30 March 2012

Sewing, self portraits and spring

Yes! I finally blew off the sewing machine cobwebs and whipped up this cobalt blue bad girl. Albeit a super simple maxi dress but it was still fun to make and shoot. I'm also hoping to add these little fabric heart necklaces to the blogstore within the next two weeks. Hope you enjoy the pictures and for those of us in the northern hemisphere, the warmer weather xoxo


29 March 2012

Portfolio update

This is the practical component I submitted in fulfilment of my Bachelor of Technology Degree in Fashion. The dissertation study that sparked this fashion range explores the possibility of using street style fashion as a means of rebranding South African identity, and was motivated by the need for a more relevant and contemporary local fashion identity.  It explores the benefits of rebranding local identity, and highlights the relationship between national brands and fashion identity.  The study aims to represent the South Africa of today, the South Africa that is described as a “potjie” of culture, warm and full of different ingredients and surprises, which has taken centuries to develop its unique and rich flavour (A – Z of South African culture, 2008). 

The study considered the views and perceptions of a young, high street fashion market who received questionnaires via Facebook.  The questionnaire responses revealed the sample’s opinions regarding the value of national rebranding, the phenomenon of street style, and the multi-faceted South African fashion identity.  Both the empirical investigation and the reviewed literature revealed South Africa as a progressive nation in terms of the potential of the South African fashion industry and the development of a unique country brand.

The practical component of this study involved the combination of traditional South African clothing characteristics with those of modern street style, to create a uniquely South African, high street fashion range.  In hopes of achieving a quirky, street style feel, I mixed self-designed and hand-made garments with second hand clothing. This fashion range hopes to encourage a uniquely South African design aesthetic among local designers, and a motivation for a much needed patriotic boost on behalf of the South African fashion consumer. 


15 March 2012

Takehara through the instagram cam

I headed to the "little Kyoto" of Takehara city last week after work to check out the Hina Matsuri doll displays and for a stroll around town. Gorgeous afternoon!

8 March 2012

Would you like a crumpet?


 Crumpets, pancakes, flapjacks, whatever you want to call them, this is possibly one of my favourite recipes from childhood. We’d help our mom make the batter and then watch in anticipation as she cooked them up, until finally, she’d give us a chance to pour crazy shapes into the pan at the end. What a nostalgically apt post this is, seeing as my mom and dad have just arrived in Japan and I’ll be meeting up with them in Osaka tomorrow. Excited desu.

Ingredients
2 eggs
5 tablespoons sugar
1 cup milk
1 ½ tablespoons melted butter
2 cups of flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt

Method
Beat the eggs, adding the sugar. Add half a cup of milk and the butter.
Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt and add this to the egg mixture.
Gradually stir in the remaining ½ cup of milk to form a smooth batter.
Recipe makes about 25 small crumpets.

5 March 2012

Looking for a cafe in Fukuyama?

If it weren’t for friends’ recommendations, I’d probably still be sitting at the same café week after week doing the same old same old.  It often just feels like mission impossible when you’re wondering around back alley Japan in hopes of stumbling upon something incredible. I’ve often found that a lot of cafes and restaurants here are so unassuming, so hidden you’d never find them unless you had the inside scoop. Or if you did, there’s sometimes an unexplainable intimidation preventing you from peeping in somewhere that looks cute and cosy, as if you’d be interrupting some intimate moment behind a restaurant curtain. Well, I’m here to share…and I’m really excited to be blogging about this place. It’s called “&S” and is a beautiful mix of creepy, gorgeous and cosy. I could’ve sat there all afternoon, though considering the size of their set lunch, it’s as if they want you there all day. This is possibly the first time I haven’t been able to finish a restaurant meal in Japan. I loved the price too, for just 850yen you can choose between four set lunches that includes soup, salad, main meal, dessert and drink. The dinner menu looked gorgeous too so I’ll definitely be back! Their attention to décor detail is impeccable and the chef in top hat just adds to the whole charm of the place. So no excuses, use this map and go, go, go. 



The lunch sets pictured in order above are: muffin sandwich set, one plate lunch (a delicious, chicken, veggie, egg mix with salad and rice) and the coconut curry lunch with extra mixed beans. All of them come with a drink of your choice and a set dessert (last pic).