The venue where I have been going for my twice-weekly training sessions just happens to have a thrift shop, which is open for four hours a day. Whenever I can, I’ll make an effort to check out the shop during our ridiculously short lunch hours, just to see what treasures there are in that tiny little space.

I had spied a vintage turquoise suitcase going for $2 one afternoon. Silly me decided to deliberate about it (ie. post my dilemma on Twitter and expect some answers from my Twiends) and by the time I had made up my mind (BUY!), the shop had closed. And when I went back the week after, it was gone.

Lesson: NEVER think about vintage purchases – JUST BUY.

Anyway, one brief trip to the shop last week found me lugging this gorgeous set back into the training room. All my coursemates were amazed, they could not believe that I had actually bought something at the thrift shop. Heck, not all of them knew of the thrift shop to begin with.

Tea and scones for you, m'lady?

I was immediately captivated by a horrendous BIG pink prom dress and this elegant set of teacups. I didn’t buy the dress because it was just too ugly (even I have ugly limits) but how elegant are those rose prints? I feel all English already. Except these said “made in China”. Nobody does fake English like the Chinese.

English breakfast tea?

There are four very dainty teacups with matching saucers and lids. And by dainty, I mean, TINY. I could probably finish my tea in two big gulps. Which, of course, means that husband won’t be using it anytime soon. He’ll probably burp and cause the cups to break or something.

So that leaves me with a dilemma: should I store these away for use when I have girly guests over? Or should I just pretty them up and stick them into the display cabinet for…display?

Any girly person wants to come over for some tea soon? :)

Once more with vintage tint

I had a tough two weeks at work recently, when my boss went home on emergency leave and I had to cover her duties. On the second Friday of her absence, when I had to get to the TV studio at 715am to accompany one of the worldwide CEOs for a live interview, I was so tired that I asked to leave work early.

She, being a wonderful boss, of course said yes and I immediately knew where I wanted to go: k-ki and The Little Drom Store. Two stores under one roof, the former sells Japanese style cakes and pastries (“k ki” is Japanese for cake) while the latter is a wonderful trove of knick knacks.

k-ki is a tiny hangout place in comparison to the bigger coffee chains. There were probably only five tables in the air-conditioned store and on the Friday afternoon that I was there, all the tables were full. I had to settle for the outdoor bench, which was fine since the weather was cool due to the recent drizzle.

But the interior decor would probably appeal to those who are fans of Muji (me! me! me!). It’s minimalist with lots of sunlight, beautiful curves and use of light coloured wood. In fact, it could very well have been torn out from the pages of a Japanese interior decoration magazine.

The cake selection was interesting – there were mango mousse, white chocolate cakes and a delightfully light cheesecake souffle ($5.50) which I had. The teas were Gryphon and cost about $4 per pot, which was pretty decent. The service staff was amazing – they offered me ice water, apologized for not doing so earlier when I asked to add more hot water to the empty teapot and smiled and waved goodbye when I left.

Tea and cheesecake

On the other side of the shop is The Little Drom Store. If you love whimsical, vintage little knick knacks the way I do, then please fly down to the store. It’s stocked with gems like vintage glasses, old cameras, limited edition prints and picture books. I wanted to buy everything!

I decided to rein in my impulse though, because I kept thinking that I would end up being like Carrie, the (Fendi) bag lady, except I would be Yann the (vintage) knick knack girl. Instead, I went home only with a tissue holder made of the retro Good Morning towels. Oh, and a roll of expired film too, which I am excited! about.

I didn’t bring my camera out that day but I shall leave you with those lovely pictures from the flickr stream of The Little Drom Store.

Goodies in The Little Drom Store

Look at this stuff, isn't it neat?

k-ki/The Little Drom Store
7 Ann Siang Hill

Oh yes, that trip to Tokyo. It didn’t happen too long ago, perhaps in October last year? Bear me with me, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, I promise you.

We were on our way to Asakusa Shrine, which was sort of fun but not great. After going to Kyoto and seeing those shrines, Asakusa feels like a touristy trap.

I’ve been very into stripes recently, I think it’s an aftereffect of watching Coco Avant Chanel. In one of the scenes, Audrey Tautou was wearing a white and black striped long sleeved tee with pants and boy, did she look classy.

Photo was taken by husband and I look like I needed sleep. But then again, I always look like that. Heh.

I know…Tokyo was so last year. But I haven’t finished writing about my trip yet! I’m currently holed up at home due to the debilitating UTI so hopefully I can sit still enough to churn out everything.

(Yes, it has struck again and I now have brightly coloured pee…or is that TMI?)

Dress & Tights - Topshop; Boots - From Taiwan; Bag - Marc by Marc Jacobs

This was taken on our third day in Tokyo. We were on our way to the beautiful Meiji Shrine and boy, was the sun shining that day! I didn’t even need a jacket.

We were going to hit the trendy Harajuku/Omotesando area after that so I didn’t want to look dowdy next to the fashionably forward Japanese. You can’t really see from the photo but the dress has tiny prints of anchors and makes me feel like a sailor girl.

We didn’t buy much though – I was feeling the pinch and things were pretty pricey. But I did score a funky Balmain-esque dress with the big shoulder pads from H&M which I haven’t worn. I’ll probably be teased mercilessly by my friends when I wear it – I’ve been called “Christmas tree” a lot – but I don’t really care.

And as always, the photo was taken by husband.

One of the sites that I visit regularly is etsy. It’s like a treasure trove of all things beautiful, hand crafted and vintage. Things that I never knew existed or needed – like the helvetica acrylic jewellery – suddenly turned into things that I absolutely craved.

A great find that popped up today was One Garnet Girl. Her work caught my eye because they are so gorgeously hand made and elegantly simple. She hand carves the metal and best of all, she is environmentally conscious and uses recycled materials as much as possible. I love how “raw” the pieces are.

Red light ring, $128 (I so want one of these cos it's my birth stone!)

Blue Topaz and Argentium Sterling, $188 - Love the chunky feel to this ring

London Hue Stacking rings, $106 - Beautifully seamless