Established in 2012 as a contemporary women’s label, Nelissa Hilman crafts updated classic footwear with timeless appeal. Before setting up base in Kuala Lumpur, Nelissa trained as an apprentice in Florence, Italy, where she developed both understanding and an immense appreciation for the art of shoemaking. Today, she translates that knowledge and passion into telling a story, so that every woman wearing her shoes may become her best self.
Other than celebrating the third anniversary of her label, it is also the launch of her very first collection of sandals – Murakami Pre-Fall 2015.
Inspired by the song Murakami by Made in Heights which expresses the prettiness, progressive delicacy and exemplary quality of the works of Takashi Murakami, the talented Japanese visual artist.
Introducing the Pre-Fall 2015 collection starring ARIA (crossover sling-back sandal), CALLA (scalloped slip-in sandal) and PALOMA (scalloped sandal with Velcro ankle straps). Paying homage to the 1960s and 1970s style, these new footwear options evoke a sentiment of optimism, fun and fantasy with a colour palette that is both playful and sophisticated.
Staying true to her minimalist aesthetics, this season appears fresh and subtly dramatic where Nelissa plays with luxe textiles including pony hair in cashmere rose or koi orange, monochrome stacked-leather heels, and many more striking hues.
Baby trying on her favourite pair – the ARIA in koi orange.
Besides my barrage of events, meetings, shoots and such,
i have been spending time with a string of friends who have all just broken up.
My role when i am with each of them individually is to just listen,
and absorb and release some of their sadness.
Sometimes i just hold them and cry when they cry too
and imagine their pain flowing into me, and out of me back into the earth.
At KinkyBlueFairy, we try to eat healthy as often as we can. Snacks at our office are mainly organic based – organic biscuits, organic chocolates and lunches with Joyce means it will be at BMS Organics. So, when we received an invitation for the launch of Made In Kefir, we were ecstatic! Not only is the invitation pretty, but the venue equally awesome too – it was held at Dr.Inc, one of the prettiest cafes in KL (not to mention one of our favourites)!
Made in Kefir, or MIK, is a line of natural probiotic sodas. Good-for-you bottles of pop?? Sounds too good to be true doesn’t it? Well, these babies are all natural, being made from kefir grains – clusters of live bacteria and yeast. The grains are fermented in cane sugar and filtered water before being infused with a blend of fruits and herbs. Trust us, they taste pretty damn amazing.
This whole Kefir thing is fairly new to the both of us and being the curious type, we did a little bit of research about the benefits of Kefir and oh, what wonders it could bring if we were to consume it regularly. We found out that, IT FIGHTS CANCER! – The Journal of Dairy Science published a study that evaluated regular consumption of Kefir helps stop breast cancer growth! It also helps boost immunity, builds bone density and it is also an effective natural treatment for IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome).
Now… doesn’t Kefir sound wonderful?!
MIK currently offers four refreshing flavours: Strawberry Juniper, Mango Cardamom, Coconut Passionfruit and Ginger Turmeric Lime. The ginger one was our personal favourite, robust but calming.
A mini art exhibition accompanied the MIK launch which showcased works by Elena Kravchenko. Her collection of work is called Beastarium: Creatures from Fiction and Reality where she uses mythical creatures from a tale/myth/legend/folklore as her main subject.
“It’s about the good and evil of any creature. For example, the creature can look very bad and ugly but it’s actually kind inside. So my story, is about this,” explained Elena when we asked about her work.
She challenged herself to come up with as many art works as she could in 100 days and the result is 60 amazing paintings! We were totally amazed as each artwork is done beautifully!
You can check out her actual exhibition going on now until 30th September at Kitch-N-Art Gallery in Publika.
I received an email from Joyce to attend a design/printing-related event! Woohoo!
Meet the Makers gave the public a chance to find out more about local artisans with demonstrations and talks.
I arrived in Bangsar much earlier before the event started because I wanted to get a goodie bag… But the moment I stepped into Sundays, this is what I saw:
It was so crowded! I was pretty sure I wasn’t late because the invitation said that the event was to start at 11AM, and I arrived by 10.30AM! Sigh, there goes my goodie bag chance…
Ficus & Jars had a booth there selling their ready-made terrariums and little tools. You can even customise your own terrarium! They also have a store in Publika.
Cliff from The Alphabet Press, and his colleagues demonstrated the art of letterpress printing. Here’s a brief history about it:
Letterpress is the oldest method of printing with equipment and images printed by “relief” type printing plates whereby the image or printed areas are raised above the non-printed areas. This method is widely used during the mid-15th century to the 20th century. The use of letterpress has been in constant decline as it has been replaced with faster and more efficient printing methods such as the offset lithographic press or the flexographic press.
Before the recent revival of letterpress printing, the aim was to not have any impression on the paper when printed. The type would touch the paper slightly to leave a transfer of ink but never a deep impression.
Letterpress has recently had a rebirth in popularity because of the “allure of hand-set type”. However, what makes letterpress printing appealing now is the impression it leaves on the paper – which was traditionally considered as bad printing! It’s something you can’t get with computerised printing and that’s what makes it so special, the time and effort it takes to be produced.
This is what the letterpress machine looks like! I want one!
