#designer

‘A day in a life’

Monday is my Sunday.

09:45am

TGIM! A day off from Forest Bake. I got up pretty late specially during this rainy season, no surprise my body clock would automatically slow down to meet the Monday pace. It’s best to just stay cosy in bed, listening to the rain, what a beautiful moment of the day.

10:45am

What should I wear..?

Every time when it comes to a decision making of ‘what to wear’. I’d often go by the weather, or places I plan to visit. Since Monday is an easy for me, I’d rather go for something comfy with a style. So I picked out my Matter Prints dress.

11:45am

Late brunch at “Meena Rice Based Cuisine”. Finally I got myself there after hearing from friends and seen so many delicious posts on Instagram. 

The restaurant located on an outer ring road of Chiang Mai, though not so far from the main city but peaceful enough for you to enjoy a good meal. The place was built from an old Northern Thai style houses, surrounded by trees beside a small pond. Everything was decorated in Thai hand-dyed fabrics, wood and ceramics. What a coincidence I happened to wear an artisanal hand printed shirt dress myself!

As new comers, we had no idea of what to order so they recommended us to try some signature Lanna (Northern Thai) dishes. The highlight was the coloured steamed rice cooked in different kind of herbs and flowers to get their wonderful natural dyes. Mind you all of the dishes were sprinkled with edible flower petals, beautiful!

3:30pm

Back home for an afternoon retreat in the garden. After rained walk is always the best. Loving how everything switched from lemony green to foresty green, the scent and the freshness in the air are just marvelous. In fact, I’m often here for a purpose, either to do some foraging or to get some inspirations, but for Mondays, I shall enjoy myself for nothing. 

Our Carunda trees are bearing their fruits. These are edible, you can have them fresh like having strawberries or even bake them in one of your recipes, you choose :)

4:45pm

Looked like it’s about to rain for the third round, meaning, it’s time for me to stop wandering. I shall get back in and waiting patiently for mum’s best dinner.. 

The day was short but I did accomplish my slow-life kind of day with well received energy from nature.

Hope you guys had a great Monday.

Goodnight.

Nalinna*

Credit:

Instagram: @matterprints

Store Site: https://matterprints.com/

Contacts:
LINE: lynnalinnali
Email: [email protected]

Instagram: NALINNALI
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Tumblr Blog: http://nalinnali.tumblr.com

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It’s been many years since I’ve been traveling back and forth constantly to Bangkok, either for leisure or sometimes, work. I’ve noticed continuous changes all time, whether it’s about new developments, places to shop, cafes to visit or night markets. 

A couple of days ago, I dropped by Bangkok for a short while, 2 nights and 3 days, I got to make it worthwhile, and so forth I came across Metropole Bangkok, again, through Pinterest. 

Metropole Bangkok, one of the luxury serviced residences under The Crest Collection under The Ascott Limited, offers a unique and inviting aesthetic in company with an unprecedented personalized serviced standard. The design from inside out is inspired by the Colonial architecture fused in with the elegance of Thai ‘Golden Age’ like in those Gatsby era (which I adore most!). Likewise Metropole provides a unique juxtaposition between classic and contemporary, which appeal to both international and domestic guests. 

Metropole Bangkok located at the end of Soi Thonglor, Bangkok’s well-known upmarket residential district. You will surely spot the beautiful building from all directions as the European inspired design is so outstanding. Its convenient location provides easy access to Sukhumvit and Petchburi roads, as well as the expressway. Thonglor BTS skytrain is also only a 10 minutes’ drive away.

So..there I was, getting surrounded by an amazing interior from lobby to the studio room. Design combinations of wood, leather and marble blended really well giving the heritage yet contemporary touches to the place. Loved how accents of brass and gold were added to enhance the extravagance ambience..

The bar.

Small kitchen corner to make some tea. :)

Late afternoon vibe at the balcony, I watched the sun went down with favourite book in my hand.

Breakfast time! The swimming pool is connected to the breakfast section. If you are keen enough to wake up early for a swim, go ahead before you lead yourself to full course breakfast just a step away!

Mood and tones are just superb for photohraphy to those who love vintage style, like me, of course. I wished to stay a little longer but my Forest Bake was calling me. 

Let’s travel with a style the next time you visit Bangkok! Pop by and take a look at their site. You’ll find another wondrous world bringing you back to the Thai Gatsby era :) 

Nalinna*

Credit:

Instagram: @metropole.bangkok

Hotel Site: www.the-ascott.com/en/thailand/bangkok/metropole.html

Site:www.lioandlinn.com

Contacts:
LINE: lynnalinnali
Email: [email protected]

Instagram: NALINNALI
Pinterest:www.pinterest.com/nalinnali
Facebook:www.facebook.com/the.forest.wanderer
Tumblr Blog: http://nalinnali.tumblr.com

Subscribe for more of my videos on: www.youtube.com/nalinnali

The strong bond of Forest Wanderer and woodcrafts has introduced me to Bianca and Sons last autumn while I was serving on Etsy. With a long list of what to find for the new kitchen in my hand, I went on and on for days till out of the blue, these beautiful collections of wood work caught my eyes, they urged me to find out more about them. 

The beautiful story about how they have started this business, the perfect country life style that could make you envious of, the deep passion for nature lead them to create these charming but quality products made by heart, what a wonderful story to share.

Most of the products are artisanally crafted from wood, green wood and spalted wood. Other than that are clay, pottery, ceramic, wild herbs, oil, macerated oils, century old wood planks and materials that have their own story and character. Every little detail linked up so wonderfully. I had to go through bit by bit, one at a time to pay full attention to all, and I came up with these at the end.

Two olive wood plates by Bianca and Sons.

Walnut wood chopping board by Bianca and Sons.

Forest Wanderer food styling x Bianca and Sons for Forest Bake.

So I went onto different occasions of photo styling for Forest Bake. Their shapes and design aesthetics compromised with my bakes really well. They enhanced the texture of what was on them beautifully, making my food styling looked even more interesting and vintage-like than ever.

Halloween pumpkin menus with Bianca and Sons’ olive wood plate.

Autumn apple tarts with Bianca and Sons’ olive wood plate.

Thanksgiving brioche with Bianca and Sons’ walnut wood chopping board (and my Ninja the cat of course!).

  Let’s take a closer look at the beautiful grain.

Christmas cinnamon rolls with Bianca and Sons’ olive wood plate.

Apart from all these beautiful wood collection that I’ve got, you can actually drop by at their site for more hand crafted goodies. I’ve heard that they have just started another vintage treasures line, hint hint! vecchiabottega.etsy.com

Have a good day to all!

Nalinna*

Credit:

Instagram:@biancaandsons 

Store locations: www.biancaandsons.etsy.com/

Contacts:
LINE: lynnalinnali
Email: [email protected]

Instagram: NALINNALI
Pinterest:www.pinterest.com/nalinnali
Facebook:www.facebook.com/the.forest.wanderer
Tumblr Blog: http://nalinnali.tumblr.com

Subscribe for more of my videos on: www.youtube.com/nalinnali

Handbag Label: @kayudesign

Styling: Nalinna

Photography: Nalinna

Kayu Design (’Kayu’ means ‘wood’ in Malay).

It all began in 2008 while Jamie, the founder, was searching for gifts to bring back to her friends in the US when visiting her family in Malaysia. That moment she said ‘I realized that all the beautiful handicrafts I grew up with as a child had disappeared and were replaced with cheap, synthetic alternatives.’ So she decided to make a change.

After years of working with artisans accessories company in South East Asia. She was determined to make handcrafted accessories line of her own. ‘KAYU’ was created to reflect an ode to her cultural heritage, applying natural materials such as straw, wood and shell in the design to remind her of her childhood memories.

‘The batik kaftans my mother use to wear, the rattan chairs in our dining room and the vibrant textures and colors of South East Asia. We hope that when you carry your KAYU it too will awake the adventurer in you.’

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Rattan, straw, wicker, jude, wood etc have always been something I look for. As a Chiang Mai girl, I have been growing up with these beautiful natural materials, well literally surrounded by them.

I remember those days when I used to visit local markets with grandma and she always ended up with hand full of handmade baskets and straw bags for no reasons, purely just showing appreciation for local craftsmanship. The more I grew up the more I understand why she has been collecting them. Like Jamie the founder of Kayu Design has mentioned on her biography ‘I realized that all the beautiful handicrafts I grew up with as a child had disappeared and were replaced with cheap, synthetic alternatives.’ I totally agree with her, that is why I always look out for them both for my own use, yet to remind me of those days when grandma was still alive.

Kayu has brought back my beautiful memories as well as building beautiful memories for a lifetime.

*Every piece are delicately handcrafted by women in the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia and currently working with new immigrant women in San Francisco with practical training and alternative source of income.

Let’s preserve these beautiful artisanal craftsmanship to live with us forever.

Nalinna*

Credit:

Instagram:@kayudesign

Site:www.kayudesign.com

Contacts:
LINE: lynnalinnali
Email: [email protected]

Instagram: NALINNALI
Pinterest:www.pinterest.com/nalinnali
Facebook:www.facebook.com/the.forest.wanderer
Tumblr Blog: http://nalinnali.tumblr.com

Subscribe for more of my videos on: www.youtube.com/nalinnali

Jewelry Label: @goodafternine

Product: polished brass with 18k gold plating with hand painted high gloss enamel finishing rings.

Styling: Nalinna

Photography: Nalinna

‘Inspirations come from days in our life, whatever we see, we make sense of it’.

GOOD AFTER NINE was created by these two talented designers from Bangkok, Chawanunt Thongpool (DON) and Tidarin Srisook (NINE) since 2009. 

The main focus is to design and produce quality craftsmanship products, creating perfect pieces of jewelry through expertise, skill, materials and forms. That is why they are unique.

The philosophy of GOOD AFTER NINE is that most people usually live their lives from 9 am – 9 pm. Starting work at 9am and enjoying themselves after 9 pm.

Products are designed and manufactured in Bangkok, Thailand.

‘GOOD AFTER NINE not just our work, it’s our life.’

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The most important essence in my fashion style up is the ring, or perhaps ‘rings’. I am a collector of every little thing that I encounter through my daily lives. Even though jewelry pieces are considered small items but to me, they are a part of who I am, specially those which represent my characteristics like these beautiful wildflower rings from GOOD AFTER NINE.

I was introduced through GOOD AFTER NINE about a few months ago though I believe I have seen their collections a few times when I took a stroll around Bangkok city. I must say their premium quality caught my eyes after having seen their designs of ‘Bloom’ collection. I feel like a complete forest wanderer when I got hold of them. 

One is not enough I need to create a bunch on my fingers :)

Forest Wanderer selections:

- Hydrangea Purple Ring // “Bloom” collection by 9AM.

- Tulip Ring // “Bloom” collection by 9AM.

- Lilac Ring // “Bloom” collection by 9AM.

- Ballerine Birds Collections

*All rings are adjustable.

So what did you select to complete yourself as a wanderer?

Nalinna*

Credit:

Instagram:@goodafternine

Orders within Thailand: www.goodafterninebkk.com

Orders for overseas: www.goodafternine.com

Store locations:

1.
Zen @ Central World
3rd Floor near escalator // Same floor at BTS Chidlom skywalk
// ZEN Departmant Store//
4, 4/5 Rajdamri Road,
Pathumwan, Bangkok 10330

Operating Hours: Open daily 10.00 a.m. – 10.00 p.m.

ZEN Departmant Store is accessible by Skywalk through either Siam or Chidlom BTS Station.

All product available here.


2.
It’s happen to be a closet // Sukhumvit 23
https://www.facebook.com/happenedtobe
It is a lifestyle Cafe and Restaurant with Fulfil your day by Unique dramatic decoration.
There is some of our product available there.

3.
THAI THAI @ 2nd floor Central Chidlom

Chidlom BTS Station.
www.facebook.com/pages/Thai-Thai-Central-Chidlom-Embassy/291084154421126

Contacts:
LINE: lynnalinnali
Email: [email protected]

Instagram: NALINNALI
Pinterest:www.pinterest.com/nalinnali
Facebook:www.facebook.com/the.forest.wanderer
Tumblr Blog: http://nalinnali.tumblr.com

Subscribe for more of my videos on: www.youtube.com/nalinnali

I bet many of you get so annoyed with having to sweep fallen leaves after these windy rainy nights. Don’t be! Don’t be! Instead let’s make full use of them to create something easy and beautiful for your home.

Things to prepare:

- dried leaves (make sure they are totally dried)

- fabric paint

- paint brush

- left over fabric

How to:

1. Paint dried leaves with your choice of colours.

2. Stamp them on the fabric.

3. Repeat the step again and again until you fill the whole piece.

Done in 3 simple steps!

Place them anywhere you’d like.

Enjoy decorating your home!

Nalinna*

Contacts:
LINE: lynnalinnali
Email: [email protected]

Instagram: NALINNALI
Pinterest:www.pinterest.com/nalinnali
Facebook:www.facebook.com/the.forest.wanderer
Tumblr Blog: http://nalinnali.tumblr.com

Subscribe for more of my videos on: www.youtube.com/nalinnali

Stevie May, a luxury bohemian boutique online from Byron Bay, Australia. Interpretation of romanticism touches in bohemian style for those glamour girls out there.

Product: Hit The Spot Blouse

Fashion Label: Stevie May from Byron Bay

Styling: Nalinna Li

Photography: Nalinna Li

‘A date with Mr. Nature’

So we hit the boring rainy season again this time of year. It maybe slightly harder for some of us, wanderers, to travel, but hey the rain couldn’t stop me from spinning around the green.

I recently figured out one good spot to spend a day amongst trees without getting wet. It is one of the largest botanical green house in Chiang Mai. There you go I dressed up in chichi ootd with my newest item from Stevie May ‘Hit The Spot Blouse’ in white. The blouse is made from soft dotty tulle fabrics, light and very cooling, hence the humidity can’t stop me from being a romantic boho wanderer.

Goodbye Mr.Nature, I will see you again soon!

Nalinna*

Credit:

Instagram: @steviemay_byronbay

Stevie May Site: www.steviemay.com.au

Contacts:
LINE: lynnalinnali
Email: [email protected]

Instagram: NALINNALI
Pinterest:www.pinterest.com/nalinnali
Facebook:www.facebook.com/the.forest.wanderer
Tumblr Blog: http://nalinnali.tumblr.com

Youtube Channel : www.youtube.com/nalinnali

After a stopover at cactus nurseries about a week ago, I was urged to visit the massive cactus greenhouse located at National Botanic Garden up on the mountain in Chiang Mai. Well I have heard and seen a lot of pictures taken from the place but never once visited, so it’s time hooray!

It was a pretty cloudy day, great for photos but the humidity was still killing me. Fortunately, I had my Ancient Greek Taygete White Leather Sandals on which I got from Designers Guild, super chic and comfy. I could enjoy the environment for hours. Leather, dessert, and cactuses :)

To be honest I’m not the kind who would dress up with sandals unless I’m just walking around my house or somewhere near the beach. I’m more of flats and canvas sneakers person, but this pair is just so chic for a day like this with cactuses! 

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Ancient Greek Sandals are handmade locally by skilled craftsmen using traditional techniques that have existed for centuries. A raw, yet feminine aesthetic distinguishes this new sandal brand. The chemical free, natural tan leather ages beautifully with time and wear.

Christina and Nikolas’s love for Ancient Greece and its history, combined with their individual technical skills naturally led to the creation of ‘Ancient Greek Sandals’. The collection is inspired by ancient Greek Gods and myths, pottery, jewellery and sculpture.

cr.www.ancient-greek-sandals.com

Have a great week!

Nalinna.

Credit:

Instagram: @designersguild

Instagram: @ancientgreeksandals

Designers Guild Site: www.designersguild.com

Ancient Greek Sandals Site: www.ancient-greek-sandals.com

Contacts:
LINE: lynnalinnali
Email: [email protected]

Instagram: NALINNALI
Pinterest:www.pinterest.com/nalinnali
Facebook:www.facebook.com/the.forest.wanderer
Tumblr Blog: http://nalinnali.tumblr.com

Youtube Channel : www.youtube.com/nalinnali