Bubble Bowl Floral Design

This Friday's design boasts beautiful blooms and a fun vase to boot.

I'm loving this round and bubbly shape.

Ashley says:

I'm kinda obsessed with these bubble bowls!  They give a contemporary vibe to even the most garden-y selection of flowers, such as these.  Featured in this pastel beauty are locally grown and very unusual green-eyed yellow ranunculus, "sweet unique" pink roses, white calla lily, and a few hawaiian coral peonies.  The look is finished with light blue delphinium peaking out between the blooms.   

I love the color combo of the bright coral and yellow with the muted blue hue of the delphinium; it softens the cheery brights with something more subtle and delicate.  

Those two-toned ranunculus are so interesting!  It's hard to believe they're actually ranunculus!

Thanks, as always, Ashley!

Have a great weekend!

Cookie Baking Tips

I made those awesome chocolate chip cookies again.  I soon found out that this recipe is actually the Jacques Torres adaptation recipe that was posted in the NYT several years ago.

Oh gosh... the real Jacques Torres chocolate chip cookie.... aka the BEST, unrivaled cookie out there!  This recipe combined with the excess quantities of Jacques Torres chocolate.... all is right in the world.  I used to work a block from the Jacques Torres in Soho; stopping by for a cookie on my walk home would make even the crappiest days better.

Anyhow, I thought I'd put together a few of my own cookie baking tips.  Not that these are anything new or mind blowing... however here they are, just a few things I always do:

1.  Make sure you're measuring your flour correctly.  The most accurate way is to weigh it but if you don't have a scale, and are using cups--- spoon the flour into the cup and then level off with a knife.  If you're dipping your cup into the flour and scooping-- chances are, you're packing the flour.

2.  Use parchment paper.  I'm not fancy enough yet for Silpats, so until then Reynolds parchment paper is my champ.  You can use the same sheet of parchment for baking your entire batch, or even for later uses.  Parchment makes a huge difference!

3.  Use an ice cream scoop.  Actually, not the typical ice cream scoop... more like the kind that lunch ladys would use to scoop and dish out mashed potatoes.  Using a scoop like this, you can help ensure uniform size and give your cookie that perfect round shape.  I like the large size best.

4.  Rest and Cool.  I always let my cookies sit for 1-2 minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack.  I used to just lay out paper towels.  But since I bought a cooling rack, I'll never go back.

5.  If you have a finicky oven like I do... do a test run with 1-2 cookies on the cookie sheet.  Once you know you have the perfect oven temp and cooking time, you can start baking more at a time without worrying you're ruining half the batch.

My favorite way to give cookies as a gift is right in a cookie jar.  The classic glass jar with a ribbon tied around top.  I used to buy these medium sized ones at Target a while back for under $10.  I wonder if they still sell them regularly??  Still trying to find something like this (at a decent price) here in Korea.

Party Goods

I've noticed it isn't as easy to pick up party goods at your local stores; stuff of the non-tacky variety at least.  You can easily find a few different child themed (e.g. Mickey Mouse, Pororo, Hello Kitty etc) napkins, plates and balloons at your nearest Lotte Mart or Home Plus.

But if you're looking for something a little more plain or not so in-your-face party ware, your best bet might be to shop online.  I poked around Gmarket because I think its one site most foreigners are best familiar with.

I found some pretty cute stuff!  As far as paper party products go... Since they are all so neutral in design, they can be used for all sorts of parties.

Paper cups.  These come in a few different colors and a few different variations.  But I loved the classic stripes the best.

Paper napkins.  Again, they have a few different varieties, but I liked the checked and polka dots the best.  

Also these paper napkins with the gold-ish flower details.

And lastly, these adorable wooden utensils that are perfect for parties and picnics.  Forks, knives and spoons are sold separately; for just 2,300 won for a pack of 10. 

If you're looking for more party items, a good place to start is with gmarket and the search term: 파티 데코.  You'll find a whole bunch of things!  Also, other party decorations here.  

Affordable Book Shelves (In Korea)

If you live here in Korea and have big blank walls, little storage space, and lots of stuff...... a large shelving unit might solve your problems.

You know, if your stuff is just piling on the floor like this:

*shudder*

I'll be looking to purchase something a large bookshelf when I move at the end of the year so I did a little browsing now.

Since I've seen shelves that stand not even 3ft. tall at Lotte Mart for 60,000, I thought for sure, something of the size I'm looking for would be outrageous.

But as it turns out ... I found a few affordable options.

#1  Casamia- Moda 1200 Book shelf (까사미아 까사온 모다 1200책장)  
** I wrote about my trip to Casamia here, and after looking online I realized that there are other outlets that sell Casamia brand stuff at cheaper prices.

This style comes in 2 sizes:  The price for the large size (3 x 5 unit) is about 123,000 won plus shipping.  This is roughly 4ft x 6.5 ft.  The smaller size (2x5 unit) is about 110,000 won.  They offer it in 3 different colors.

The furniture looks nice and sturdy.  In addition to these two pieces, they also sell units that are 3x3, and 4x3 for around 100,000 each.  All in all though, I think the greatest deal is the large size.  It'll give plenty of room for storage (just add a few baskets), house your books and other knick knacks, plus take up some of that empty wall space.  

Up close

After that find, I was even more surprised to find this one:

#2  Sangil River Bookshelf:  Again about 4ft x 6.5 ft.

It is the exact same size as the previous one except more than half the price!  54,900 won!  I'm really trying to figure out if there is something I'm missing because it seems too good to be true.... **update:  my boyfriend read their reviews and they were all positive, so maybe it really is a great option**

The only thing I notice right off the bat is that this company offers only 2 color options and both options aren't solid colors.  Above you see mostly white with oak and below is the other option, mostly oak with white.

2nd color option

I prefer a solid color throughout but I'm not sure if paying more than double would truly deter me from a few mismatched boards.  And like Casamia, this brand also sells shelf units in many sizes:  2x5 for 49,900 won.  Also this style:

and this one

I'm going to have someone who is more capable at reading Korean look at the details of these pieces but from what I can tell so far.... this is pretty freaking good!

I'd definitely be willing to pay under 60,000 for such a large and functional piece of furniture that will make a big impact.

If you've ever purchased big wall unit shelving like this in Korea, I'd be really curious to know where you got it from, how much it was and what the quality was like.

Pretty in Pink

It's Friday.  (finally!)  That means I have some pretty flowers to post.  

This week, Ashley's design sits in a pretty, white-washed ceramic pot.  Doesn't it give off the perfect spring cottage garden vibe?

There's a lot of pink blooming here but it's beautifully balanced out with lush pittosporum (the bright green leafy things) and the leaves I'll never tire of, dusty miller (those soft, minty-grey things).  

As for the pink stuff...  Coral charm peonies that have yet to fully bloom, two types of lilies: a standard pink lily and a purplish calla lily (cone-ish shaped ones).  And lastly, some hot pink spray roses.  Spray roses differ from regular roses in that they have much smaller heads and have about 3-4 blooms on one stem.  I guess you could call them mini roses?  

Okay, here's the recipe sheet:

Pretty in pink, right??

And of course, without the talent of my dear Ashley, this post wouldn't be possible.  So a huge thank you to her and check out (or follow) more of her pretty creations here.  

Happy Friday!  Go buy some fresh flowers!

Pretty Paper Poufs!

In the past year or so, these paper pom poms exploded all over parties, dessert tables and even nurseries.  It's obvious why; they're fun, delicate, whimsy and just plain pretty. (1, 2, 3, 4)

After a little web surfing, I found the best deals on where you can get these paper delicacies here in Korea.  I found them at various specialty stores, like 10x10, but they were more expensive.

The best deal I came across was on Gmarket.  I found 3 great varieties.

#1 The Classic Tissue Paper Pom Pom Pouf:

Gmarket sold these in so many colors.  (Link here)This particular shop sold them in sets.  Each set contains 6 poufs , consisting of 3 different colors.  In total, they offer well over 20 different colors!  Considering the average price for a set is 5,000 won; each pouf is under 1,000 won!

#2 Accordion Style Paper Balls:

These accordion style balls are sold separately and they come in 3 sizes.  특대: Large, 대: Medium, 소: Small.  (Link here) They come in 14 different, beautiful colors.  I like how you can purchase them separately so you can choose your own color combinations and sizes.  These are slightly more expensive than the tissue paper poufs but these have the benefit of easy storing and reusing. 

#3 Paper Stars:

The paper stars are a little different.  I think they would look great mixed in with some of the poufs.  Perhaps even in a child's bedroom.  (Link here)

 If you're looking for some paper decorations for your party or home, I hope this helps!  I love finding ways to purchase pretty party things, at a decent price, here in Korea.  More party supply info to come!

PS:  My giant 3 foot round balloons came today.  When I opened the package I laughed.  They are hilariously big!  (that's them laying against my laptop!)