(kitchen gadgetry)

With my recent stray into the goodness of baking, I'd say finding plain round pastry cutters in an assortment of sizes is like looking for needle in a haystack. They're non-existent.

Baking made me buy something, the thing being a set of plastic/polyethylene cutters in primary-school-kid-will-brag shapes of rabbits, bicycles, rugby ball and umbrella for £2 (okay deal price-wise.) The colours, too, are bright. Well, let's say that other than the square, rectangular, diamond and circle shapes... the rest aren't exactly my piece of cake. Which made the per unit cost stand at 50p a cutter. Not bad, considering the teddy head cutter at Japan Centre costs £2.50 apiece. But then, that might be just because it's pricey Japan Centre...

As expected, baking also made me eye a few other things.
Since I was quite unhappy with the selection I had, I asked a friend to lend me a few. So she did - they were her granny's. They were, surprise surprise, plain stainless steel round pastry cutters in nine sizes, and they nestle within each other... how neat is that! A quick word with her didn't lead to where it was purchased (other than the faint markings that they were bought for £8.58 excluding VAT), but she mentioned John Lewis. So off to on-line John Lewis I went.

Here are a few things that I found interesting:
- set of measuring spoons
- cookie cutters in star and snowflake patterns
- double-edged pastry cutters (how high are they?)
- old-school icing bag and nozzles
- this cute imprinter for cookies (pretty please!)

I don't think I will buy all of them... but it's nice to have a list of kitchen gadgetry I fancy, I guess.
Ooooh, and why John Lewis?
Maybe because it's next to school. The admin/library building, I mean.

And, looking at these things remind me of how I loved to spend my afternoons inside home shops, scrutinizing every single knick-knack that people could come up with. Some are still in 'fascination' stage (namely the Kitchen Aid stand mixer in red). A few came home with me: handheld egg beater, Zyliss ice-cream scoop in pale Vespa green. Most things, like oilcloth aprons and the Alessi Spider, stayed firmly in the shops though.

(According to my design/cultural studies tutor, the Spider didn't get juice out of citrus fruits as sleek and effective as advertised, but I won't say more on that until I try it out myself.)

Last thing I'm gonna do is sing praise to the Zyliss ice-cream scoop that didn't make its journey across the world from Melbourne. It was the first ice-cream scoop I bought myself (without consulting anyone else), the heaviest, the cutest-coloured, probably the most expensive one I've ever bought. It's easy to clean. Despite my propensity to bend spoons in vain attempt to chisel morsels of frozen foodstuff away, and a history of successfully breaking the release mechanism on two ice-cream scoopers (one being made entirely of metal), the Zyliss scooper stood/worked/stayed in shape. If it wasn't for its weight, I would've happily nicked it from the utensils drawer in April before returning to London.

Alright, enough of that now.
Have a good day! ^__^

(can't live without - part 1)

This isn't a definite or exhaustive list of what I *actually* need to have to live; it's just a consumerism-based list I came up with. It is a bit like a visual dictionnary of things around me. These items aren't listed in the order of importance. Okay, so here we go:

#1 - The art stash (in top drawer)


This stash contains most of my art kits (save the palette, brushes and stationery I'm using right now.) On the far left end the watercolour palette is sitting atop two envelopes of tracing paper and a green tin of watercolour pencil... and lots of other things (mainly in boxes or tins). There are a box of acrylic paints in tubes, a huge container of acrylic medium, sable brushes, adhesives (of all sorts), drawing pens and tape measurement on the middle ground. The box of Pantone markers sits squarely towards the back of drawer. On the right hand side, inks share their space with threads and other haberdashery supplies as well as the ubiquitous can of spray mount.

After looking at my art stash, I conclude I'm a maniac of adhesives. Scotch tapes, u-tac gums, sticky labels, three types of glue stick, multi-purpose liquid glue... yet I still 'borrow' Helen's masking tape. Also, I tend to use water-based paints and markers.

#2 - The rain-proof shoe spray


I look after my shoes to make sure they last. London's weather is unpredictable, and this is the thing I use to keep my shoes from turning into some sort of disgusting heap of leather. I keep reaching for this spray from time to time. Just a word of warning, use the spray in a well-ventilated area if you don't want to end up in a room full of nauseating fumes.

#3 and #4 - The laptop and the roll of satin ribbon


The laptop's function is quite clear. It's currently being used for entertainment (hence the position), and it usually sits on a pre-allocated end of the desk. Satin ribbons are indispensible to me since I was three, and this roll (purchased last Christmas) should last me a while. Holding onto a satin ribbon helps me go to sleep. I tend not to cut ribbons off the roll lest they fray.

Okay, that's all for now. I'm in the middle of cleaning my room, so let me get back to it, 'kay? :D

Beautiful Star

This would possibly constitute the last post I write on my 23rd year of life.

As a way of improving myself, I have a few pacts I would like to make. And here they come:

Pact #1 To not delay or be late for anything
To be honest, this is a major thing to accomplish for me. Currently I am a bit short on the discipline departement, and although I always manage to pull things off on time, I would like to have less hectic moments that occur as a result of earlier delays. Plus, I don't think it's fair for me to feel cross if people turn up late when I also turn up late. I also want to have concrete follow-ups to the many things I have planned beforehand. This pact boils down to two simple reasons: more discipline for me and zero tolerance on emotional hypocrisy.

Pact #2 Stop wasting time
Living without those unproductive hours spent doing nothing much on front of a computer. Be more organised when it comes to blogsurfing on weekdays. There is not going to be enough time in this world if I spend it unproductively.

Pact #3 To first listen, then think, and speak last
Just a way to curb those 'speak first, think later' moments. I don't have a lot of them, but I wish I have none of them at all. Moreover, since my comments often have conclusive overtones, I better let others pull out their brilliant ideas (out of their hats) rather than throw mine out and have no exchange of thoughts.

Pact #4 Read more non-fashion and non-design books
Vivienne Westwood once famously remarked that if a school leaver asked her whether to study biology or fashion, she'd always say biology... "because then you will get a better understanding of life." An open mind comes from a broader understanding of life, and life does not boil down to one or two small industries; it is a melange of various aspects of life. I want to read more books about applied psychology and adolescents' education. Oh, and by the way, Dame Vivienne was a schoolteacher.

Pact #5 Be more friendly
...and consequently, make more proper friends. Make proper efforts to link people's facial images with their names (duh, and I call myself an art student?) Friends are invaluable.

Pact #6 Live healthily
No no-sleep nights, down two litres of pure water everyday, no Twix lunches, no Pringles quasi-dinners... and constantly exercise, exercise, exercise. I would grow taller this way :q and have more energy, too.

Alright, I think that's all for now... these are the goals I want to stick to for the rest of my life. Have a good day, everyone! ^__^

(just for fun...)

[A is for age] 22... still got days to go :D
[B is for booze of choice] meh. Free champagne, courtesy of KY (ambience was good, booze was plentiful, me not trashed - couldn't ask for more.)
[C is for career] designer: poor and broke most of the time, but still manages to glam bi-annually.
[D is for your most dreaded] maggots. Super yikes.
[E is for essential item you use everyday] Soap, moisturiser and sunscreen.
[F is for favorite song at the moment] Endless Story by Yuna Ito.
[G is for favorite games] seeing from the clocked hours, it must be websudoku.
[H is for hometown] Jakarta... more specifically, Sunter.
[I is for indulgence] anything that constitutes conspicuous consumption to make myself feel normal.
[J is for favorite flavor of juice] ...does soya milk constitute juice? It comes from a pressed vegetarian food item (soya beans) after all.
[K is for kids] zilch. At least not now.
[L is for last hug from husband] zilch too, even louder since I have no 'other half'.
[M is for years of marriage] zilch...
[N is for name of your crush] hah, there are too many good-looking guys in this world to make me name one.
[O is for overnight hospital stays] nein...
[P is for phobias] forgetting to lock the house door, and not having enough fuel in the gas tank.
[Q is for quote] To be adventurous is to be ready for everything unexpected.
[R is for regret] got some, but I'm not willing to blot them out after all. They make good lessons and motivators.
[S is for status, married or single] totally single :D
[T is for time you wake up] 8AM
[U is for underwear] decent, clean and VPL-free.
[V is for vegetables you love] almost all of those boring ones - bring them on! ^.^
[W is for worst habit] delays, delays, delays.
[X is for x-rays you’ve had] got so many of them... most were done to see what's inside my chest (doh, blood and organs for sure.)
[Y is for yummy food you make] asian-influenced main meals, savoury pies, homemade finger foods and desserts.
[Z is for zodiac sign] a Geminized Rat, according to the two major zodiac schools of this world.

I feel compelled to tag people on my ramblings list... heee :p If your name is not on the list, you can post one too if you want to ^__^

Have a good day!