peterlippmann: CArtier

Another set of amazing images by PeterLippmann. He is such a brilliant and talented photographer. All his work have never fail to engrave in my mind.

i'm craving michael korrs, give me them now

 

Let's face it, the only rose gold watches worth having are michael korrs so this may as well be titled i'm craving michael korrs, give me them now but hey ho ;) These are all on my christmas list, though i'd only like one and it would make me a very very happy lady! We don't all get what we wish for but if we didn't wish then life would be pretty boring.

Brides Sketch

Isn't these sketch look fabulous? Wedding day is women one of the most important day in life before give birth. Every women wish to marry to the dream guy and live happy ever after. For my point of view, not difficult to marry someone but to sustain the relationship is something seems really hard to achieve. I always envy that my friend that have a pair of happy and loving parents. Anyhow, this is not something that the child can choose. I have been facebooking quite often these day and learn that a lot of my childhood friend and ex-colleague either getting married or having their first kid. I am happy and envy them actually! Or I should say I am jealous! My flatmate is preparing for her wedding in March 2012 and I have been helping her to choose her wedding dress and think of idea for the wedding theme, food, gift and etc. She is the most petite bride, basically a UK2 and she love challenge! Why do i say that? because she is trying to look for a wedding dress in Europe! Wish her luck and hope I can make it for her next fitting appointment as I have been late the last time and got scolded.

Have to go to bed now and hopefully have a sweet dream with my dream man perhaps ;)


sketch: inslee

Holiday Door Mat D.I.Y.

Just heard over the radio that 30 days from today is Christmas's Eve! Time flies without you even realize it. You no longer have to settle for a cheesy reindeer door mat to welcome your holiday guests! With your style in mind and a little bit of paint you can make something that feels much more like home. Please see below instruction how to do this lovely door mat. Chose a simple geometric design that mimicked pine trees and used gold and white to make it more festive.

 You can choose from a variety of colors but keep in mind that a light spray painted base might not cover the darker mat as well. You'll also need a paint brush and acrylic craft paint in your color of choice. Picture below is warm white to contrast with the metallic gold base.  

 One can of spray paint should cover your mat easily but feel free to use two. Be sure to work in a well ventilated area and protect the surface you're working on with cardboard or a drop cloth. Follow manufacturer's instructions on your spray paint can.

 After you've allowed for drying time you'll want to paint your second layer with your acrylic paint. You can also free-handed my triangles and varied the height and width but you could also measure things out for a sharper design. A bristly mat will give you the effect of flocked trees. Used a whole tube of craft paint to fill in the trees. Once you're finished let it dry before putting it to use.

A custom door mat will cheer up your space for the holidays but would also make a great house warming gift for any season. Happy Holidays! x

Images: abeautifulmess

FOOL'S GOLD

 

I am currently on a quest to find awesome flat shoes to wear this winter and I think these gold shoes are "the perfect" addition to my closet, is definitely something I will wear with my denim jeans. It looks fabulous, can't wait till boxing day!

Images: Zara

All I want for this X'mas

All black leather Celine Luggage mini… or medium….? Or Mini envelope in orange

But all of them are so beautiful. Box bag, envelope and the Cabas tote. 

Is time to go into my dreamland now and start choosing which bag I like to have! Only in my dreamland.

Sketch: GATTOBRAVO

SLIPPERMANIA

Flats, flats, flats, its all about flats for this season isn't it? Speaking of comfortable flats, I dont think it gets any better than this...I LOVE wearing high heels, but I also like giving my feet a break especially I will have to commute everyday to everywhere I go and I cant think of better shoes to do that with than slippers, in every fabric and pattern and best of all, they are quite affordable and make a perfect pair of emergency shoes.

Images: stylescrapbook

Roasted Tomato Soup with Broiled Cheddar

Good morning! Its 8.17am and I am still half asleep but I aim to hit the view stats to 1,000 in a week so thought I should wake up and blog just in case you are checking out my blog now. Anyway, is time for another recipe, and I found this soup recipe is really easy to make and looks delicious. I might make this for my flatmate this week for dinner and let you know whether I am successful. Why I am not confident about my cooking? As lately my cooking been not very good, tried to bake some cinnamon cookies for my flatmate on Sunday but total failure and all the cookies still in the oven and the cookies suppose to be a return of courtesy as i finished all the cookies she brought from Sainsbury! Shame! I must make this soup right this time.

Enjoy cooking!

Roasted Tomato Soup with Broiled Cheddar

Soup
3 pounds plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 large or 4 small cloves garlic, unpeeled
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves or 1/4 teaspoon dried
1/4 teaspoon (or more to taste) dried crushed red pepper
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock

Lid
4 1-inch slices from a large loaf of rye bread, whole wheat sourdough or bread of your choice (or 16 1-inch slices from a baguette), toasted until hard and lightly buttered on one side
1 tablespoon grated raw onion
1 cup coarsely grated cheddar (or more to taste)

Make soup:
Preheat oven to 400°F. Wrap garlic cloves in a tight foil packet. Place tomatoes, cut side up, on large baking sheet. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper (I used 1 full teaspoon of Kosher salt). Drizzle tomatoes with olive oil. Add foil packet of garlic to tray. Roast until tomatoes are brown and tender (garlic will be very tender), about 1 hour. Cool slightly.

Unwrap garlic packet and peel cloves. Transfer cloves, tomatoes and any accumulated juices to a blender or food processor and pulse machine on and off until tomatoes are a chunky puree. Transfer tomatoes to medium pot and add thyme, crushed red pepper and stock and bring to a boil Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 25 minutes. Remove from heat and adjust seasonings to taste.

Create cheddar lid:
Preheat oven to 350. Arrange four ovenproof soup bowls, crocks or large mugs on a large, foil-lined baking sheet. Stir grated onion into the warm soup. (I love this last-minute suggestion of onion.) Float toast slice(s) in each bowl, buttered side up and divide grated cheese generously over top. (If you’re using a wide bowl, you might find that you want more cheese to create a thick, broiled lid.) Bake soups on tray for 15 to 20 minutes, until cheese on top is bubbling and brown at the edges. If you’d like it even more bronzed on top, preheat your broiler and finish soups for a minute or two under it. Serve immediately.

Do ahead:
Soup can be prepared one day ahead, and kept covered in the fridge. Rewarm before serving, or before finishing with cheddar crouton.

MAJE

The collection is amazing! I was searching for the website and happened to found this article about Maje. Check this out. Adore the brand, that the style will never go out of season that you will definitely wear it even in spring! The designer behind the brand is Vanessa Traina, below is something about the brand.

Stylist Vanessa Traina has a sphere of influence that can only described as enviably cool: She’s modeled for Louis Vuitton, been a brand ambassador for Chanel, and has consulted by some of New York’s hottest young designers. “Muse isn’t the right word,” says Joseph Altuzarra of his close friend and collaborator. “It’s never a one-way dialogue with ’Nessie, it’s always a discussion, and that’s where her creativity is at work.” For the first time in their friendship, the shoe (or in this case, the four-inch heel!) is on the other foot: Traina has designed a collection for French fashion label Maje that bears hallmarks of her It-Girl style. She’s up at Altuzarra’s studio in Chinatown to talk about it with him. “Well, I prefer to think of it as a collaboration,” says Traina modestly. Here,Vogue captures a fly-on-the-wall slice of that conversation.

Joseph Altuzarra: How exactly did your collection for Maje come about?

Vanessa Traina: Maje asked me to do their campaign a few seasons ago and we all got along really well. We met the day before the shoot to do fittings, and by the end of it, we’d put together the proposal for a collaboration. 

 

J.A.: What was your starting point?

V.T.: I really wanted to make pieces that could slip seamlessly into anyone’s wardrobe, so the idea was a seasonless collection, something that you’d want to buy now, but wear beyond spring. That’s why it’s all in black. 

 

J.A.: And that looks like you! The clothes really feel like you.

V.T.: It’s funny, because there were times when I took the samples off the fit model and put them on just to see how they would work. Even though I’m not the same size as their fit model, I wanted to show them how I like the proportions, so they could translate that into a style that would work for me too. Honestly, as a consultant, it wasn’t too far out of my comfort zone. The difference is my name is all over these pieces so that’s a little exciting but also scary. When you take the reins on a project like this, you start thinking, “Does everyone else want to dress like this too?” 

 

J.A.: As a male designer it’s always interesting to get a purely female perspective on a wardrobe. When we work together, the first question I ask you is always, “Would you wear this?”

V.T.: Right, and I think that when women design clothes, they design pieces that they want to wear and that’s really what I tried to do with this collection.

 

J.A.: What are some of your favorite pieces?

V.T.: There’s this little chiffon top with lace inserts and a dress version of it too. There’s an asymmetric skirt, a slip dress, and lots of lingerie pieces. You can layer them. Although I must admit, I haven’t worn anything outside of my bedroom yet. I actually asked my sister [Victoria] for her opinion on a lot of the things. We always used to borrow from each other’s clothes as kids and we still do. She only lives five blocks away. 

J.A.: And didn’t you wear a uniform to school growing up?

V.T.: Yes, it was a pleated navy skirt with a white-and-navy Dickie. Of course, I wore mine with Mary Janes and little socks instead of sneakers. I definitely didn’t feel as confident about my fashion instincts back then as I do now; that’s something that comes with age. We grew up in San Francisco, so it wasn’t like there were all these fabulously dressed women walking around on the street. It was all taken from fashion magazines—images of Kate Moss, Shalom Harlow, and Stella Tennant. I actually wore a black chiffon Versace dress to my high school prom. It was in the early 2000s: beaded and very short! That was probably my best teenage fashion moment, but you could just as easily have called it my worst.

Images: Google

COLOR CRAZE

Doesn't the styling of this editorial just make you want to bring out all the colorful fall clothes you have and play dress up?

Suvi Koponen by Raymond Meier for Vogue Mexico September 2011

Images: noirfacade

Sweet Tooth Series

Isn't this delightful? The painting is fabulous. I can not believe I have sweet tooth until I come to England. Profitarole is one of my favorite. I have never have dessert like this till I come here. Just in case you are like me, have no idea what dessert is this, see below:-

A profiterole, cream puff (US) or choux à la crème is a choux pastry ball filled with whipped cream, or ice cream. The puffs may be decorated or left plain or garnished with chocolate sauce, caramel, or a dusting of powdered sugar.

The term profiterole is traditionally used for small versions filled with whipped ice cream and topped with chocolate although the usage varies and can include other fillings.

Source: vizbasix

MR BILL NIGHY

Suit by Richard James | Shirt by Yves Saint Laurent | Tie by Drake's | Pocket Square by Drake's

Do you know who is he? If you have watch the movie "Love Actually", then you should know him. I met him in person when I work in Selfridges and he is really nice person, very gentlemen and I was really thrilled when I met him. For those that have no idea who is this man, his name is William Francis "Bill" Nighy, born 12 December 1949) is an English actor and comedian. He worked in theatre and television before his first cinema role in 1981, and made his name in television with The Men's Room in 1991, in which he played the womanizer Prof. Mark Carleton, whose extra-marital affairs kept him "vital". He became known around the world in 2003 for his critically acclaimed performance in Love Actually and thats how I got to know about him. 

I found these photos of him from one of my favorite website, Mr Porter. When I look at these photos, reminds me of my grand father, I wish he dress like Mr Bill. I can not miss my grand father in my childhood memory as he spent a lot of time with us, he cook for us, send and pick us up from school by his motorbike, and I still remember I always asleep on the bike during the journey, cuddled his waist and feel secure. He always nag him to have proper meal and take shower. He is a kind man. Too bad he is not around anymore otherwise I would have bought him a suit and dress him like this and take family photo.  

Mr Bill Nighy was being featured in the journal.  Below is the article about him. For those that have not watch "Love Actually", this will be the best Christmas movie to watch with your love one after Christmas Dinner. Its another 34 days to Christmas!!!

~~~

Discovering that the revered British actor Mr Nighy is a man of stylistic principles comes as no great surprise. When asked what exactly enticed him to do a shoot for MR PORTER, he simply states: "It was the idea - a meditation on the navy blue suit. I found that concept intriguing." No wonder, because it turns out he only wears blue suits. I don't mean that when he wears suits he only wears blue ones, but that he only, ever, wears blue suits - even on the ski slopes. Here, the ever-immaculate star explains how this style predilection came about.

Why do you always wear a suit?

Jarvis Cocker was once asked that. He said, "You never know who you might bump into." Which I thought was brilliant. I've never quite accepted the way I look, so I think that a suit, if properly made, is always going to be a better shape than I am. That's what people buy clothes for.

And why blue?

I respond to dark blue more than any other colour. I resist black, I don't know why I don't like black, but it doesn't make me comfortable. I feel uneasy even standing next to a man who's wearing a black suit.

Surely you wear black tuxedos, given your line of work?

Black dinner jackets are regrettable; I have a new midnight-blue barathea dinner jacket from the tailor at Dunhill which is very satisfying and takes away from the tyranny of the black evening suit.

And the perfect suit is what?

Very simple, lightweight, two-piece, two-button and it'd be single vent, two buttons on the sleeve, not a particularly wide lapel, not particularly styled, not a waisted jacket. It would have a single pleat, relatively narrow trousers, which you'd wear reasonably short, so they hit the shoe correctly. My new quest is for a softer shoulder, structured but soft.

What image are you trying to convey?

John Pearse [a London tailor] made me laugh one time because we were talking about a raised seam on a pair of trousers, which I used to favour. I went to see him about a suit, and he said, "And will we persevere with the raised seam?" And I said, "Yes, I think we will. Do you not agree?" And he said, "Yes, I do agree, I think it goes some way to that artisan feel that we're always reaching for." It just made me laugh. It was the "reaching for". I said, "Is that what we're reaching for?" I don't want to look as if I come from Provence, I want to look urban, but people should be able to relax around me.

Is trouser length important?

Puddles [excess fabric] on the top of your shoes, that's a horror. I have a friend, a girl, who judges men by the way their trousers arrive on their shoes. It's such a delicate matter. My stomach turns when they pin them in a shop and say, "How's that?" They've just pinned it! It's so approximate, such a gamble.

Are you equally inflexible when it comes to shirts?

Generally. I don't know what it is? I've become phobic about white shirts. Blue is always going to be softer. I go to Margaret Howell for shirts.

What about shoes?

Church's makes very beautiful Oxfords. I don't think it gets better. I don't want anything longer, pointier or sharper. I can't relax around that - there is a point at which the conversation is over.

How do you dress when you're out of town?

Am I going to suddenly start wearing green, or brown? It's never going to happen! I once went to Chamonix. I made no concessions at all. I wore a two-piece navy suit, a Crombie coat, a trilby and a pair of black shoes. I turned up looking like the Blues Brothers