Sweater weather is the best kind of weather, that is, if you’re not in the most humid part of the world. It’s been going back and forth with rain and shine over the past couple of weeks, and with weather like that, I can’t help but to pull out one of my favourite sweaters I picked up in a little store in town.
Talking about sweater weather, I can’t wait to be going back to beautiful London next week! I’ve got so much to do, and even more to see. Perhaps I’ve romanticised London way too much for my own good, but I cannot wait to be back again.
Excuse my short hiatus. The past couple of weeks have been stressful and quite a challenge for me to get everything together, and to sit down and churn out a bunch of things for me to say . So much has been on my mind lately. But! I am incredibly excited for this year, whatever little we have left of it, and for me to just finish up with school and begin my new projects!
For years now, I’ve been avoiding playsuits and jumpsuits, only because I thought my body shape wasn’t right for it. Turns out all you really need is the right size to be honest. Ever since, I’ve been going a little bit crazy with the rompers. This jumpsuit I picked up at Topshop is by far my most favourite one. I can really appreciate garments that keep you looking and feeling great. I’ve had a nasty habit of slouching, be in while standing or sitting, and the jumpsuit somehow forces me to keep my back up straight. If I slouch, it would get bunch in all the wrong places.
Besides the fact that it’s pink, it’s also a really easy piece to match with anything you have in your wardrobe. For someone like myself, I usually get ready and get out of the house in a hurry. It’s nice to have something that goes so effortlessly with everything.
Jumpsuit from Topshop. (I believe it comes in Black and Bright Pink as well)
Coffee makes the world go round. Well, at least in my world it does. Every other month for the past 2 years, I make it a point to grab a cup of coffee at my favourite place by Roberston Quay and take at least an hour just enjoying the coffee, relaxing and clearing my mind. Of course coffee is meant to wake you up, and if anything, it does the opposite of what calming your mind does, it makes it go faster. But I suppose in that sense, it helps me think and in a way, clear my mind.
I recently got my hands on these long-awaited 4.0 Flyknit Nike Frees, and I could not be happier! Its such a great pair of shoes that can transition from casual wear to sportswear. They’re definitely the most comfortable and lightest pair of shoes I own. I’m really liking the whole athletic style that designers, like A Wang, are incorporating into their collections. It is almost impossible to avoid the effortless aesthetic it brings to a complete look. Simple and easy-going, can’t really go wrong with that. Top and Bottom from Bangkok | Scarf from Alexander McQueen | Triple Tour Bracelet from Balenciaga | 4.0 Flyknitfrom Nike Free
Ever so often, there comes a time in life where we find ourselves at a crossroads, and we just need to make a decision and figure out which direction to go towards, and what steps to achieve that. Although I might not be so close towards the end of university, I’ve been thinking a lot about what I want to do when I’m finished. What do I do? Where do I go? How do I get there? There are so many questions I need to find the answers to. The unknown scares me. It always has. It’s so hard to completely let go of something that can set the tone of your life.
Perhaps I need to rediscover myself, figure out what I need, what I want. Sometimes being quiet and still can bring you back to who you are, or who you’ve become, and where you’re going next.
It’s been a while since I gravitated to one particular colour. My usual picks would usually rotate between whites and blacks, greys even. But I’ve discovered a new fixation with blue hues lately. The colour of the skies and the seas, deep blues speak in such great depths to me, while the lighter hues breathe a breath of life to an outfit. I suppose, right now, I’ll be on the hunt for cooler tones to add to my wardrobe.
Let’s face it, savoury or sweet, waffles are completely irresistible. I fell in love with warm waffles and maple syrup when I was a child, so whenever the “next waffle place” comes up, it really brings out the little girl in me. With it’s alluring beautiful copper decor, decadent cakes and waffle topping displays, you’d find this this little shop tucked away behind Chip Bee Gardens full at any given time. Though soft serve ice cream tends to melt a lot faster, the combination of unusual soft serve ice cream flavours and a soft waffle base blended perfectly. We had the Earl Grey Lavender, Roasted Pistachio and Dark Chocolate soft serve. Take it from me, you’ve got to give this place a go.
This has got to be by far the easiest recipe to make my favourite appetiser dish, Calamari. If you’re anything like me, you’ll order calamari at every possible opportunity. I’ve always assumed that it would be a hassle to make because you needed to deep fry it, but turns out all you need is a a couple of key ingredients and enough oil to get it going!
For this batch, we played it by ear. All we really did was throw in a bunch of herbs into a food processor with flour and blend. That was pretty much it. Season your batter well. You don’t want it to end up tasteless.
What you’ll need is (serves 8) :
sea salt
freshly ground white pepper
1 lemon
3 sprigs of flowering oregano
2 tablespoons fennel seeds
300 g plain flour
12 whole medium squid, prepared, with tentacles
vegetable oil, for deep-frying
a small bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley
So, that’s pretty much it for the ingredients. Simple right? Add more herbs if you like, the herbs listed on top is just for a general flavour. It’s really more about what flavours you would like from the dish. For the dry batter, mix all the dry ingredients into a food processor (cut away any stems from the herbs because you only want the leaves) and blitz it into a fine powder. Make sure it’s seasoned well with the salt and pepper!
What you want to do is to wash and pat dry the squid before coating it with the dry batter. Slice it whichever way you’d like to. Some people like the traditional calamari like how we’ve done, and others prefer to slice the squid with a criss cross pattern on the surface so that the squid curls up. After the squid is cut up, coat it well with the dry batter mixture.
You can use a deep-fryer if you have one, or just get a deep pan and fill it up with enough oil. Try to get the oil high enough so that it isn’t too shallow that the pieces of squid will fully submerge under the oil. Around ½ to ¾ of the pan should suffice. Let the oil heat up. For the squid to cook evenly, you need really hot oil. Drop a small piece of bread in to make sure that it’s hot enough. The bread should start to sizzle, float to the top and turn golden brown.
Shake off any excess flour and slowly lower the squid into the oil; don’t throw it in, it’s going to splatter! You’re going to need to do the squid in batches depending how big your pan is. Don’t over crowd it. Allow the squid to cook for about 3-4 minutes, or until it turns golden brown. Take it out and pat dry the excess oil with a paper towel.
Tada! Now you’ve got your very own calamari recipe to cook whenever you’re craving it! Enjoy!
Recipe from Jamie Oliver | Blue plate provided by: eatplatelove
I’ve gotta admit, I tend to chose what I wear based on the weather. Living in such a warm and humid place like Singapore doesn’t really leave much room for us to edit our wardrobe. The past month has been one of the hotter months of the year, and needless to say, I’ve given up on layering vests and cardigans while trying to maintain my sweat like a crazy person.
I opted for something a little more dainty and delicate than my usual tops. I was really attracted to the straps and the simple patterns. On days when I feel too lazy to put something together, something like this would be interesting enough to make a statement without being too loud.
Denim’s making a come back, and its creeping back fast. Sometimes, I wonder if double denim was just a mistake made in the 80s, but I suppose when done right, it can actually turn out effortlessly chic. It’s almost the end of July and the heat has seemingly been blazing down more than ever, but I felt my skinny jeans and boots were appropriate to keep to the cooler hue of my light denim top.
Zara Denim Top and Black Boots | H&M Jeans | Chanel 2.55 | Photo Credits: Faiyaz K
It’s the last week before school starts again, and I’m trying to spend most of my time relishing my current freedom, or well, whatever that’s left of it that is. Summer break is over! I will admit though, I am pretty excited for my last year of school and the major projects coming my way.
Sweater weather is the best kind of weather, that is, if you’re not in the most humid part of the world. It’s been going back and forth with rain and shine over the past couple of weeks, and with weather like that, I can’t help but to pull out one of my favourite sweaters I picked up in a little store in town.
