Modern Placemats

According to the Modern Twist website, you can actually get these cool placements at Takashimaya in Singapore. They cost a whopping US$18 each. I think maybe I'd better stick to the pretty ones at Ikea which cost about a fraction of that. Will keep looking.

Supersized Knitting

30 year old, Dutch designer, Christien Meindertsma, started a trend of knitting with giant knitting needles and producing lovely things like rugs and poufs.


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Her beautiful rugs are knitted from sheep wool. She is unique as she values the animals that help to produce the product. Christien creates a rug or sweater for instance from the wool of one sheep and then tags the rug with the picture and identification number of the sheep which 'donated' it's wool. She works closely with farmers for her project called Flocks. I think it's a great idea and makes us more appreciative of living things that help to make the product. Usually when we look at any finished product like a wool sweater, we hardly think of the animal that contributed towards it, so it's great that she is doing this. She wants us to make the connection and hopefully we become, more respectful and responsible towards nature.




{Image: The Design Files}

You can read more about her amazing work at The Design Files.

Muji Cushions

These mustard yellow cushions from Muji have been enticing me to buy them. They are ever so soft to touch. So soft that you can leave a finger print as you poke it and it will slowly go back into shape with it's special pliant latex material within. The US Muji website states the cover is 100% cotton and the material inside the cover is Urethane (highly resilient and flexible) foam.




The only thing making me hesitate is the cost - almost $39 Singapore dollars. Why does everything in Muji have to be so beautifully minimalist and tempting! Darn them.

Spring Cleaning

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I am in the middle of spring cleaning. I had a sudden urge to de-clutter. You see, when I do get these urges, I become ballistic and clean in mad spurts. After an hour of it I get tired and leave it for the next burst of energy. My method is to dump out the contents of a whole drawer, stare in horrer and despair at the worse mess I've made and reassess the stuff. How did I ever accumulate so much junk. Upon closer inspection - but those are good junk!

The worse bit is the dust. I am allergic and it makes me sneeze and I feel that it's getting into my eyes as well. To be honest it's just a little, but even a little dust drives me crazy. That's why, even though I love the breezy look of open shelves I have chosen closed cupboards with loads of drawers instead. But even that makes me gripe. Why can't all drawers be airtight and not allow even a speck of dust in. I wonder if this has something to do with our weather - the dustiness. Is Singapore air not as clean as I think it is? Is there a dust problem in countries with pristine air like Iceland and New Zealand?


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Anyway a dust-free cupboard would be something I would pay for. OCD much? Luckily, so are most of the people I gravitate towards. My friends are all really clean and neat people. Much better than me. E in Australia, S and U in Singapore and my partner as well. I aspire to be as clean, neat and organized as they are. I am only organized in spurts. After that it all goes pear-shaped as Gordon Ramsey likes to say.

The hardest part is getting rid of things with sentimental value that you tend to hoard even though it's from years ago and occupies loads of space. I still keep all the cards and letters my friends E sent me from Australia. She wrote such kind, lovely things that still make me happy today as I slowly re-read them. My friends and aunts and uncles used to send me such thoughtful and pretty cards. Way better than the e-cards and Facebook messages I am guilty of sending myself these days. Sometimes being connected that way may not be such a good thing. It's just less personal. Somehow when something is convenient it just seems less thoughtful. Now I feel so guilty because I tend to be lazy and end up sending e-greetings even though I intended to send a lovely card or letter. There's also a paranoia about it getting lost in the mail or going to the wrong address, but those are just lame excuses.

I am still only a quarter way through, but the more I do the happier I get. I think it will take me at least a week or more to get everything sorted out. Sorting your stuff makes you realize that you do have three extra toothbrushes or you need more clothes hangers, and now you know exactly how many more you need - otherwise I would have winged it and ended up with more stuff I don't use.

For me, decluttering my physical stuff is a spiritual exercise that allows me to feel mentally decluttered as well and that's a nice feeling.

Pretty Rain Clouds for Your Wall

Sometimes the simplest idea can be the most striking like this little wall decor rain cloud sold on Etsy.

More lovely rain clouds to hang on your wall from French Interior and Product Designer Leptitpapillon based in Canada. Doesn't she make it all look so deceptively simple and make you want to take up some craft?


I love her particularly striking black cloud as well.



The paper cutting mobile is so pretty too.

How to Decorate A Room With Pink Walls

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I absolutely adore the shade of blue those two armchairs come in. I also like how blue and yellow work so well in a pink room. It sort of prevents the room from becoming sickly sweet which can be a problem with too much pink. Usually I see it offset with black or chocolate, but I like what they've done here.



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I like the use of red and is that khaki?


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I'm no expert but I think the browns and creams really work with this gorgeous shade of pink.

Catherine Hammerton: Vintage Asthetic

I absolutely love tiny floral prints and I am swooning over these interiors by UK designer Catherine Hammerton as seen on Design Sponge.  These are of her own home.







Her kitchen has got to be the prettiest I have ever laid my eyes on! I love the lightness of the rooms and the splashes of that gorgeous red.