Since i got back from Japan it’s just been non-stop
Today i wondered to myself, “What is ‘normal’ in terms of daily achievement these days?”
What do other people do on a daily basis? Am i doing more? Less?
Does social media make me perceive we are all doing way more hence my endless race to… a finish line that is created in my mind? That doesn’t exist?
I just dropped by the Etsy Made Local market at Battery Acid Club and thought i’d blog bout it quickly so you could drop by too if you’re interested in shopping for handmade goodies like me!
It’s open 12pm – 6pm today and tomorrow (12 & 13 November)
Battery Acid Club
21, Jalan SS 21/34
Damansara Utama
The 2-day event takes place in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong to connect and celebrate the makers, designers and collectors that sell on Etsy.com, the online marketplace for handmade and vintage goods. Besides encouraging people to buy locally handmade items which are unique (and make great gifts! Xmas is a-coming!), the event also includes a watercolour workshop, a letterpress demonstration, a petite calligraphy class and also a basic understanding on urban farming.
Hand printed goods and handmade jewelry by Twelve Fishermen
SkyeRocks gem jewellery
Bisou Bonbon has delicious-smelling salves and solid perfumes.
With Shelby, the founder of Bisou Bonbon, and Captain of Team Etsy Malaysia
Taken from The Royal Press website: “Launched in October 2013, The Royal Press is a letterpress living museum. It began its existence in 1938 as a letterpress printing house on the historic Jonker Street. The Royal Press is one of the oldest surviving polyglot letterpress printing houses in the world. It has withstood the vicissitudes of time, and continues printing for a small clientele today. The museum houses a range of letterpress machines and printed artefacts from its 78-year printing history. There is also an extensive letter-block library with over 150,000 blocks in four writing systems: Roman alphabets, Chinese characters, Arabic and Tamil scripts.”
Last weekend i popped by Malaysia Fashion Week to explore the exhibition which served as a trade area for designers to show off their wares to potential buyers, and caught a few shows, including Zang Toi’s.
Zang Toi is a brandname i’ve associated with fashion since the 90s, having being one of the first Malaysian names to make a name for itself in NYC before the end of the millennium. Its bridge line, Toi – The Dressmaker; celebrates Hollywood glamour and charm with exquisite tailoring, classic styles with a sexy twist, and mixes of fabrics and palettes- all contained within a signature body hugging suit.
For the first time, the internationally acclaimed Malaysian designer label collaborated with an equal in the world of digital imaging and printing solutions – Epson Malaysia. The duo came together to create six looks featuring special wayang kulit designs made with taffeta fabric that was digitally printed by Epson’s SureColour digital dye-sublimation textile printers, which Zang Toi’s dedicated team custom-created.
Presenting for the first time at Malaysia Fashion Week, Toi – The Dressmaker collection for Spring/Summer 2017 took inspiration from the Zang Toi New York Spring Summer 1990 Collection in a desire to bring back Malaysian heritage. The 18-look collection showed off power suits for day, and cocktail + evening pieces (using the Epson digital prints) for night.
“This is the digital era and we need to keep up with the current trends in technology especially for fashion. Trend, technology and fashion work hand in hand. This collaboration with Epson will stand for unrivaled glam and unrelenting approach to perfection and craftsmanship. Fun with technology has never been more fashionable,” shared Zang Toi.
“I think that the high quality digital textile printing will ultimately replace the silk screen printing for the mass market. Working with the Epson digital textile printer was truly exciting. It’s just amazing that the machine uses the silk screen technique but works more like a photocopy machine. I will definitely consider digital textile printing for my future work. Based on my experience, it complements the fashion industry and hopefully will eventually cater to the couture market too.”
One of my main thoughts in anticipation of going to Japan is always, “I can’t wait to EAT!”
Japanese food is one of my ultimate favourites in the world… and i have many.
I eat Jap cuisine in KL at least twice a week, and that habit didn’t cease before nor after our 2-week trip there last month.
Given, having had such wonders of sashimi enter my mouth brought my spirits down when eating it back in KL.
Japan spoils you cos once you taste such wonderful fresh seafood from the land it originates from, you’re ruined.
Thanks to Jun who researched all the places to eat!
I left it to the expert while i searched for art exhibitions and music gigs, blogpost on that to come!
We had many amazing dishes and meals there but these are my personal top favourites in no particular order.
One evening, Jun and i made our way to Nakano to eat at this restaurant that only serves tuna. We didn’t have reservations (a little tough when you don’t speak Jap and neither do they, English) and they said (or rather, gestured) that they were booked all night so we got turned away. Rejected and hungry, we walked away planning where to go next, when we walked past this hole-in-the-wall sushi restaurant that looked warm and cosy. I got a good vibe just peeking in at the local families, singles and couples eating there and decided on the spot it was where we were gonna eat.
It was amazing. Everything was in Japanese, nobody spoke English, even google translate couldn’t save us cos the menu was written in handscript kanji from up to down. It’s just the sort of place we strive to eat at – where the locals would love to go.
We ordered chutoro (medium fatty tuna) sashimi on the left that’s got me dreaming for days.
Playing it safe, we ordered a sushi platter to share, before watching the other patrons select individual sushis to their liking, and wizened up.
Uni you…
When i was in Tokyo, I found myself staring at a painting of the iconic Great Wave off Kanagawa, which at the time (of my observation) was printed on a scroll located in Mount Fuji.
It is one of the most recognisable images in Japanese art history, and i’m sure everyone has glimpsed at it at least once.
Drawn to it, i felt a longing to have it in my home… somewhere.
After staring at the scroll for 10 seconds, i decided ‘nope, i can get a better picture of it somewhere else.”
I’m a swift decisive shopper like that.
Instead, i got a tattoo of it in Tokyo a week later when Jun and i impulsively decided it would be a great idea to get one as a souvenir in Japan. True, we could have put that badge on the many things we bought there, but any reason to get a tattoo… plus I hadn’t got one since summer ’15 and it was time.
Jun got one of ramen because he’s so OBSESSED with it, and i decided on The Wave in a circle on my forearm.
I initially emailed Mustcat Tattoo in Shibuya cos i really appreciated their style but they were fully booked, so we headed for Three Tides which was equally reputable, recommended by Fin at Pink Tattoos, and Jun seemed really set on the place.
Jun went first. He asked “Do you want me to go first?” which is his polite way of saying “I would like to go first.”
The design is of Jun’s personal ramen recipe.
Our tattoo artist was Azusa, a sweet obliging Japanese girl. I much prefer female tattoo artists as i find their work finer and their process gentler.
© 2019 KinkyBlueFairy
