Year: 2015

Turning a year older

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This year’s birthday is probably the best I’ve ever had – a surprise birthday party the night before we flew off, weekend trip to Perth, spending quality with my bestie and her family, birthday dinner at my favourite Ciao Italia and having churros on a rainy winter birthday night with my fiance and girlfriend from University. My last birthday before marriage was a success. In the year to come, I can only hope that I’d have more energy to deal with more wedding planning and not turn into a Bridezilla. Time has really flown by and looking back really helps me appreciate all the trials and adversities that I’ve been through. It made me the person I’ve became and I hope it would continue to mold me as I take on new roles – a wife, a mother, a daughter and a sister in law. Cheers to another year of crazy adventures!

Let’s fly away to Perth, my second home

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As a child, my mum used to ask me “What is a home?”. I’ve pondered over the possible answers only to have her remind me that a definite answer is one I couldn’t give her at that point of time. Over the years, the meaning of home has changed a lot for me. Home is still my country and my parent’s home, one that I grew up in. Over the years home has evolved for me, not in the physical sense, but emotionally. I used to think home is where my parents were, as long as they were there, I was home. With the passing of my mum, this meaning changed a great deal. Home, became one where my memories lies and my primary point of contact with my family. Though I’ve traveled far and wide, Perth has always been my second home. Perhaps, it would always remain close to my heart, as it reminds me of the last trip I took with my mum. In years since that trip, Perth is an annual destination, much …

The “Benjalyn” Girls and Boys

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When we got engaged, we already had a list of people we wanted by our sides when we got married. We had asked them both personally and via text messaging, all whilst planning the perfect opportunity to bestow them a little box. For my beautiful bridesmaid, I’ve got them each a beautiful bracelet, a bottle of Umeshu and a ball of hair-ties. Having grown up with these girls, the Umeshu represents our shared love for all things Japanese and the hair-ties are a cheeky way of returning them all the ones that I’ve borrowed from them over the years. With each box of gift, I’ve written down my gratitude to the individuals, with information cards on the expectations and the type of dresses I intend to purchase for them. For Ben’s Groomsmen, all of whom I have a personal friendship with and love deeply, got a surprise when we gave them a gift at Ben’s birthday party. He got them each an arrow cuff-link and I managed managed to sneak in a little homemade letterpress coaster. …

Filmshots | Bali Wanderlust

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Bali is an absolute paradise for those who desires beautiful landscapes, mouthwatering food, cheap alcohol and wonderful coffee. I love a good getaway, but Bali can been overwhelming at times with thousands of tourist swarming the popular destinations. Alas, nothing remains untouched for too long in the world filled with wanderlust driven explorers. Filmshots is a series that showcases memories documented on film, to see more of those on these series, click here.  Captured with the Leica M7 with Portra 400

Chasing the Sun

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During my University years, I found myself rediscovering my love for photography. I have came to appreciate beautiful places and the painstaking work that the photographers take to capture those moments. Whilst booking a holiday getaway to Bali, I recalled an acquaintance’s beautiful engagement photos and had decided to contact Adi of Evermotion Photo in hopes of scoring a session with him. With a good deal of coordination and luck, we settled on a date for it. The photography session was filled with laughter, fun and tonnes of effort not to burst out laughing. Thank you, Adi. I’m so in love with the photos and I am ever grateful for your team’s hardwork.

Take a deep breathe and begin

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Every time I come back home from my travels, I would feel immensely overwhelmed by the amount of things in my room. I would want to head back into that space where I can lay back and be zen, never having to worry about the clutter that surrounds me. Google “Tidying” and pages full of Marie Kondo’s “The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up” pops up. Being really curious, I bought a copy of the book via Kindle and that was the start of my life changing experience. Nobody loves clutter, well, never intentionally. Some tolerates different levels of clutters, most of the time, better than I do. Once in a while, I would be ruthless about purging the things. And yet, things still accumulates and I often find myself back to square one. I thought I was ready for what she had to advice, but I was wrong. I had a huge “eye-opening” moments and they had caused me to reflect on the things she wrote about. I find myself being guilty of finding excuses …

I think I’m gonna marry you

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After four blissful years together, Ben and I are engaged. One fine February Sunday evening, we went to the really beautiful Marina Barrage to fly kites. The sky was filled with kites as families picnic on the grass and children run around trying to keep their kites out of each other’s way. As I had my camera trained onto a really cute little kid, I had heard sounds of familiar giggles, I spun around. There they were, our closest friends in a single file with huge grins on their faces as they handed me an envelope. There it the moment I’ve waited for all my life, and my silly boy has decided to write me a love letter. Before I knew it, he was down on his knees holding a ring saying the words “Will you marry me?” As I uttered the words “Yes, I will”, I found myself fighting back the tears that had suddenly overwhelmed me. It wasn’t a total surprise since we had picked out the stone a year ago, yet, it …