Under Lock and Key

Chinese New Year

2012-01-29T15:55:00.000-08:00

This year, I decided to partake in the Chinese New Year celebrations. I'm pretty lucky that Sydney has a strong Chinese community, so the festivities are still very much alive. I got to watch the lion dance, toss to good fortune with a beautiful, colourful plate of Yusheng (sashimi salad)... and got to relive the taste of my childhood with a old favourite sweet treat - dragon beard candy. It has been over a decade since I've properly celebrated Chinese New Year, and it had never really bothered me. But this year, it just occurred to me that if I didn't learn to appreciate the festivities, then surely the chances of my unborn children (and husband, Stu) learning about Chinese traditions is practically nil.

Which means they will miss out on the reunion dinners, red packets, traditional Chinese new year dishes, time with family . They won't even begin to understand the significance of "Shou Ye", which is the practice of staying up all night so one's parents will live a long and fruitful life, nor the significance of "Ren Ri", celebrated on the 7th day of the Lunar new year, also known as everyone's birthday; the day when everyone grows one year older.

I have too many wonderful childhood memories of Chinese New Year to let this all go. Perhaps it is recent wedding celebrations, or perhaps it is age (which I prefer to call it maturity) that has resulted in a deeper appreciation for traditions. Whatever it is, I intend to keep celebrating for years to come.

12 things: an update

2012-01-24T17:13:00.000-08:00

On the first week of January, I posted about the 12 things I want to do in 2012. Instead of it to being just a fun list that I randomly came up with, I really want to do all 12 things this year and thought the best way to make sure it is done is if I document them here. This means, every time I do any of the 12 things, I will post about it under the tag "12 things".

Ooo, this will be really fun.

One of the first things I attempted was #3: Try a new recipe every week. Sometime last year, I got stuck in a cooking rut, cooking up (and eating) the same old dishes over and over again. And then it occurred to me to stir up my passion for cooking again by trying a new recipe every week and make the mundane interesting again. I didn't want that to stop. So...

I made these new dishes in the first 4 weeks of 2012; lamb with asparagus sauce, mild fish curry, cumin baked chicken with vegetable and a pan fried fish with lime and ginger dressing.

They're not crazy cool groundbreaking dishes - I know, but that wasn't the point of my 12 things. The point is, they are all new recipes, trialled and tested, and they have been integral in making the mundane cooking chores fun again. And that is what's important to me.

Double Happiness

2012-01-22T15:11:00.000-08:00

So, Stu and I had double the happiness by having wedding number 2 in Singapore. As much as Stu and I would have liked to jump straight into our honeymoon, we knew it wouldn't be right if we didn't celebrate with my family and friends in Singapore. Being able to serve tea to my mom and dad is a very important Chinese marriage tradition to my family.But first, we had to feed each other dumplings for a sweet life together. The mandarins are for good luck and the cute little tea set is my dowry.Then we're off to wedding number 2!
And we got to do it all over again. I wore my wedding dress for the second time (Bonus!) and Stu met all 120 of my family and friends for the very first time all at once. Kudos to him for not appearing the least bit uneasy even though I knew he was nervous inside.Our wedding dinner was held at my uncle's restaurant and because both Stu and I were adamant not to serve shark's fin, my uncle came up with a special menu that featured lobster and Peking duck instead. A welcome change, I say. And extra delicious too.The absolute best part of the wedding was seeing my friends and family. It hit me really hard when I realized I hadn't seen most of my relatives for well over a decade and so many of them, I wouldn't see for another year at least. A number of my cousins were children when I last saw them and they have since blossomed into bright beautiful young things which brought (happy) tears to my eyes. Family is very important, I always knew, but I never really understood nor felt it as much as I did that night.

The Rose Lady

2012-01-18T19:48:00.000-08:00

I never knew I could have so much fun in a rose nursery.Stu and I went to this lovely rose nursery on the weekend to pick out some roses for our garden. I went a little bit nutty sniffing the roses and admiring their beauty, reading their labels and touching their soft petals like some kind of a creepy rose lady.

It wasn't easy, picking just a couple out of the hundreds they have. I had to think quite seriously about what I wanted and how I was going to use my roses. I knew I wanted pinks and mauves, low to medium height, preferably with a strong scent. I like my roses to smell like roses. In the end, we picked out 2 David Austins; the Redoute and the Jubilee Celebration, both wonderfully scented with lots of petals in a full cupped shape. Stu picked out a hybrid tea rose that bears old fashioned mauve flowers that smells so divine.

David Austin's "Redoute"

David Austin's "Jubilee Celebration"

"Charles de Gaulle"

I am so thrilled with my roses. I've always loved flowers, all sorts even wild ones that people call weeds. But recently it seems I have fallen absolutely, madly, deeply in love with roses and it's no wonder why.

Hear the Kookaburra Sing

2012-01-15T22:05:00.000-08:00

The kookaburras have been singing a lot in my backyard lately. And by 'sing', I really mean laugh - in that characteristic laugh typical of the birds when they are marking territory. I guess they see our backyard as theirs and in many ways, I almost feel like they belong to us.We occasionally give them a feed of mince, which they love, to supplement their diet of insects and reptiles. They have become so tame, they sit on the bench and eat from our hands, which is such a delightful experience.

This new baby kookaburra (pictured, below) recently fledged, which brings the kookaburras more often than usual. I see the adults teaching him to hunt. He has also learnt to come to us for a free feed. You can tell the baby apart from the way he's really un-coordinated and crys (screams) a lot, even though he is physically much larger than his mom and dad and adult siblings. He also has bushy eyebrows, a much shorter beak which is all dark brown and his feathers has more far brown on the crown. He is the cutest thing - I have a real soft spot for this little guy.

Do you have birds in your backyard?

11.11.11 - The Wedding Reception

2012-01-10T22:33:00.000-08:00

Why are weddings so wonderful? Because they are filled with moments like this:This is my final post about 11.11.11 (aka Happiest Day of my Life) and I'm finishing off with the reception.

Live music makes for a really lovely vibe, it's true! Thanks to Jodie Stubbs and band, the marquee was already pumping when we made our entrance as husband and wife. For table centerpieces, we had a variety of spring flowers placed in crystal vases of different shapes and sizes. The result was fresh, eclectic, pretty. And do you remember the candle wedding favours I made? I think they were a hit. I had so many guests asking me how they can make some candles of their own.Then came the food. We thought that since it was our day, no one could really complain if we served up all our favourite foods - baked figs, duck confit, pork loin with crackling and grilled chicken breast (Yummers!). Both Stu and I are so glad we went with the unlimited vino package, so the wine could keep flowing. And it sure did - our guests drank freely and happily, which was entertaining to watch. After dinner came the speeches. Andre started the ball rolling with a crazy funny speech with lots of innuendo that the guests went wild for. Next, my matron of honour, Liz gave a wonderful and moving speech about our friendship and our journey together - from our boy chasing days to us blooming into current stage of domestic bliss. Stu's dad spoke about the misadventures of Stu (broken tent, fire on boat) when he tried to convince me to take up camping and fishing, and how we found a happy compromise in the form of glamping. My favourite speech was Stu's of course, and I swear, it wasn't just because he said I looked beautiful (OK, a little bit, maybe).Then there were toasts, cake cutting, and the bridal waltz. Even though Stu refused to 'rehearse', I think we did OK - no one booed. The girls and I performed our newfound Bollywood moves. It was a hoot! Everyone laughed!

And then, it was time to say goodbye. Our guests gathered around us as we hugged and kissed everyone goodbye. Believe me when I tell you the day goes by in a flash, because it really does. Stu and I retreated to our bridal suite and spent the next couple of hours talking about our wedding day, reliving every detail, every moment, ending the day on an amazingly high note.So that's it! That's my big day. Thank you for indulging me in reliving my wedding day.

Finally, I would like to take the chance to say a quick thank you to all my wonderful suppliers:

To the lovely ladies from d'amore - Thanks for providing such beautiful classical music for our ceremony.

Jodie, Troy, Emile - Your music totally rocks! Thanks for making the wedding reception so much fun!

Thank you Lisa Fowler making me look so beautiful and my hair so amazing all day. You have no idea how much fun I had batting the eyelashes you put on me!

To Kerrie from Sweet as Cakes, what a great job on the wedding cake. I don't have any photos to show you but the 3 coloured layers inside looked every bit as beautiful as I had imagined.

For flowers, we used Jade McIntosh Flowers. So lovely to work with and as you can see, the flowers are pretty pretty pretty!

For making me such a beautiful wedding dress, as with the bridesmaids' dresses, I'd like to thank Yan Pothin from Soma Design.

To our wedding coordinator, Tim from Peppers Convent, Hunter Valley: You are amazing and have helped create the most happiest day of our lives thus far.

And lastly, April Werz, you are a very talented wedding photographer! Because of your photos, we get to relive the day over and over again.

Stash and Treasure

2012-01-09T19:45:00.000-08:00

Market, craft, recycling, lace, threads, artists...if these sweet sounds bring a smile to your face and if you are a Sydneysider, you might want to hop on down to:
You know the saying "One man's trash might be another man's treasure"? With over 30 vendors booked, this event looks set to be a major treasure chest, just waiting for you to hunt!
For more information, please visit the official Stash and Treasure recycler's Market blog. See you there!

11.11.11 - The Wedding Dress

2012-01-08T20:03:00.000-08:00

Getting a custom made wedding dress is really awesome.

The part I love most about my custom dress is being involved in the design and making of the dress from start to finish. Through a series of consultations and dress fittings with the lovely Yan Pothin of Soma Design, I was able to pick out fabrics, work out the neckline, decide on the puffiness of the skirt, the tulle, even the type of buttons.The result? Dress of my dreams. A wonderful lace top and tulle bottom with little capped sleeves on which lace applique is carefully handstitched. The back is a deep V with fabric buttons that draws the eyes down to the ribbon sash sitting right on the waist. Yan also did a fantastic job making my bridesmaids' dresses. I wanted the dresses to look soft, feminine, romantic in a neutral blush shade. At the same time, I wanted the girls' individuality to shine through so Yan created 3 beautiful dresses with varying necklines which fitted the brief perfect.
Don't the girls look just wonderful?

All in all, a very wonderful experience. If I were to get married all over again, I would not change a single thing.

Dresses and sketches by Yan Pothin, Soma Design
Photography by April Werz

12 things

2012-01-05T19:18:00.000-08:00

Hello! How is 2012 treating you so far? I am still basking in the afterglow of the holiday season and enjoying the first week of the year.

I'm not one for new years resolutions but I saw this really awesome blog idea from Lucy's lovely blog and thought it would be nice to have my own 12 things.

So, here are my 12 things for 2012:

1. wear more dresses

2. grow a vege patch

3. try a new recipe everyweek

4. watch ballet

5. bake cakes

6. read the classics

7. get a mini long hair daschund

8. smell the roses

9. host many many dinner parties

10. drink more bubbly

11. find the best champagne in the world (that I can afford) and then drink it

12. go on a hot air balloon ride

What do you want to do in 2012?

11.11.11 - The Ceremony

2012-01-04T20:08:00.000-08:00

It's 4.30 o'clock in the afternoon and I can just hear the guests arrive. I sneak a little peek from the window in the bridal suite and this is what I saw. There was some talk of rain but I didn't care. As long as I get to marry my best friend, Stu, I'm happy. The skies stayed clear and bright and blue as my father walked me down the aisle.My brother did a wonderful reading of "Blessing of the Hands".

I was so overwhelmed with emotions I stuffed up my wedding vows and laughed so hard my veins nearly popped. I think it is the most perfect imperfection any bride could have on her wedding day. I still laugh out loud when I recall that moment, as do my guests. Makes the day more memorable, I guess.We swapped rings, we kissed. We signed our single lives away. I remember thinking this is the happiest day of my life thus far. And then, we were married.
Photography by April Werz

11.11.11 - Sneaky peek

2012-01-03T19:40:00.000-08:00

I cannot wait to show you my wedding photos, but sorting through the hundreds we have is no mean feat! I'm trying to organise them into smaller, more palatable posts over the next week so we can relive the happiest day of my life together.

In the meantime, here's a little sneaky peek: Photography by April Werz

So this is Christmas

2012-01-02T21:48:00.000-08:00

It's a brand new year!
Did you have a wonderful holiday season? I sure did! This is what my Christmas looked like.

Hosted a dinner party, with friends

Made a peachy cake for a summery Christmas

Christmas presents, all wrapped up and ready for giving My true love gave to me...

After I unwrapped my present from Stu (earrings), he surprised me with present number 2 (matching earrings). Now isn't that just so sweet?

What did your Christmas look like?

The year that was - 2011

2011-12-27T14:53:00.000-08:00

I knew 2011 was a big year for me but I hadn't realized just how exciting it's been!

In 2011, I...

moved to my first home
watched my first opera (Carmen)
watched my first ballet (Romeo and Juliet)
went glamping
went bollywood dancing
went for a flying trapeze class (and failed really badly)
learned to make candles
tried a new recipe every week
got engaged!
got married!
honeymooned in the Maldives and didn't want to leave

It was a year of many firsts for me.

What did you do in 2011?

Christmas wreath cookies

2011-12-23T01:10:00.000-08:00

It features edible glitter stars!!!I could admit that I've been lazy or perhaps uninspired, but I rather say I lost my baking mojo. But all it took was the ingredient "edible glitter" that turned it right back on for me.

If you like to bake these little glittery goodies yourself, the recipe is as follows.

Ingredients:

3 cups self-raising flour
125g butter
60ml milk
2/3 cup caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
Edible glitter (I used stars!)

For lemon icing
3 cups icing sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Steps::

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Grease oven trays; line with baking paper.
Sift flour into bowl, rub in butter. Combine milk and sugar in saucepan, stir over low heat until sugar dissolved, add extract; cool 5 minutes. Stir combined warm milk mixture and egg into flour mixture.
Knead dough on floured surface until smooth.
Roll rounded teaspoons of dough into 13 cm sausages. Twist 2 sausages together, form into circles; press edges together. Place about 3cm apart on oven trays.
Bake about 15 minutes. Cool on wire racks.
Meanwhile, make the lemon icing. Sift icing sugar into small heatproof bowl; stir in enough juice to make a paste. Stir over small saucepan of simmering water until pourable.
Dip wreaths into icing; set at room temperature. Sprinkle with edible glitter.

Happy baking! Wishing you a happy holiday season!

The garden

2011-12-21T00:58:00.000-08:00

One of the first things Stu and I did as man and wife was to visit the Hunter Valley gardens to smell the flowers. We also thought it was a nice place to visit with my parents, brother and sister-in-law, who had crossed continents to be at our wedding.

The rose gardens was our first stop and also my favourite.It is amazing how many rose varieties exist and how they come in all different shapes, sizes and smells. I would very much love to have a rose garden of my own one day.Then there were some others that caught my eye, though I couldn't tell you their names. So, feel free to help me out here.

Ask me 5 years ago to visit a garden and I probably would yawn in your face. But I actually really enjoyed my walk in the gardens. Some things you just grow into with age, I guess.

Handmade candle wedding favour

2011-12-13T17:50:00.000-08:00

I've always liked the idea of making a gift for my wedding guests, so I signed up for a candle making course and poured away!

For my wedding favours, I opted for a single scent (lime, basil and mandarin scent), used soy wax (more eco-friendly, I hear) and did not use any dye (I like it au naturel). Here's a little tutorial if you want to make your own too. You will need:

Soy wax
Cooking pot
Candle glassware
Wicks
Fragrance
Stickums
Safety sticker
Paddle pop stick (you can buy these pre-holed or drill hole in centre yourself)

Instructions:

Heat your soy wax in the cooking pot over low heat on stove.

While the wax is melting, attach your stickum to the bottom of the wick tab and place the wick in the centre of the jar and press down.

Measure out your wax and wait for it to cool. The amount of fragrance you add is about 10% of wax. (Note: if you are using essential oil, only use 5%). Stir well.

Pour into jars/moulds. Use paddle pop stick to centre your wick until your candle is completely set.

And then Viola!

Your house will be smelling divine at the end of this exercise. Remember to trim the wicks when completely set.

I added ribbons and labels with my guests' names so they functioned as a placecard too.

I hope you have fun making them!

Signature scent

2011-12-12T17:21:00.000-08:00

This year sometime, I decided I needed to find myself a signature scent. You know, the perfume that is truly perfect for me. It's taken me a while to find Hermes' Un Jardin Sur Le Toit but I knew it was 'the one' at first sniff.I love it when fragrances do so much more than just make you smell nice. Truly wonderful fragrances make you feel special or sexy or beautiful. Others conjure up memories, images, feelings. My signature scent takes me to places truly magical and unexpected. Like a secret garden, a rainbow, or a castle on a cloud. It's quite lovely, I must say.

Do you have a signature scent? Where does yours take you?

At first sight

2011-12-07T20:28:00.000-08:00

On my recent trip back to Singapore, I fell in love with this Celine bag. It is the perfect shade of jungle green that is an easy match for all my outfits and also a handy size for my essentials.

I very nearly missed out on it though, what with the waiting list and the bag being out of stock. But on my last day in Singapore, I ventured into the store once more and to my sheer delight, I was told that stock had just arrived that morning! Some things are just meant to be.

I have been using it everyday since and has brought me so much joy. I love that it has a happy face and a little bit of drool down its zipper mouth (Can you see?). Ha. Maybe this is what love is all about.

Have you fallen in love with anything lately?

A Maldivian dream

2011-12-05T15:34:00.000-08:00

I fell asleep to the lull of lapping waves and dreamt a Maldivian dream.
Well...except it wasn't a dream, It was our honeymoon - a wonderful week spent in paradise, where the water glittered in a thousand different shades of blue and turquoise. When days were spent wondering if the sea or the sky was more beautiful...
and swimming amongst baby reef sharks and schools and schools of fish.

This is where we stayed. What we collected. What we did. What we saw. It was a dream. A wonderful, perfect, crazy beautiful dream.

Have you been to paradise?

The happiest day of my life

2011-11-30T21:51:00.000-08:00

Three weeks after the wedding and I am still on a high.

The wedding day? It was perfect. The most wonderful day of my life thus far. I had more fun than I ever thought possible. I said my vows, I laughed, I drank, and I ate heaps of wedding cake. And then I danced with my husband, Stu. Yes, husband. Oh, how that word makes me giggle still. Heh.

We had exclusive use of our wedding venue, Peppers Convent for the entire weekend. Within its beautiful garden and vineyard, the bridal party and our closest family and friends shared great food, happy chatter and fine wine which somehow just kept on flowing. It was memorable for so many reasons. The fact that we were getting married was a major one, being surrounded by people we really love was a close second, followed by the beautiful heritage house we were in and the wonderful staff within..

Even in these post wedding, post honeymoon days, I still find myself recalling every moment of that perfect day, that glorious weekend with a dreamy smile on my face. I am eagerly awaiting my wedding photos and will share them with you as soon as I can.

Countdown

2011-11-07T15:34:00.000-08:00

On the weekend, I collected my wedding dress and spent about an hour twirling in it at home all by myself, the whole time with a huge cheesy smile on my face.

If ever there was a little girl who dreamt for years of marrying her prince charming, it would be me. Well, that dream is finally coming true. So yes, the countdown has begun!

I am feeling all sorts of happy at the moment and am looking forward to the day so very much. At the same time, I also want to savour this feeling of anticipation and excitement for as long as I can, so I'm kind of torn between wanting time to go quicker/slower. (Silly, since technically I don't have time manipulation powers.)
That said, I will be taking the new few weeks off from blogging to get married. I will be back with tons of photos and stories, I promise.

See you then, my lovely!

Roadtrip

2011-11-02T18:27:00.000-07:00

Stu and I drove up to Blayney Shire for a dear friend's wedding. I love making roadtrips, especially when Stu's offers to do the driving (which he did). On a sunny day, country NSW looks really beautiful with its rolling hills, green grass, deep blue skies and all the vivid colours of Spring. Blayney Shire in its historical setting is particularly charming at this time of the year. I've been feeling like I'm running on empty these days, with home renos and wedding preps and what feels like a million things to do, so this trip away took my mind off things and I could finally just...breathe. Fresh country air does a lot of good for the soul.

Note: And the wedding, I hear you ask? I decided to spare you my dodgy photos because they simply don't do the bride justice. The bride looked so amazingly beautiful I teared up as soon as I saw her. Weddings seem to have that effect on me these days.

Have you been on a roadtrip lately? Where did you go and what did you see?

Magical

2011-10-30T21:47:00.000-07:00

It was just another day, at about late afternoon and when I looked up and saw this bit of magic in my very own living room.I love how the late afternoon sun lights up the room, making shadows play. It probably is my favourite time of day to sit and simply enjoy my new home.

Have you experienced anything magical lately?

Soma Design

2011-10-26T21:21:00.000-07:00

You know the scene where the bride-to-be walks out of the fitting room in a beautiful wedding dress and everyone in the room gasps and she immediately knew that the dress was the one?Well, that never happened to me. In fact, after trying on dress after dress after dress at a couple of bridal shops, I soon realised that I needed a custom dress. Lucky for me, I stumbled upon Yan Pothin's Soma Design, a little bespoke boutique studio that just ticked all the right boxes for me.Everytime I meet Yan at the studio, I can't help but feel like a kid in a candy store. There is lace, tulle, bows, beads, sequins, rhinestones...all the things I love and am naturally drawn to. During my last visit there, I took some photos to share with you. I think you will love his designs too!PS: I am counting down the days before I collect my wedding dress, Yan is still working hard on it at the moment. I'll show you after the wedding...not long to go now!

Could not resist

2011-10-25T16:38:00.000-07:00

There are some massive sales going on at the shops at the moment, and I had done really really well to avoid and ignore....But that was before I came across these 2 cardigans that was, to me, just irresistable.Bows and pearls! 2 of my favourite things, and such perfectly incorporated details. I love (and bought).
What have you found irresistible lately?