Bob Bob Ricard

I totally forgot to tell you about this place ....

Such a great vibe, good service and delightful menu ... not to mention the 'press for champagne' button and the cocktail list ...

The photos say it all ...

 (I think I quite like to have my birthday party here)

Tuna Cappacio Nicoise Salad

'BBR Beef Tea Soup'

... with the little 'B and R's'

Cornish Crab Cake with tomato, leek and pan-fried quail egg

Roast Belly of Suckling Pork

Lobster & Crab Linguine

.... yes indeed!


For more details: http://www.bobbobricard.com/

London Design Week 2011

... I almost forgotten how much I love being around fabrics!

It's been almost 4 years since my post as a designer at the delightful Bangkok-based 'Beyond Living' (www.beyond-living.com)

A few days ago I re-emerged in the textile circle again, but this time, in London and just in time for the kick-off of London Design Week 2011.

Currently based at Fox Linton, working for Jim Thompson, I have been having such an amazing time being around interior designers, decorator and textile enthusiasts! 

We have just launched the new collection for 2011 in the UK entitled: 'The Rite of Spring' aimed to entertain and delight you with new designs and textures. 

With this collection, the design team has taken a dramatic leap forward without losing any of the characteristics that make Jim Thompson silk so unique.

Please see our new display and some of the enthralling pieces from the collection below ...

 

A VISUAL JOURNAL .. found during a mini spring clean session

Can you believe it's already March? Spring is indeed approaching fast! 

I was on Twitter this morning and 'Country Living' magazine tweeted ...

It got me thinking ... and I ended up being horrified at the thought of the first thing that came to my mind - "Spring cleaning"! Surely that can't be the first thing that enters people's mind? (Are there anyone out there as insane as I am?)

The ugly truth is ... I actually enjoy uncluttering, tidying, hovering and 'Spring' is just a mere excuse! I always feel overwhelmed with a sense of control when I clean!

I have always been a bit anal (pardon the choice of word) when it comes to my living space; books has to be stacked neatly and towel hanged with military-tidy precision. However, most recently at the request of my little sister (who I live with), gave my alter-ego a little vacation. It feels good to be 'out of control' once in a long while and now, living with the consequences, I find myself rummaging through piles of laundry that I have not put away, magazine cuttings, and a bag that is 20% unpacked since my last trip to Turkey a month ago! 

Before I digress from the topic of spring cleaning, which, by the way, I started today by clearing and organising files and folder on my laptop and in doing so, I came across my pride and joy which I have forgotten to mention in my previous posts.  

"Visual Journal" ... is what I called it - fragments of memories, space and time during my adventures last year - all photographed, designed and arranged by me into a funky little calendar for family and friends as a New Year gift for 2011 (yes, New Year gift, a tradition in Thailand as we Buddhist don't celebrate Christmas quite like any other nations!)

These are photos from my trips to Turkey, Laos, Hong Kong, Thailand and a bit of London in 2010.

A very different but invirgorating outdoor walk

I'm not a morning person and those who know me will be able to tell you of what a 'joy' it is to drag me out of bed!

Only a few rare things will stir me from my nightly slumbers; freshly brewed coffee, breakfast in bed, snowboarding on fresh powered snow and this morning ... knowing I was going on a little but longed for adventure.

I have been reading Kirstie Allsopp's "Homemade Home" and fell in love with the thought of getting lost in and rummaging through outdoor treasure trove filled with vintage, second-hand furniture and decorative delights .

Yes, my little "adventure" was to an antique market (some of you might be thinking: 'antique market', hardly an adventure?!?) but let me tell you, for someone whose most vivid memory of antique market resembles that of a car boot sale at a certain prep school in Eastbourne back in 1995, Sunbury Antique Market at Kempton Racecourse was ... invigoratingly inspiring!

I didn't go there to buy anything in particular but, a while back I took a Masterclass Interior Design course with Kelly Hoppen and she mentioned that this is one of the most enthralling playground for interior designers as well as antique enthusiasts.(Don't get me wrong, I don't watch Antique Roadshow in my spare time ...)

Sunbury Antique Market is one of UK's longest-running bi-monthly antique markets that has a certain Guy Ritchie's film vibes about it. 

Sadly today I didn't arrived until 11am and most vendors were already packing up for the day (considering they started at the crack of dawn). Even so, I got to meet Craig who supply Jack Will stores with his school/laboratory-esque pieces and seen some wonderful things that will make Aladdin green with envy because his treasure cave didn't stock them! 

Like all experiences, you have to go through yourself in order to know if you'd enjoy it or not, but I can tell you, I will definitely be back for more ...

Check out a my first visual account of this adventure:

BEEN FEELING A BIT CRAFTY

So they say, being creative isn't always about making a tangible object but my idle hands wouldn't have it any other way.

I have always been proud of the fact that I taught myself a lot of crafts through readings and deciphering some very confusing diagrams. And here is my most recent work .... only because I felt guilty being a couch potato lately!

and a little bit of Mersin

 

A mini adventure with Jan on the Mersin Coast in Turkey. 

Une vie Parisiene ...

 

These snapshots were taken while I was in Paris earlier this January for Maison & Objet