Shop Stop: Things to Make and Do

We found our happy place in Bangkok and it's Things to Make and Do. Long time fans of their Instagram page, this store was on our must-finally-visit list while we were in town. Located a distance away from the city centre, it is recommended to set off early, around 10 or 11, to avoid any rush hour traffic.

Find many European designs for clean and minimalistic home goods here, mostly from Norway and Sweden. The products have a recurring theme of blacks, whites, wood, with an intermingling of some greys and graphic patterns. This very photogenic shop featuring many online favourites which you will be able to get your hands on. We spent quite abit of time here looking through every shelf and wall of pretty items, but I mean how often do we find ourselves in Bangkok. 

The store is just slightly over 2 years old and has a massive online following on both Facebook and Instagram.. undoubtedly from their daily postings of items everyone would want in their homes. 

Things to Make and Do is located at The Bloc, surrounded by an ice cream shop, cafe and restaurant - perfect location to shop and eat till your hearts (and tummy's) content. The store features a collection of items she personally enjoys.

.. Things to Make and Do 

Hit the Sack: Tenface Bangkok

Continuing on from our post about our 24 hours in Bangkok .. After hearing many rave reviews about Tenface we decided to go ahead and book our accommodations.. we were definitely not disappointed. Friendly staff, clean hotel.. it had a really quirky vibe with hanging decor and animals along the hallways. 

The hotel has a lot of facilities for guests who like to spend their time lounging in the hotel.. you can use the gym, pool, there's even a bar area. It's not a big hotel but it's nice and cosy, perfect for travellers who appreciate design and for people looking for accommodation during a short stay.

You enter the hotel through the basement and have to take a lift to the first floor where you can check-it. It is the same floor where you can find all the amenities and it's also where you go in the morning for breakfast. Everything you need can be found on this floor of the hotel, which makes it incredibly convenient.

Tenface is located a distance away from the main road. You have to drive or walk a short distance through a back alley to get to the hotel, but the walk is an enjoyable one as you will pass restaurants and a gallery that had illustrations on its facade. Pretty interesting sights to stroll pass on your way back. Though the alley does get kind of dark in the night and we would suggest walking in pairs or taking transport back. Tuk tuk is always a great option - fast and affordable!

.. Tenface

Table for 1: Eenmaal

Have you ever had a meal in a restaurant alone? It's something that has been touched on pop culture, namely the scene from Friends where Rachel eats alone and the cute doctor thinks she's a freak.. why is that though? The stigma of eating alone is crushed by Eenmaal - the first one-person pop-up restaurant in the world, a great place for a meal and for temporary disconnect. 

Having a meal is a very common practise for people to meet up and chat and get to know each other over, but having a meal alone every once in awhile can make for great me-time and also allow you enjoy the food thoroughly instead of getting lost in conversation. The experience would probably start out feeling kind of odd but I think when you see all the other individuals around you having a great time and that no one is staring at you and wondering why you are alone, you'll feel right at home.

Image credits: Eenmaal

.. Eenmaal

Trisha Travels: Around Berlin

Don't you like reading city guides? For us, city guides are a joy to flip through because even if it were a guide to a city we have lived in, we love seeing it from a different perspective and seeing how other people, whether tourists or locals, see the city. Here we have Trisha Toh, who hails from Malaysia, sharing with us a few spots she visited while she traveled around Europe.

Along with the two other cities Trisha visited, Berlin was another must-visit. We're sure this will whet your appetite for the city of Berlin. The next step is to book your tickets there but of course there is plenty of time for that after your go through the city guide. We are awestruck by the architecture, the cafes, the culture and of course much more that the city has to offer. 

Follow along with Trisha's European journey in the Bloesem Gazette " The Conversation Issue". 

To read the other city guides in this series: London & Barcelona

More places you should visit while in Berlin after the cut..

Craving Caffeine  

Zeit fur Brot

There seems to be a revival of ordering sweet pastries when having coffee in Berlin and this place tops the chart for unbeatable cinnamon buns. Baked fresh daily, they come in different seasonal flavours such as almond-marzipan, cherry, walnut-maple, poppyseed, chocolate and white chocolate just to name a few. 

Alte Schönhauser Straße 4

The Barn Roastery 

Once made headlines for enforcing a ban on baby strollers, milk in coffee and sugar, The Barn is no ordinary café. With a strict passion for good coffee, this is one of Berlin’s best places to learn and taste amazing coffee.

Schönhauser Allee 8

Westberlin

Quietly situated right around the corner of Checkpoint Charlie, westberlin is a great place to run from tourists hogging up the streets of Friedrichstraße. Loved by locals for years, the café offers a beautiful setting for work and casual meet-ups over a good cup of coffee and independent magazines from around the world.

Friedrichstraße 215

Suicide Sue

In the northern part of Prenzlauer Berg lays a quaint little café with a moniker of a (fictional) fearsome Asian assassin who turned her hand to baking biscuits and making open-faced sandwiches, making Suicide Sue highly favourable during breakfast and lunch times. True story.

Dunckerstraße 2

Roamers

This timber and succulent-filled café draws customers from all over the city who come for comfort food basics lovingly prepared by truly attentive owners with a penchant for wholesome, balanced living. When it’s available, their homemade carrot cake is worth the calories.

Pannierstrasse 64

 Arts & Culture 

Jacob-und-Wilhelm-Grimm-Zentrum

The University Library of Humboldt-Universität was designed by Berlin-based Swiss architect, Max Dudler. Inside, visitors will encounter a big reading hall which is illuminated by natural roof light and contains green desks and lamps with stone covers for 250 people.

Geschwister-Scholl-Straße 3

Tempodrom

A cultural and visionary arena that was once a small circus tent is one of Berlin’s most remarkable constructions of recent years.

Möckernstraße 10

Berlin Tempelhof Airport

The former Tempelhof airport is now a public park, much to the delight of the people of Berlin. Today, the area is used for various activities by families and visitors.

Shop Stops 

Silo Store

A concept store offering design products that are made by various designers in Spain.

Senefelderstraße 33

Paper & Tea

P & T is a specialty tea company founded in Berlin. It offers a multi-sensory experience in which customers can see, smell and taste dozens of varieties arranged in little bowls at the sleek and minimalistic gallery.

Alte Schönhauser Straße 50

Gestalten Space

Berlin’s leading design and architecture publisher has a flagship store offering the imprint’s own publications along with a well curated selection of book titles, toys and products by designer and artists around the world.

Sophienstraße 21

Festivals and Festivities

Fête de la Musique

Berliners celebrate the beginning of summer with an open air music festival originally founded in France. It is celebrated every year on the 21st of June.

Festival of Lights

Every year, Berlin’s world famous landmarks in the city centre become the canvas for spectacular light and video projections for a number of days. Art functions and events will also take place during the Festival.

Images courtesy of Trisha Toh.

.. Trisha Toh
.. Read the Bloesem Gazette " The Conversation Issue"

Back from Amsterdam

After a whirlwind 1o day trip to Amsterdam I am home! Definitely an unforgettable trip... not only was it my first time in Europe, it was also our first Bloesem Class that has taken place outside of Singapore. 

Together with Trisha Toh (our #instafood teacher), I spent 4 days meeting amazing students (who feel more like friends now) and sharing the joy of food styling and photography.. and whenever we were not teaching, we were exploring hotspots around town.. so look forward to some posts on that! We had to also visit cafes of course, treats for me and coffee for Trisha. 

So here are some snaps I thought I'd share of the trip... hopefully not giving away too much.. just a hint of what's to come..

Xo, Zara 

 

Yummy Stach chocolate eggs that were part of our Bloesem class goody bag. Have you tried poppy seeds in chocolate? They're delicious!

Just walking around town.. exploring..

Catering for the class was done by the 2 ladies behind Cousine - they're cousins so Cousine... get it? It's so smart, just love the name.

Shop stops to come.. this city is full of amazing shops. Everyone we met had their own list of reccomendations, which was incredibly helpful but it also met feeling slightly disappointed that we could not squeeze in everything on the list, but I think we ended up pretty much covering most of the spots.

And I'll end this off with this cutie who stole my heart..

All images by Zara Salahuddin

Afterhours Taipei

Welcoming our newest contributor Adinda of Wolves Table.. we are lucky to have her as our Taipei correspondent, sharing with us all the hidden gems and bringing us around her neighbourhood. Thank you Adinda for the beautiful first post and we look forward to many more.. of course in the mean time, her instagram is the place to go for more eye candy!

Taipei is the Queen (King?) of hidden cafes and tiny back alleys filled with 'secret' restaurants. If you stay here for a couple of days and only go where the crowds are going, you'll probably miss all the gems. Heck, if you don't speak Mandarin you'll probably never find it unless you accidentally bumped into one just by randomly passing by.

I know this because I've lived in Taipei for almost two years already and i'm still discovering new places to go, eat or hang. Places that are located in streets where I passed by a million times, but apparently never took that one left or right turn to find that one place. Kinda frustrating. But it also makes a wander through the city super adventurous.

Today i'd like to take you to this place called Afterhours. It's a popular place among people in the neighborhood. It's a cafe that offers a selection of tea, coffee, desserts, bagels, soups but also some Japanese interior goods. The left side of the cafe is dedicated to Japanese plates, pots and some cutlery. The right side is where you can find the seating area, Japanese, Korean and Taiwanese magazines for reading and where you can eat, drink, do some work or just relax.

.. Wolves Table
.. Afterhours