Marimekko

There is definitely something about fabrics from the 50s and 60s that really appeal to me – particularly big bright florals. I was 4 or 5 when I first came across the bold patterns and colours of marimekko fabric. It was in the ‘sun room’ at my little friend Ella’s house. The walls were painted the sunniest of yellows and the big feather filled sofas were piled high with the most gorgeous cushions upholstered in vibrant marimekko fabrics.

Its funny isn’t it how you remember things. For me my memories are often visual – the way things were positioned, the colours or pattern of an object, the way fabric moved in a dress or the texture of one thing in contrast against another. The memory of Ella’s house and of particular rooms in it – had such a strong impact on me – the memory has remained.

In my early 20’s when I studied Interior Design – I was able to really explore this visual inclination for colour and design. I learnt about various types of fabric and fabric designers and of course the memories of Ella’s house came back. When I got married some 10 years or so later – my dear friend Beck who I had met studying interior design gave us a fabric covered canvas in Unikko – undisputedly one of Marimekko’s most famous designs. Of course it was one of my favourite gifts and has had pride of place in the lounge ever since.

Marimekko was founded in 1951 by Finnish couple, Armi and Viljo Ratia. Armi commissioned some of her artist friends to apply their graphic designs to textiles and design fabric prints for their company, which resulted in entirely new, boldly coloured and patterned fabrics.

Still around today – Marimekko is without a doubt one of my all time favourite things – there’s something about it that definitely makes my heart sing and when my heart is singing, I am happy.

Magdalena

A few years ago now – I was lucky enough to spend 7 weeks traveling around Spain. I stayed with lovely old friends in Toledo about one hour south of Madrid and used them as a base from which to travel the country right up north as far as Sans Sebastian and way down south as far as Granada and pretty well all around the perimeter of the country – what an amazing journey!

Of course being the foodie that I am – I was in heaven and could quite easily eat everyday little morsels of delicious tapas washed down by lots of lovely vino blanco and cervesa.

Lucky for me, I was mainly backpacking around – so all that walking in the hot summer sun carrying my massive backpack – helped me walk off my indulgence.

On one of my first mornings in Toledo my lovely friend Marisa woke me for El desayuno with fresh café con leche and la Magdalena. What a treat! Magdalena or madeleine’s as they are also known are a dainty cup cake recognizable by their distinctive pointed shape. They are traditionally eaten in the morning and are bought in big bags from the supermercado like we might buy crumpets or muffins. Once I got over my momentary shock at eating cake for breakfast – I decided that this was pretty good really and la Magdalena became a definite breakfast staple.

I’ve never forgotten them….I found some here in Melbourne a few years ago at the Mediterranean Wholesalers in Sydney Rd, Brunswick and was so excited…it was short lived though and they stopped stocking them – probably a good thing knowing me! If you’re tempted as a week-end treat for the kids – here is a recipe to make your own……

La Magdalena

Ingredients
4 eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
100 grams unsalted butter
1 2/3 cups unbleached white flour
1 tbsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1 Tbsp milk

Preheat the oven to 200 Celsius
Beat eggs, butter and sugar until very creamy and light
combine salt, baking powder and flour and stir into batter
Add milk and beat well again
Spoon into patty pans
Sprinkle granulated sugar over each
Bake 15-20 minutes

Makes 18. YUM!

Mac Cosmetics

I’m not a girl who wears a lot of make-up. I dabbled as a teenager and occasionally in my 20’s but really – I am a bare minimum natural kind of girl. So to have found a cosmetics brand that really works for me and makes it kind of easy and straight forward to implement my daily routine – MAC takes the cake.

About 10 years ago when I was in full swing of the city working girl lifestyle (train to work and often taxi home, out for coffee breaks during the day with colleagues, café lunch and a spot of shopping and then drinks and sometimes dinner after work with friends) – I was invited by a girlfriend to attend a MAC Cosmetics workshop after work one evening.

They held it in her office and plied us all with free champagne and nibbles (very clever)…..I took up the offer of a free make over demo (I’d always wanted to have this done but was reluctant at Department Stores for fear of being sucked into buying everything they used and then never actually using it myself).

The makeup artist was fabulous – and within a very short time had worked out exactly the right colour palette for my skin type and tone and had made me up in a very natural and yet complimentary way.

From that night on – I have been pretty well consistently brand loyal. I spend less than $200 a year with them and the products I buy seem to last incredibly well. For a girl who doesn’t really wear makeup – I’m happy. And if you are the kind of girl who does wear makeup – or anywhere in between for that matter, they come highly recommended from me.

Lip Gloss

My addiction to lip gloss was innocently started at the tender age of 5. You see – one of our neighbours was an Avon lady and she kindly gave me a strawberry lip gloss as a gift one day, as my lips had got very dry in the wind. I still remember how thrilled I was to be given such a grown up thing. What made it even better was the fact that it coloured your lips a little red as well as smelling nice – so in my mind - it was just like lipstick. Very, very fancy indeed.

I rushed home to show it off to my Mother – yippee! As time went on my little kinder buddy Ella acquired her own lip gloss too. Hers was a watermelon flavoured Lip Smacker. She knew how taken I was with lip gloss - so offered me a try of hers – I was hooked. Back home to Mum – to request that she buy me a lip smacker too. I think my first flavour was cherry followed closely by watermelon and well it all just goes on from there really – one very, very long line of lip gloss.

I have spent a good proportion of my life applying lip gloss (I’d hate to think how much I may have digested over the years). I usually have at least 3 or 4 different flavours on the go at any given time. A few years ago – Bonne Bell released a giant lip smacker. I was absolutely delighted when I saw it (I have a real thing about everyday objects in miniature form or giant form for that matter) – so of course I bought a few and posted one off to Ella with a little note of friendship appreciation and of course a little reminder of the 5 year olds we used to be.

Now that I’m a grown up my tastes have changed somewhat and my number one favourite is the Palmers Dark Chocolate & Peppermint combo….a little lip treat every time – but thank goodness - without the calories!

Le Creuset

As a child my favourite dessert of all time, was my Mother’s Chocolate pudding. What a treat! Somewhere in my early twenties, Mum gave me a recipe book with a few of my favourites in it that she used to make me when I was little - one of which was the chocolate pudding recipe.

There is something about comfort food – that I find, so well…comforting (funny that). Chocolate pudding is definitely one of those foods. Come winter time – there is something so delicious about being all wrapped up and snuggly with a lovely bowl of warm chocolate pudding and ice cream. Yum – I’m getting cravings just thinking about it.

Anyway – this entry is not about chocolate pudding it’s about the vessel that I cook it in. Given to me as a gift – the heart shaped Le Creuset casserole would have to be one of my favourite kitchen items. Cast iron – whilst heavy – makes me want to cook. The few pieces we have – a wok, a square skillet grill and an oval French oven all get a good working out in our kitchen and of course what better a vessel to cook and serve chocolate pudding in then a heart shaped one.

Just in case you are feeling the love (or having a comfort food craving)…..here is Mum’s recipe……….thanks Mum xoxo

Mum’s Chocolate Pudding

Ingredients
60 grams butter
½ cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 cup self raising flour
¾ cup caster sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa (I’m always a little more generous than this)
2 cups hot water

Topping
¾ cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa
Combine both ingredients well.

Method
Heat butter and milk in saucepan, stir until butter melts, add vanilla. Sift dry ingredients into basin, add butter mixture to well in centre, stir until smooth, pour into deep, greased 1 litre (2 pint) oven proof dish. Sift topping over, carefully pour hot water over. Bake in moderate oven 40 – 45 mins.

Serve with fresh cream or vanilla ice cream – Enjoy!

Lavender

Lavender's blue, dilly dilly, lavender's green,
When I am king, dilly, dilly, you shall be queen.
Who told you so, dilly, dilly, who told you so?
'Twas my own heart, dilly, dilly, that told me so.

One of my favourite scents of all time would have to be lavender. I am a huge fan of handmade lavender soap and of course LOVE lavender hand cream.

A well-loved Mediterranean herb, lavender has been associated with cleanliness since Romans first added it to their bathwater. In fact, the name comes from the Latin lavandus, meaning to wash. A Christian legend says that lavender originally had no odor, but since the Virgin Mary dried Jesus’s swaddling clothes on it, it has had a heavenly perfume. Essential oil of lavender is now known to have many applications in aromatherapy.

Most days in the morning I use a spritz of Jurlique’s Lavender hydrating mist on my face before I put my moisturizer on – the smell of which I find so uplifting…..lucky for me it has become a Christmas tradition on my lovely husbands part, to replenish my stocks for the year ahead.

Where would I be without my King?

Laughing

According to legend, if one rubs the Laughing Buddha's great belly, it brings forth wealth, good luck, and prosperity. If only I could rub my post baby belly and get the same results……

I love having a good laugh……in fact I can remember times over my life – especially when I was a little girl – when I would laugh so much, that I would roll around on the floor, crying and clutching at my tummy which had started to hurt because I was laughing so much….almost to the point I think of wetting my pants (although I never did).

Who knows what I was laughing about…..sometimes the smallest of things tickle my fancy and it sets me off. For those of you who know me – you would probably say I have a fairly loud and distinctive laugh – I do love the contagious aspect of laughter where something gets you laughing and then the sound of your laughing gets someone else laughing and so on.

Nothing works faster or more dependably to bring your mind and body back into balance than a good laugh. Humor lightens your burdens, inspires hopes, connects you to others, and keeps you grounded, focused, and alert. Laughter makes you feel good. And the good feeling that you get when you laugh remains with you even after the laughter subsides. Humor helps us keep a positive, optimistic outlook through difficult situations, disappointments and loss.

I think one essential quality that helps us laugh is not taking ourselves too seriously. The ability to laugh, play, and have fun with others not only makes life more enjoyable – it also helps you solve problems, connect with others, and be more creative.

So on that note – let’s make 2010 the year of laughter and to not taking yourself too seriously.

I’ll leave you with a bad joke - which always makes me laugh – no matter how many times I hear it!

Q. What is pink and wrinkly and hangs out your undies?

A. Your Grandma

Lanterns

I have written before about the makeover I had done on my bedroom when I was about 11. I chose a sunny yellow colour paint for the walls and some lovely matching bed linen but I forgot to mention the new paper lantern I got, that hung in the middle of the ceiling. It was big and round – sky blue in colour with white fluffy clouds all over it. I would lie in bed and look up at it - delighted by the fact that it was made of paper and could fold down flat. I can’t remember where it came from – but I loved it and of course that was the beginning of my love of paper lanterns.

I have had various versions of the afore mentioned lantern – in an assortment of colours and sizes over the years and have also bought many of the decorative Chinese paper lanterns and hung lots of them along extended strings across the huge kitchen of an old shop I used to live in. I also think they are great for decorating the house during festive times – especially parties and I’m always on the lookout for different ones to add to my collection. One of the bonuses of course are that they are super cheap.

When I was in Japan – I saw heaps of different lanterns on mass – they were simply stunning and almost magical – when seen all lit up against the evening sky. I have also recently learnt of sky lanterns which are airborne paper lanterns that can be released into the night sky for aesthetic effect at lantern festivals or weddings (as an alternative to fireworks). A similar concept to hot air balloons, sky lanterns are made from a non-flammable bio-degradable rice paper and have a specially designed wick for burning. Once lit, the lantern rises up into the sky creating the most magical and exquisite scene. Then when the wick burns out the sky lantern just floats gracefully back down to earth. I wish I had known about them when I got married – they would have been perfect at our winter solstice wedding.

Paper lanterns have long been symbols of joy and celebration and that is definitely the feeling I get when I see them displayed on mass. They definitely make my heart sing.

Laminex Tables

I have always loved laminex kitchen tables. Of course my penchant for colour has probably got something to do with it. The vibrant, yellow, blue, green and red (my favourite) tables with their shiny chrome legs and trim – always seemed to sparkle to me – especially as a child when I was closer to the ground in height.

For years I searched for a red laminex kitchen table with matching chairs….they are difficult to come by these days – at least in the colour and condition I wanted. Finally one day the universe offered one up via a dear friend. The table set had been in his family for years. Bought new it lived in his grandfathers kitchen and then in his brothers kitchen before being adopted by me.

We live in an Art Deco styled white weatherboard house where the kitchen (located in the centre of the house) is definitely where all the action happens. The heart of our home then would surely have to be the red laminex table and chairs where our family sits down to share meals every day, craft activities are executed, cups of tea are drunk and newspapers read, conversations are exchanged and meals are prepared.

The chrome still shines, the table top has been wiped a thousand times and still looks good and the matching red and grey vinyl chairs could do with being re-upholstered but considering how old she is – I reckon she is doing a fine job of making our house a home.

Kitsch Religious Iconography

Yesterday as I wandered around the house deciding which items from my small collection of kitsch religious iconography I was going to photograph for this entry, I noticed one thing in particular. The images I am most attracted to are of mother and child or various incarnations of Devi, the mother goddess.

I am particularly fond of Laksmi who is the Hindu goddess of wealth, prosperity, light, wisdom, fortune, fertility, generosity and courage; and the embodiment of beauty, grace and charm. She is believed to protect her devotees from all kinds of misery and money-related sorrows.

I think I’m also attracted to these images because they portray the essence of female energy and life force (shakti). Every now and then their colours capture my attention and they make me smile…..thank goddess or should I say goodness?

Kilt pins

Nothing goes to waste in my studio. I have bags and bags of fabric scraps and of course lots of small pieces of the upcycled felted woollen jumpers I use for my Cast offs scarves and blankets. I am always thinking of things I can make with the scraps – my ultimate satisfaction is to design and make a product from the waste, generated from the affluent society I am fortunate enough to live in.

I have always been attracted to everyday objects that others may overlook. I have no idea why but things like pegs, matchboxes, safety pins, snap lock bags and corks are the kinds of funny things I like and of course I have a fondness for kilt pins.

They are functional and yet beautifully formed. They can be worn in both a practical and decorative manner - such as protecting a Scotsman’s modesty, fastened as a brooch on a scarf or wrap or used to pin your cardigan together.

I had been making brooch like kilt pins with dangly things hanging off for a while – my focus was shifting and I wanted to make a flower type brooch from my wool scraps. I was sitting in my studio snipping flowers in various sizes – playing around with layering them together and wondering how I could join them without using a button sewn in the centre – that seemed so predictable and somehow unoriginal.

That’s where my kilt pin epiphany moment comes in. I needed a stem for my flower brooch – but also something that would join the layered flowers together and fasten the flower to your scarf or cardigan. Once I had made a few and worn them a bit – I knew I was onto something. Cast offs Botanical Kilt pins were born and almost 700 kilt pins later…..I think they have been a definite winter winner.

Kewpie Dolls

How sweet are Kewpie Dolls! From the moment I first saw one – I was in LOVE – which makes sense as their name, often shortened to "Kewpies", is derived from "cupid", the Roman god of beauty and non-platonic love.

I just think they are so appealing – their cute, chubby little bodies and cheeks. They remind me of my little 15 month old son Milo at the moment – who absolutely LOVES eating but is yet to walk – so everyday he seems a little rounder and once those little legs get going it will all fall off and he will be ACTION toddler. Oh no….what am I in for!

Of course – Kitty and I have a wee collection of Kewpies. Which we love. Some tiny and some big. We are yet however to get a giant Kewpie – which I would totally love. It’s one of those things though…there is always something else to spend my money on!

Kewpie Dolls

Karmann Ghias

We have just got back from a lovely beach holiday in Apollo Bay. For anyone that knows this neck of the woods – a big part of the journey (my husband says ‘half the holiday is the getting there – so you may as well enjoy it’) is the drive down an amazing stretch of coastline called the Great Ocean Road.

And it is just that – a road that twists and turns along a cliff side overlooking the most beautiful coastline and ocean. The perfect kind of drive to be done in a Karmann Ghia…..which apparently is also known as ‘the poor man’s Porsche’.

The thing with being a Mother of small children though is that cars like Karmann Ghias – are just not at all practical. Let’s face it – the only reason I traded in my beautiful, white 1963 AP5 Valiant (I actually cried when the man who bought her came to take her away) is because I was about to become a Mother. And well, Mothers don’t tend to drive their new born babies around in old Valiants or Karmann Ghias for that matter.

Now that I have two children and a business that requires me to often cart around a whole lot of STUFF – my chances of having my very own red poor man’s Porsche is just going to have to wait………but as they say – ‘NEVER say NEVER’!

Japan

I am a huge fan of travelling to countries where I know someone who lives there. Over the years on my various trips I have been lucky enough to visit and stay with friends and friends of friends who have all been able to show me a side of the country I am visiting that perhaps I would not see if I did not know anyone.

Way back in 2003 – I took myself off to Japan for 3 weeks to stay with my soon to be Brother and Sister-in-law who were living and working (teaching English – as you do) in Tokyo. Using them as a base I spent a few days with them and then packed myself a smaller backpack and took off on the Shinkansen fast tracking my way around the island known as Honshu with stops at Kyoto, Nara, Osaka, Hiroshima and Yokohama.

I had always wanted to travel to Japan – ever since we’d had Akiko the Japanese exchange student stay with us when I was a girl. I had also studied the Japanese language at high school for 4 years and of course just adored all the cutesy little things like the Little Twinstars sharpeners, pencils and erasers my Mother had bought for me when I was small. So you see – I was very excited to finally be in Japan.

The main things that struck me whilst I was there were the fact that I felt absolutely 100% safe at all times – even going out by myself at night and walking back to my Ryokan down little side streets and laneways and the striking diversity and beauty of the Shinto Shrines and Buddhist Temples versus the busy fast paced streets of Tokyo and the larger cities. Both were equally amazing and striking in their own ways. And without a doubt the food! Yum Yum – my mouth waters just thinking about it especially the takoyaki (octopus balls) in Osaka. I was in food heaven!

The photos above are just a small sample of the many I took on my journey. One of my favourite shots is of the cherry blossom decoration I spotted on a grate on the footpath. What an amazing place. If you ever get the chance to visit – I highly recommend it.

Inari

Whenever I get food cravings it is usually for Asian food of some kind – more often than not it is for Japanese food. There is something about Japanese food that really appeals to me – the light delicate flavours, the relatively healthy use of ingredients (unless of course I am tucking into tempura!) and the clean, freshness of its preparation.

Working in the city for so many years meant that more often than not a couple of nori rolls were my standard lunch. Then one day I spied these yummy looking pouches of fried tofu, filled with sushi rice and topped with crab meat or seaweed. Yep – I’ll try one of those thanks. Well – from that moment on I was completely hooked. The sweetness of the rice is a complete delight and well what can I say they are just totally delicious! I was in LOVE.

Apparently Inari-zushi (stuffed sushi) is named after the Shinto god Inari, whose messenger, the fox, is believed to have a fondness for fried tofu. Lucky for me the fox is happy to share.

Haighs Chocolate Frogs

For years I worked in Melbourne’s CBD – everyday I’d make the journey into the city by train, walking from the station to work and back again. One of the hazards of this journey was passing the Haighs Chocolate shop on Collins Street and if I went up to Chinatown for one of my favourite lunches - Dumpling noodle soup – I’d journey past the Haighs shop on Swanston Street.

From my first ever taste - those chocolate frogs became almost an obsession. I would buy a bag to share with work colleagues during afternoon tea or a meeting….supposedly to keep the morale of the team up, but all it did was made me crave them even more.

Friends and colleagues would buy me a bag for my desk drawer so that I could have a little pick me up if I was feeling low….the problem with that though is you get into the habit of having a little ‘pick me up’ nibble everyday and before you know it….well we know what happens to ‘pears’ if they indulge too much…..they become ‘oranges’.

Now that I work from home – I don’t have the opportunity or it seems the time to even think about eating chocolate frogs – so they have been put in the ‘treat’ category. It seems the only time I really get to eat them is if some kind, lovely, generous person buys me a bag as a gift….hint, hint…oh and I LOVE the super-duper giant green foil wrapped ones too……..

Grass Roots Magazine

I was about 15 when I discovered Grass Roots Magazine. It really appealed to my burgeoning inner hippie and over the last 20 years of reading it – I have learnt all matter of things pertaining to living a self sufficient lifestyle. Everything from keeping chooks and growing veggies to composting, cooking and building using alternative materials like straw bales. I am torn you see – between the life I live in the city and the romantic life I dream of in the country.

When I was 19 I took myself off with my dreadlocked surfer dude boyfriend to live down near Warnambool for a year. Thirty km from the nearest shop – we lived very simply in a small house on 5 acres of bush land with no electricity or running water. I spent most of my time tending my large veggie garden, restoring antique furniture for myself and others and making beaded jewellery which I sold at a couple of shops in town. We ate eggs from the chooks and veggies from the garden and made all our own bread.

I have such fond memories of this year – I was young, idealistic and full to the brim with enthusiasm. My few years of reading Grass Roots had given me the basics of living a simple wholesome life and here was my opportunity to have a good go. As it turns out the year went quickly and the reality of my life journey ahead meant that I had to return to the city to begin my studies in Interior Design and well my story just goes on from there really.

I have lived in the city ever since and have often thought of a move back to a lovely country town. I don’t think I would choose to live without running water and electricity again (especially not with children) but I have thought that a move to the country would bring about a simpler and somewhat less stressful lifestyle. Having said that though – I totally love living in the city and the opportunities that come with that. Perhaps as they say ‘the grass is always greener’ and I should just try to be happy with where I am right now.

Grant Featherston Furniture

Back in the late 90’s I completed a Diploma of Arts in Furniture Design, predominately a hands on course of study – my time was mainly spent in the workshop mastering the use of various tools and honing my design skills. I had done woodwork in High School and had always been attracted to making and restoring furniture….my previous studies and working life in Interior Design meant that this was a natural progression for me.

Whilst studying the History of Furniture Design, I learnt of many amazing 20th century designers that I loved but in terms of admiring our local talent – Featherston completely won me over.

Around the same time – I paid a visit to Coral’s house - one of my Mother’s friends. In her Living room she has an original R160 Armchair and Ottoman and a R152 armchair all upholstered in the original beige vinyl. From the moment I laid eyes on them - I was smitten and have desired them ever since. It is no wonder that they have become an icon of Australian furniture design.

Every time my Mother visits Coral or in fact even mentions her name to me – I can’t help but say….can you ask her if she will sell me those chairs! And then one day not too long ago - Coral sent me an email telling me that “One day our Lord may bless you with them…..” I can only hope…….”Pretty please God….can I have those chairs?”.

Golden Books

I have loved Golden Books since I was a little girl. At one stage in my youth I had quite a good stack of them – but my Mother in one of her cleaning up and sorting out phases got rid of them. I don’t think I ever quite got over it. It’s the Bower Bird in me. So of course when I discovered op shops and old golden books……well there was no stopping me!

Now I think I have almost 200! My daughter Kitty of course loves them too – but not all of them. The other day she went though the two giant stacks and sorted them into the ones that she wanted to keep and the ones that I could get rid of or use for craft. Kind of her I thought…and pretty funny. Reminded me of my Mother.

Somehow when Mum gave away all my Golden Books I managed to save one very favourite – ‘The night Before Christmas’. Each year on the night before Christmas (I confess – even as a grown up) I have read this book just before going to sleep. I just love the illustrations and my inner child gets terribly excited about the prospect of Santa coming and filling my stocking. Now of course I get to share this tradition with my own children - which makes it even more special.

Thankfully I have come up with a lovely way to ‘recycle’ some of these treasured Golden Books and now turn them into – Golden Book-marks. This year too – some of my treasured books will become Christmas cards. I can’t believe I am already talking about Christmas!