Busy bee

I have been so swamped lately that it's not funny. At all.

But I'll be back. Real soon. I hope!

And so we went to Carpenter & Cook

Entrance to a cosy hangout space

Colourful, patterned tiles against cement screed flooring + sewing machine base

Enamel cups and glass saucers that my grandparents would still have. 

Was that plate melamine? I forgot. 

Weighing scales from past eras where things didn't break down so easily 

Passionfruit meringue...and the green table (you're still on my mind)

Over the weekend, we needed a break from home (yes, that happens when you work from home) and so decided to check out the cafe Carpenter & Cook. It's pretty far from our place, but it was well worth the trip. Step past the lovely frontage, and inside, it's such a cute little cafe! Love the interior filled with vintage pieces, old weighing scales, mismatched furniture and fabric bunting hanging from the ceiling. 

It's got a great vibe, and the cafe was filled with youngish, trendy people. Since we had a heavy lunch, we had a cappuccino each (hello, enamel cups) and shared dessert. It was certainly good to see that business was brisk there on a weekend. Although that also meant that we couldn't stay longer than we had wanted to. I left quite reluctantly. 

I like too that although it was located near the busy roads at Upper Bukit Timah, it's tucked away on a quiet stretch of old shops. Accessible, yet not that accessible. I bet if we were to live much nearer to the cafe, it would be a nice place to just relax on a weekday afternoon (that too happens when you work from home), and listen to music from Ingrid Michaelson and, heck, even Bobby McFerrin or the Beatles. That'd make it all complete. 

For the past few years, I've been getting my vintage styling fix from the Australian magazine Inside Out, so it's been heartening to see it catching on here. And, of course, the greenie in me approves totally; why throw out stuff that are so good and getting harder to find? 

Needless to say, going to such spaces like Carpenter & Cook got me itching to do something to my apartment again. Had a very strong urge to cart home the green table. I couldn't get enough of the distressed look and texture, and the antique sewing machine base. 

I'm still thinking about the table...

Looking beyond "Good for you"

Just the other day, I was feeling peckish in between writing paragraphs, and I found this small packet of  dried cranberries that's been sitting on the kitchen counter for a while. I think it was given by a friend. I don't have much of a sweet tooth, so something like this tends to get overlooked pretty long. 

So, why did this make it here? A weight of 28.4g, and total carbohydrates of 23g of which 18g are sugars, and dietary fibre of 2g. Okay, we're not getting a breakdown of how much of that are natural sugars or not – sugar is by the way second on the ingredients list – so it's really hard to tell. 

This all looks pretty questionable to me; can anyone explain it to me?

But this is why when I buy something new, I tend to spend quite a bit of time comparing the nutritional info. If you'd like to do the same, I suggest looking at the far right column, which usually indicates the nutritional breakdown per 100g. It's less confusing that way than to look at the amount per serving, which by the way is highly unrepresentative of most people's serving sizes. If you have a thing for potato chips, have a look at the serving size on the bags – who eats 8 to 10 chips and stop there? I hardly do. 

The more I looked at the ingredients and nutritional info on the packaging, I found that, over time, the I naturally moved away from processed and packaged foods. These days, I head straight down to the fresh foods section. As consumers, we really should always, always look beyond any simple claims like "Good for you", "Natural" and, get this, "No chelosterol"– and go straight down to the tiny, and sometimes, confusing numbers on the back of the packaging. 

100% Design Singapore 2012

Last week, I attended the first 100% Design Singapore at Marina Bay Sands SECC. If you're not too familiar with it, 100% Design first started in London, and has since been one of the largest and well-known design trade shows in the world. You'll also find 100% Design in Japan and Shanghai, and it's now made its way to our Singapore shores. In the past five years, Singapore is not short of design events. There's a new one added into the mix every year.

This show touted itself as the first and only curated design exhibition in Singapore. So if you're talking about curated design exhibitions, then I do think that 100% Design Singapore is a pretty curated one, when compared to the other exhibitions so far. But what I like is that although there's a smattering of designs from around the world, the Singapore brand takes the spotlight here. Designs by some of our homegrown designers are literally placed in the middle of the exhibition venue, so you can't miss them. And that's a nice thing to see.

In addition to that, there are also showcases of international designs, such as this selection of furniture designs available at furniture retailer Space. I like that the furniture are elevated on wooden pallets. I particularly like the B&B Italia Terminal 1 chaise longue. 

The 100% Materials by Chris Lefteri Design, along with the designs by university students that played with magnets and movements, were fascinating. I find it fascinating to have a look at the technology and research that drive design, and see how they could be applied. Didn't manage to capture shots of the students' works.

The show was a tad too small, though and, for the casual visitor, it really wouldn't take long to make the rounds. But it would be interesting to see how the show grows over the years. Design is still such so young here.  It's far from coming into its own. Even though the emphasis on design has spiked recently, I think it's a process that cannot be rushed. Gotta leave it to time to do its work.

Life lately #02

 

Okay, technically these were taken over two weeks. I've been busy with projects, interviews, deadline, meet-ups and deadlines..oh wait, I said that already. 

Taken from my instagram and on iPhone

Top row: 

~ As I stood around watching the little train go by, I heard it being called mini train and choo choo train by different adults. I guess these trains are always a welcome sight for both young and old. 

~ I love the typography of the logo of these golf clubs we have at home. I think the little nicks and scratches come through beautifully in black and white.

Second row: 

~ Found my go-to place for thunder tea rice! Such a satisfying meal.

~ Cute idea for dried herbs and spices at Dean and Deluca. Pricey though. 

Third row:

~ I can't get enough of simple, relaxed styling and nice fonts.

~ Back to the old days of simple kitchens showcased at 100% Design Singapore.

Last row: 

~ Local designs taking centrestage at the first 100% Design Singapore exhibition.