Book to read: The Boat by Nam Le

thanks to theage

This guy's labels:

Nam Le

Aussie/Vietnamese

lawyer-cum-author

winner of the prestigious Dylan prize

traveller

So besides being an interesting person, his book is on my list of things to read.

i'm always wondering how and what other asian/aussies think.

yep, mao's last dancer and other 'ethnic lit'... bit of a fan.

"That's all you do in writing - you marshal ambiguity" - Nam Le.

Deenie

Deliciously Spooky

How amazingly cool is this photo?! I love it!

As a child, I'll always be eyeballing the candy apples at the supermarket...wishing...longing...Then i'll try and eat one and almost break my teeth trying to gnaw through the toffee coating...and yet time and time again, I always got drawn back to the shiny toffee covering...AND this photo...this photo makes me want to try it again!

Found at mattbites.com. They even included the recipe below:

Red & Black Candy Apples
8-10 medium sized apples

8-10 wooden twigs, trimmed

3 cups granulated sugar

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1 cup of water
several drops of cinnamon flavored oil

1/4 teaspoon of red food coloring

1/4 teaspoon of black food coloring

Clean and dry the apples.

Try to remove as much of the wax as possible. If you purchase them from your local farmer’s market then chances are they have not been treated with the food grade wax that makes then shine. Remove any stems or leaves and insert a twig into the end of each apple. To facilitate easier twig entry you can carefully sharpen the end of the twig or use a candy stick to create a guide hole. Set apples aside.
Heat and stir sugar, corn syrup and water in a saucepan until sugar has dissolved. Boil until the syrup reaches 300 degrees on a candy thermometer. Don’t go over 310 degrees or your candy burns and then you’ll be sad.
Remove from heat and stir in flavored oil and food coloring.
Dip one apple completely in the syrup and swirl it so that it becomes coated with the melted sugar candy. Hold the apple above the saucepan to drain off excess. Place apple, with the stick facing up, onto a baking sheet that’s greased or lined with a silpat. Repeat the process with the remaining apples. If your syrup thickens or cools too much, simply reheat briefly before proceeding. Let the apples cool completely before serving.

A note about the black apples: Lighter colored apples (Granny Smith, Golden Delicious) work well in making the red appear bright and glassy; darker apples like red delicious help the black candy appear as dark as possible. Muy spooky!

- charli

Featured: Maiike

it's sam's bday party this sunday.

what should we get him? hm. he's one and he's a boy.

maybe a monster from maiike? or something healthy to play with?

Deenie

Grace Kelly - Make your own Kelly bag

saw this image on a slideshow featured on theage - got me thinking about bags named after people. can you be a regular non-celebrity to get a bag named after you? i suppose you would need to know someone at hermes to get close!

hey, make your own kelly bag!!! check out this website. granted, it's a nice designer 'paper' bag.

Deenie

etsy blacksheep

the beautiful world of satsuma press revealed a rather delightfully humorous find here. in the world of truly talented handmade items, there have to be some not so great ones...right? and they are tragic and a little disturbing but definitely got a laugh from me.

kay

creating a world away from home

so just a couple of weeks til i am off to Paris!

the blogging world has some wonderful advice on the area we are staying in. here is a lovely supermarket where we can buy supplies for our meals to prepare in our little apartment. the team at Haven in Paris have so many great suggestions of where to eat...I don't know where to start...or stop...i'm compiling a 'to-do' list!

and then i found the wonderful world of David Lebovitz, an American living the Parisian life. he's an amazing chef and food photographer (my preferred alternative career choice). he compiled a brilliant looking list of favorite places to wine and dine in Paris from friends all over the cooking and blogging world. i am determined to try as many as possible!

this list grows longer and longer...

kay

thumbs up

how sweet is this card for a first anniversary! It comes courtesy of Bird and Banner as seen featured on Design*Sponge! Check out their blog - so adorable!

actually, i could have used this card yesterday! but nevermind...Charli - it's not too late for you no?

Kay

Paint me a Summer Day

Ever thought to yourself...That colour on that feature wall..awesome...Could I possibly get that in makeup form?! If so, Kit cosmetics has answered your wishes with their limited edition Dulux Nail Polish collection. Showcasing the future 2010/11 colour forecasts for interior designers, this collection evoke balmy summer night and pina coladas on the beach. That Hot Calypso colour is making me feel all nostalgic for summer...less that 50 days to summer!!!

-charli

Drip Drip Drop...

Another eye candy design website "Designforuse" where you can buy all these cool innovative products. These dripping definitely caught my eye. It doubles as both art and a coat hanger. I'm definitely getting this for my future graphic design studio :)

These sky planters would make a great feature in any home or retailer store. Apparently they are also use 80% less water than conventional planters. So that's great for Water Restricted Melbournians!



These bookmarks are all hand dripped so each product is unique and different. I'll never finish a book, just so that I could keep that bookmark in place! Now I just need to cover all my books in crisp white paper...

-charli

stop the presses... little salon

i've been away from oddsundays for a fair while. i now have my life back!

check out little salon - adorable earrings, brooches and tops...

Deenie

magnetic rings

i saw this ring featured in the newpaper just a few weeks ago and thought what a great concept.

even better i found a website that sells them! The team at Top3 have some amazing designer wares on offer...a great place for a gift registry anybody?

you can make rings or bracelets to fit any size.

kay

polaroid vases

isn't this the sweetest concept?

a polaroid shaped frame to display your succulents - and you know how i seem to feature succulents on this blog? what a delightful find by unruly things

available at core77

kay

i have to go!

More amazing finds in Paris by those who have gone before us!

This time i stumbled upon a posting by the team from Sunday Suppers who have just returned from a trip to Paris where they found this awesome warehouse store on the Boulevard Beaumarchais called Merci. It contains a flower shop, perfumery, cafe and best of all perhaps, it sells homewares and clothing donated by designers like YSL and Stella McCartney with all proceeds going to a charitable cause.

It looks sensational and I am adding it to the to-do list immediately!

Kay

recycled bookcase

post exams and i have so many books and pieces of paper to either 1) store away or 2) throw away...

but i am a real hoarder at heart and it pains me to think of the hours, nay months slaving over practice questions to see it all thrown away (recycling bin of course!)

which brings me to this post - it's not exactly suitable for my situation of loose leaf paper but i love the concept of incorporating old books into this DIY side table featured by the clever team at Design*Sponge.

kay

our temporary home in paris

researching my trip to France and found this lovely blog Little Brown Pen filled with delightful tips and stories about life in Paris! It is filled with wonderful images and ideas for food, clothes and sightseeing.

this is a video taken of a typical street in Montmartre, the area where we are renting an apartment. doesn't it look quaint - it's giving me goosebumps thinking about it!

Kay

OyeModern Discovery

Found this awesome site which allows up and coming jewellery designers to sell their collection. So all the items are limited and believe me, very creative (and unfortunately a little pricey.)

Below is the coolest ring by Darkcloud Silver who creates a unique line of DJ jewellery full of headphones, speakers & records.

Below is the Sneaker Freaker necklace by Victoria Mason. Just like wearing your cons around your neck.Saved the best for last. Kay and Dee will love this designer. This one is called Focus cuff by re:vision. Re:vision started when a photographer broke a lens and began designing jewellery.

-charli

Don't Believe Everything u See...

Photoshopdisasters is where cynical graphic designers like myself go for a warning and laugh of what to NEVER do...Surprisingly this blog has a LOT of big brands that you would not expect to have dodgy designs.

Some of the entries are quite subtle and would take a sharp eye to pick out.

Like the below...What is wrong this these 2 images.

(Answer: iphone is upside down...
MJ photo is mocked-up.
Designer forgot to remove black background between MJ's legs...rookie mistake)

Transparentes Sichtfeld is German for "transparent window"

And then, there is the woah...

Original is here at googlemap.

-charli