Home (DIY) Details

One of my favorite past times is DIY and reinventing space in small areas of our home. We have all the essentials in our place like a desk, dining table, basic furniture, and book shelves but I love the idea of rearranging furniture to get you motivated and I was up for the fun challenge.

We have a white little loft where I placed a shoe box inside that was attached with a sentimental/inspirational letter inside and another DIY painted gold plastic cat, which Luna mauled.

That framed art piece does not belong to me but it’ll live with us in the bed room until I find a suitable area that’s not cramped.

The bed side required a table where I plan to track down a vintage and rustic lamp.

Also, I added some wire baskets to organize the bookshelf with some personal touches. For those of you that noticed the owl, I spray painted the adorable guy black with a spray can. He now hangs out at the top shelf.

My boyfriend was kind enough to share the closet and shoe rack with me to accommodate my endless collection/obsession.

With the silver vintage pale in our living room, I opted for Martha Stewart’s metallic gold, which required minimal effort in no time to paint. I have still yet to decide what other details to add but our home feels much more cozy and relaxed.

Our dining area is a bit long and narrow so I added a rickety side table and managed to transform it by simply putting a sleek marble slab atop to fill  up the empty spot. Our pugs haven’t eaten the tulips yet. My next project will be to focus on the office space and am still on the hunt for some unique art prints and photography.

Rainfall

Since there’s almost always a high chance of rainfall in Bangkok these days, naturally I pull out my umbrella, boots, and chunkiest knits and surround myself with warm comfort foods. Living in a climate that has a wild and crazy rainy season is lovely for the most past, though I’d be appreciative if I hadn’t caught a gnarly cold. I managed to take some pictures in the house that make gloomy days colorful and bright and made it back at home after dinner (hot pot soup) just before the second downpour of the day.

Tiny Treasures

Summer is officially here and I allowed myself to have a leisurely week focused on doing next to nothing and catching up with friend over a nice long meal. I’ve been trying to savor every bit of the balmy weather and summery sweets and booking a trip in November with friends. I’m looking forward to a relaxing and productive weekend and tackle my list of creative projects. In the mean time, here are some things that I’m relishing. (1. my new favorite treasure/earrings from Seoul 2. need to find a way to organize my nail polish 3. the prettiest Miu Miu shades to pair with the simplest outfits 4. Shift in seasons 5. The coolest ear phones recommended by my intern from Urban Ears)

Shifted Inspiration

After being cooped up and having a pity party for weeks, I made the right decision to enjoy the little things, break my routine, and surround myself with things that make me feel happy and inspired. Despite weeks of hanging out in lounge clothes, I found myself slowly easing back into life without being too drastic and abrupt by hanging out with friends (one birthday, one gala, a few pow wows), breaking the routine and just going for new activities (um, hi fly yoga), and embracing the unknown future (a fun alternative project with J and E instead of just the 9-5 work). 1. I’m impressed I didn’t buy one of these on our trips to Seoul. 2. Work is more fun with this glitter cat pen 3. After reading Pablo Neruda, I got sentimental with my nails 4. A big fan of exercise that doesn’t feel like it 5. Postcard from Praha – a nice replacement from emails. I’ll be adding more fashion content so stay tuned.

  

Lessons in Death

It’s been over two months since my mom passed away. We were all shaken up as it came as an unexpected blow. I had to accept the fact that death is final although too early and sudden – nobody was prepared. I looked up to my mother in many ways and I remember all the sweet memories as much as I can. Maybe it’s from her strength, I am able to continue and smile back on all the good times. My family always relied on my mother and it’s this dependency that we took her for granted. Because she loved so much, she had an inherently guilty conscience, always wanting to do more, and a trait I acknowledge and exhibit. Change doesn’t happen quickly but I know my mother would have wanted me to live a life without guilt, with happiness and asking others for help. I love her and I miss her. Oscar Wilde captured my good-bye eloquently when he wrote….

“Death must be so beautiful. To lie in the soft brown earth, with the grasses waving above one’s head, and listen to silence. To have no yesterday, and no to-morrow. To forget time, to forgive life, to be at peace.”

Get Well like Her

The past few weeks, I’ve struggled with a heavy workload and a gnarly cold barely wanting to leave the house and zone out on the bed, at one point I was convinced my nose would fall off from overblowing and my throat permanently coarse. Honey, lemon, and tea is something I definitely recommend. With a newfound appreciation for health, I went out and bought some cheery flowers, have been cooking hearty meals, and literally relied on Game of Thrones back-to-back to get me through. Had I known earlier, I would get behind this 100%. I also squeezed in a romantic date with my boyfriend at the Jam Factory for Sunday brunch frolicking on the grass in my new shorts (pictures soon). Now that I’ve fully recovered, I can’t wait for the newly released season in early April. I hope you all enjoy the week ahead!

Red Velvet Swirl Brownies

So I watched “Carrie” last night and I knew I would find this recipe immediately tempting after searching online here. It’s a very “bloody” dessert, which I’m a big fan of. The recipe is pretty straightforward and simple and my first batch deemed very successful, I’m basically convincing myself to open up my own cheesecake factory. It didn’t take me a while to make but this one pretty much tops my list of cream cheese desserts, fluffy, cake-like, and the creamy top balances out nicely with the brownie at the bottom.

7 Things

7 random things about me:

1. I get overly excited when festive snacks arrive for the holidays.

2. English is my mother tongue. I have a slight Californian accent.

3. I’m left-handed in everything except for writing.

4. I spoon feed myself and eat Nutella straight out of the jar.

5. I was a tomboy as a child. I liked to wear firefighter trucker hats, which felt particularly special. When I was 17, I pierced my belly ring to feel like a hippie. Now, I’m a PR girl and before that I was Andy from Devil Wears Prada Burberry.

6. I trimmed my pug’s whiskers when she was a baby. She didn’t wobble and they grew back.

7. Love: Lists. Hate: Bad grammar.

{I am tagging the powerful Anna of the amazing blog Bangkok Girl}

Grey’s Anatomy

As of late, I have been going through a heather grey phase and all my pictures seem to center around the cozy color. I got to experience an early season heatwave since Bangkok is becoming warmer and spent time moving to a new home, jewelry designing, relaxing with family, and peppered in with a few business appointments with friends. Yesterday, I had the pleasure to meet up with some fellow Bangkok ladies I met through social networks, funnily, you think you’ve met everyone possible but surprisingly there’s always more ridiculously amazing individuals with common similarities. I hope it becomes more regular. I love Bangkok. Hope everyone has a great week! x

Eye Essentials

For me, I love the process of wearing make up and eye shadow application just as much as getting ready to go out and celebrate the event itself. I am definitely not gifted when it comes to make up removal but have since mastered the process with this product. I grudgingly used to wash my eye lids over and over again while paying high money for all products and always feeling disappointed. Now I am fully blown away by this recent discovery a la Body Shop, the Camomile Gentle Eye Make Up Remover that costs less than $20. This miracle in a bottle works instantly in the blink of an eye before I retire for the night in bed.