Vacation!

When you think of the word vacation, what comes to mind? For me, I can tell you that it doesn't mean the following:

peace.

beach.

serenity.

relaxation.

stress-free.

break.

This in no way a complaint or dissatisfaction. Alhamdulillah.. I had a great time away for two and a half weeks. :) I spent wonderful time in the company of my dad and family in Dallas. It's home away from home since I spend the rest of the year here studying... So it isn't about sightseeing or adventuring. It's just making the most of moments there. Which I'm very blessed and grateful to have done.

The next few days I will be having a series of posts.. some about vacation, recommendation and my favorite things.. and a few abut my not so favorite things. So be prepared for a few rants here and there. Hehe. :D

I feel now is the best time than ever to vent a little. Because well, I'm home. Tired. Sleepy.. Jetlagged and slightly upset about attitude and reaction.

Let's backtrack a little. Firefly is NOT a 'business'... it comes from my journal. From my life's experiences, therefore it deals with sentiments. Even while I was away, I left orders open. Not because it was a business opportunity... it felt more like a need to need Firefly. You know? Father's Day came.. special gifts were needed... and Firefly should be available to everybody.. whether I'm around or not around. And boy. Was that the most challenging thing ever!

In the midst of Father's Day orders, all of which were important and kinda 'urgent' if you will... we began having serious problems with electricity. While there was a standby generator... there were only 4 hours on which the 'processing' could take place due to the heavy machinery and equipment. It ran a panic through my system that was so so difficult to explain to anybody. My family stressed more than I did... and I'm so so lucky that my brother was there with me through it all. What added to the pressure was our driver being away on his yearly holiday. We have that kinda system at our place. D gets an off every alternate weekend, and while we're away in the summer, it's down time for him. And so mum had to do the 'drivin' and my brother had the privilege of customer service and dealings. Which I'm proud of him for. I was very very lucky to have such understanding Firefly friends, too. Who were very understanding of the light issues and were prepared that there might be a delay on gifts for dad. BUT Alhamdulillah, orders made it in time because my blessing in disguise, is my printer uncle. He worked night and day and got things to a resolve. And it's funny. He keeps telling me not to worry, because we all know MashaAllah, I have a strong support team. Out of town orders were dispatched and placed at IVS for collection, despite it being Graduation day for my brother. Congrats Nivy! You really worked on being an all rounder. :) He waited on clients to collect their stuff, and well, he had to wait on some who never showed, too.

I've tried to stay in touch with orders and the Firefly page because I might be a little overwhelmed the next few weeks. I didn't even talk to my mom or brother while I was away! hehe... so Alhamdulillah to the Firefly family.

While I've had a smooth sailing on most scenarios, I've had a bit of trouble on a few others. I'd like everyone to understand, I take my work very seriously... because a) it's not work, it's my hobby, it's something I love. b) I study c) I feel we have so much potential as a nation, working on something new and innovative is the lingo for Firefly d) while every customer, Firefly friend and member are important, respect goes both ways.

I find it very impolite, rather rude that there are those that ...

a) love leaving their links and pages all over my wall. Dang. If I were to visit your house and left my visiting cards plastered all over your bedroom, how'd you feel? Apart from the overdose of yellow and brown, you'd feel unnerved and upset that your space has been vandalized. Just send me an email or msg me, we can find out way to promote your business, or your mom's clothes, or your sister's gift wrapping venture... or whatever. Dude, it's called communicate.

b) send me email after email or have a million queries and want to place an order... and after I reply, don't have the courtesy to reply with an even 'okay' or 'done' to confirm they've received my response and have acknowledged it. What adds to the spice pot is, a week or two later I get emails asking hey man! you never wrote back, is my order ready. Uh, sunshine.. you never confirmed. That's not on. Despite being called Lady Varah thanks to my astrology knowledge, I do not have ESP which mystically informs that client X has read and agreed to the conditions and is eating a bag of pretzels while reading your mail and cannot reply because he or she is on his way to 7 Eleven for the next round of Taquitos. Really.. just hit back and say yeah that's cool with me or sounds good, go ahead. How would I know if you agree or disagree or are confirming the order? :/

c) place an order. and there go the cricket sounds... why? Because it's time to collect it. If you're going out of town, message me. Inform me. Courtesy. That's all. I  mean, if I can try and stay in touch or make alternate arrangements with someone else so you can collect your stuff or aren't inconvenienced, I expect a bit of commitment on your part to collect your stuff on the time YOU say you will collect it on. If it's not possible, no stress. I can courier or put it in a list of pending collections. Just communicate. I have had situations where I haven't left the house or my brother's waited for hours on end on the day he needed to be out because so and so said they'd come by at 1 and it is not 7:37. Not fair. You have my email address, if the phone digits are lost, you can always email me. Unless you're in Antarctica without internet, which I doubt, because Firefly is an online business to start with anyhow. :D

d) whether you're still in middle school, whether you're as old as my granddad... whether you live in some place I have never heard of or belong to a corporate family, I'm sorry. Firefly friends get the same respect and  courtesy as anybody. I will not take disrespect to me or my family even if you're interested in my work and are planning big things for a Firefly future. Sorry. No order is too big or small. An order is an order, and a committment is a committment. :) It's just as important to me... so please collect it on time, and please do not make it a favor to me... Firefly would love to create for you, but if you think my service sucks or is crap... please by all means. Do not place your order. I will definitely try to improve, you can return your stuff, and get a refund. But do not, make it sound like a favor. That's just petty. Really.

e) chhaapofying. Dude! I'm honored... but DUDE... NO. Firefly designs are copyrighted. They're my artwork. And you trying to create Maddy and Sue in your style does NOT make the doodle your 'own' crafted with love and heart.

f) AND I am NOT going to print that thingy with shutterstock vector art, or the design of that skins-site. Why? Because I'm reproducing someone else's work, AND there's money involved. :/ So please stop sending me photos of Transformers and Batman, I did it for my brother... and will not be doing more of it. Your photographs and logos, feel free to send em in for keychains. BUT please specify what you'd like on the other side.

g) By default my logo and doodle and design info goes on there! In case you want to get on to me for 'stealing' your work and me 'plagiarizing' YOUR design and giving it to YOU. How lame am I? I am copying the logo you gave ME to print on a keychain, reproducing, claiming and then GIVING it to the person I stole from. Sigh. Tsk tsk. Didn't know that's what processing an order is called. (sarcasm)

h) My printer. I can introduce you to him... yes, to do what I do, NO.

f) INFORMATION is ALL available in the 'notes' tab... processing time, payment and collection, pricing, size. You name it. Firefly's notes tab freakin' has it! :D I request everyone to please read it... or skim it. It's not a scavenger hunt finding out who does this or where to contact me. Really. No brainer at all! :) It just takes a moment...

Information is made available for the convenience of all Firefly visitors. You realize how much time is wasted in asking questions that are already answered? I'm not being mean, I'm serious.. people miss the window in ordering their stuff for the Monday and Thursday batches all the time because all the email time is spent asking and answering information that's already there... hehe. And by the time they get their answer and decide they want a certain keychain customized for Tuesday, the Thursday lot has already left. I was being considerate by having it all out there, but sigh. No one takes what I say seriously. *sad face*

Anyhooooo....

I know some of you had laughs reading my alphabet rants. :) I love all my Firefly friends and family. Alhamdulillah... they add to the strength I have in getting out of bed on my down days... and well.. inspiration runs when you've got love from those around you.

Oh yes! The Scrapper Session kits are here. WOOOOOOOT! :D And they're awesome. Don't feel like givin em away. XD haha.

Okay, next post includes shopping and travel favorites... my little sister decided she's Aysha and I'm Mahwish at night. So Aysha and I are going to go play now. Hehe. The joys of being back. :D

Vacation Plan

I'm traveling Wednesday so I thought I would list down a bunch of things that I will like to work on and would also like to list down services that will not be available as I cannot personally supervise them.

Products-Services NOT Available til the 23rd of June

• Pillow boxes, gift wrapping
• Tagbooks & brag books
• Hand Crafted CD covers
• Notebooks
• Notepads
• Journals
• Clips
• Envelopes

Things I shall be working on...

• New doodles *must*
• Putting together kits for the Scrapbooking Sessions
• Prototypes for Cushions
• Working out new projects in paper craft :D

Reviewing Defects?

I just thought I would mention, if you have experienced:

• your keychain's 'chain' break due to an opened loop
• or have lost your keychain because the chain broke
• or have had your dogtag's ball chain collapse
• or have had your processed card or keychain come apart or appear eroded

Please do not discard the product. Write to me so we can work on improving these products for you. While defected products are discarded or removed from the lot, there are some variables not in our control (mine and my printer's) There are chances that 1 out of 50 pieces has undergone a fault.

In recent weeks, there have been numerous issues with load-shedding and fluctuating voltage which have in return effected the heat and process time... which may have reduced the life of your Firefly product. Do not panic. This varies and is dependent on the batches. :) Firefly takes pride in the durability and longivity of its products. I'm serious! I've tested every product myself. :D I've had a hoard of keychains (approximately 30 of them) latched on to my own bag with a ball chain for the last 5 months. My bag weathers all sorts of abuse and Alhamdulillah! All pieces are STILL in place. We are constantly trying to improve the finishing and appearance of our processed products and some of you may have even noticed the upgrades over the last one year. :) We've shifted to shimmery material for good! We no longer work with plain material and the new stuff is awesome!

So if you land yourself with a product that leads to a complaint, please let me know so I can replace it for you. 

I just wanted everyone to know that they CAN bring forward their concerns so they can be addressed. It is not at all an offense on Firefly's services or work as this is all part of improving the great stuff that's already here in the land of rainbows :D

Please note, attempting to pull apart products or purposefully abusing them is not going to land you a fresh piece. This is why I request you to not discard your product and return it to Firefly so it can be reviewed for replacement. :) While hard plastic has been tested to endure rough usage, it is not advised you leave it out under the sun for days at a stretch or submerge it under water for excess periods of time. *wink*

Thanks for the feedback and continuous support. :) 

Spreading Smiles... Smile Sunshine!

Sessions! A must read for every Firefly fan! :D

Do you often wonder how one could put together pretty looking cards, presentations and photo pages? Do you ask yourself, could it really be that hard? What if I try it?

Why keep asking when you could so totally go for it? :D Scrapbooking is a lovely pass time. It is a great hobby for the softies at heart... and those little creative bugs we have hopping around in our systems.

So I have been brainstorming on the whole Scrapbook sessions story. Here is what  I've formulated. :)

• Scrapbook Kits + 3 hands on sessions (2 hours each) Held every two weeks.
• Kits will include, small sized scrapbook albums + decorative paper + embellishments to help you kick start your very own scrapbook.
• Sessions will be to explore layouts, planning & compiling themes as well as learning techniques on creating certain looks and manipulating paper-material for textures embellishments and decorative surfaces. You will be exchanging 'tags' as part of a design challenge... let's not forget meeting other creative scrappers out there. :)

Why should you have a go at this?

Scrapbooking is very personal. Very heartfelt. And there are some memories and moments you cannot preserve with a simple album or photo library and you can't always get someone to do it for you! Express yourself! Journaling and adding your personal touches enhances memories. Makes things fun to look back at... 

These mini sessions are your gateway to one on one first hand advice and tips on making your layouts awesome and your ideas come to life. :) You will not only get a hands on experience in layouts and design, but you will slowly enjoy taking on weekly-monthly scrapbooking challenges. You will sharpen your eye for color, for contrast and comparison as well as enhance your creativity. Sounds fun na? :) Every one of us has experienced a scrapbooking technique or moment at some point in our lives. Most of us think it's for a designer, an artist or a totally creative person. Many just say, I can't do something like that. That isn't true! If you fancy scrapbooks or personalized and hand crafted gifts, chance is you have an eye for such creative things! WHICH means, your aesthetics are awesome. :) MashaALLAH!

What's this going to cost?

Six hours of your time dedicated to creating and designing during the Scrapbooking sessions, alongside some prep time in pulling together your favorite photos or memories of your favorite events. What do you want to capture? Which memory do you want to preserve? You may have homework, but just to explore your own strengths and talent. :) 

Registrations will close on the 16th of June, to ensure everyone gets a kit they need to sign up asap! 

Rs 3500 is the total cost. 

This includes:

• the registration
• scrapbook album
• decorative paper
• embellishments (3 packets of fun add-ons for your pages)
• stamping ink 
• set of clear stamps. 
• your membership as a Firefly-Girl Creative Scrapper (card with no expiration)

Rs 1000 payable upon registration. Rs 2500 once kits arrive.

The kits will be purchased from abroad! How cool would that be! You're getting your hands on some genuine stuff. :D

There is no age limit, but I would suggest our youngest members be 10 years old. It's great to get kids involved in such tasteful pass times from a young age. :D Don't step back or be shy if you're even out of your teens! ;)

Venue will be in Phase 6, Defence. To be disclosed. 

Timings will be 4-6 on one Saturday every alternate week.

Sessions will be announced after Eid ul Fitr.

After these 3 sessions, you will be rewarded a mini certificate for your participation. Ain't that something fun to hold on to? :D

As things progress inshaALLAH, our scrapbooking sessions will become frequent and advance :) Scrapbook page design challenges and layout contests will be held right here, at the Firefly-Girl blog! :) inshaALLAH!

This is a concept still new to us in Pakistan, why not be the first to be a part of it and explore YOUR potential?

If you're not in Karachi and would still like to participate or be a part of the Creative Scrapper crew, feel free to join in. :) You can still avail your kit and membership card. Layout challenges and bi weekly session updates will be posted here. :)

Are you ready to be a creative scrapper? Register now, email whimsical.firefly@gmail.com

with Scrapbooking Sessions as the subject line!

That's life...

As recent as the last few days I've realized that no matter what you do, some things will remain constant, some things will continue to change. I know that's like a paradox or something but it's true. Here's what my summer looks like as of now...

• Next batch of orders goes out on 29th of May.
• 30th May, Submit Final Dissertation.
• Decide topic/source of inspiration for Mini Thesis. (Flower-Selling Children on the Road Side are out)
• Firefly-Girl travels home to Dallas, Texas for 3 weeks.
• Returning and heading off to intern. Starting 26th of June.
• All those summer projects for Firefly are on hold.
• Mission Graduation. This summer, too.

Firefly meets the Tribune?

Some time back I was approached for an interview... and well. Nothing's hit me as much as it has now, and in the last ten minutes. Firefly has just been featured as part of the Tribune's Life and Style story. :) MashaALLAH! I can't believe it. *airhead... gave the interview and still doesn't believe it*

I dedicate this one to everyone at home...
Nivy, Mama, Baba, Zaiq, Papa, Mom, Khala and my Mithi.


Read it here :)
http://tribune.com.pk/story/169139/spreading-smiles/

I was actually ready to doze off when my phone beeped saying it's online. It's overwhelming. I think all that thesis energy even revived like an Energizer Battery! Alhamdulillah! AAAAAH. Okay. *easy there C-ster*

Allah Kareem is definitely Meherbaan. These are His blessings upon me... and the Karam of our Beloved Aaqa Sallallahu Alaihe Wasallam. This is a milestone for me. Really.

JazakAllah everyone for the support and love. x

Prayers and the Firefly Shop (online)

So, I'm stumped. Sleepy. SERIOUSLY STRESSED. 9 DAYS til jury day. 30 samples to produce. NO idea where that'll happen from. It's not that my work is off... it's just that I don't know how to take it further. I'm just panicking. Almost 10 days of being ill didn't help at ALL.

I've faith that's giving me that ounce of hope to smile and blog... We'll all get through this inshaALLAH. Don't know how, but YEAH! We'll rock it all. :)

So I'm praying. Like really hard... that my inspiration strikes super soon. So that I can begin printing and producing the coolest looking series of prints ever. (InshaALLAH).

So anyone passing by this blog here, I request a few seconds of your time for a little prayer.

Lots of Duas for the kiddos giving their CIE's.
Hey, I need duas too. :)

BY THE WAY... in case Facebook messes up for some reason again... we now have a back up plan. :D I'm slowly archiving stuff for Firefly. 90% of it is up and RUNNING! Do visit the Firefly Shop! Subscribe to get updates... and don't forget to bookmark it. :) I've added an order form, too... to make life a little easier for those who don't like emailing :D