I'm on ho ho holiday! See you in 2008!

We'll be leaving this afternoon for a short trip to Bangkok to meet up with my siblings, sis-in-law and adorable nephews. We will then share Christmas together back in Singapore. And soon after, we'd have to leave them for HongKong & Macau, flying off with my parents-in-law. Nothing beats Christmas with family, and this is the first time all my siblings will be here in Singapore. Too bad my parents couldn't join us here, due to other engagement. :(

Here's a picture of our live Christmas tree at home. It's our first time having a live Christmas tree from IKEA, so far the tree is coping well with the humid weather.

Thank you for reading my blog, and thanks to all other wonderful reads around the blogland that I enjoyed so much in 2007.

Our family would like to send you all the warmth of Christmas from our home to your home, and wish you a fabulous New Year!! I'll see you again in 2008! xox take care.

a Marimekko blog

I've just found out that there is a Marimekko blog run by AlwaysMod.com, the future home of everything Marimekko. The AlwaysMod Marimekko Blog features Marimekko's latest products and designs, from bags and fabrics to bedroom and bath.


It is also where I learnt about Marimekko licensing some of its popular patterns from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s to H&M’s summer collection 2008. The collection will be sold in H&M stores in 28 countries. *oh how much I wish H&M was here.*


And don't forget to check out the Marimekko Holiday Catalog, available here, or here. Enjoy!

Oh wait! Speaking of Marimekko, one of my Marimekko photos was selected from my flickr, and is now published on Schmap Helsinki Fourth Edition. Schmap is a leading publisher of digital travel guides for 200 destinations throughout the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. :)

Dwell.com

Last thursday Cory emailed me on the recent Dwell.com redesign and the Dwell Design Leader video series that Dwell.com has produced.

The recent Dwell.com redesign gives the site a fresh look, fluid navigation, and flawlessly showcases Dwell’s award-winning editorial content and photography in a way that is distinctly Dwell. As a result, Dwell.com is better positioned than ever as a leader for what’s new in modern design.

The Dwell Design Leader video series is an inside look at some of the most influential, inspirational, and innovative designers in the industry today. From landscape architect Andrea Cochran to prefab architect Michelle Kaufmann to co-housing expert Kathryn McCamant to Airstream designer Christopher Deam, a full spectrum of modern design disciplines are explored from a personal and professional perspective.


Here's the latest on Dwell Design Leader video series, the work of architect Adam Kalkin. That man is a genius! We should have some of his push button and quick houses here. Seriously. Watch it and give it some thought.


Thanks, Cory!

Supermarket

I stumbled upon their site few days ago, and it seems that it's just recently launched. I've learnt some blogs talked about it, but hey, great things are always meant to be conversation pieces :). Supermarket (US) works just like Bouf (UK), where shoppers could buy great things direct from designers. Tons of cool products there, you could check them all out here. And if you think you have cool things to sell, you could let them know here. And oh, they have a cool blog, too. Super!

D*S Blogger Gift Guide

Thank you to Grace for asking me to participate in her Bloggers' Wishlist. Above are some of the many gift ideas you could find on the wishlist. Wanna see the full list? Click here. Happy gift hunting!

IAMACREATIVEPERSON

Singapore Design Festival has just started on Nov 28, and IAMACREATIVEPERSON is taking part of the event. It's a new design initiative to promote creative thinking and action through business, art, design and media to the people of Singapore.



IAMACREATIVEPERSON is showcasing selected famous product ideas and items of Japanese top creators and artists at the Old Supreme Court, Singapore, from Nov 28 till Dec 8, 2007. Plus, there's a design market where you can purchase products from local artists/designers, or the japanese products exhibited. Click on Designers to see the full list of the exhibitors. Above are some shots taken from their photo gallery. A design conference, when DESIGN meets market, will also be held on Dec 3, 2007 at the Victoria Theatre, Singapore. Click here for more details on the speakers.

I have to say IAMACREATIVEPERSON is one of the must-visits of this year's festival. Must, must! Check out the rest of the festival excitement here. Enjoy!

Oleana, Norway

I first learnt about Oleana when I was in Copenhagen last June, flipping through the city shopping guide book found in our hotel room. Because of its gorgeous picture and its close proximity to our hotel, I decided to give it a look. And oh boy, you can immediately(!) feel its fine craftmanships once you touch and feel any of its textile products. Seriously. So last August, I emailed Oleana to ask if I could use some of their pictures on my blog. *Their website clearly indicates that permission is required prior usage of any images.* I heard no news from them until last week. *Thank you!*

Using the best natural fiber materials sourced from around the world, every single piece of Oleana is knitted and sown at their own factory at Espeland, just outside Bergen. Oleana has won numerous awards and distinctions in the area of design and entreprenuership since its conception in 1992.

Founded by Signe Aarhus, Kolbjørn Valestrand and Hildegunn Møster, Oleana has been working with designer and photographer Solveig Hisdal from the beginning. You could learn more about their inspiring stories on how they started Oleana and all the inspirations behind it here. A must read, indeed.


(images: Solveig Hisdal, Oleana)


Thanks, Britt!

Not exactly back yet.

A series of viruses has been visiting my home generously for the past two weeks. Hate them(!). It's all started with some flu bugs, and then now, my younger daughter, Tamara, 2yr+, is having HFMD (hand foot and mouth disease). Although Natassja, 4yr+, doesn't seem to have it too, she's been having a minor sore throat for the past few days after the second flu bug kicked in last week, with no rashes/blisters seen. So, I'm keeping both of my girls home now. I'm sorry I haven't been replying to any emails lately, I'm a bit exhausted myself. Guess, I won't be around the blogland for a much longer time.

Take care now.


UPDATE (November 21, 2007): The girls are doing much better now. Natassja has just gone back to school today, and all blisters on Tamara have since dried up, we're just waiting until all are completely gone before we can take her out. Thank you for your well wishes, I guess I'll see you soon. :)

er, that rectangular thing...

I saw "that rectangular thing" almost everywhere in Sweden. I spotted it again on Holly's Stockholm pictures last month. I didn't really know what it was, or what it was used for. Still, I bought 4 pieces of "that rectangular thing" (pic: left) at Nordiska Museet, each was priced SEK 20, or around USD 3. So you see, how could you resist pretty things in low prices? ;-)

I gave all four to my sister when I went back to Jakarta last August, and as I guessed it, she asked me what it was. I answered her something like this, "oh, I have no idea! It looks pretty, and it's good enough for wall decor, good enough for placemat, or even coaster. You don't want them? I'll take them back, if you don't want them". Then she said, "oh no, no, no, I'll keep them. I think I'd use them for wall decor". Another similar conversation took place again when my mom asked me the same thing. And she raised a much clever idea, "oh yeah, you can use it as flower pot pad, too". Isn't it amazing that rectangular thing has given birth to plenty creative ideas in my family?

So it was a nice surprise(!) to receive another of that rectangular thing from Anneli of Flitiga Myran (pic: right) last September. Without hesitation, I emailed Anneli to solve the mystery of that rectangular thing, and of course, to say thank you for the gift, too. :)

When my sister came here 2 weeks ago, I asked her to bring that rectangular thing along, so that I could snap a picture of the two rectangular things together. My conversation with my sis went on like this, "Could you bring that rectangular thing I brought you from Sweden? You know, the one with blue baroque wallpaper print on it". Puzzled, she said, "Hmm, what rectangular thing?". At the end, she brought me everything that has blue prints on it, including a dish towel. :) Well, it's a rectangle and it has blue pattern on it. Who could've blamed her? I'd do the same if I was her. That rectangular thing is just so mind-boggling.


So here they are. Below is Anneli's answer to my question.

"We call them dishcloth, and we use them to wipe the sink, the kitchen table, the stove etc. Rinse it in water, add just a drop of dish washing liquid and start to wipe. :) You can use it in the bathroom as well. If it gets dirty or starts to smell you can wash it either in the dishwasher or in the washing machine (60 degrees C)".

"It's funny how every day routines seem to look so different around the world, when it comes to things we use. In Australia, they always use Scotch-Brite. Here we use a brush to clean the dishes".

There you go. The mystery has been solved. It's a cleaning pad, it works just like Scotch-Brite! I wouldn't have guessed it. It's just too good-looking to be used as a cleaning pad. :)

And yes, we use Scotch-Brite here, too, pretty much for everything (sink, dishes, stove, kitchen table, bathup, bathroom wall tiles). We also apply a drop of dish washing liquid on the Scotch-Brite. We use damp kitchen towels to wipe any tables in the house, but we seldom use the dish washing liquid on it (unless if the table was rather sticky or oily).

So I learnt something new, thanks again to Anneli. :)

Away

A short trip and a stream of visitors will keep me away from blogland till the end of the month. My flight will leave today, and I'll back in Singapore on Sunday. My sis, my parents and parents-in-law will keep me occupied afterwards. :)

I've added some new links on my sidebar over the past couple of months. Please do visit them, I'm sure you will enjoy them as much as I do. Tons of great reads, guaranteed! ;-)

Here's a picture of seashells I found during Natassja's school excursion last September. We took some home and snapped few pics of the seashells. They are precious little things in life, aren't they? :)

Now, if you could just roll your eyes slightly to the right and start clicking on my sidebar links. :) Happy browsing, take care!

Mary Maki Rae

Sorry for too much colors lately, but I just can't help keeping these all to myself! :) Here are some pictures from Mary Maki Rae's etsy shop. Mary Maki Rae is known for her children books, acrylic paintings and limited edition serigraph prints.



I stumbled upon her High Flyer on Etsy last month, and was stunned with the vibrant colors she's using and how perfectly they were registered on this limited edition hand pulled original serigraph. So I ended up buying two of her works, Blue Tambourine and High Flyer on White. I was waiting so impatiently for the prints to arrive, and when vpost finally delivered them Tuesday last week, they're just exactly what I thought they would be. Perfect in every way. Perfect.


And yes, the colors are really THAT saturated. And Mary was generous enough to include another gorgeous print for me. Every single print in the package is just perfect. Have I said that enough already?! ;-) If only I could afford this fourteen colors HAND-PULLED ORIGINAL SERIGRAPH with Hand-Applied Collage Embellishments (bottom pic). *sigh* Fourteeen, I said. 14!!! Gosh.

Present&Correct

Neal of Present&Correct wrote to me after seeing my comment on his poster over at design*sponge. I personally like the idea of putting endangered species in a fun learning way, like alphabet poster in a nice color-scheme. So when Neal asked me if I would blog about it, I didn't hesitate to say I would! Seriously. If only schools back then had more subjects presented in this manner, perhaps I would had paid more attention to class. ;-)



Perfect for all age groups, The Alphabet of Endangered Species in the British Isles Poster is available for purchase here. And oh, watch out for Present&Correct's upcoming new and vintage paper products, must be fun to see! :)

TAJ Wood & Scherer, Germany

I first saw TAJ pillows at Selfridges, UK, in 2004, then totally forgot about it, until my trip to Grønlykke, Copenhagen. And yet my impressions of TAJ pillows remain the same, even after 3 years not seeing them. Gorgeous motives, vibrant colors and fine embroideries. A must have! :)




They are the kind of pillows that would scream "pick me! pick me! pick meeeee!!!!", so yes, I gave in and bought one at Grønlykke. They're just so irresistible!! I couldn't possibly walk out of the shop and not seeing them again for another 3 years, could I? ;-) Too bad, there are only limited images on TAJ's online shop, but fret not, Arrivee et Depart (Tokyo), a stockist of TAJ Wood & Scherer, has more TAJ products online. It's another pretty shop, I must say! :)



TAJ Wood & Scherer was established in 1999 by Roger Wood and Christine Scherer, to create "fashion for the home". You can learn more about Roger Wood and Christine Scherer on Munich Shopping Less Ordinary's recent interview with them. Click here to read. And yes, Selfridges, UK still carries TAJ Wood & Scherer products. Well, it says so on its website. :) Enjoy!



(images: TAJ Wood & Scherer, Arrivee et Depart, and Munich Shopping Less Ordinary)

Grønlykke, Copenhagen

Grønlykke is surely one pretty shop in Copenhagen, Denmark. I believe their brick and mortar shop has more items than what they have online. When I was there last June, they had tons of embroidered pillows, well, at least more than 6. And if you're a pattern addict like me, I bet you'd loooooove this shop! ;-)



Grønlykke carries some brands you'd seen around the blogland, like Susanne Schjerning, Rice Denmark, GreenGate Copenhagen, Pakhuis Oost, TAJ, and oh, they carry Thomas Paul pillows, too. So can you imagine how excited I was seeing all those brands for the first time? Well, okay, it's not my first time seeing TAJ pillows, but still.. I was like a little girl in a candy store! :)

Chenhui Su

Speaking of chair pad, here's another one by Chenhui Su, called Chair Chair pad. Chenhui Su is an independent designer, born in Taipei, Taiwan, and now lives in Brooklyn, USA. And guess where I stumbled upon her Chair Chair pad? Etsy! *that place is just filled with treasures!*



Chenhui Su's etsy store led me to other fantastic creations she had produced, like her Trompe L'oeil, Drawing in the Environment, and more. Plus, she's a great photographer! Check out her pictures at flickr, or at her blog. A real multi-talented lady, I must say. :)

Have you seen these?

Self Selective Heat Sensitive Wallpaper by Shi Yuan

It's a heat-sensitive wallpaper which the flowers will appear when the radiator is on. *Clever, isn't?* (via poppytalk)


Glänta for Blond by Johan Carpner Design

A sheet metal and acrylic pendant lamp shines through a beautiful foliage, bringing you the feel of outdoor to indoor. (via emmas designblogg)


DIY Wednesdays: wine crate display cases at design*sponge

DIY Wednesdays is one of the d*s latest features brought to you by Lauren Smith and Derek Fagerstrom of the Curiosity Shoppe, the new design*sponge's craft editors. Be sure to check out their diy projects every wednesday! I'm sure I will. :) *congrats, Grace!*

chair-chair, Japan

chair-chair is a Japanese shop selling new and vintage furniture, cameras, toys, and soft furnishings. I stumbled upon its blog while searching for Sdi Fantasia. I had fun browsing through all the pictures at chair-chair blog, where the seller displays the items in a hilarious way (note the toys!). Pretty good sense of humor, don't you think?



And I just had to post this picture below. I think it's a perfect(!) shot for a retro shop, like chair-chair.



oh, btw, don't miss the chair-chair original bikini pad! love it!