furniture sale (brooklyn)

It's 2012. Out with the old, in with the new. I'm purging stuff and moving out of my Brooklyn apartment this month. I would keep these if they suited my new place in Toronto, but they actually don't. I also want to change things up now. ;)

Everything below was purchased from Room & Board in SoHo (good quality stuff). View/pick up by appointment only in Brooklyn by January 25th (I won't be shipping these). All furniture was very well taken care of and have very minor wear and tear. Cash only please. Please email me ASAP if interested. First come, first served. 

I will be posting more items next week or possibly have an open house. Stay tuned. 

The Portica desk measuring 24D x 60W x 29H" (inches) in solid cherry and stainless steel legs. (SOLD)

Sequel rolling file also shown in the top photo. In cherry veneer with aluminum hardware.  (SOLD)

Gallery Leaning Shelf, 27"W, (only one available) is made of reclaimed wood with a stainless steel frame. Recently lowered price to $100! Pick up before Jan 25th! 

to the kind ones

I drew a lot of strength, joy and inspiration from all those who were so good to me this year. Thank you for your encouragement, support, generosity, laughter and kindness. I hope you all know who you are.

~ Catherine 

elegy

I can't believe it's taken me this long to watch this film, Elegy. It is based on a book by Philip Roth entitled Dying Animal that I read and loved years ago. I still remember feeling absolutely shaken by the book. It's film adaptation was so well done and the performances so fantastic (no overacting here), I am stunned. The book, the film and the screenplay are equally intelligent, sexy and honest. The film was perfectly cast. This may very well be my favourite performance of Penelope Cruz'. I really saw her versatility in this film. If you have not yet had the pleasure, do yourself a favour: READ and WATCH. 

old photos are gems : part 2

Back in October, I posted an old photo of my maternal relatives. It's a lot more unusual for me to see old photos of my father's side of the family. I loved seeing these. It may very well be the first photo I've ever seen of my great grandmother (center) and the first time I've ever seen such a large group photo of my paternal relatives. 

Take a WILD guess which one my father is. It's so obvious, it's hilarious. He's the man with the thick framed glasses on the left (he's standing directly behind his dad, my grandfather). Funny that decades later, we would share similar taste in eyewear! I love the suit and the hairstyle as well. Well done, Pa.  

I also love this photo below. I love how handsome my grandparents look here. My dad is second from the right. The look on his face already showing a faint defiance – a hint of the little trouble maker he apparently grew up to be. Ha!

lazy sunday

This image captures how I feel today. The grey outside is determined to slow everything down. But I plan to resist hibernation. I will power through a workout and go from there. 

Who's with me? 

a new surface : the uncarved block

I have begun the (slow) decorating process of my new Toronto digs. My refusal to settle for crappy furniture has caused a slight delay in filling my place with furniture. Tough when you need furniture, want quality and on a limited budget. Needless to say, the delivery of my custom built table this week had me thrilled. Thanks to Craig Marshall of The Uncarved Block, a beautiful, live edge (or raw edge) table now sits nicely in my kitchen/dining area. Craig even let me tag along with him to shop for the perfect slab at Urban Tree Salvage. The UTS showroom was great and their pricing very reasonable. I highly recommend it if you're looking to have furniture made from local salvaged wood.The final product is precisely what I wanted. It's incredibly well made. Even the non-glossy varnish is just as I requested. It actually brought out the colour variations in the wood, which I LOVE. A lot of the slab's unique character were left in (like saw marks, natural markings). I can't seem to stop touching it! 

Although I had originally intended to have a counter height table made, after sitting and working up high for a couple of months made me realize I much prefer a normal table height. The depth of the table is perfect for my small space. The choice to have a live edge on the table adds to the organic warmth that my apartment needs. So next on the list are the chairs. I know exactly what I want and will be able to get an incredible deal on them, thanks to a designer discount! I will post an update when those are delivered. 

Thank you to Craig and Robin from The Uncarved Block!

p.s. the photos are all taken with my iPhone. I'm having some photo download issues on my camera today.

bill t. jones : a good man

Watch Bill T. Jones: A Good Man on PBS. See more from AMERICAN MASTERS.

After recently seeing FELA, I became interested in the work of Bill T. Jones. His Tony Award winning choreography for FELA moved me to tears. I came across this documentary about his new project: A Good Man, and had to share. It is an incredibly inspiring and intelligent film about dance, choreography, performance and storytelling. This is a must-see for anyone interested in creativity. Works like this make me wish I had pursued dance more professionally. I am completely in awe. 

"I used to say that I want grace. That my reward in this life were to be to find what grace is. But now it's all choppy seas. Grace is for the saints. I'm not a saint, I don't aspire to be one yet. I'm a two-fisted maker." 
– Bill T. Jones. 

the goodwin nyc

Earlier this year, an immensely talented interior designer and friend, Larah Moravek, told me about a restaurant/bar project she was working on in New York. She asked to see whether I might be interested in working on the branding for it. The owners were also interested in working with me and I didn't even hesitate. This was the type of a project that I wanted to work on but don't often get a chance. Particularly, when I know the interior design is guaranteed to be fantastic.

The Goodwin will be located in a brownstone building on Hudson Street in the West Village and is slated to open next year. The interior space is currently being gut-renovated and reconfigured. I began the design process in July of this year. I first learned about the history behind the selection of the name. Apparently, the restaurant is located on land where there used to be a 300 acre tabacco farm. The name of the tabacco company was Goodwin & Co. This illustration below (an ad) was given to me by the owners as inspiration. The owners wanted to capture and essence of the location and name's history while making it modern. This is in line with the direction for the interior design of the space. 

I decided to do a lot more research, visually and otherwise, about the Goodwin & Co. I looked at typographic treatment, packaging design and layout of all the reference material I found from the same era. I also looked at cigar labels and loved the unique shapes they came in. I really wanted to capture the history while making it clean, modern and relevant. 

The client LOVED the result. They felt I had captured what they wanted right away. Needless to say, I was thrilled. We ended up on the 'crest' as well as a wordmark. I am about to start working on the stationery system, menu design, website, etc. So this is really just the beginning. I don't often share my own work here on my blog but this was one I am particularly excited about. The storefront window posters and awning have been installed as the construction continues so I am now finally able to share this work. I will post more results later in the process! Also view this project in my portfolio identity case studies. 

old photos are gems

With my mom and her mom both celebrating October birthdays (14th, 28th, respectively), it was only fitting to share another recently discovered gem of a photo. It's a follow up to the photo I posted in July. Thanks to my cousin Joel for sharing photos he recently unearthed in Manila. That's my lola (grandmother) in the middle, my parents to the right and my my mom's sister-in-law, sister and brother-in-law to the left. This must have been in the very early 70s. I love how elegant everyone looks. My mom looks like a teenager here. But she had to have been in her early 20s. Whenever I see old family photos, I feel like I know my family just a little bit more. And I love that.

Happy October birthdays to Mama & (my late) Lola! 

TBD dining

There has been no shortage of fantastic dining experiences on my calendar of late. Tuesday night's (Oct 11th) was no exception. It was a pop-up monthly dinner organized by Dan & Sukko of TBD. I recently learned about it from Chef Coulson. It is a dining experience set in a different venue with a different chef each month. This week's featured Chef Steve Gonzales (formerly Chef de Cuisine of Origin Restaurant as well as a contestant on the first season of Top Chef Canada). Latin cuisine was showcased – in particular – CEVICHES. We quickly learned that Steve Gonzales is preparing to open his own restaurant in Toronto this year featuring a menu of 60-70% raw ceviche dishes. Our six-course dinner included four different and amazing ceviches. My favourite one had to be the hamachi – though it was a tough call as all of them were pretty fantastic.

To start, it was an intimate evening consisting of 12 diners. We were seated in one of The Drake Hotel's private event rooms just off to the side of the rooftop patio. The crowd consisted of people in the food industry as well as avid foodies and diners. It would be TBD's fourth dinner to date (my first). Dinner was kicked off with a glass of bubbly and an introduction by the guys from TBD and Chef Gonzales' account of what we were about to enjoy. Each flavour-packed course was thoughtfully paired with amazing, innovative cocktails. The night's menu went from cold to hot – warming up through the evening. I loved being surprised with something really fresh and tasty with each course – including a caramelly, pulled pork that had been slow-cooked for 22 hours! The hot chocolate brought back warm memories of Filipino hot chocolate from my childhood. 

What a great night. I am so thrilled to learn about and partake in all the exciting things currently unfolding – in Toronto's food scene. It's so great to meet and talk with the passionate people behind these delicious food and events. I am looking forward to seeing (and tasting) what's next! I would highly recommend signing up for TBD's list to find out what's happening next month. It will undoubtedly be amazing. 

Thank you to Chef Gonzales, Dan & Sukko and Chef Coulson for a wonderful night! 

October 11th Menu 
Steve Gonzales / Drake Hotel / TBD Toronto

East coast oyster + watermelon + picked ginger

Watermelon Caipiriña

Red snapper ceviche + lulo granita

Pisco Sor

Hamachi tiraditto + aji amarillo + fried yucca + pickled red onion

Mojito  / Margarita

Grilled shrimp and calamari + tomato + aji ancho

Mexican Beer

Pulled pork + corn + beans + avocado + tomato + nachos

Colombiana Refajo

Dessert

Hot chocolate + buñuelo + cuñape + arequipe