Go Green

Our inaugural Green issue hit the stands last week and we were so thrilled with the feedback we got and how excited everyone got about recycling, we almost forgot to blog about it.

So here it is, our Sept/Oct issue and quite possibly our favourite issue to date. We've got a ton of information in it, from eco-friendly products online to tips on how you can do your part to save the earth by conserving energy. If you're reading this from Singapore, you'll want to head on down to Bollywood Veggies (trust us, the drive to Kranji might be a pain but so worth it!) to meet Ivy Singh Lim and frollic in her massive vegetable farm.

And to thank all of you for your support, we've tied up with Philia, a stellar Greek restaurant at Bali Lane for a fantastic dinner promo where each main course gets you another one for free. Call our good friend Spiros at 6299 3267 to make your reservation.

A message from the Kranji Countryside Association

Dear Friends,

We seek your support in helping us save our Countryside. The Kranji Countryside is the last remaining natural oasis left in Singapore, that has not been blemished by skyscrapers or anything remotely related to the building of skyscrapers.

If the govt. were to go ahead with the dumping of granite on arable land, earmarked for agriculture. The soil will be permanently damaged, and will be deemed useless. The natural surroundings in the area will become polluted, neighbouring farms will be affected by silica contamination, and the peave and tranquility that us as Singaporeans come to the Countryside for, will diminish.

If you care about what happens to the Countryside, to your future or your childrens future, where food is concerned, then please log on to our online petition and support our cause http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/savethecountryside/ . Thank you. Kindly pass this on to as many people as humanly possible.

domo arigato mister robato

Local design heads GaGaTree brings on the nostalgia with these retro RoboCards. Standing at 46cm tall and made from corrugated board they hold up to 14 CDs and a roll of toilet paper for that accidental spill. Can you say "more than meets the eye" ?

These RoboCards should be available from August...we can hardly wait to get our mitts on them.

Bulb sale

If you love wing armchairs as much as i do (and you're in Singapore), you'll want to make your way down to one of my favourite stores, Bulb. Packaged deals are on now for items like these...so if you're looking to furnish your home, you know where to go. (8 Gemmill Lane, tel:6225 0158) Sale on till 31 july.

In other news, we're on the lookout for some intrepid advertising executives. If you know someone who appreciates better living through design and likes...well, money, drop us an email.

nest july/august

The July/August SUMMER issue of nest. is officially out!



While a portion of our magazine will still be available at Fitness First gyms, country clubs and select boutiques, restaurants and cafes across Singapore, those of you who have had a hard time getting your hands on a copy will be pleased to know that nest. is now also available at all major bookstores, newstands, and petrol stations at just $3.20. We're super excited! Can you tell??

As mentioned in our previous post, a funky crab cracker (courtesy of our friends at Pantry Magic) is yours to take home when you purchase a copy of nest. magazine at any MPH bookstore (subject to availability). Click here to view locations.

(from top to bottom: nest. magazine cover, a page from our Centrestage spread on silicone bakeware, products from our Swank section)

and...we're back.

i know, i ought to be spanked six ways till sunday for not posting on time. blogger issues aside, we all had our arms full for the past month putting together the latest issue of nest...

More updates on that in abit, but all i can say is that we're all pretty excited about it hitting the newstands. (that's right! more design love for everybody...) We've teamed up with Pantry Magic and MPH bookstore for some awesome freebies as well. More details soon.

In other news, our friends at Maki Squarepatch (tote bag above) need your votes to win Fredflare.com's Next Big Thing contest. Team Singapore. Represent!

Studio Prive @ Motorola-SuperStyle-Mix

If fashion is your passion, then show your love for these fresh new designers and their collection of killer threads at Studio Prive's inaugural show.

Founded by Jonathan Seow (Woods & Woods), Studio Prive is a program designed to provide a showcase platform for the young bright sparks of local design. 7 fashion designers, each hand-picked by Seow, will debut their S/S 07 collection here.

The labels are: Demisemiquaver, Fake, Iamwhoiam, Nikicio, N.nchal.nt, Tangle, and U'tter.

See you there and don't forget to bring your cash!

Venue: 72-13 Mohammed Sultan Road
Date: 3 May 2007, Thursday
Time: 8pm

Studio Prive Post-Party: Velvet Underground featuring DJ Xhin


thanks Sharon!

Upcoming events

Tabitha Silk Fair @ The Shophouse
22 Lock Road
19th-21st April, 9am-6am
www.tabithasingapore.com

It's not everyday you get to do your bit for charity while shopping up a storm. We're talking about gorgeous silk bedding, cushions, and fashion accessories, all hand made with love in Cambodia. Proceeds go directly to Tabitha providing Cambodian families with a steady income. Read more about Tabitha in our latest issue of nest.

Egg-straordinary Hot Summer Sale @ Egg3
33 Erskine Road
Now till 21st April

The Egg3 sale is on now! Enjoy discounts up to 60% on selected intems including home accessories, fashion, bags, shoes, and necklaces.

Cloth by Julie Paterson @ Momentous Art Gallery
20 Lor Telok (off Boat Quay), #02-01
20th April - 6th May
www.clothfabric.com

Part of the Art & About Australian Art Festival, Cloth showcases Australian designer Julie Paterson's screen printed fabric collections. Visit Julie's website for more details.

Furniture Design Showcase @ The National Museum of Singapore
Concourse, 93 Stamford Road
6th May - 1st July

FDS showcases the works of the Furniture Design Award (FDA) 2007 finalists and winners the 3rd Furniture Lifestyle Innovations Perspective (FL!P) Challenge. Hop on down if you need a little inspiration.

Pork & Sons at Pantry Magic

Stephane Reynaud's Pork & Sons (Phaidon Press) now available at Pantry Magic! Big YAY!

For those who haven't heard of this wonderful cookbook, it contains 150 simple yet original recipes for, you guessed it, cooking pork. The book includes recipes for Warm Sausage and Puy Lentil Salad with herb Marinade, Proscuitto Arugula and Parmesan Crostini, Parfait of Pig's Liver and Muscatel...(you get our drift) accompanied by mouth-watering photographs.

Stephane hails from a long line of butchers in rural France and co-owns the acclaimed restaurant Villa 9 Trois, so you can be sure your directions for dinner are in good hands.

Mondo Trasho

My favourite pieces from Mondo Trasho, an Australian-based furniture shop specialising in rare vintage finds. If you're ever in Abbotsford, Victoria, stop by the shop to view their extensive range of pre-loved furniture.

For product information, email: contact@mondotrasho.com.au

Mondo Trasho
387 Johnston Street
Abbotsford, Victoria 3067
Australia

Bholu

I can't say how much i love these journals by Australian designer Jodie Fried. I'm one of those tactile people, so i really dig the textures on these.

Jodie believes in creating products that benefit people along the way so her Bholu label works closely with traditional Gujarati women artisans from the remote desert communities of western Gujarat, empowering these women with a chance to earn their own keep, and eventually, their independence.

Bholu offers a beautiful range of journals like these, along with cushions, throws, slippers, and even soft toys for children, all made from felt with silk hand embroidery stitching.

They stock mainly in Australia, but welcome all overseas enquiries. If you like them just as much as we do, click on www.bholu.com

Thanks Jodie!

Pass the salt, please!

Sorry for the lack of updates! We've been up to our ears with shoots and stories. The usual mad rush before going to print.

I stumbled upon these retro-inspired Salt & Playtime shakers from perpetual kid while scouring the web for products to feature in our WIRE section and what can i say, they're absolutely adorable! These building blocks are hand-formed from hardwood maple and then screenprinted and finished to perfection.

OMA in Singapore

Hot on the heels of Moshe Safdie's integrated resort in Sentosa, another world acclaimed architecture firm is set to leave its permanent mark on Singapore's skyline with a 36-storey residential high-rise in the heart of the city.

Pritzker Prize winning Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas and his firm OMA (Office of Metropolitan Architects) have inked an agreement with Far East Organisation to design the 153 metre tall tower that will be located at the intersection of Scotts Road and Cairnhill Road. Four individual floating towers providing for 68 apartment units are suspended from a central core, granting each unit the best possible views of the city while freeing up the ground level for communal use.

When it comes to architecture, both residential and commercial, we really haven't got much to scream and shout about (the Esplanade is a note of contention, and our few remaining mid-century buildings have all been earmarked for redevelopment), so this seriously forward thinking high-end condo is really something else.

First Safdie, now Koolhaas, could Singapore really be the next hotbed of starchitecture?

Weng Fen

I can't get over how hauntingly beautiful these photographs are. They are taken by Weng Fen, an artist from Hainan Island, who's projects usually feature figures with their backs to the camera, staring (wistfully, perhaps?) out over the landscape.

To view more of Weng Fen's works, visit his Artnet site or his personal webpage.

via Heading East

Anthony Dickens

Don't get me wrong, Anthony Dickens' Origami coffee table (via pan-dan) is brilliant in its own right, but it recalls a little bit of that Noguchi aesthetic don't you think?
Coffee table by Isamu Noguchi. Manufactured by Herman Miller.

Karim Rashid Clicquot Loveseat

So Karim Rashid was in town the other day to unveil the curvaceous Loveseat for Veuve Clicquot at the National Museum of Singapore. Typically Rashid, the flamboyant bright pink loveseat consists of two opposite facing chairs joined in the centre by a pedestal with a Clicqout ice bucket. If you ever needed a reason to drink, this is probably it.

Andre the artist

We were absolutely thrilled to receive an email from Adrienne at Air Division telling us about an extremely talented up-and-coming artist from Singapore called Andre.

Trained at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), Andre mixes conventional Pop Art with new mediums such as spray paint, texilac, and acrylic on printed fabric, plastic, and wood to create some of the most vibrant and exciting artwork we've ever seen.

Andre's work is also currently on sale at Air Division.

Location details:
Air - 9 Penang Road, #01-18, Park Mall (tel: 6352 7307)
Funktion - 11 Changi South Street 3, #01-02, Builders Design Centre (tel: 6542 4566)

Husque homewares

Marc Harrison is a designer from Australia. He heads design studio Husque which currently produces a range of recycled macadamia shell homewares. Marc first grinds the waste shell, then moulds each shape by hand.

Marc's currently on the lookout for potential retail outlets in Singapore so pop by RSVP Australia at Raffles City to view his collection (until 18th march).

Enquiries can also be made to Jay at Curiosity: jaychong@sagesse7.com / 6334 6022

excuse our tardiness...

Things have been a little hectic in the office, so we hope you'll forgive us for the lack of updates!

The latest issue of nest. should hit our distribution points pretty soon, so look out for that.

I promise i'll be back later tonight (okay, okay tommorow night..possibly) with something more substantial, but for now you can feast your eyes out at our newfound friends Enqi and Pixin's online boutique, Maki Squarepatch.


They've got a really cool collection of homespun goods, like bags, blankets, and soft toys, that are all made from recycled materials. You can read more about them in our new issue.

We would also like to say a big hello and thank you to fellow design fiend/blogger imedaGoze for the lovely shoutout on her blog as well as the guys at The Home Rejuvenation (check out their blog for really cool before and after shots of newly "rejuvenated" homes)

Festive oranges from Forest & Trees

Celebrate the Lunar New Year with a little punch and pizazz! Over at Mandarin Gallery, Forest & Trees take matters into their own hands with these festive hand decorated baskets. Each basket contains either 12 or 16 auspicious oranges and 8 red packets for good luck. If you're hoping to impress some potential in-laws, this one will be a shoe in.

$38 for 12, $48 for 16