lots of links in my chain!

Here are some intriguing and fun links that I discovered recently:

BJones Style blog

I'm loving this outfit! The colours, the fit, those shoes! :D I am being influenced by Project Runway at the moment which can only mean I am getting my "designer" on, girl! :P haha!

love!

 

A favourite store of mine back in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. It is a lovely little store filled to the brim with gorgeous jewellery, perfume, homewares and gifts. See the website here

And...

Here is where you can read "Letters to God". It is a very touching and thought provoking project/site that I found through Sarah Von's Yes and Yes blog. It reminds me of the importance of humility, gratitude, love and patience. 

The is an extract from the site which explains the project in a bit more detail: 

"Started in 2007, this site Dear God, Please Help Me was inspired by a Morrissey song by the same name (listen here). I was curious to see if people said the same things I did when I cried, “God, please help me,” especially if I was put into situations where I needed the most help “from up above”. By no means am I a religious person, nor do I believe in “God”. But this is NOT what the project is about… or, hell, maybe it is.

This project is about that raw feeling of desperation, where you’ve got no where else to turn and no one else to ask for help. This could be your point of no return or your moment of clarity. Maybe even a rite of passage.

Everyone, at some point in there life has asked for help from God, maybe not in the form of a letter, but they have begged and pleaded or talked to God:

“I will never do that again! Just give me one more chance!”

“Dear God, please don’t let her be pregnant.”

“God, I never ask you for anything but I am asking now: PLEASE MAKE MY MOM’S CANCER GO AWAY.”

For this project, I am interested in those moments. Whether the moments are now or months ago, good or bad, desperate or calm, I just want to compile them here so we can all read them out loud. Maybe we will discover that we are more alike than we think, which seems to be the case. Maybe we will find that we are all asking for the same type of help. And, if that is true, maybe God is tired of hearing the same thing over and over again".

Happy Monday!

A slightly different post...

I am a food LOVER. It is a huge part of my daily life and thoughts - reading about it, eating it, thinking about my next meal... So, I'm going to take a little detour from the usual "crafty" subject matter, to give a rave review for my favourite restaurant from my recent trip! Definitely a must for any traveller (or local, but I'm sure they know about it :P) in the Williamsburg/Greenpoint area in Brooklyn is "5 Leaves"

It's a sweet restaurant on the corner of Bedford ave and Lorimer st and is always packed with hungry diners, keen for a delicious taste of sophisticated new Amercian cuisine. I had the opportunity to visit twice when I was staying in Brooklyn... well, I enjoyed the food so much the first time that I vowed to go back! So I did :P

For entree on the first visit, I shared the "devils on horse back" - huge medjool dates surrounded by succulent bacon. It was the perfect choice to kick start my appetite! 

The atmosphere was relaxed, with stylish Brooklynites chatting away, while busy servers dashed about readying tables for those waiting nearby. I enjoyed a cocktail while I waited for my main - always a fun indulgence while on holidays! 

For the main, I chose the Amish chicken, which tuned out to be one of the best meals I have ever eaten! A gorgeous, crispy skinned half-chicken was perched on a sweet onion puree and surrounded by lovely fresh vegetables. Sugar snap peas, sunchokes and plump gazed bacon were a wonderful accompaniment to this well seasoned dish. I could've eaten this meal twice, I adored it so much! Poppy chose the House made beetroot ravioli which looked and tasted divine - light pasta and soft filling with a heavenly sage burnt butter sauce. She did have food envy, though!!

The second time Poppy and I visited, we sampled the Home made Ricotta with figs, fresh thyme, sea salt honey and fruit bread. The combination of salty and sweet with a soft mouth-feel of the ricotta was very pleasing! The side of fruit bread added a nice crunchy texture to the overall meal. I would love to have this for breakfast! 

I know it's naughty because I probably should have chosen something new, but I ordered the Amish chicken on the second visit!!! hehehe! Poppy had the same! She loved it as much as I did :)

We were both too full to try dessert, but I am now wishing that we had! If I do go back (again!), I'll be sure to try the Chocolate torte with hazelnut dacquouise, sea salt and whipped marscapone!

Below are some pictures from the gallery on the 5 Leaves website

birthday interlude!

I am now 26! and...
Wow! Yesterday I had one the best birthdays ever! It started early with cuddles from my beautiful boy, Sam. He gave a present of perfume that I have have had my eye on for some time - "Daisy" by Marc Jacobs. I smelt like Heaven for most of the day! At work, I got to enjoy a delicious chocolate mousse cake courtesy of Le Bon Choix. It was so yummy - the base tasted like Ferrero Rocher! mmmmm!!

The afternoon was fairly chilled out - reading blogs, playing with the dogs and sunning myself on the back deck with a nice cup of tea! In the evening, my sister picked up Sam and I for a surprise dinner! I was also given a gorgeous bouquet of flowers from Sam in the afternoon in oranges, pinks and greens. They are so beautiful and I am smelling the roses' sweet scent as I type this post!

I was blindfolded in the car and driven to what I thought was a restaurant somewhere.. We actually arrived at my sister's house where she had turned her outside entertainment area into a Mad Hatter's tea party!!! All my friends were dressed as characters from Alice in Wonderland too! 

I was so impressed, surprised, happy and overwhelmed (in a good way!) There was even a pinata to smash! :D We dined on lovely treats (pigs in a blanket, deviled eggs, spinach and fetta parcels and fairy bread!) and had an amazing chocolate cake that was baked by my sister's friend. It was like Bruce Bog trotter's cake from the Roald Dahl's story Matilda - only one layer, thank goodness! :P Remember the movie?!

 It was such a fun birthday and i will treasure the memories that were created that day :)

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I am now about to enjoy the new Frankie magazine - which came out today! You can see it in the photo above too :P I have also just watched the final episode in season 7 of Grey's Anatomy.. eek! No other show makes me cry and gasp so much at the story line! The writers are geniuses! 

I hope you enjoy the rest of your week! :D

New York part 2!

My favourite Williamsburg cafe to hang out in, called El Beit!

Sunny day in NYC! The first week was pretty dreary weather-wise, so there were lots of people out enjoying the lovely day. Here, I am about to enjoy a locally-made cherry pie bought at the union square farmer's market! So yum! I adore cherry pie!

At night, we found out that there was a free event on at the Public Library - "Bedtime stories for grown-ups" read by the likes of Gabriel Byrne and David Hyde-Pierce! The short stories they read were very entertaining :D

 Outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art where I got to see the Alexander McQueen exhibition: Savage Beauty. It was divine and totally worth the hour long wait to see!!!

Watching an artist sketch a sculpture in the gallery

Roy Lichtenstein - a favourite of mine

OMG! There is a sandwich shop near Washington Square Park, called Peanut Butter & Co, which sells only variations of the peanut better sandwich and PB based desserts! Here, Poppy and I are scoffing down the peanut butter brownie blast sundae! One of the greatest desserts ever!!!

Chelsea Market! Full of great food shops, including one lucky duck and home of 9th street espresso, which served up lovely coffee!

The Chelsea High Line - an old train line that has been raised up and converted into a stretch of park and walk-way for the public to relax in and enjoy. Very pretty! :D

part 3 is next! I didn't think there would be so many, but I can't just skim over all the good pics! :P

New York, New York! it's a hell of a town! part one

First day in the Big Apple, wandering around Union Square and surrounding streets. We came across a big red fire truck - gotta love a man in uniform!

Cool art on show at Cafe Grumpy in Chelsea - one of many pit stops while exploring the city. The cafe has really cool merchandise and it part owned by an Australian! I discovered this fact when I saw a 'flat white' on the menu (which is an Australian invention!) The art is made entirely from thread..!

Dinner at WD~50 on the second night. I was very excited to dine on the culinary delights of chef, Wylie Dufresne. The restaurant is located on the lower East side and I could only get a reservation for 10:30pm! I had a delicious meal here - a challenge for the senses! In the picture is my entree of eggs benedict :) Definitely a meal to remember!

Permanent sculptures at the 8th Ave subway station - awesome! There were little characters everywhere!

Amateur night at the Apollo Theatre, Harlem (up on 125th street). Definitely worth doing if you are in NYC on a wednesday night and tickets are only $17! It's a new talent search night and the audience gets to participate! In the past, the Jackson 5 and Ella Fitzgerald started their careers at Amateur night!

Graffiti on the Chelsea streets... I see a bit of a trend in my photos...!

At MoMA on a friday night, when entry is free! This is a installation of what one man ate for an entire year back in the 1980s AND he ate the same thing every day!! canned meat (Spam), powdered milk, insulin bottles.. it's all there!

At M&M world in Times Square! I had so much fun here! So many M&M products!!

That's a new friend, Isabelle, who was staying in the same B and B as Poppy and I

The infamous Times Square! This photo doesn't do justice to the lights and amazing advertising that engulfs you!! So many people too!

Part 2 coming up...!

Survey found!

Here is a fun survey I found on a blog called Of all the nonsense. I have a strange obsession with filling out forms and questionnaires like this... I really enjoy it for some reason!
Now, you can learn a little more about me (and feel free to cut and paste for yourself! :))


A. Age: 25, soon to be 26 in a week tomorrow!
B. Bed size: Queen (I wish it was a king, though!)
C. Chore that you hate: Putting clothes away after I have taken them down from the washing line
D. Dogs: 2 - a samoyed, Luca and a labrador, Crackers, aka Good Boy Cracky!
E. Essential start to your day: Coffee and porridge with berries! mmmmm....
F. Favourite color: at the moment, burgundy pink and orange
G. Gold or Silver: Silver.
H. Height: 5'7"
I. Instruments you play: none, but I wish I could play the cello
J. Job title: designer and micro business owner/ barista
K. Kids: in the future.....
L. Live: Brisbane, Queensland
M. Mother's name: Maria
N. Nicknames: Jessie, Jess, Jessie-dex, Bunt, Bunt-max
O. Overnight hospital stays: None
P. Pet peeve: people who abuse the English language, bad manners, guys who call me "mate", chewing gum with mouth open
Q. Quote from a movie: "I love lamp"
R. Right or left handed: Right.
S. Siblings: 2 older sisters, Briony and Kristen
T. Time you wake up: anywhere from 5:00am to 7:30am, depending on what I have on for the day
U. Underwear: Yes and in many colours!
V. Vegetable you hate: not a huge fan of parsnip... but I don't really hate any vegetable...
W. What makes you run late: other people who aren't ready! I am always on time or early
X. X-Rays you've had: chest and jaw
Y. Yummy food that you make: a mean coconut chicken curry!
Z. Zoo animal: I love to see the giraffes!

Me in an art gallery in Chelsea! :P hehehe!

San Francisco highlights!

Definitely one of my favourite cities in the USA, so far...!

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The houses were all incredible... each more gorgeous than the next!

funky graffiti along Valencia st, The Mission

street art! :D

My favourite pie place in the world - Mission Pie! It is a lovely little place that uses only fresh, organic  produce with sustainable values for their business. I tried a few of the pies, but the best was mixed berry with fresh, whipped cream! mmmmm.... nom nom nom!

one of the many murals in The Mission - this one is made entirely from paper!

Golden Gate Bridge! Poppy and I had fun riding our bikes here, after touring around a bit of Golden Gate park.

AMAZING tacos from La Taqueria on Mission st. Fantastic flavour and great prices to match!

The famous Lombard street! Crookedest in the world! We also saw some Segways zig-zagging down the way :P fun!

Highlights from New York is up next! 

A few fun pics from my holiday! part 1

And so starts our USA adventure...

First day in LA - Poppy and I were wandering around on 2 hours sleep! We stayed at Orbit Hotel, which is in west Hollywood, a nice area. LA consisted of lots of walking, shopping, eating Mexican food (El Coyote was the BEST - celebrating 80 years of serving fantastic food and delicious margaritas! ) 

We went to Universal studios (and got eaten by Jaws! :P)

The infamous Hollywood sign! We went on a day tour and saw celebrity houses, the walk of fame, Mann's Chinese Theatre, Santa Monica and Venice Beach

My Bugati parked on Rodeo drive while I went shopping! :P

Shopping with the "dinosaurs" in Santa Monica! we ate Johnny Rockets here - bacon cheese burger with fries and a chocolate malt shake :D mmm... so delicious and so, so wrong with their sweet brioche buns and million calories! haha! First real American burger experience. 

There were some incredible buskers performing in the mall here.

Poppy riding her cruiser along Venice Beach from Santa Monica. We had a great time on the bikes! Wheee! Venice beach is pretty crazy though, with all their Koosh doctors and Jamaican themed products... :P

Beach side in Santa Barbara. We did some more bike riding and shopping, of course! Dinner that night was at the delicious Santa Barbara Fish house. I can recommend the seared Ahi tuna :)

That's all for now.. I'll upload some more tomorrow. Stay tuned for San Francisco and New York :)