Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Ah Pa-ree!


Bonjour! Second day in Paris, and I still have not seen the Eiffel Tower. Have been holed up in the office attending work sessions and then trying frantically to finish work so it does not eat up into my holiday time next week.

The hotel is in a great location in the Opera quarter, right in little Japantown, and only a few minutes walk to work. The room is a little small, but it's very clean and I have a nice balcony which I can use to admire the view.

Now to hunt for some macarons!

Thursday, March 22, 2007

Ximena Maier



All images taken from Ximena's website

While poking around Getty Images, I discovered this delightful Spanish artist, Ximena Maier. Her illustrations are quite fashion-based, but you’ll find she also does other themes, like people eating, shopping and lounging around in various cities around the world, and collages. You can see more of her work at her website. Just looking at her pictures make me smile.

She also has an equally delightful food blog, Lobstersquad, which she fills with cute little drawings and illustrations.

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

The power of 3

Van has tagged me...hurrah!

3 things that scare me:
- My teeth falling out (I've had those dreams)
- That I'm going to Hell – there's no air-con there, I hear
- Those squishy cushions that sink in when you poke them…ew ew ew!

3 people who make me laugh:
- P.G. Wodehouse
- The Fug Girls
- Eddie Murphy

3 things I love:
- Sleep
- Fashun
- Eating

3 things I hate:
- Pushy people who can't take 'no' for answer
- Falling sick
- My procrastination

3 things I don't understand:
- The stock market
- Why people can't indicate when driving
- Why I can't wake up on time for work

3 things on my desk:
- Laptop
- An Aqua Panna glass bottle I use to hold my drinking water (had to pay $15 for it in a restaurant, so I took it back home with me!)
- My Smurfette on a Vespa figurine

3 things I'm doing right now:
- Trying not to finish the entire box of Hello Panda
- Figuring out what task to do next
- Willing the end of day to come sooner

3 things I want to do before I die:
- Throw a kick-ass dinner party
- Visit the world (clichéd as it sounds)
- Find troo luv like in the Princess Bride

3 things I can do:
- Put on make-up while driving
- Take a holiday on my own (now that I've done it, I realise it's heaps fun!)
- Tell you what key that song is in

3 things you should listen to:
- Yo' mama (assuming your mummy is a thing)
- Your dentist
- Music that makes you feel good

3 things you should never listen to:
- The compu'er
- The little devil on your shoulder
- Telemarketers

3 things I'd like to learn:
- How to do a smoky eye without looking like a raccoon
- Play jazz violin
- Defensive driving

3 favourite foods:
- Chocolate
- Kaya toast
- Char siew ramen

3 beverages I drink regularly:
- Water
- Lychee martinis
- Green tea

3 TV shows/Books I watched/read as a kid:
- Sesame Street
- The Electric Company
- The Mrs Pepperpot series

Friday, March 16, 2007

The return of the list: things to do before Paris!

Note: This post is actually more of a reminder for myself, since I'm notorious at forgetting things. I've had these items swimming around in my brain, but realised it's time to set it down properly!

Being the list-lover that I am, I have made a little list of things I need to get done before I leave for Paris next weekend. I can't believe how the time has flown! So many things, so few days to get it done!

Personal
  • Haircut - salon is closed for renovation...aaaah!
  • Pedicure
  • Facial - booked!
  • Eyebrows
  • Get contact lens checked
  • Buy moisturiser, travel wash powder
  • Apply for credit card (Visa)
  • Change money
  • Pay bills
Work-related
  • buy gryphon tea (moroccan mint)
  • freebies for everyone
  • print e-ticket, travel itinerary, summit agenda, hotel reservation
  • photocopy passport
  • bring namecards
  • lappie stuff: charger, LAN cable, mouse, skype headset
  • Buy big box of chocolates for CS team (leave it in the office!)

Monday, March 12, 2007

Take 6 concert

Deciding on which Mosaic Music Festival performance to attend when on a budget was a tough choice. There were so many good acts to choose from! But one act I knew I couldn’t miss for sure was Take 6, an a capella gospel group. I’m not familiar with their music, but have a couple of their songs on jazz compilation CDs, which I enjoy very much.

It was a fantastic concert; and I was very glad to see that they weren’t ashamed to proclaim their faith, but at the same time didn’t take the preachy high road and try to beat you over the head with Jesus. Instead, they let their songs be the message, and kept their banter with each other and the audience light and fun. I liked their interactions with each other, especially when they engaged each other with mock song battles, and also their attempts to get the audience to hum along.

They sang mostly songs from their latest album, like You Can Make It – Get Victory, I Need You, Feels Good and More Than Ever, but also brought out some classic secular songs, like Smile (the only song which was accompanied by instrument on piano) and Just In Time, and a snippet of Michael Jackson’s I Wanna Rock With You (complete with Michael’s dance moves, to hilarious results). But my favourite of the night was a beautiful rendition of the hymn Lamb of God (also in their new album). That one song alone makes me want to buy their album.

While extremely enjoyable, the concert wasn’t without its faults. At times, the balancing of the sound wasn’t too good, and some voices came out more than others (more of a sound engineering issue). There were a couple of songs which, to borrow an American Idol judge’s favourite phrase, were “pitchy”, as if the group weren’t too sure of the key they were singing in, and were sort of wavering in between keys. This happened mostly when they were singing songs which involved many key changes and more complex harmonies. Also, at times I felt the group’s banter was a little too rehearsed, and while I laughed at their antics, I wished they could have been a little more spontaneous.

Of course, I’m just being really nitpicky here, and on the whole, I loved their concert and wished they could have sung longer than the 1.5 hours they were on stage. They were given a standing ovation by the audience, who seemed to be made up of mostly fans, and the group wasn’t allowed to leave the stage until they had given us 2 encores.

Thursday, March 08, 2007

This March, I am into...

...Planning my trip to Pa-ree, wearing winterwear again (whee!), learning to speak some French, finding some time to start baking again, filling my moleskine with doodles, mango juice with QQ, filling my eBay watchlist with ‘must-haves’, fighting the flu bug (germs begone!), deciding between buying a pair of Gap or J Brand skinny jeans, the Mosaic Music Festival, Ugly Betty on Channel 5.

Friday, March 02, 2007

The next Target: Patrick Robinson


Just as I am all atwitter about receiving my Proenza Schouler for Target purchases via vPost, I discover the next designer for the Go International collection is Patrick Robinson. I shamefully admit I have no idea who he is, but a quick Google has shown me that he was previously head designer at Anne Klein and is now at Paco Rabanne. From what I can see of the little thumbnails, it doesn’t look too bad. The medallion prints are pretty, although brown is not really a colour I would associate with summer. Will have to wait for larger pictures before I make up my mind on this collection.

View the collection.

Thursday, March 01, 2007

French chic: Comptoir des Cotonniers




I have to be in Paris end of March for a work trip, and will be extending my stay there by another week, since I've never visited the city before. Am vastly looking forward to eating as many criossants, baguettes and macarons as I can stomach, doing the usual sightseeing, and of course, checking out the fashion there.

While "researching" paris fashion, I came across this label Comptoir des Cotonniers, featuring many stylish, but very wearable basics in soothing colours. Their website states the clothes can be found in Printemps and Galeries Lafayette. I can't wait to check it out.