Saturday:
While flaking some Snowy Mountains smoked trout to make this salad, their pretty colour reminded me of the fish skin garments I read about in a book, Craftworks of China.
The people of the Hezhen ethnic group in northeast China have been making clothing and adornments for thousands of years from the fish, mostly salmon, that they catch. Another great example of the Chinese practice of eating/using all parts of an animal from nose to tail.
I love museum shops! So much cutesy-shit nonsense and many arty/design-y things! I seldom leave one without making a cheeky purchase.
...40 everyday objects created specifically for the museum shop by 40 Singapore artists and designers. Objects infused with a sense of humour, some evoking nostalgia, some giving a nod to the culture of Singapore, all fun fun things...I won't be leaving the shop empty-handed the next time I'm home for a visit!
She bought me the Grills Are For Sale And The Mosaics Are Real tote bag. Screenprinted with one of my favourite features of old-style Singapore architecture - ornate grill gates flanked by mosaic-tiled walls!
A set of assemble-it-yourself Origami Leaf greeting cards.
A Nosejob. Haha! Nose-shaped rubbers/erasers that you can change the contours of with use. Hilarious!
From another pal of ours, Cat. A bag from another museum shop! It's a cool calico version of the old-school brown paper shopping bags that Chinese shops packed customers' purchases in. A rare sight these days.
And yet another pal, Mommy Noi-noi, got me this Yoshitoma Nara notebook when she visited the MOMA Store in Tokyo.
For my pal Nah-Nah who loves typography and handmade things. 
Me, I love all-things embroidered and in my own little way like to keep dying customs alive hence this gift. The playground chant is very similar to what Chinese elders would say to newly-weds ("Have baby soon!") and hopefully, not too "ching-chong" except for the red-for-luck thread used throughout.
At the Local Taphouse - Weston's Stowford Press Cider, Kooinda Raspberry Wit and True South Cherry Bomb
Weston's Stowford Press Cider (again), Feral White, Otway Blueberry Hefeweizen
Meantime English India Pale Ale - an old Taphouse favourite in a 750ml bottle
Tee hee hee.
Specifically quilts by A.P.C., the French maker of clothes with that timeless quality, pieces that I want to fill my wardrobe with, season after season.
Quilts made from many years' and collections' worth of archived fabrics. I think I would be in textile heaven if I'm allowed a peek!
A.P.C. founder Jean Touitou and long-time collaborator/designer Jessica Ogden embarked on this quilt project because their "shared personal interest of the craft".
"The original reference point was the quilts that Jean Touitou's mother made from Kenzo fabrics. Along with Jessica Ogden's books about the 1970's craft movement in America and the more formal Amish quilting."
This simplest-looking one with its calming colourway is my favourite out of the seven models currently available. All limited editions (30 pieces of each) hand-stitched by the women of the Bangalore region in India.
And I'm inspired to learn how to quilt properly now! For a girl who loves Holly Hobbie-style prairie fashion and craft, this dress is the only quilt-y thing I own. Have to right that soon!
Remember my green insect pal from last week?
Poor bug.
I thought I wouldn't be eating these Chinese-style jerky for a long time, not until our next holiday back to Singapore or when gungho pals who dare bring some in through the Australian customs come visit, because the only place that I know of in Sydney that sells them has stopped stocking the chicken ones. Bah-some.
The mix.
I try not to use artificial food colouring unless absolutely necessary but bak kwa HAS to be kind of reddish so I made some beetroot juice (peel beetroot -> puree -> pass through muslin) to use instead. It worked well, I think.
Getting the mix on baking trays.
Like this thin. Which I perfected only with last tray.
One side of the bak kwa after 30 minutes of drying in the oven.
The other side after another 30 minutes. Curled edges = ready for next step!
Cut into easy-to-eat pieces for more drying in the oven.
I like my bak kwa slightly crispy and charred around the edges so for the second round of drying, I cranked the oven up to 180°C and baked the slices for 10 minutes with the oven door closed.
From another Hello Kitty fan, Hollypop. For watering her plants while she was away skiing in the land of maple syrup. Tee hee hee.
My bloggy-pal Elle is a cheeky one!
In an envelope full of heart-shaped things she sent me was this cute love jet card. For me to give to the boyfriend. From me. Haha.
Elle and I have known each other only for a short while but I think she must suspect that I don't play the Valentine's Day game. Enough to include the "joke".
I didn't give it to the boyfriend, of course. He doesn't play the game too. Plus the card is so cute that I want to keep it for myself.
Thank you, Elle! And Happy Monday! Tee hee hee.
The latest addition to our International Sodapop Family Album (see here, here and here) is this bottled-in-Indonesia blueberry-flavoured Fanta.
Intrigued by Monique's confident economy of words (and surprised by the lack of badly-formed sentences peppered with spelling and grammatical errors that usually accompany such marketing emails), I clicked on the www.story-thestore.com link to find these beautiful images which momentarily took my breath away...
I don't know how Monique found me or knew, without much doubt, that I would love what I see but I'm so glad that she did.
Monique was right when she said "You will love" in her email. The sequinned Amelia Earhart Collar (I'm midway through making a similar new pal for my other collars! Kismet?) and the weathered leather Saddle Pouch (I like transformed utilitarian objects that serve more than their primary function) are just two of out of my long Story wishlist.
