{gift guide #02} for the husband who loves to mix an Old Fashioned any time of the day

Posted in Inspiration by T.

one | The Drunken Botanist by Amy Stewart
What better way for him to expand his knowledge of cocktail making skills than by reading up on them. Amy Stewart’s book is a good first step in venturing into the new and unknown.

two | Belvoir’s Elderflower Pressé
I did say something different, didn’t I? Perhaps this bottle of goodness will push him in the right direction

three | The Mason Shaker
First came dessert in mason jars. Then came salad. And then ice coffee (alright, not necessarily in that order). And now we have the mason jar in the form of a cocktail shaker. Sure it’s a bit hipster, but don’t you want to try it out?

four | Walnut Muddler
No longer will he grab the closest item to mash up the fruit. Rather, he will exquisitely release the full flavour from seasonal berries and herbs with the help of the Walnut Muddle. Sounds a bit better, no?

five | The Rocks Glass
And to finish off, a perfectly sized cocktail glass disguised as a beacon.

-T.

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Recent gift guides:
{#01} for the friend who has a penchant for beautiful stationery

10Dec2013

Christmas Tree Inspiration

Posted in Design + Décor, Inspiration by T.

This year, our christmas tree will not be the centre of attention due to the lack of space in my humble abode. And so, my good friend Luke helped me create the silhouette of a tree on one of our blank walls and I’m in the process of making a large quantity of snowflakes to decorate our “tree” with, as well as to stick on every single glass surface in our house. Even though it’s getting hotter as December progresses, perhaps the multitude of snowflakes will help me feel less uncomfortable in the scorching 40°C heat (gosh, wishful thinking, I know). So if you’re like me and lack the space, below are a few trees that may tickle your fancy:

String + washi tape

[Copyright John Deer 2011] Rustic

Christmas jars

Shelf + garland

Sarah Ellison: white tipped branches

Hope the weather is perfect where you are today.

-T.

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Some recent design posts you may have missed:
+ pantone colour of the year
+ four favourites: calendars
+ clever sound
+ Yuniko Studio
+ scandanavian inspiration
+ sweet tooth

9Dec2013

Pantone Colour of the Year

Posted in Design + Décor by T.

Have you heard the news? Pantone has recently announced that PANTONE 18-3224 Radiant Orchid will be the colour for year 2014, replacing this year’s colour, Emerald. What do you think? Would it be a colour that you’d wear, may it be a shirt or dress? Or would you prefer it more as an accent, say jewellery or shoes? Whether perfectly paired with rose gold or crisp white, I can imagine that it won’t be soon before long that many stores will be featuring this hue.

-T.

instagram | facebook | pinterest

Some recent design posts you may have missed:
+ four favourites: calendars
+ clever sound
+ Yuniko Studio
+ scandanavian inspiration
+ sweet tooth

7Dec2013

Happy Friday + weekend links

Posted in Perth, Weekends by T.

And hooray, it’s the weekend. But unfortunately there is very little time for me to rest, with work continuing through the weekend and the days getting busier and busier as the holiday season is upon us. But perhaps you can take some time out on behalf of me. Maybe even take a look at one of the projects above that are so befitting to the weekend.

See you next week.

-T.

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Some recent posts you may have missed:
+ fo ur favourites: calendars
+ lemon muffins
+ if I had to choose only one cake to eat
+ clever sound
+ Andrew Christie – a good looking man

6Dec2013

{gift guide #01} for the friend that has a penchant for beautiful stationery

Posted in Inspiration by T.

For my first gift guide, I bring to you a small selection of gifts which will delight that one friend who feels that the rise of smart phones will never be of greater importance than luxuriously thick paper and cleverly designed writing instruments:

one | Palomino Blackwing
When writing with this world famous pencil, the experience has often been described as writing with black velvet or even butter

two | stapler by Zady
A high quality stapler that looks like a dog. Or a dinosaur. Need I say more?

three | A5 Leather notebook by kikki.K
Thick paper that is a dream to write on? Check. Hints of classic gold? Check. Comes in a range of beautiful shades (like mint and fuchsia)(especially the mint!)? Check.

four | a fancy pair of scissors
The scissors pictured above are from the online store of the clever blog oh, hello friend: you are loved. However, it is currently under maintenance (though she has retail store here, if you’re in the area). But as an alternative, I offer you Country Road’s Crest scissors or these fancy eiffel tower scissors.

five | polka dot thank you cards
One can never have enough cards, especially if they’re 100% cotton, gold foil stamped, letterpressed and feature polka dots.

So that’s it. My first gift guide everrr. Keep your eyes peeled as there are many more to come!

Hope that it’s lovely wherever you are.

-T.

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5Dec2013

awards

Posted in Miscellaneous, Perth by T.

Over the past few months, I have been nominated for a number of blog awards from fellow wordpress bloggers. I would like to truly thank you all for thinking of me and but I bear the sad news that I am not able to accept them. With a limited amount of time each day to post, I am not able to keep up with the questions that the awards require you to answer. But that’s not to say that the awards aren’t a fantastic way to introduce your blog to a wide range of readers. So fellow bloggers who have been so kind, please know that it doesn’t go unnoticed. Despite bowing out of the awards that are so kindly being passed around, I want to give a small shout out and thank the following sweet bloggers:

Alica from Pin Up Picks Pen Up
Maggie from Kiss and Make-Me Up
Amanda from The Chef, His Wife and Their PERTH-fect life

A multitude of thanks for your support!

-Thi.

15Nov2013

Lemon muffins

Posted in Food & Drink by T.

With my lemon tree yielding an incredible amount of fruit this year, so much of it goes to waste if I’m not careful and let them fall into the deep jungle that surrounds it. We’ve used them in plenty of gin and tonics, salads, lemonade, and I’ve even given a few bags to friends and family. With upcoming class parties to host and celebrations to attend, I have come across what seems to be the perfect combination of sweet and sour goodness: deliciously moist lemon muffins + plenty of lemon icing + candied lemon zest. Sounds amazing, no? If you’re keen like me, click here for the recipe.

-T.

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Top image by Izy of Top With Cinnamon

Some recent food posts you may have missed:
+ if I had to choose only one cake to eat
+ my favourite brownies
+ Fika – a beautiful cookbook
+ peanut butter
+ sweet tooth

13Nov2013

four favourites: calendars

Posted in Design + Décor by T.

clockwise, from top left
scroll calendar, available from Present&Correct
year calendar by Erik Olovsson
ring calendar by Sebastian Bergne
paris perpetual calendar, available from pei design

My goodness, how this week has flown by. With emergency rehearsals, rescheduled piano students, school excursions and the rare tinkering of the black and white keys to accompany a choir, blog posts sure have been sparse. Just when I thought that lessons were winding down for the year, there are concerts to attend and dinners to bake for, let alone time to browse for gifts for those who are dear to me. But allow me to give you a kickstart on Christmas gift ideas; these calendars are so cleverly designed and would most definitely be a welcome gift. Which one would you like? I think I’m leaning towards ring calendar.

-T.

Other favourites you may have missed:
+ clever sound
+ donuts
+ in the kitchen
+ in the office: pencils

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7Nov2013

If I had to choose only one cake to eat

Posted in Food & Drink by T.

…the Black Forest, hands down, would be the winner.

Growing up with a mum as a pastry chef, I have been exposed to a wide variety of cakes from a young age. From the rich coffee liquor of the opera cake to contrast between bittersweet dark chocolate and tanginess of the apricot jam of the sachertorte, I have tried so many that brought my taste buds such delight. But for me, the black forest is the one that stands out from the crowd. With the tartness of the cherries cutting through the rich dark chocolate sponge, the perfect slice is delicately finished with freshly whipped cream. Goodness, just writing about this is bringing forth my sugar cravings!

For a fine recipe of this classic, click here for the original (with beautiful photographs) and here for the recipe in english.