Want!

Saw these little guys in Elle Decorations and you can get them at DWR. These brass paper weights (10.6.08 note: I saw them in person and they are teeeny tiny, so they are NOT suitable as paper weights) by Walter Bosse were first produced in the 40's and are now reproduced in the exact details. They are so me! Here are my favorite ones, you can see all of them here.photos: DWR

Yauatcha Experience

Chad, his co-worker Joanna and I walked by Yauatcha in London's Soho one day and were mesmerized by the super bright colored macaroons and cakes. So when I found out that we were going to meet Card Boy's Mark James and his wife Sheena there for lunch I was super psyched about it. It is a dim sum restaurant that uses only the best ingredients (like prawns and chive dumplings that are so moist and delicate). Everything I tasted was heavenly, for about $8 per dim sum it is more than twice the price in New York, but boy, was it worth it! My favorite was the sticky rice in lotus leaf, but even a simple dish, like sauteed choy sum, was so fresh and tasty, how did they do it?! The highlight of the meal was those macaroons, I didn't expect much from them and of course they were so delicious that I was almost in tears. Mark and Sheena were so gracious that they gave us a box of macaroons to take home, except that they didn't make it back, they were so fresh that they got mushy in a day! I dream that one day Yauatcha would open a branch in New York and I would be its most loyal customer. (Sheena and Mark, congrats and good luck!)

Spitalfields

I've seen so many inspiring things in London that I don't really know where to begin! I'm going to start with my favorite neighborhood- Spitalfields. Chad and I went to Spitalfields Market on Sunday and the first thing we did was brunch at S&M (Sausage & Mash), I love that they have Edie and Patsy (of Ab Fab) on the cover of their menu! The beautiful weather probably brought more than usual crowd to the Sunday Market, lots of thrift shops and delicious food stalls. It was Design Week there so there were pop-up shows all over the city, these pics are from the Berlin Design Show on Brick Lane.My favorite shops in Spitalfields are: Tatty Devine- fun jewelry made of plastic but are very very well-made, their creative designs appeal to women of all ages. I noticed some of the ladies I met had on their guitar picks necklace and vinyl records bracelets and I knew I had to go there! The shop in Brick Lane used to be their workshop and is now a showroom/retail shop. They have done some pretty amazing collaborations with artists like Gilbert and George and Rob Ryan. My favorite is the pen and ink collection, I bought this ink drops charm necklace! Labour and Wait- I'm sure it's been written on many design blogs before, this shop carries only objects that are beautifully designed AND functional. I wanted to get these things and ended up getting the pencil box. Rough Trade- I remember going to the one in Soho years ago and this one is a mega store, even with a cafe! We got an Indie Rock compilations and 2 Rough Trade totes.
All Saints- It is a chain boutique but Spitalfields is its headquarter. It is my favorite clothing store in London, I would be very happy wearing their clothes everyday. They are affordable but super stylish and edgy. Just found out that they do mail order, I'm eyeing this trench coat!!!photos: Labour and Wait, Rough Trade, All Saints, Wonting

Back From LDN

Have to catch up on things I left behind for 6 days, I'll have lots of posts on my London trip tomorrow!

On My Wish List

I'm beyond tired and still have tons to do for my trip tonight, but this DIY Wooden Dolls Kit really caught my eye that I must post about it. Goose Grease sells nothing but these kits and custom wooden dolls, I bet she will sell loads of them on Etsy this holiday season.photos: goose grease

Pre-London Rambles

Just found out that it's fashion week in London and now I need to really plan my wardrobe for the trip. I have nothing to do with fashion, I'm more of a nerd but I always end up going to some of those parties. I am so happy that I got my neon pink and burgundy tie-dye scarf from Sunshine and Shadow, which will look really cool with my favorite Siu Yin Chau cardigan or black blazer, a gray t-shirt, a black slouchy skirt and burgundy tights (I'm really into burgundy this season!). But I shouldn't pack too many things because I will probably end up buying second-hand clothes from places like Oxfam, I just read on Style.com that they hired the woman who made Top Shop cool to re-vamp the second-hand Charity shop. This tuk-tuk (above) is used for picking up donations, I dream that it will happen in New York one day, yes Housing Works, I'm talk to you!
photo: style.com

London Bound, Where to shop?!

I'm going to London tomorrow night with Chad for 2 design exhibitions- 100% Design and Designers Block, but of course shopping is what I am really looking forward to! I've been to London many times but have not been back for 8 years so I know absolutely nothing when it comes to shopping, got any recommendations for little shops??? I know I will definitely go to Dover Street Market, a 4-story mecca of avant garde fashion run by Rei Kawakubo and her husband. I am sure it will be very inspiring and tempting to buy something there (like this cardigan), I am sure it won't be easy to leave the building empty-handed!photos: dover street market

Gocco's Days Are Numbered?

I recently read on Save Gocco that Riso the Japanese parent company has stopped shipment on all Gocco printers but will continue to ship Gocco supplies for the time being. This means Riso has pulled the plug on Gocco, like Polaroid cameras, so I would get as many supplies as possible and just enjoy this beautiful gadget while I still can.

The picture above is my beloved Gocco Arts and I made a small screen adapter so it fits into the slots that is intended for larger screens. Email me if you want more explanation.

Speaking of the subject, I am thinking of doing a Gocco group show, just to show Gocco some love, let me know if you would be interested in participating.

Gangpol - Mit

Saw this French graphic/music duo's performance last weekend, the only way to describe their music is 80's arcade game, and you can see how it goes really well with their fun (and sometimes violence, but humorous) graphics. Visual graphic plays a very important role at their concerts and they work very closely to create animations that sync with the music. Check out more of their work here and here. Great news for all of you cool parents out there, they also do music and animations for kids!photos: gangpol.free.fr and guillaumit.free.fr

Helle is the Best

Not only is Helle good at making yarn out of plastic bags (as mentioned in the previous post), she is also an amazing artist who makes crocheted corals and sea creatures on a grand scale. It's such a shame that I didn't know about her show at the Winter Garden in NYC this past April, I would have loved to see this gigantic piece (below) in person! Helle also makes affordable and beautiful accessories that are available on Etsy, they are just as special as her art pieces.photos: gooseflesh

D.I.Y. yarn

In the current issue of Ready Made magazine, my friend Lily of Sunshine and Shadow made a crocheted tote out of D.I.Y. yarn from scraps of fabrics, and as you can see the result is beautiful. Wonder if Lily will make more of these days? The technique reminded me of Helle Jorgensen who has a tutorial on how to make yarn out of plastic bags. I would like to try making a tote bag out of plastic bag yarn, but look at what Helle has made with Sainsbury orange plastic bags yarn, and the chartreuse branches are made from Marks and Spencer plastic bags yarn.photos: ready made, gooseflesh

Why My Trip Rocked....

There are plenty more reasons why Toronto rocks, but my trip to Toronto wouldn't have been as fun if I hadn't flown with Porter Airlines. It was First-Class service at Economy-Class prices. The aircraft has comfortable leather seats with extra leg room, we had snack boxes and beverages came in real glasses. For design-enthusiasts, you'd enjoy that its branding partner is Tyler Brulé, the founder of Wallpaper and Monocle Magazines, which explains why they have a Wallpaper-ish in-flight magazine (which you can download here, it's worth it!) and a cool Raccoon mascot, everything is so well-designed, even the flight-attendants have cute uniform. We flew into this little Island that is the Toronto City Centre Airport (TCCA), which is only a few minutes away from downtown Toronto, you take a less-than-a-minute ferry to downtown Toronto. See the picture below? I was waiting on the downtown Toronto side and across the river is the Airport, isn't that crazy cute?! The grand finale is the very chic Airport Lounge at TCCA that is well-stocked with snacks, beverages, newspapers, iMacs with wi-fi all free to use. While other airlines are trying to charge you for the use of a pillow, Porter manages go to against the grain and win our hearts, I hope they will keep up the great service and perks, this will be their weapon for success.
photos: porter, wonting