Behind The Scenes // What We Did In July and August 2016

Time flew by so quickly in July and August. We were up to our necks with deadlines regarding all aspects of our studio work and retail line. Doors of opportunities kept opening and we are so thankful for everything we experienced within those two months! Before we knew it, we are in the early days of September and another Behind The Scenes post is due. 

If you have been reading our BTS posts (click here and here), you would know that we tend to run around and do different things every day which makes studio life so much fun! Even a 'quiet' day in the office is made up of a variety of work, so we are not in our seats all day. Every single day is different and we love that so much! 

This post is a little different from the previous posts as we have gotten permission from a few of our clients to show sneak peeks of our work in the areas of custom design, event styling, and marketing and branding. Let's get started!  

​Pop-Up Events
We participated in a ton of retail pop-up events which took up a substantial amount of time in July and August. But it's fine, really, as it means that we can spend more time with our fellow creative friends such as Operational Overhaul (see image below). This photo below was taken in Takashimaya where we had a two-week pop-up event. We were amused at how both our brands had 'Tutti Fruitti' items - we match! 

Min and I love hanging out with our friends during events. They are a bunch of genuine, lovely creatives and it is so heartening to forge deeper and more substantial relationships over time! 

(L) Vendor Tip: When your booth is really crowded, just snap a quick pic of your customers' purchases in order to hasten the packing process. This makes it so much easier to record down transactions when things quieten down. 

(R) Oh, the glare of our lights! In order to illuminate our products and create a more comfortable shopping experience for our customers, we suffer the bright harsh glare of our lighting system. We often go home with white spots in our vision! 

Custom Design and Client Meetings
Below is one of our favourite custom card design order from a client. We love it when clients share the same aesthetic style as us. This card may look like a plain white card with words but there was a ton of texture and light washes of colour in the background that cannot be seen on camera. It was such a pretty delicate project! 

(L) Packing up an order for a client. We love to use our stickers!

(R) The best meeting location we had in July and August was in a cable car! We mentioned this in a Sunday Stickies post. Oh, how we wish that every client meeting could be as awesome. Check out the view during the meeting in the picture below! 

Prep Work
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A lot of time in the studio is spent prepping. We have to pack and prepare our new arrivals for both online and offline sales - hence, the Hello Kitty labeller for products going out on consignment - and also prep for our event styling projects. 

Something that isn't photographed here but takes up a substantial amount of time is when I prep for my design work! 

(Top L) Min doing light markings in pencil before I paint on the wooden pallet. 

(Top R) A quick run to our regular craft supply store. The store has definitely seen better days! It was a huge mess that day and we ended up going to another store after this shot was taken because we couldn't find what we needed amongst the chaos. 

(Bottom L) Choosing the perfect ferns and green florals for an event styling project. 

(Bottom R) Preparing a template for our craft work in an event styling project. 

(L) Trooper wandering into a shot that was to be send to a client. This super cute wooden set was used for a wedding. A normal guestbook does not cut it anymore! 

(R) A horrifyingly messy look at the car boot when we are transporting props from one location to another for an event. 

Event Styling and Client Events

(Top) A sneak peek at a wedding styling project. Rustic charm was the theme and we filled the venue with Baby's Breath, soft lace, vintage bronze frames, and wood elements. Sorry about the low quality photo, I had to zoom into my initial photo to crop out the couple's faces for privacy! 

(L) Sneaking in a shot at a private event. It was a massive event with lots of 'clubby' and lounge elements. Loved it! 

(R) Watching fireworks erupt right close in person at a private event. One of the perks of being part of the crew is that you can go into restricted zones! 

​Blog Life

Upon reviewing and choosing BTS photos for this post, I realised that July and August were very food-centric. Most of the outtakes during photoshoots belonged to Sunday Stickies posts and Eat posts. The top right corner above has a bonus reminder of the terrible 4fingers challenge that left us feeling very oily and bloated. And yes, we have not eaten a fried piece of chicken ever since! 

(Bottom L) Cutting the pizza toast for a shot for Eat // The Ultimate Throwback Childhood Pizza Toast.

(Bottom R) Arranging ingredients for the blog header image in the Eat // Bovril vs Marmite Showdown: Mushroom Linguine.

​Readying Products For Release
There is always a pretty lengthly process before we release any new product for purchase online and in person at pop-up events. After checking through everything to ensure quality, we have to photograph and pack the items before uploading them onto the store for sale. 

I really love our new greeting cards and Faith Postcard Set. More details on the newest single greeting cards will be found in an upcoming blog post. 

(Top, Top R and Top L) Photoshoot for the newbies! We love working with different types of floral and we get really excited when the photos pop with amazing colour. 

(Bottom L and R) Cutting up boards that serve as backings for our product packaging. Yes, we are pretty much professional cutters by day. Cutting stickers, boards, and paper could be our retirement jobs! 

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Do you enjoy these Behind The Scenes posts? Let us know if you do and what you'd like to see next in our blog!

<3 Jia