Clocks and Such

Jakarta Comes Through

Great day yesterday. I came upon the restaurant/boutique Kedai & Bikin Barang (Jl. Benda Raya, #89, Kemang). Wow! Such creative decor. It's filled with old blown glass bottles, framed album covers, old canteens, tin trays, colanders hung upside down as lampshades, a popcorn machine...an overall electric mix of Indonesian and Dutch furnishings...I'm embarrassed to report I didn't sample the food, but I've heard it's delicious. Check this out:


Note the light fixture made out of bicycle tires. Love it.




My favorite part was how they used old oil drums as tables, like the below. I'm now on the lookout and have asked some Indonesian friends to help me out. If that doesn't work, you can find me at the Jakarta bus depot bargaining for the drums while the drivers look at me like I'm gila (crazy). I wonder how I explain I want it scrubbed free of oil, and please can I buy one that has not been used as a garbage can?

Alarm Clocks

For the past year I've been collecting retro alarm clocks, and have gotten really funky ones from Laos, Cambodia, Singapore, Vietnam and Indonesia. I can't find any good pictures of mine online, except this one (one of the tamer ones I own).

Fabric and Hippos

These Clive + Sunshine animals from Rose and Radish are custom made by Jennifer Muskopf, and she can even make one of these using a treasured piece of fabric (from your childhood blanket or your mom's old blouse). I like the hippo best. I like these because they remind me a great baby gift I recently gave my friend Kate's baby Olive. It was a Noah's ark set I picked up at a market in Kampala, Uganda, all handmade from fabric, complete with twin sets of giraffes, lions, hippos...really cute. I liked it so much, I kept it at home for a year before finally giving it away.

Glass Bottles

These bottles were designed by Tapio Wirkkala in 1968, and employs the "Incalmo" technique wherein two different types of glass, worked separately, are fused together to obtain, within a single object, separate areas differentiated by colors. From Moss. And sadly over $8,000. I found some similar glass here in Jakarta, for what now seems a reasonable $90...

Coral Throw

This is a very pretty Essma Wool Throw with Cotton Coral Design Embroidery, from Allegra Hicks. What does one do with a 'throw' anyways, or is that just a fancy term for a blanket? And if yes, isn't it too pretty to sleep under? Hummm...

These bottles were designed by Tapio Wirkkala in 1968, and employs the "Incalmo" technique wherein two different types of glass, worked separately, are fused together to obtain, within a single object, separate areas differentiated by colors. From Moss. And sadly over $8,000. I found some similar glass here in Jakarta, for what now seems a reasonable $90...

Typewriters

My friend Beth pointed out how cool old typewriters like this one here are. I agree. From Three Potato Four.

A Scandal in Bohemia

In Singapore, we ate at a Mexican restaurant called Montezuma at Clarke Quay, and they put our margaritas on these neat Frida Kahlo coasters. Nevermind if you turned them over there was an advert for Budwiser. I got about 12 of these coasters from the confused waiter, and intend to shrink wrap them or whatever it is called when you coat paper with a plastic covering.

Love these letterpress printed coasters. Thanks Green Chair Press."With hardly a word spoken, but with a kindly eye, he waved me to an armchair, threw across his case of cigars, and indicated a spirit case and a gasogene in the corner." And so Holmes invites Dr. Watson to sit down to hear the tale of "A Scandal in Bohemia."

Tin Cans

Some of you may know about my collection of tin cans. This came from moving to Asia, and discovering that both a number of the offered food items that come in a tin can ('Peanuts Soup' or Dutch Chocolate Chips) as well as the actual can design, combines to make one visually interesting home decoration.