Street scenes of Shanghai

to a tourist, even the wires are intriguing.

Where is the traffic police to direct the traffic when he is most needed?

Old photos shot in year 2004.

The zigzag staircase

photo by Chien-Chi Chang

Saw this photo in a magazine many years ago. Shot in New York Chinatown, I thought this must have been taken 20 years ago. (I've not been to New York before seeing this image.)

I was taken by surprise when I next see this photo again. This time it was as a huge poster in front of National Museum of Singapore. I never did forget this image after many years! Chien-Chi Chang is the great photographer, belonging to the prestigious Magnum group. I think the works of all great masters leave you with a deep impression, whether or not you know his name in the first place. See more of his works here.

See the zigzag staircase in the background of Chang's photo? For those who are not familiar, these are actually fire escape emergency exits. The main subject in Chang's image is also sitting on one of these.

The strangest thing is that the moment I see these zigzag staircases in my recent trip to New York, I thought of Chang's image again. No foreign workers eating at the staircase this time, but I must shoot one of these staircases as my own interpretation of New York old cityscape, especially when I thought these old structure no longer exist in modern Mahanttan.

Love the lighting when I was shooting this.

Here's another image of an emergency staircase, a very different style.

photo from Rear Window

A nice substitute?

I may not be able to afford a designer chair, but isn't this a nice substitute? 3 chairs for the price of 1 rug. Get the rug here.

Bringing nature into the house

What a nice grassy patch. Design by Lotta Agaton. See more here.

More nice rugs, spring and summer inspired:top row from left: unknown source, Pjatteryd Ikea, butterfly rug, Sex and the City rug
second row from left: Swing rug by Patrick Norguet, Martha Stewart coconut rug, Zebra in Green Hooked Rug

A few Japanese houses

April 2009, it was my first trip in Japan. Expecting Japanese houses to be more of high rise apartments, I was proven completely wrong. I see many low rise apartments, probably 5 to 7 storeys high in Tokyo. Moving up north and along the train journey, I see more landed properties. Mostly 2 storeys, modern and in neutral shades.




All shot in Aomori. Just walking along the road by these houses gives me a sense of peace and joy.

Some nice chairs

Top row from left: Blue Eames Rocker, White Eames Rocker, Green and Oak Finish Winsor Chairs
Bottom row from left: Organic Chair by Alphaville Design, Agen Chair from Ikea, Vintage French Round Side Chair, Malaro Ikea Chair

3 Fabulous Looking Bathrooms

Only for the big bathroom. sweet and simple. Via Apartment Therapy.
Personally, I would add another mirror in front of the table so as to apply make up.

A very different style. Love the marble top that makes it feel grand while the lights add a soft and pretty touch. via Coco+Kelley.

Yet another very different style.

Does this remind you of Japanese designs?
Nope, this is from the Axor-Bouroullec bathroom collection.

So many lovely ideas, but I can only pick one.