Rish

It's the last day of 2015 and it seems like a fine time to take a look back at the past year. For me, most of it was spent being pregnant, and very happily so. 

Fortunately I had no morning sickness, and lucked out with great health that allowed me keep spinning and exercising right up to week 40 of my pregnancy. Apart from the usual pre-natal no-nos I ate everything I wanted, whenever I wanted, and better yet, in any quantity I wanted. Could you blame me if I said I kinda loved being pregnant?

They do say that the Universe is always fair - and labour was a loooonnggg 46 hours that put this natural-birth-no-meds-preferred Earth Mama to the ultimate test. On 12 December 2015 just shy of 41 weeks, baby Rishav came into the world with a full head of jet-black hair and the longest eyelashes I have ever seen.

We're now enjoying maternity leave with endless amounts of cuddles and kisses, as well as absorbing the fact that I have a son (A SON!!)

2016 is so bright because we are now three. 

New York New York on Orchard

Hello hello, long time no see! My laptop at home went kaput and after months of waiting for it to get fixed, I have finally given up and have dug up an archaic machine.

Anyhoo, let's get started on the backlog of outfit photos, shall we? This was taken one Friday evening in late June - possibly the last date night we had before flying off to New York (where we spent a glorious couple of weeks). 

Watsons Bay Wedding

We've just returned from a quick visit back to Australia, spending our time between our old homes of Sydney and Adelaide. I hadn't been back for nearly 4 years and it was SO GOOD to return.  

One of the main reasons for our trip was to celebrate the wedding of our wonderful friends. The gorgeous bride L, and I first met when we shared offices in the law firm we worked at right after finishing uni, and continued to remain kindred spirits through cross-country moves on both our parts. Nearly a decade later, my heart was overflowing with love as I saw her walk down the aisle to meet her beloved under the fig tree by the picturesque Watsons Bay. Just before hail pelted down on us. 

An Afternoon at Raffles

Over the weekend, S and I went for the hilarious Faulty Towers lunch performance that was passing through Singapore on its way around the world. What we didn't realise until a few days prior was that it was to be held at the iconic Raffles Hotel. 

The colonial-style hotel has been around since 1887 - going through receivership, passing through a few hands, and undergoing massive refurbishment. Naturally, its exclusivity has decreased over the decades - and much of the hotel grounds are now open to the public, encouraging visitors to wander the beautiful space.

Oh! Joo Chiat

Singapore, like Malaysia, is a country of rich heritage, which is most obvious from its architecture. So between our trips to Saigon and Tokyo, we went on a walking tour to one of Singapore's most interesting neighbourhoods - Joo Chiat. Which unlike many HDB-heavy suburbs, is home to beautiful preservation buildings. 

The event, organised by OH! Open House, was touted as an art tour, rather than a historical one. Although one can't talk about Joo Chiat or be inspired by it without a description of how it came to be: Chew Joo Chiat, its namesake, was a wealthy Chinese merchant who owned a hectares of plantations in the area. He then sold and gifted parcels of his land to various people, whether rich or poor, which resulted in the area increasing in diversity in economy and architecture. These days, wealthy expats and locals live in those pretty Peranakan houses (mostly the former and most definitely in renovated dwellings), alongside less-economically-able migrant workers from India and Vietnam sleeping in cramped flats. 

Joo Chiat is something else, so be warned that the following post is photo-heavy. It is but a feeble attempt to show you how unique the area is.

Immanuel French Kitchen

After a couple of Fridays being out of town, S and I are exploring the city the best way we know how - through our bellies. Last Friday for our usual date night, we had to make a trip to Ikea (yet again). A quick google search for what to eat in the area pointed us in the direction of a french 'bistro', set uniquely in a hawker centre. 

Pardon the poor quality pictures, I couldn't head home after work before dinner so all I had was a phone camera which produces photos that can only take so much editing...

100

A few days back we passed the hundred-day mark of our move to Singapore. Time flies doesn't it? I thought about writing down what we've been up to the past three-and-a-bit months and as expected, it consists a lot of apartment-hunting-moving-furniture-decor-shopping. Fun times folks, fun times. While I look forward to giving you an apartment tour, here's a quick update of what's otherwise been happening in my neck of the woods: 

Orange Thumb

It has been just over a month since we moved into our new apartment - and it's feeling more like home with each passing day.  In our desire to embrace island life, we chose a place with a lovely balcony, one where we can enjoy the lovely view, streaming sunlight and constant breeze all the time. We also have a great deal more square footage than in our former NYC pad - finally we have a dining area, a proper room for guests, and space for flora and fauna! So off we went to the famous Thomson Road strip of nurseries to create a tropical paradise in our own home.

While I was told to shop along the vast row for selection and price, the Saturday we visited was one scorcher of a day. Walking around in fear of sunstroke just to land a potential bargain didn't seem wise. Therefore I'm glad that Hawaii Landscape was our first stop. You only have to see the photos to understand why my search ended there:

Brunch at PS.Cafe

Taking advantage of the close proximity to Singapore, my parents and brother drove down from Kuala Lumpur for the weekend to visit us in our new home. 

Not a whole lot was planned besides eating and chilling in our pool - which we hadn't been able to enjoy much ourselves until a few dasy ago. I genuinely didn't know how much I would love having a pool in the 'backyard' until we actually did. I can't get enough and I'm just SO HAPPY to be able to bust this out ALL.YEAR.ROUND. 

I digress. I was excited to take the folks out to a spot I'd only been to dinner before, but is oh so much more prettier in the daytime - PS. Cafe on Harding Road in Dempsey Hill.

Taking over a colonial bungalow, it's set in the midst of very lush greenery. Although located a mere 5-minute drive from the hustle and bustle of the main Orchard Road shopping drag, it's designed to feel like you're dining in the middle of a tropical rainforest. 

Mine, all mine - Moroccan mushroom stack 

Wearing: & Other Stories muu muu shirtdress; J Crew Lillian sandals (sim), gold braid necklace, and bar ring (sim); Mansur Gavriel mini bucket bag (in stock/pre-order available); Prada baroque sunglasses.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from warmer shores. No white Christmas in this part of the world but we make up for it in other ways: 

I am off to Kuala Lumpur for the first time since our wedding, and have packed this old, festive Anthropologie dress for celebrations ahead. Too much red? Never!

Have a wonderful time with loved ones and hope Santa is generous to all of you this year!

Furniture Shopping at Taylor B

So after viewing nearly 20 different apartments in various inner-city neighbourhoods on the island, we've locked in a place that will home! I am very excited to move in next week although now we have to deal with the big task of decorating the place. Made slightly monumental since we chose to move with no furniture apart from our bed. 

We'd heard plenty about Taylor B from friends. Unlike traditional furniture stores, Taylor B is a massive 4-floor warehouse situated right by the Keppel shipping container terminals - allowing pieces to move from ship-to-shop seamlessly. Styles in the shop vary from Victorian to industrial to vintage and pricing is more affordable than otherwise. (Just wait till you see how exorbitant Crate and Barrel is here!)

I took the liberty of taking photos of some of the more interesting things in the store:

Shelves made from 'tin' briefcases - unique but rather clunky when opening and closing the drawers