Weekend Wind Down

One of my favourite weekend activities is to bake something. There's nothing quite like curling up on a Sunday afternoon to watch a movie, read a book or just have some friends over and enjoy the fresh baked smell of a cake, some muffins or cookies - not to mention actually eating them.

I have decided to share my weekly baking adventures...let me know what you think.

Double Chocolate Cookies

I made these as a quick greeting gift for someone - and I really mean quick. 10 minutes to prepare, 8 minutes to cook, 5 minutes to cool and you're basically done.

Ingredients:
250g of good dark chocolate in pieces
250g of unsalted butter cubed
3/4 cup of brown sugar
1 egg
1 1/4 cups of plain flour
1 tsp of baking powder

Preheat the oven to 180*C.
Melt the chocolate and butter over a double boiler (or if you're in a hurry like me, just pop it in the microwave and check the mixture after two intervals of 40 seconds).
In a separate bowl, box the egg and the brown sugar until well combined. Add the chocolate mixture and mix well.
In another bowl, combine the flour and baking powder then add to the chocolate/egg/sugar bowl.
Once everything is well combined, put in the fridge to chill for ideally 20 minutes (or 5 minutes in the freezer if you're impatient like me).
Prepare two baking sheets with grease-proof paper and using a teaspoon, roll small balls of the dough 5 cm apart from eachother.
Cook for 7-10 minutes depending on how strong your oven is.
Once the cookies have cooked and cooled (and they will not be very firm straight out of the oven - they need to cool for a good 5 minutes), dip half of each cookie in the chocolate of your choice and let set.

A fool-proof way to impress.

Up Up Down Under

Most of you would not know that over the past year I have decided to pursue two of my favourite things:

The first is to spend even more hours on the phone with my mother, and the second is to work in design - interior design, that is. 

Since joining my mother's side - we have worked on projects all around the world, from Morocco to Bahrain, and Russia to just down the road here in Sydney.

Here is a look at our first cover story here in Australia which came out in January of this year which features a beautiful home we decorated in London. (INSITE - SUMMER 09/10)

It's Been A While...

...But for real - we're back.

We've been busy for the past few months and have some exciting things in store.

Call It Hibernation

...we're now out of our winter slumber and back ready to go.

Watch this space for new and exciting posts.

Get the Picture?

It is amazing what can be done when the old world decides to propel itself into the 21st century. We see modern remakes of classic films (i.e. The Pink Panther, Pride and Prejudice, etc.), fashion movements from the 1970's and 80's making a come back (oh joy), and even musical legends being transformed into radio hits all thanks to remixing.

La Fondation Cartier - the contemporary art foundation and cultural arm of the famous French jeweler, has done just that - and not in a small way. The Fondation has turned its iconic building in the heart of Paris, as well as its garden into a living exhibition - a dedication to urban art - graffiti.

Opened on the 7th of July and extending until the end of November, "Ne dans la rue - Graffiti" (which literally translates to "Born in the street - Graffiti") has ignited vast amounts of interest and surprise by elevating the mostly illegal practice to the ranks of art. 

Born in the streets of New York in the 1970's, graffiti has very quickly become a global phenomenon, found in the streets of most cities around the world, and each unique to the artist.

The exhibition, according to la Fondation Cartier, is an attempt to define the realm of graffiti all while fully accepting its highly dynamic and volatile nature and encouraging the public to look at the urban world differently.

I'm sold, yo. 

http://fondationcartier.org

A Marvel of Engineering

When you think of Marc Newson, what comes to mind first? His work with Philippe Stark? His design of the Qantas First Class lounge in Sydney? Whatever your answer may be, I'll bet it wasn't his jewelry.

 

Adding to his already extensive list of creations and extraordinary designs, Marc Newson and the iconic French jeweler Boucheron collaborated on this one piece - a giant diamond necklace. 

Referred to as a "Big Bang of diamonds" by none other than Karl Lagerfeld's muse, Lady Amanda Harlech, the work of art is almost a greater feat of engineering, if anything. 

The necklace itself is a combination of diamonds and sapphires that look like a series of fireworks, but what is even more amazing is that the shape is actually based on fractal theory. Newson plays with the notion of shapes and similarities in nature comparing the fundamental shapes in his necklace to those found in broccoli or the romanesco. 

Vegetables and mathematics aside, this necklace is truly breathtaking both for its physical beauty but also for its extraordinary inspiration.

This simply confirms what I've been saying all along - buying jewelry is a perfectly natural thing. 

If the Shoe Fits...

I guess charity is on my mind these days, because I have yet another philanthropic outlet I would like to share with you.

Blake Mycoskie is the founder of a company called TOMS Shoes - and the premise is simple: for every pair of shoes you buy, they will donate a pair of shoes to a child in need. 

This started in 2006 when Blake traveled to Argentina and found that many children he had befriended had no shoes for protection. Since its inception, TOMS has donated over 140,000 pairs of shoes and the number is growing. 

If that's not enough of a good reason to take a look at TOMS, do it for the Gilligan-esque espadrilles which are seen on the pages of many glossy magazines these days. They come in a wide array of colours, will hardly burn in a hole in your pocket, and look great with a pair of shorts and a tunic.

 

Looking good and feeling good all at the same time.

www.tomsshoes.com