Seriously, Ms Marant?

This is another one of the many posts that's been sitting half-written in my Drafts folder for months. (See them shorts? The air is a little too nippy for them now. And the brown on the limbs are starting to fade. Sigh.) It started as a show-and-telling of my new favourite Summer combo - a very flat-chested Dolly Parton x scruffy schoolboy(?) - having re-discovered vintage western shirts in the boyfriend's wardrobe and promptly borrowed them. As usual, other even-more-frivolous-things-to-post got in the way and soon it was March! Fashion-Week-style.com-a-clicking time! And look what I found...

Shown on the Isabel Marant runway. She has gone and posh-ified (with what looks like slinky silk) the good ol' yoked and embroidered western shirt for her Autumn/Winter 2012 collection. Which made this five-month-old post kind of relevant again. Not because we're heading into Autumn in our part of the world and not that the classic cowboy shirt is a seasonal thing (it can, and should be, worn all year round!). It is relevant, maybe only to me, again because I'm still getting my kicks from observing how "popular style has been stuck on repeat".

I also would like to know if anyone would fork out an exorbitantly large sum of money for a designer shirt when there are tonnes in similar, maybe even better, style and of equally good quality (my boyfriend's vintage shirts in cotton are very old but still in superb condition) to be found for cheap at flea markets and secondhand shops. Hardcore Isabel-ettes need not apply/reply because we all know how, to you, every "ridiculously perfect"* and "effortlessly chic"* piece by Ms Marant is a must-have.

Oh, I was reminded of an article I read a long time about the appeal of Isabel Marant. Like finding a misplaced bunch of keys, it took me nearly an hour to "backtrack my moves" to find it so read it!  

*Who else is tired of hearing and reading these oft-repeated fashion buzzwords-of-the-moment? It made me a little ill just typing them. Errrk.

Another Tiny Taiwanese

 

Braised Pork Belly Bento ("Like Grandma used to make!" said the boyfriend) and Fried Chicken Fillet Bento (it looked dry but the moist tenderness within surprised me) at the new-ish Oden House in Chinatown. A tiny hole-in-the-wall eatery that serves Taiwanese "small eats" quick and cheap. Their menu is not as extensive as the other one that we go to but I think it makes sense, for all eating places of this size, to zero in on just a few things and make them good. We're waiting for the temperature in Sydney to drop so we can go try their steamboat/hotpot-style meal. Slurpy-wurp!

Oh, and see that brown hard-boiled egg? It's an add-on. Oden's Special Boiled Egg which has been braised in a five-spiced soy. One of my favourite ways to eat an egg!

Oden House

Shop 2

605-609 George Street (but the entrance is along Goulburn Street)

Sydney

Phone: (02) 9283 0660

Bunny Biscuits + Chicken Rolls

Bunny Biccies
Chocolate chip biscuits. Three batches baked for different lengths of time - crunchy to soft-centred. Made from one chopped up Lindt bunny and a Haigh's bilby (My first! So cute!). The last two little critters left over from Easter which I know I'm never going to eat because I don't like dark chocolate. Gimme the milky one!

Harissa Chicken Sausage Rolls

Wanted to make some burgers with the mince but got lazy. Making brioche buns and shaping patties felt like too much work (after I've made the harissa) compared to piping mince onto store-bought puff pastry.

Jesus H Christ!

Just when we thought we had run out of films to watch from the darkly funny genre, we found the brilliant Jesus Henry Christ. Woooo! By relatively-new writer/director Dennis Lee and starring the winsome Jason Spevack (a baby Benedict Cumberbatch!). It's going onto our table of all-time favourite films!



And thanks to the film, this good ol' happy tune (it was on the soundtrack) has been playing on repeat mode in my head. Jesus H Christ! Haha. Go on, press "play"! It's a Friday afternoon kind of song.

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A few other films that we have watched and loved recently:
+ This Must Be The Place - I think Sean Penn is one of those men who look better with age. With or without Robert Smith-style make-up.

+ Martin Scorsese: Emotions Through Music - A documentary in which the director talks (and boy, the man can talk!) about the music he uses in his films.

+ Blank City - Another documentary about music and films and New York.

Brilliant Writing

The Ramones' first press release. Short, sweet and to-the-point. And humourous too. Just like their songs that I so love.

It's funny how I found this, from my pal Ben, sitting in my Inbox when I got home yesterday after singing Somebody Put Something In My Drink at work to a workmate. And I don't usually sing out loud at work (I'm happy to just hear music in my iPod-of-a-head) and that's not a Ramones tune that I would pick...it just came out, quite loud. Haha.

Also, public relations and marketing people who send long-drawn blah-blah-blahs about the latest products they are peddling and hoping for a mention on this very-obviously-ad-free blog, read and learn.

Happy Refresh

We thought the shiny beads of condensation added to the whole HAPPY REFRESH vibes of the can of Calpis. Haha. That's all.

Su-Su-Supersize Me

A naughty mid-week craving for McDonald's. A bigger one than usual so we added an extra burger to our regular order. My first ever surf-and-turf stack! It's a good combo! Try it the next time you're under some Golden Arches.

Let's Talk Caramel Corn (Part IX)

Another special 4oth anniversary flavour from Tohato! A slightly burnt caramel. Woooo!

I love the celebratory sparkling stars on the gold foil packaging! Classy!

Tequila!

At a happy place. We like their El Roberto Especial (tequila, three-herb elixir, freshly-squeezed green apple juice, lime and cucumber), the endless supply of brown paperbags of popcorn, the strings of novelty lights, the music on their playlist and the consideration given to wheelchair-bound patrons.

Tio's Cerveceria
4-14 Forster Street
Surry Hills
tioscerveceria.blogspot.com

Calamansi Baby!

Say "Hello!" to Limehouse Lim Ah Huat*, our new (and only) plant-pal!

We've always left our balcony "barren". A lush and green one would be nice but the thought of it playing host to them hateful creepy-crawlies makes me think twice about loading it with plants so to earn a spot, the plant has to be some kind of special. And Limehouse is!

He bears Calamansi limes, a citrus fruit that is a dime a dozen in Singapore but so damn hard to find here in Sydney where the boring green Tahitian lime rules. A calamansi lime, with its top end cut off, is a standard-issue garnish/condiment at hawkers' stalls in Singapore - just a squeeze of its tart and super-fragrant juice over Hokkien mee, mee siam, mee rebus and sambal takes these already flavoursome things to a whole new plane! And in that celebratory vodka, lime and soda you see there too! Hee. Those of you who've not had the pleasure of tasting it might think that I'm over-selling the power of this little fruit but I kid you not. You might also not comprehend my excitement and all the squealing when I finally found Limehouse, after years of looking in Bunnings and various nurseries, at the plant stall at our local Surry Hills markets last month!

Anyhoooo, Limehouse seems happy to be our only plant-child on the balcony and I hope he continues to be so I can have enough fruit to make some refreshing lime-ade, lime jelly and lime curd soon. Wooo! Oh, and he hasn't attracted that many insect-pals. Phew!

*We named him after Limehouse, one of our favourite characters on Justified. We thought he should have a ching-chong name too because he is, well, quite Asian. Haha. "Lim" is a very common Chinese surname and "Huat" means "to prosper", also "to sprout/grow" which we hope he does!

Little Vomit

A gross name for this cute little thing* that we've just added to our bury. Tee hee hee. Because "rabbit" and "vomit", while represented by two completely different characters in Mandarin, sound exactly the same when read out loud. We think it's funny. And he is self-assured enough to "werk" that name.

Hope your weekend will be filled with loads of bunny-some cuteness and eat-till-you-vomit choc-ful goodness!

*We found our Little Vomit at Gleebooks. Cash-and-carry! Yeah!

Another Sunny Sydney Afternoon

Woo! It's like receiving a surprise year-end bonus at work, the sunny days we've had this week. In Autumn! Payback for a mostly wet and grey Summer?

And the afternoon just got made better by a postcard touting this exhibition from our best bud Ben! Tempting us to pay him a visit in Singapore before 31st May, perhaps?

And...and...and...the arrival of my first order from Aubin & Wills. I've been admiring the I-know-I-will-wear-over-and-over-again wares of this UK retailer for quite some time now and decided that their recent sale was a time better than no other to have my questions about sizing and quality (things that "can be passed down from generation to generation", they claim) answered. I got lucky with the size guesstimation - an 8 for the cotton-silk blend blouse and a small for the merino wool sweater. The quality question, I guess, can only be answered over time - I have no complaints about the materials used and the workmanship now and I hope I will have none after a few wears and washes.

Alright, the sun is setting (I hate daylight savings!) and I should start thinking about dinner-making. Hope you've had as good an afternoon as I did!

Horsey-Woos

Of all the baby gifts we bought over the weekend, this cutey was the hardest to part with. I love the print+colour combo so much that I'm tempted to get one for myself.

Fucked

...are grand plans for chocolate-truffling and hot cross bun-making (for homemade ice cream sandwiches!). Boo. Hiss. Bah.

For My Crazy Cat-Lady Pal

A print-of-a-print-of-a-print of one of Eugen Hartung's cats illustrations (more widely known as Mainzer or Kunzli cats) from an old dude selling a whole selection of them along the pavement near the Rozelle Markets + the fail-proof goes-with-everything Ribba frame from Ikea = a housewarming present for our pal Ms Carpet who's mad about cats.

It's now hanging on her wall and I can show you my favourite character without spoiling the surprise. Hee. I like the Nursey Kitty best, the one holding the patient's head, because she's such rebel. Look at her shoes! Bright orange mary-janes (to match her ginger colouring?) instead of the all-white standard hospital issue. Yeah.

Another Walk

Yesterday, I showed the boyfriend my walking route to work...and beyond. Today, we had to go into the city to buy some presents for new baby pals (so many people we know are breeding like rabbits this year, man!) so it's his turn to take me on his walk-to-work route.

1. He's been dying to show me the elephants some graffiti artist had cheekily added to the pavement because he knew I would love them. He was right. And they made me hum this tune as we made our way across the park. Tee hee hee.

2. Another "easter egg" he found in Hyde Park on his daily walk home. A mini Mini Graff! A golden baby version of this we saw on Cockatoo Island. Woo!

3. My walking tour guide. In one of his "Miami retiree" combos. It's always been our dream to join the sun-damaged leathery-skinned old fogey crowd in the land of pastel-coloured buildings when we're of the right age so we've been slowly filling our wardrobe with the right things. Hee.

And then I got lazy with the photo-taking. Haha. But we walked a whole lot more from Pitt Street Mall. Down to Chinatown for lunch and back up the Hills home - our usual weekend walk-route. Until next weekend! Oh, and it's the four-day Easter weekend! Whooopeedooooo!

Cross-Neighbourhood Walk

1. + 2. Street art along Cleveland Street

3. An old garage that I really love the look of but never had the chance to photograph because every time that I've been near was in a moving car

4. SuperTeddy!

5. + 6. Lunch stop at The Rose Hotel. The last time I was there was in 2000! Nothing much has changed.

7. A "Best Of" wall on Broadway

8. That Charlie chap hidden under a flight of stairs

9. Pretty pixelface

10. Weeping window

11. Chippendale is splendid indeed! Loads of cute old houses and airy warehouse-conversion-type apartments. Nearly nine years in our neighbourhood have made us too comfortable to want to move but if we have to one day, we can see ourselves living in this little pocket of Chippendale.

12. Excitement! I take pictures of a lot of street art but this is the first time that I've seen them artists at work! Wooooo!

Yesterday. Clear blue sky + light cool breeze = a good day for a walk. Quite a long one from Surry Hills, along Cleveland Street down through Chippendale to Broadway and the Glebe weekend markets. And then back. Loads of new walls for my tumbl(r)ing wall of walls! And a firmer ass! Yeah!