A Little Parisian Guide to Decorating and Organising has a chapter on home studio decorating which is inspirational and do-able at best. I love the practical use of empty Bonne Maman jam jars as pen holders and curtain rods as ribbon holders. Then of course, floating wooden shelves display quirky art and books in a very stylish way. Decorative cookie and coffee tins also make nice vessels for craft supplies such as brushes and pens. Also, the more colourfully you decorate, the better!
Searching the interwebs lately, I discovered this online shop perfectly named Cute Things from Japan! (*happy dance*)
Then I found these kitte no kobito. It’s a term that translates to "little stamp people." True to the quirky and kawaii Japanese way of life, these adorable stamps make letter correspondence and sending packages more fun. The rubber stamp collector that I am, this is actually the first time I've seen stamps designed mainly for this purpose. Another cute chindōgu (珍道具) creation that puts a smile on a letter recipient's face. Totally getting myself some of these stamps soon! Find these cute stamps here.
It's been awhile since I've received happy mail and when I do I feel so warm and fuzzy inside. Look what arrived today! My édition PAUMES books from Doux Dimanche and customized rubber stamps from Say it with Stamps. The PAUMES books arrived longer than expected and were smaller than I imagined them to be but overall I love the quality of the book printing. The photos are vividly beautiful and the book size is quite perfect. Handy enough to snuck in your purse for some quick browsing while you are waiting in the airport or stuck in line. Never mind the fact that the texts are in Japanese and I can't understand a single word. The photos themselves speak a thousand words!
Here's to some French inspired organizing and decorating. Apparently, French style is not minimalistic but there is quirky beauty in a room full of collectibles and personal mementos arranged in a je ne sais pas manner.
My rubber stamp collection is growing bigger with these newly carved rubber stamps from Instagram shop Say it with Stamps. Super cute and arrives in sweet packaging. Shop owner Lui even attaches a sweet hand-written note.
Thinking of visiting Tokyo soon? Consider Spoon & Tamago's Tokyo Guide when crafting your itinerary for this amazing multi-sensory city. This meticulously curated list of places to experience art, food, culture and Japanese retail will enrich your Tokyo city exploration unlike any other travel guide. Explore the rest of the site for amazing Japanese art, design and culture.
Hey makers!
Call it serendipity or what but I'm happy to have stumbled upon this neat web app for iOS. How can you be bored out of your gourd when you have Snapguide? Pick your interests and preferred topics and the app will instantly create a to-make feed for you in a snap! This is actually the app I have been looking for since I spend a lot of time on the interwebs scouring for DIY tutorials. No more excuse to be bored or uninspired. Get creative. Snap it up!
I don't have a bucket list, only a cork board list.
I found this geography inspired cork board frame recently and it was on sale. It was the last piece on display so I immediately grabbed it since I have been eyeing it for weeks. It makes my inner cartographer happy. I have always been obsessed with maps. Back in the old days I would ask for my grandma's humongous map inserts found inside the mystical pages of National Geographic Magazine. So what do I do with this board? Maybe post names of random/must-visit/will visit in the next lifetime countries, international recipes, phone numbers, post-its, photos, art! The hippie side of me would say it makes a nice dream board. Perhaps this cork board would change my perspective a little bit. Maybe think of the world more as my oyster (pardon the cliche).
By the way, I really love this monochromatic colour scheme a lot. This earthy combo of bulletin board brown, sawdust and pinewood. Oh, if you want to see the other colors that rock my world check out this archive.
Yasss, I finally got my own craft room! I knew that sooner or later I would need to migrate my tons of crafting supplies, sewing materials and whatnots out of my bedroom. It's getting very uncomfortable sleeping next to piles of craft books and unfinished sewing projects (not to mention the danger of being pricked by needles or pins). Now that my crafting life is getting some semblance of organisation and normalcy, maybe I can now focus on some overdue goals and projects. Maybe I can do it. Maybe I cannot. But here's hope that eventually it can be done.
Style and design blog Design Love Fest is my only go-to site when I want to decorate my desktop with pretty prints, patterns and art. Visit the Dress Your Tech section for the most gorgeous wallpapers for every season or mood. Likewise, the site is filled with amazing graphic design inspiration and great lifestyle articles. A totally great site to bookmark and add to your daly blog reads.
While in Seoul last spring, I chanced upon a stall selling these cute and fun fish shaped waffles filled with tasty red bean filling. A dozen mini fish shaped waffles for only ₩1,000! On a chilly afternoon they taste absolutely great with coffee. Soon I was browsing local Korean grocery stores for a bungeoppang pan (say that very fast) but couldn't find any. A year after, I finally found a reasonably priced pan online!
Ingredients:
1 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp granulated sugar
3/4 cup milk
1 tbsp melted butter
1 egg (you may omit the egg and the waffle will still taste good)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Filling:
Nutella (1/2 tsp for every waffle)
Instructions:
1. Combine dry ingredients. Add egg and melted butter. Mix well until free of lumps.
2. Preheat fish waffle mold pan over low-medium heat. Brush with butter. Remove from stove and add batter to pan. Only cover about 50% of the pan. Add filling and add batter on top to cover the fish mood. Close the pan and flip pan quickly.
2. Cook both sides of the pan until fish waffle is golden brown. Remove from pan and let cool on wire rack. Serve warm!