Small & Able

One of the regular reads on my long list of blogs is HEY KUMO. A blog run by a duo of young Singaporeans, who in their own words 'write, eat good food, make things, sell things, daydream, come up with horribly long travel guides, take many photos'. A pretty good life motto, don't you think?

When they began popping up at the local markets, I made it a point to visit their store every few months to buy their goods. And when I heard they were taking the plunge and following their dreams to set up a physical shop, I eagerly followed their instagram feeds for news. (Is it just me who loves behind-the-scenes stuff?)

When they finally opened the space. I was immediately there on their opening weekend with my camera! I know, how much more of a stalker can you get, right? But hey, you could just turn the coin and call me an ardent supporter. While the space was still a little bare, as most shops are at the beginning, I managed to bag a few little things for myself. Is that even surprising? :)

All the best to you, Siew and Sarah, may Small & Able prosper for a long, long time!

Small & Able is located at 3 Coleman Street, Peninsular Shopping Centnre, #03-22.

Just A Minute, August 2013

August went by in a flash of late nights at work and exhaustion. I had originally meant to sneak in a few minutes here and there to begin posting about my Hanoi adventures but time has been hard to come by! I am taking heart that by the end of this week, work should be slowing down from the crazed frenzy of the last three weeks to its usual state of simply being busy.

Watching | Top Chef 10. I caught up on the rest of the episodes last weekend, in between naps to recover my sleep dept.

Reading | Nothing really. See above.

Enjoying | An afternoon nap, and grocery shopping with my Mum.

Craving | Soups, salads, sushi, ramen.

Just A Minute, July 2013

I missed out on Just A Minute posts in May and June. You could say I was in a little blogging funk, I couldn't get myself to write a single thing. That's not to say life has been dull either, but for awhile I was dragging my feet a little. Coming back from my vacation week in Hanoi, I am feeling refreshed and a little more upbeat. And it's the a long weekend in Singapore, we are celebrating Hari Raya Puasa (the end of the Muslim holy month of fasting) and our country's National Day. I intend to let work drain out of my brain entirely and catch up on my readings!

Watching Hot in Cleveland (makes me laugh a lot!) and Top Chef Season 10

Reading Cereal Mag Vol 2. Such beautiful photography, easy-to-read and informative articles. I already have Vol 3 waiting in reserve. Anyone knows where I could buy a back issue of Vol 1?

Listening Cooler Than Me by Mike Posner, 50 Ways to Say Goodbye by Train and Popular Song by MIKA. I am getting into English-language music again now that I have Spotify (recently released in Singapore). It's so easy to discover new tracks. I might even compile a playlist and share them here.

Enjoying the calm before the storm. Work is going to be crazy in the coming weeks!

Bali 2013

Earlier this year, I headed out to Bali for a quick jaunt with three junior college friends. We stayed in Seminyak, a fairly cosmopolitan area of Bali compared to Uluwatu where I stayed previously.

We stayed at a little place called Jas Boutique Villas, located behind the main Seminyak stretch, making it a very quiet spot which is a good thing in my book. We booked a 2-bedroom villa with a plunge pool. It has a small gazebo and a little open-air kitchen where breakfast was served daily. I made full use of the gazebo, lazing around when the sun was out, catching up with my magazines.

Every day of the trip, we were in the pool, splashing and floating around to our heart's content. We played around a lot with my Fisheye 2, using up one entire roll on underwater shots. This is my first time using a camera underwater. Not going to lie, it was a little scary the first time I brought the Fisheye into the water but I quickly got over it once I realised how secure the Fisheye Submarine case was. Shooting was easy. Even though you can't feel when the film stops turning, I just watch the film spool stop turning to know when it's done. 

Besides splashing around, we also headed out to Seminyak beach for the sunset and for massages at a nearby massage parlour. And although I have no dinner photographs because they all came out blurry on film, I managed to get them on instagram! We had bbq ribs at Naughty Nuri's (highly recommended) and Indonesian seafood at Bale Udang.

A fun, little trip.

To Market To Market

We have a small but burgeoning craft market scene in Singapore. It's difficult to go a month without having one organised by various outfits. While the markets are on the small side, there are always new vendors to discover, encourage and support. It's been so heartening to see some market stalls grow into actual, physical spaces like Small & Able (by HEY KUMO).

Today, I learned of a new market called BOLD: Bazaar of Learning Designers that will be staged from 20-21 August 2013 at the School of Design and Environment at the National University of Singapore. I had a quick peek at the Facebook page and I am intrigued! I am looking forward to steal a few moments off work and head out to campus for this.