Melbourne town

I had a great trip back home. Melbourne is a fantastic city, visually beautiful (except some of the fugly looking new developments) and lots going on. In lieu of a more lengthy post (I have so much work to catch up on,  you know how it goes)...I will leave you with a few recommendations for places I visited on this last trip. Mostly food this time...no time or funds for shopping unfortunately.

Firstly, Melbourne is known for its foodies and coffee afficionados. If you're a fan of Anthony Bourdain, like I am, you will already know this, as he has referred to the fact that all Melbournians are food critics (or at least we think we are!) so the quality is good and competition fierce.

I had time in the CBD on my own for an afternoon and asked a friend to recommend a great coffee place and these were his recommendations - Patricia and Little Wish. I only made it to Patricia...and was not disappointed. In a city where Starbucks is failing miserably, good coffee is fairly abundant. There are obviously a few that stand out from the crowd and I dare say this is one of them.  With an almost hidden entrance at the back, and probably always packed with uber cool young things, Patricia certainly serves up a mighty fine coffee. And the interior isn't too bad either ;)

I had breakfast at The St Kilda Dispensary one morning with friends and loved it. I am a bit of a sucker for nice decor and have been known to sacrifice quality of food and service for a nice interior...but you needn't do that with this place. Set in an historical building (actually the first medical dispendary in the British empire, hence the name) with a fun but not too kitsch interior, and a menu to die for. Great coffee and a selection of interesting and not-so-usual breakfast items. I would definitely go back.

Finally, I enjoyed a wonderful meal with a large group of friends at Otsumami, a Japanese resto on the ever changing and newly hip High Street in Northcote. It must have been good...it managed to get a bunch of strict south-of-the-river Melbournites north of the river for the night! I loved their slightly fusion version of Japanese, and the fact that they managed to please a vegetarian and a pescatarian.  Pretty well priced too.

That's it for now. Thanks to all the lovely people who made the trip a memorable one. You know who you are...

Squarefoot

I'm back in Hong Kong after a fab trip back to Melbourne, and have lots to update you on. In the meantime I wanted to share an article with you that was published in a local magazine, Square Foot, while I was away. Click on the images, or this link for the full article.

Manks sale!

Folks, I'm not in town, but if you are in Hong Kong over the weekend, make sure you check out the huge warehouse clearance sale Manks is having!

Wrightson Stewart

So I'm actually back in Melbourne at the moment...I snuck away without telling you!  I attended the designEX show on Friday for the first time in a long time...but I'll let you know all about that in a separate post, probably when I'm back in HK.  In the meantime I wanted to share with you a fab warehouse conversion in Teneriffe, Queensland by the design firm Wrightson Stewart.  Love it...especially the timber detailing in the bedroom and the kitchen.

If you like these pics, go check out their website for more...I love the look of their office space too! 

Happy Anniversary to us!

Today is the 6 year anniversary of me starting this blog. I'm struggling to believe it. In some ways I can't get my head around all that has happened in that time, and yet it also seems to have flown by. I've met some amazing people along this incredible journey, some who have become friends, some clients.  Either way, I'm incredibly grateful. Grateful for all of you who continue to read, leave comments and send me emails. So I'd like to mark the occasion with an open question to all of you. You're an incredibly diverse group, although a lot of you are in the design community, located all over the world. I guess what I'd like to know is why do you read this blog? And what can I do to improve it? What would you like to see more of? How would you feel about advertising here, or it turning more into a magazine format? Do you want local content, or do you enjoy the international mix?

Any thoughts, comments, suggestions or feedback is much appreciated, as I endeavour to plan the future of the blog and our studio, and what the next 6 yrs may bring...

NEW PRODUCTS!

Some of you may have already noticed the updates on our facebook page or twitter, but after much deliberation we have decided to expand our product offering to include reproductions of some of my favorite lighting designs from the 20th Century.  While I encourage clients (and prefer to myself) buy originals, its certainly hard to pass up the opportunity to make these classics available to a much wider audience.   This is just a selection, so click on PRODUCTS at the top of this site to see the full range! 

Classic floor lamp, Serge Mouille

  Gräshoppa floor lamp, Greta Grossman

Potence wall sconce, Jean Prouvè

Double arm wall sconce, Serge Mouille

Bestlite BL5 Wall-lamp, Robert Dudley Best



Three arm ceiling fixture, Serge Mouille

So get in touch if you're interested...I can guarantee our prices are just as attractive as the designs themselves!

Casa Capriz

Regular readers of this blog will be familiar with my regular whining about the lack of vintage furniture in Hong Kong....well no more I tell you! There has been a slow gradual change in this city since I arrived, for the better, and it seems that the options that are available to us have multiplied. We now have a bounty of wonders to choose from, thanks to the arrival of Casa Capriz. A large warehouse space in the eastern island area of Chai Wan, Casa Capriz is a lovely curated space full of vintage finds, mostly of Italian origin. And this is thanks to Italian owner Irene Capriz. A mix of art, vintage industrial lights, armchairs (including a few originals by Marco Zanusso), vintage trunks by Louis Vuitton etc. and architectural elements, Casa Capriz is a real treasure trove. I highly recommend a visit, you just never know what you'll find!

And perhaps you can time your visit with the Chai Wan Mei events over this weekend, held in conjunction with the Art Basel event that everyone is talking about in Hong Kong right now. A mix of studios and shops will be open in the Chai Wan area on Friday and Saturday, so if you've ever wanted to know what was lurking in the old industrial buildings, then now is your opportunity to check them out.

apparātus

Wow. So this morning I totally just fell in love with the ENTIRE collection of lighting from Apparatus. Seriously amazing stuff. Check them out...

I would like one of each please!

Art month

So much going on in the city this week...but it all culminates in this fantastic event. I cannot wait.

Mr Blue

Spotted on Yatzer, the dreamy new restaurant in the Palais de Tokyo, Paris - Monseiur Bleu. Designed by a man who is fast becoming one of my favorite designers, Joseph Dirand. I love his use of colour in this space (I have always loved green, not just because Pantone says so)...and how he's played around with light and dark. It looks fresh and new and so timeless at the same time. If the food tastes anywhere near as good as the place looks, I am making a reservation now!