Back in the land of the living

Hi guys! Sorry I have been a bit quiet, I have been madly working my butt off towards graduating from my graphic design course and I just handed in my last assignment! Woohoo! Here are some fabulous things that I have done recently or am looking forward to:

♥ New website up

My freelance graphic design site is now complete and located at www.sarahshrapnel.com. Hire me! :)

♥ Blog re-design

I am giving my blog a complete design overhaul in the coming weeks so stay tuned!

♥ Movies movies movies

After working 12 hour days nearly everyday on projects, the only social occasion I was up to was watching movies. I saw Midnight in Paris, Drive, and several movies as part of the Japanese Film Festival: A Boy and his Samurai and Patisserie: Coin de Rue.

Midnight in Paris was breathtakingly beautiful and hilarious. I can’t wait to return to Paris and take long walks at night.

Drive was amazing, action packed and made me want to drive cars very fast (even though I don’t know how to drive). Ryan Gosling was divine (as was Carey Mulligan) but WHAT THE HELL WAS WITH THE TYPOGRAPHY IN THE CREDITS?! Mistral? In magenta? Whyyyy?

A Boy and His Samurai was hilarious and adorable. Basically a samurai from the Edo period finds himself in modern day Tokyo and becomes a housekeeper for a lady and her son who befriend him. He discovers he has a hidden talent for baking and enters a cake competition. Brilliant!

And finally Patisserie: Coin de Rue was another film I saw at the Japanese Film Festival. It’s about a girl who travels to Tokyo in search of her boyfriend and begins to work in the famous pastry shop Coin de Rue. The flawlessly creating desserts in this movie will leave you salivating.

♥ Röyksopp finally coming to Australia

Röyksopp has always been one of my favourite bands and I have never seen them live – but they are finally coming to Australia in January! And have just revealed they are doing a sideshow! (Because the Big Day Out festival is terrible)

♥ The day of eating and drinking

I took a day off from work recently and spent the entire day catching up with girlfriends and eating and drinking. I visited the new Tea Salon in Westfield and drank tea and ate scones (heavenly! A review of the Tea Salon is coming soon) and then I met up with fellow bridesmaids (my friend is getting married soon. Lots to plan!) at the Shangri-La Hotel where we indulged in decadent chocolate desserts at the Lobby Lounge before heading up to the Blu Bar on level 36 for cocktails and amazing views.

Now I am off to celebrate my new found freedom by curling up with a good book and a cup of tea! I am a party animal.

Norwegian Wood

My heart is still aching a little after this weekend’s viewing of the film adaptation of Haruki Murakami’s bestselling novel Norwegian Wood.

It is an amazing book by an amazing author, and I must admit I was a little apprehensive that they would stuff it up, as screen adaptations of books often do. I think the actors portrayed their characters perfectly and the cinemtaography was breathtaking (by Ping Bin Lee, who also did In the Mood for Love).

There are many long and uncomfortable shots, sometimes featuring the characters sobbing uncontrollably, absolutely grief stricken. But it is not overacted and stays true to the emotions conveyed in the book. The soundtrack was moving and suited the mood perfectly, scored by Radiohead’s Johnny Greenwood. As the story is set in the 1960s, the fashion is great. The girls are often sporting gorgeous peter pan-style collars and the boys in polo shirts and flared jeans.

Of course significant parts of the story were left out in the detail-heavy book (including my favourite character, Storm Trooper! He barely featured at all) but overall it was a decent and satisfying adaptation. I would strongly advise you read the book as well though, you’ll get so much more out of the story.

I fell head over heels for the actor Kenichi Matsuyama, who played the protagonist Watanabe. I was mesmerized by his top lip. I sound crazy I know, but seriously check his top lip out in the film. It’s beautiful.

For further Murakami reading I suggest Kafka on the Shore and The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle. I am also looking forward to his new book 1Q84 that is released in English at the end of this month. Murakami also wrote an interesting book on the Tokyo gas attacks titled Underground. It’s a fascinating read on the dreadful events from the perspective of both the victims and members of Aum, as well as an interesting look at the Japanese psyche.

Cats in Advertising

If I was in advertising, I would probably just constantly make ads featuring cats. Because who doesn’t love cats? (Actually I am aware there are a lot of people out there who hate cats. I just pretend you don’t exist).

First up we have the gorgeous IKEA Cats ad. Beautifully shot and heart warming, I am honestly surprised they didn’t have an all out kitty brawl in their store.

Next up is possibly one my favourite ads. Ever. From Japan! This is business cat. A rough translation is: “I’m Niyaran. Today big profits are a hard task. (while looking at computer) It’s grown! (profits are up!). Tagline: Profitable: Hotel Yakumo.”

And finally an ad from France. Kittens! Everywhere! There is so much attention to detail in this ad, they even have kitty weight loss ads on the side of the taxi! As a crazy cat lady it truly warms my heart.

The only bit of advertising my cat has done lately is promoting the Dexter book. She really likes Michael C Hall.

Hello World

Sorry things have been a bit quiet in Swah-land lately. I have been incredibly busy with assignments and freelance work, and then my blog was hacked right before a holiday. It was a complete mess. Fortunately my tech-savvy boy helped bring Love Swah back from the brink of death upon returning from our trip. I’ve been slowly reinstalling everything and it’s now almost back to business – although I can’t wait to do a complete re-design of the blog once I have completed my course (and have some more free time) at the end of this year.

After weeks of an intense schedule my immune system decided to throw the towel in this week, so unfortunately I’ve been holed up in bed the past few days being a sook. Let’s have a look at some good things that have been going on lately!

♥ Spring has sprung

Spring is well and truly upon us in Sydney and last week I was roaming my neighbourhood with DSLR in tow, snapping pics of the beautiful blooming cherry blossoms. Loving my new lens, the Canon 50mm f1.4

♥ Getting fit in beautiful surroundings

At the start of this year my lungs were pretty much obliterated by pneumonia. I found it quite depressing not being able to exercise regularly so I have been working on building up my fitness and stamina again. I have been going on amazing (and challenging) walks around Sydney with a friend who is in training for a trek to Nepal.

♥ A weekend in Orange

A group of friends and I recently drove to Orange in country NSW to visit a lovely friend who has moved out there. It was a weekend full of amazing food, wine and company. Stay tuned for a mini weekend-away guide on Orange.

♥ Purchasing the 2012 Frankie calendar and diary

I missed out on the coveted Frankie magazine calendar and diary last year, so got my order in early this time. I can’t wait until they arrive! Being organised never looked so pretty.

All this excitement is exhausting, I’m going back to bed. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Please excuse

Hey everyone,

Unfortunately my blog was hacked recently (damn them!) and I am still in the process of getting content back online. Please excuse my shabby appearance for the moment whilst I get things back to looking pretty :)

Sick

Hi guys,

Sorry things have been quiet in Swah-land. This week after 3 doctors visits, blood tests and x-rays it turns out I have pneumonia, and quite a rare type for a young healthy woman. So please bear with me as I get better, it’s going to take a while. Can’t wait to get back to blogging soon. xxx

Hello 2011!

Hi everyone,

After an amazing holiday I am now home. I have so much to tell you, I’ve seen and eaten and experienced so many wonderful things!

Coming to Love Swah this year:

♥ City Guides – I am super excited about this, I am madly working on guides for fabulous cities all around the world! Forget Lonely Planet, these are unbiased guides on where a girl wants to stay, party and shop around the world! All from my personal experience of course. And if you happen to live in any of these cities then I am more than interested in hearing your tips as well! These guides are continually evolving.

♥ More tempting recipes and photos – I am baking up a storm and sharing it with you. I am trying to mix it up even more this year, from super simple treats for an afternoon treat to a fancy dessert to impress your friends – and everything in between!

♥ More helpful travel articles including travelling alone as a woman, the importance of down time on a big trip and what to do when everything goes wrong!

♥ More delicious design to stimulate your senses from the world of graphics, interior, fashion and more.

I hope you’re looking forward to 2011 as much as I am :)

Welcome!

Hi everyone and welcome to the blog Love Swah. What is Love Swah, I hear you ask? It is a blog dedicated to life’s pleasures- travelling to far away places, baking delicious sweet treats and all things design (graphic, fashion, interior, jewellery, you name it!)

Travel

I am completely obsessed with travel. I’ve visited 27 countries but feel like I have barely started. I used to be a travel agent a long time ago and am now focusing my energy on travel writing and photography. Each week I will post helpful travel trips, from planning your budget to what to take on the plane. I am also posting mini-guides on various cities around the world, with my personal advice on where to stay, what to see and where to eat!

Design

I love design. ALL OF IT. I will be showing inspirational design works from all types of design as well as sharing some of my own work. After working in television for years I recently quit my career to follow my love for graphic design. I am currently completing a course in Graphic Design and Communication whilst freelancing.

And after a break from a few years of on and off selling on eBay and etsy, I am currently working on my new collection of clothes and accessories.

Sweet Treats

I am an obsessive baker since way back, collecting tried and tested delicious recipes for my recipe book. Each week I will be sharing a new delicious recipe and photos with you as well as helpful hints to encourage more people to take up baking.