the day i found foundry

while strolling down Purvis street in search of food, I stumbled upon an amazing furniture shop, the foundry!  their furniture is a product of merging creative visions of global design talents with the skills of craftsmen from singapore and malaysia.

i love the concept of putting emphasis on production as much as the design.  also really enjoyed being at the shop… i could feel this synergy of designers and artisans transformed into design that's contemporary and timeless, yet still giving a feeling of warmth.  we need more shops like this in singapore!!

love sg!

finally, singapore souvenirs that are creative and actually cute.  love sg, designed locally by Kevin Choe is available online or at the esplanade shop.

to live a creative life...

woord.

find it here!

yum: riders cafe

did you know that the riders cafe is open from 8 am?!?! even on weekdays?!  just found out last week so i walked in on friday around 8:30 am. they still asked me if i had a reservation but we managed to get a seat without waiting. sure enough, the place was almost full by 9:30.  amazing.  i think its definitely better than coming on a weekend if you can stop by before work.

recipe: Pink Rainbow Cake!

this is number one on the list of things i want to bake. it's just so pretty. the recipe can be found on Call Me Cupcake, a blog dedicated to beautiful cakes, cupcakes and macarons.

Swiss meringue frosting
Makes enough to frost a 15 cm or 20 cm cake. Add 225 grams of butter to make Swiss meringue buttercream

•5 large egg whites
•200 grams sugar
•1 tsp vanilla extract

Put egg whites and sugar in a heat-proof bowl in a double boiler. The water in the saucepan should be simmering. Whisk with a hand whisk continously until the mixture reaches 65 degrees C. Remove from heat. Start whipping the egg whites with a stand or hand mixer until they become fluffy and white and the bowl is cool, this can take about 10 minutes.

Vanilla cake
Makes five 15 cm, or four 20 cm layers

•1/2 cup (113 grams) butter
•2 cups white sugar
•3 1/2 cups flour
•1 teaspoon salt
•3 teaspoons baking powder
•1 1/2 cups ice water
•1 teaspoon vanilla
•4 egg whites beaten stiff

Add sugar to the butter and beat until light. Sift dry ingredients and add alternately with ice water and flavourings, beating thoroughly after each addition. Fold in the beaten egg whites. Pour into greased layer pans and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for about 30 minutes.

Photo and Recipe by Call Me Cupcake

fun wedding invites

i came across a bunch of unique, creative and funny wedding invitations while looking around for inspirations to design my own. i know most couples in singapore just use the invites that come with their hotel package... but i think original invitations are a great way to set the tone/theme for your wedding and to show guests the couples' personality.   here are some that i really liked.

sprouting bookmarker

super cute bookmarkers that blosoom when you open the book.  Designed by Connect Design of Korea.

a modern flower centerpiece

i'm thinking of something unique for my wedding reception centerpiece like the beautiful underwater arrangement with floating candles on top.  actually it will be nice for any event, or even just for your home.  its so easy anyone can create one, just follow this diy lesson.

Photo courtesy of: InStyleWeddings.com

yum: the Plain.

just had my sunday brunch at a cute australian joint on Craig road called the Plain.  they offer a simple all day brunch menu with lots of refreshing drinks.

i had the antipasto sandwich, filled with eggplants, artichokes and rockets.

create: ♡ egg

awesome.

from an amazing blog by the bento creater, anna the red.

crazy cute cupcakes

I just found the most unique and extreme food blog. The Bake It In a Cake by Megan Seling is all about planting whatever she feels like inside of a cupcake, both literally and figuratively.  Some of the cupcakes are just so cute.  She shares her recipes and how to bake all the creative sweetness.

photos from bakeitinacake.com

i'm not sure that the cupcake craze has caught on in Singapore as much as the states. i have been an addict of red velvet cupcakes for years now but i can't seem to find a cafe or bakery offering anything amazing in Singapore.  pleaaase let me know if anyone has recommendations.   

Bangkok: girl's trip

Just landed at the Changi airport with a suitcase full of new stuff from my favorite city, BangkokY  it was a girls' weekend full of shopping, eating and pampering at the spa.  i love bangkok for all those things plus its creative side. seems people are really open to fun, colorful ideas.  the city is full of great shop designs, graphic designs and fashion. Here's a quick recaps of the trip and all the creative/ beautiful things i found.

our first stop was Siam for some shopping.  i got to visit my all time favorite shop, himma. i love the geometrically inspired design of their clothes...

we strolled every soi and alley of siam square and came across mosstories, a shop selling original accessories.  the earrings are really cute. you can find them at siam square soi 2.  

after all the shopping, we headed to the Health Land at Asoke for an aromatherapy body massage.  the place looks great. the reception feels like a trendy hotel and the entire facility offers a very stylish spa experience. i also appreciate the cleanliness. needless to say, we all enjoyed the 90 minutes. 

the next day was occupied by more shopping.  it can't get any better than this for a group of girls. i found some cute accessories for myself.  

we all went crazy over the jelly shoes at the night market! so cute and all around just S$10.

exhausted from a full day of shopping, we stopped for some funky ice cream at iberry.  the cafe was very cute but i'm still not sure what some of the flavors were. i think the group favorite was mango milk :)

and as for souvenirs, i bought a giant box of durian chips.  i love durian chips but i can't seem to find the anywhere outside Thailand. so of course i had to stock up.

we ended the trip with some mango and beautiful sticky rice.  i thought it will be appropriate to end this post with something so cute and so creative.  the rice, dyed by herbs and flowers, will taste the same white or colored. but i love the fact that the extra step was taken for aesthetics. pleasing to the eyes, pleasing to your taste buds. i think bangkok is very inspiring and stimulating for me as a designer.  it's a busy city where so much tradition and culture can co-exist with modern ideas and design.  and at moments the influence of tradition becomes apparent even in the most contemporary design.  i think the richness of history and culture is rooted in it's people, including the youth, and this, intentionally or unintentionally translates into everything they create. modern design is international but i think bangkok produces a somewhat vernaclar modern design.

Great weekend :)

typo!

i just found my new favorite shop at wisma atria.  Typo by cotton on.  i looooveee.  just spent like an hour at the tiny shop.  i guess i never noticed it before because it's in that always crowded basement area where people just past by to get from ion to taka.  but lucky me, its GSS and everything is 30% off.

MY PURCHASE.  canvas art and a mouse pad.  i managed to keep it just to two items... but i will be back. 

I'm off to Bangkok for the weekend... will return with my findings from there :)

if you can't afford a Leica...

Leica M3 Paper Pinhole Camera by London based designer/ photographer, Matthew Nicholson. It actually works! He’s planning to post templates you can download and print so we can all make one too. ほしいー。

template coming soon on his website.  other cool templates are also available.

wedding hues: june blue

It’s june, and in Japan, that means they're about to enter the raining season.  Hydrangea is the first thing that comes to mind when i think of the raining season. In Japan, it’s often portrayed in photos, films, poems etc. to represent this time of the year. 

Living in Singapore where its constantly hot, sometimes numbs my sense of time.  Like when I look back to something that happened a while back, it can be hard to recall exactly when the certain event took place because in our memories, we’re always dressed for summer and always in hot weather.  So to snap out of this constant state of heat, I was inspired to create another cooling color palette for a wedding theme with Hydrangeas.

the future design scene

i just went to Lasalle College of the Arts to see their show exhibiting works of the students. it's a look into the future of the Singapore design scene. and i like being in their courtyard. if anyone wants inspiration from young hopeful designers, head down to Lasalle because the show is ending... tomorrow...

there were many projects addressing ecological issues like Re-Designing the Immaterial by Vanessa Teo Pei Lian

i thought this one deserves the cutest design award.  its "packaging that delivers" by Ailice Samadi

i think the friends i went through architecture school with will understand how i feel when i see rows of beautiful presentations and intricate models.  i just can't stop thinking about the hours they put in and the sleepless nights.  brings back the painful memories.