has been waiting for the workshops, I'm working on conducting one in November! -fingers crossed!
Saturday, October 6, 2012
A crumb cake to take away.
One more photo, so that you get a sense of the size! :)
Of the miniature crumb cake handsculpted by me.
(Read backstory in previous post.)
==================================================================================
Also, I've confirmed someone for my fellow helper for the upcoming workshop. But for everyone else who sent in their details, don't worry because I'm saving all of you for future projects! Definitely hoping to get as many people in the AiClay team as possible. :)
It's my brother's birthday this Sunday, happy 21st bro!! ♥ and I've never remembered to say this, but also thank you mom, for the hours of pain and labour 21 years ago resulting in me having a sibling. :)
Happy weekend everyone!
Monday, October 1, 2012
Crumb cake is crumbly.
A back story about this miniature crumb cake.
It was commissioned by one of my most loyal customers, and this was modelled after the crumb cakes her late grandfather used to make. She also showed me some vintage photos of her grandparents' long-gone bakery and shared memories of her childhood.
I especially love it when customers share their precious memories with me, and makes me work even harder at recreating the food miniatures for them.
Her grandfather used to make crumb cakes which were 3/4 crumb, and 1/4 cake, so I recreated that proportion too. I would show more photos soon. :)
If you're not subscribed to AiMail or AiClay's facebook page, this would be the first time you're hearing this. AiClay team is expanding! Well, it used to be just me (and JY as advisor :)), so now I'm looking for more people to join in the fun and craziness!
This is what I posted in facebook.
Only 21 year-olds and above are allowed to apply. And of course, you'll be paid for being part of the AiClay team. :)
Experience in clay would be preferred, though not necessary as I'll be teaching you during the training session. However, you have to like crafting! :)
If you're keen on being a Fellow Helper at AiClay's Workshops, please email me at buzz@aiclay.com with your full name, age and handphone number, and 'AiClay Fellow Helper' in the headline.
♥ ♥ ♥
It was commissioned by one of my most loyal customers, and this was modelled after the crumb cakes her late grandfather used to make. She also showed me some vintage photos of her grandparents' long-gone bakery and shared memories of her childhood.
Her grandfather used to make crumb cakes which were 3/4 crumb, and 1/4 cake, so I recreated that proportion too. I would show more photos soon. :)
===============================================================================
If you're not subscribed to AiMail or AiClay's facebook page, this would be the first time you're hearing this. AiClay team is expanding! Well, it used to be just me (and JY as advisor :)), so now I'm looking for more people to join in the fun and craziness!
This is what I posted in facebook.
♥ ♥ ♥
WANTED: AiClay Workshop Fellow Helper
A friendly, smiley elf wanted!
I'll need you to help out in my miniature food workshops, mainly
preparing and handing out materials/tools, and assisting the
participants if they have questions. :) This is on an ad hoc basis.
Most importantly, you have to be free on both 15th and 16th October!
Besides these two days, I would also be conducting a personal training session for you (nth serious, it'll be fun and more like a free workshop for you!).
Only 21 year-olds and above are allowed to apply. And of course, you'll be paid for being part of the AiClay team. :)
Experience in clay would be preferred, though not necessary as I'll be teaching you during the training session. However, you have to like crafting! :)
If you're keen on being a Fellow Helper at AiClay's Workshops, please email me at buzz@aiclay.com with your full name, age and handphone number, and 'AiClay Fellow Helper' in the headline.
♥ ♥ ♥
I've already heard back from quite a few helpful elves heehee, but please continue sending your details over if you're keen! There would be more workshops coming up and I might need more friendly helpers! ;)
Friday, September 28, 2012
It's a wrap!
Before I forget all about it, I wanted to pen down my after-thoughts for the filming which took place 2 days ago.
It's not everyday that you get to be filmed by a professional filming crew for an actual television show, and it was an experience I wouldn't have traded for anything. So firstly, kudos to the Mediacorp producer, Karon who found AiClay and decided my life was interesting enough to be featured in her show. :)
Firstly, there have been quite a few people asking how did I manage to get all of these media appearances, on television and newspapers. To clarify, it was always by invitation and usually somebody from the filming crew/journalist circle would be the one finding out about my site and works and suggesting it to the head in charge. And of course they would have to approach me if I was interested and things would start rolling from there. :) So a suggestion to crafters who would like to get their works noticed by media producers, do get your work out there on as many sharing platforms as you can. Like social network sites, facebook/twitter/flickr etc.
But a dash of good luck wouldn't hurt, so I'm defintely counting my blessings on getting picked by these media producers. :)
Now let's go on to my after-thoughts! Pretty lengthy so go grab a cup of tea. :)
1. Too many make-up products out there! Haha, this probably sounds really random but as I had to put on make up for the shoot, I did have to venture into the crazy, expensive world of make-up. Besides wedding dinners or extra-formal events, I hardly ever wear make-up and have always borrowed my mom's products even during those rare times. So yes, I ended up buying concealer, lip butters, and learnt all about primers, eye gels, lip glosses etc.
2. I can't remember lines at all. I had already affirmed this during my project presentations during school. My eyes will always be flitting to my cue notes while I was nervously stammering through the entire presentation. So for the filming, I decided to just get through the interview by saying whatever that came to mind. There were some retakes of the same questions, and everytime the host asked me the same question, I would give her a different reply. -__-
3. Take a moment to think about what you say on camera. This is related to the previous point. After the filming I started recalling what I had been saying while the camera was rolling. And I so regretted a lot of it, because they weren't true reflections of what I felt and thought. For example, the host asked me why I had chosen this path when I could get a job in the media industry since that's related to my university degree. She asked this same question 3 times, and everytime, I gave her different answers. Sometimes I got side-tracked and started talking about how I had chanced upon clay and realised people liked my works enough to want to buy them. Another time, I told her that my parents had always instilled the belief that happiness and health were the most important things in life. But now that I've had 2 days to mull over the question, I know my true answer.
The reason why I've decided to pursue this path, was that I wanted to have maximum control over my lifestyle. That I could decide when I wanted to lie in bed nursing a fever, when I wanted to jet off to some faraway land, when I wanted to take a toilet break. That I wanted to decide how much I was earning, and know where every cent was coming from exactly. After having experienced one year in the workforce, I know that freedom to live my life exactly how I want to, is something I would not trade with a steady paycheck. :)
The fact that I chose miniature food sculpting over other business ventures, was just a mixture of fate and passion. :)
4. Nobody decides when to stop filming until the producer/director says so. Many times I got tempted to go "waittttt! can we cut here?" during filming. Like when, I was stumbling over my words during the miniature food demonstrations. Or when the neighbour's baby let out a huge wail and I stopped mid-way while talking, wondering if that would affect audio.
5. Never look at the camera. Well, I guess this depends on the type of filming style the program required. For my program, I was not supposed to acknowledge the camera or audience at all, just the host. After so many years of being camera-ready and smiling at the camera during photos etc, this took some adjusting to.
6. My neighbourhood is really noisy! Even though we had small microphones secretly planted in our clothes, atmospheric sounds and noises would still be picked up on by the sensitive booms. A few times we had to halt filming because of various interruptions. The drone of a passing aeroplane, laughter of kids playing at the playground below, slamming of doors by neighbours..
7. A Noddy take. Do you know what's that? It's the filming of just the host, nodding her head and reacting as if I was replying her questions. I also had to be present, so that the host had a point of reference but I was just blankly watching her nod through out. It did get a tad awkward and I looked away a few times haha. I guess the editing team will be cutting the Noddy take and inserting them in between questions during the interview.
8. In between takes, do not remove or reposition any objects within frame. This includes the chair you're sitting on, any tools you have on the table, your hair. Or if you went for a toilet break, make sure not to get any part of your clothes wet. All of this is for continuity sake, so that the final edit would look like everything was filmed in one take.
9. Some things are just not within our control. As the episode is mainly about AiClay, I hoped to showcase just my best works. But from the producer's point of view, she wanted to showcase as many miniatures she can and to have enough to fill up a table. Since I hardly produce stock and usually sell off my miniature works as soon as I make them, the only way was to display my old works as well. Therefore, you might spot some in the final cut. I just hope there would be no close-ups of the old/unfinished works, as I honestly cringe at them and would hate to let viewers think that is my standard of craft. :(
10. Anything can happen behind the scenes. What you won't get to see in the actual episode - the gingerbread man flipped over before the frosting was baked and it was smeared. Due to time constraints, there was no way to refilm the entire process and I had to try to repair the damage done. But it still looked pretty horrid. :( And the producer just informed me that everything is shot in HD quality, oh noes.
11. Saying 'this is the last scene' is taboo during filming. Apparently, the word 'last' is unspeakable until filming is wrapped up.
11. Filming is TIRING. I was up since 6am and started filming from 8am all the way till 5pm, with a 45minute lunch break in between. All of this footage for just 10-15 minutes worth of broadcast in the end. I'm no longer surprised when 2-hour movies take up to a year for shooting. I can hardly imagine all the logistics that goes into it!
So that's about all I can remember from the shoot.
Finally I want to say a huge THANK YOU to the filming crew.
There were a total of 3 camera men, a host, a producer and an intern. Everyone was extremely nice and patient during the filming, and also continually praised my works which made me really flattered! Especially to Karon, if you're reading this, thank you for picking AiClay and me for the episode, and always ready with a smile even when faced with my silly questions. :)
It's not everyday that you get to be filmed by a professional filming crew for an actual television show, and it was an experience I wouldn't have traded for anything. So firstly, kudos to the Mediacorp producer, Karon who found AiClay and decided my life was interesting enough to be featured in her show. :)
That's my mom in the green top, she also had a small part in the filming!
Sadly I didn't have any photos of myself during filming, so we'll have to make do with this.
Firstly, there have been quite a few people asking how did I manage to get all of these media appearances, on television and newspapers. To clarify, it was always by invitation and usually somebody from the filming crew/journalist circle would be the one finding out about my site and works and suggesting it to the head in charge. And of course they would have to approach me if I was interested and things would start rolling from there. :) So a suggestion to crafters who would like to get their works noticed by media producers, do get your work out there on as many sharing platforms as you can. Like social network sites, facebook/twitter/flickr etc.
But a dash of good luck wouldn't hurt, so I'm defintely counting my blessings on getting picked by these media producers. :)
Now let's go on to my after-thoughts! Pretty lengthy so go grab a cup of tea. :)
1. Too many make-up products out there! Haha, this probably sounds really random but as I had to put on make up for the shoot, I did have to venture into the crazy, expensive world of make-up. Besides wedding dinners or extra-formal events, I hardly ever wear make-up and have always borrowed my mom's products even during those rare times. So yes, I ended up buying concealer, lip butters, and learnt all about primers, eye gels, lip glosses etc.
2. I can't remember lines at all. I had already affirmed this during my project presentations during school. My eyes will always be flitting to my cue notes while I was nervously stammering through the entire presentation. So for the filming, I decided to just get through the interview by saying whatever that came to mind. There were some retakes of the same questions, and everytime the host asked me the same question, I would give her a different reply. -__-
Filming was done at 3 locations, the playground, my bedroom and the dining area.
3. Take a moment to think about what you say on camera. This is related to the previous point. After the filming I started recalling what I had been saying while the camera was rolling. And I so regretted a lot of it, because they weren't true reflections of what I felt and thought. For example, the host asked me why I had chosen this path when I could get a job in the media industry since that's related to my university degree. She asked this same question 3 times, and everytime, I gave her different answers. Sometimes I got side-tracked and started talking about how I had chanced upon clay and realised people liked my works enough to want to buy them. Another time, I told her that my parents had always instilled the belief that happiness and health were the most important things in life. But now that I've had 2 days to mull over the question, I know my true answer.
The reason why I've decided to pursue this path, was that I wanted to have maximum control over my lifestyle. That I could decide when I wanted to lie in bed nursing a fever, when I wanted to jet off to some faraway land, when I wanted to take a toilet break. That I wanted to decide how much I was earning, and know where every cent was coming from exactly. After having experienced one year in the workforce, I know that freedom to live my life exactly how I want to, is something I would not trade with a steady paycheck. :)
The fact that I chose miniature food sculpting over other business ventures, was just a mixture of fate and passion. :)
My miniature works were sitting on a little platform which was whirling around, while being filmed.
4. Nobody decides when to stop filming until the producer/director says so. Many times I got tempted to go "waittttt! can we cut here?" during filming. Like when, I was stumbling over my words during the miniature food demonstrations. Or when the neighbour's baby let out a huge wail and I stopped mid-way while talking, wondering if that would affect audio.
5. Never look at the camera. Well, I guess this depends on the type of filming style the program required. For my program, I was not supposed to acknowledge the camera or audience at all, just the host. After so many years of being camera-ready and smiling at the camera during photos etc, this took some adjusting to.
6. My neighbourhood is really noisy! Even though we had small microphones secretly planted in our clothes, atmospheric sounds and noises would still be picked up on by the sensitive booms. A few times we had to halt filming because of various interruptions. The drone of a passing aeroplane, laughter of kids playing at the playground below, slamming of doors by neighbours..
7. A Noddy take. Do you know what's that? It's the filming of just the host, nodding her head and reacting as if I was replying her questions. I also had to be present, so that the host had a point of reference but I was just blankly watching her nod through out. It did get a tad awkward and I looked away a few times haha. I guess the editing team will be cutting the Noddy take and inserting them in between questions during the interview.
8. In between takes, do not remove or reposition any objects within frame. This includes the chair you're sitting on, any tools you have on the table, your hair. Or if you went for a toilet break, make sure not to get any part of your clothes wet. All of this is for continuity sake, so that the final edit would look like everything was filmed in one take.
Look at how much filming equipment there was for just a small one-day shoot!
There were some more which were out of frame.
9. Some things are just not within our control. As the episode is mainly about AiClay, I hoped to showcase just my best works. But from the producer's point of view, she wanted to showcase as many miniatures she can and to have enough to fill up a table. Since I hardly produce stock and usually sell off my miniature works as soon as I make them, the only way was to display my old works as well. Therefore, you might spot some in the final cut. I just hope there would be no close-ups of the old/unfinished works, as I honestly cringe at them and would hate to let viewers think that is my standard of craft. :(
10. Anything can happen behind the scenes. What you won't get to see in the actual episode - the gingerbread man flipped over before the frosting was baked and it was smeared. Due to time constraints, there was no way to refilm the entire process and I had to try to repair the damage done. But it still looked pretty horrid. :( And the producer just informed me that everything is shot in HD quality, oh noes.
11. Saying 'this is the last scene' is taboo during filming. Apparently, the word 'last' is unspeakable until filming is wrapped up.
11. Filming is TIRING. I was up since 6am and started filming from 8am all the way till 5pm, with a 45minute lunch break in between. All of this footage for just 10-15 minutes worth of broadcast in the end. I'm no longer surprised when 2-hour movies take up to a year for shooting. I can hardly imagine all the logistics that goes into it!
So that's about all I can remember from the shoot.
The little Toggle mascot which I sculpted as a surprise!
Finally I want to say a huge THANK YOU to the filming crew.
There were a total of 3 camera men, a host, a producer and an intern. Everyone was extremely nice and patient during the filming, and also continually praised my works which made me really flattered! Especially to Karon, if you're reading this, thank you for picking AiClay and me for the episode, and always ready with a smile even when faced with my silly questions. :)
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Durians, and The Big Day Tomorrow!
Here are some miniature durians handsculpted by me.
But I'm really here to tell you about the BIG DAY tomorrow.
Yes, it's the long awaited filming for the program 'Behind This Door', it's happening tomorrow! -nervous butterflies in belly.
I still don't have my clothes picked out.
and I have this weird spot on my hand which appeared this morning. How perfect for all the macro shots when I'm doing my Miniature Food demonstration tomorrow. :(
But at least, my room is all packed and ready for Toggle Mediacorp production crew.
Wish me luck!! ♥
Monday, September 17, 2012
A buffet of miniature cakes!
So.... Many.... Cakes!
I haven't had lunch, and my stomach is whining just looking at this photo.
Miniature cakes handsculpted by me, commissioned gift set for owner of Sift Desserts.
A brand new week in September, how fast is this month going by!
If you would like your own spread of miniature goodies too (or you know a friend who would love it), September commissions are now open! You know where to go to for more information! Only 4 slots!
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Back with some pudding love!
Baaaaaaaaaaaaaack! ♥
This time, I brought along my DSLR so I got to snap away.
Sharing some photos at the end of post, but first.
Here are some miniature pudding cups I handsculpted ('cept for little metal spoon).
Here are some miniature pudding cups I handsculpted ('cept for little metal spoon).
Packaging handmade by me as well.
I searched high and low for Jello pudding cups in the supermarkets here to investigate the packaging further, because believe it or not, I have never had a pudding cup before. They're hugely popular snacks in Hollywood movies, so I guess puddings are just not an Asian thing.
Now I have two cups in my fridge, just waiting for the right time for me to indulge. :)
Sharing a few of my memories of Bangkok. :)
1. Scoot airplane which flew us there.
2. The first dinner we had when we landed, Japanese!
3. My elephant ♥ top which I bought in the previous trip there.
2. The first dinner we had when we landed, Japanese!
3. My elephant ♥ top which I bought in the previous trip there.
4. Hotel breakfast for all 3 mornings, we got to choose the kind of eggs we wanted - scambled, omelette, hard-boiled.
I did enjoy my Bangkok getaway, did some crazy shopping too since everything was cheaper over there. Maybe I'll share some of them in the next post. :)
Saturday, September 8, 2012
I believe she asked for Carrots. ;)
Hi all!
I'll be leaving for a short getaway to Bangkok in a few hours! I'll be back on Wednesday, so all emails and orders will be attended to then.
Also, thank you for all who have participated in the previous giveaway, really enjoyed reading through the proposal stories! Results for the winner are in.
-drumrolls.
Congratulations shoppingqueenie!
Please email me at buzz@aiclay.com to receive your prize - a Free Worldwide Shipping Coupon.
Hope to see more people joining in the next giveaway, there will be more to come!
==========================================================================
Leaving you guys with another photo of the carrot ring.
It has a name now too - I believe she asked for Carrots. If you fancy it, please nab it here. It can come with 1, 1.5 or 2 carrots. ;)
Till next Wednesday then, adios amigos! :)
Also, I'll be updating my Instagram regularly with snapshots of my trip. My username is joceaiwei, feel free to follow me!
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Cake and cute English guys.
Here are some miniature cakes handsculpted by me, part of the commissioned gift set for owner of Sift Desserts.
I also handmade all the little labels and cake boards, they really do add to the realism don't you think? #buaypaiseh
Now let me introduce you to some REAL food porn.
And I think I've found the perfect one. They come in the form of a few cute English guys, drool-worthy HD videos, and a dashing of spontaneous hilarity.
Just head to this YouTube Channel - Sorted Food and you won't be able to stop at just one video.
I'm leaving you guys with one of my favourites from them - a Lemon Meringue Pie Recipe. You have to watch the part where the meringue is caramelised with a flame-torch, so beautiful and yummy!
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