Seems like quite a fair bit of you guys tuned in to that episode and seemed quite keen to try out that claypot thingy that i made

Due to all these requests that i have had, i shall now share the receipe with you…

The Delectable three treasure claypot

What you need:

A Claypot.(standard size)

Water toufu (水豆腐) about 4 will be fine:)

Five flower pork (五花肉)

Taupok

Salted fish (Preferably salted fish head..if not, just a slice of it and its got to be those that are slightly moist and pungent:)

Lemon grass about 5 stalks

old ginger..eh..about 5  slices..depends on how old u are:)

dried chilli..about 6 is good:)

garlic ..i love lots of it..like a handful..mince it.

pork lard..a handful

soya sauce.oyster sauce.pepper.sugar.dark soya sauce.sesame oil

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Preparation:

These are the things that u need to do before putting it all in the claypot to simmer.

1) You have to fry the salted fish till golden brown and slightly dry.set it aside.

2)fry the toufu till golden brown as well.take care not to break it:) and set it aside.

3)heat up the wok…Throw in a handful of pork lard and let it brown and the oil to ooze out.Fry the lemongrass and after ten strokes throw in the minced garlic….stir fry for about 10 strokes:) add about 3 spoons of oyster sauce..stir for 5 strokes..add in one table spoon of soya sauce..stir another 5 strokes…add in the five flower pork and stir fry for about 15 strokes:) add some sugar, pepper and sesame oil..carry on stroking another 10 times more..add in the dry chilli..stir for another 10 strokes…and off the gas and smile:)

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Let’s do it:)

And now u r ready to party!

Follow these steps and u might not go thaaaaaat wrong:)

1) Line the bottom of the claypot with the lemongrass that you have just cooked.This will prevent the main dish from scotching and burn..

2)Place the 4 fried water toufu in the middle of the claypot on top of the lemon grass.

3)tear of the salted fish that u have fried and place them evenly in the clapot.

4)scoop up the rest of the meat that you have done in preparation 3 and place them above the toufu

5)add about two cupfuls of stock (could be chicken stock) into the claypot

6) close the lid and let it simmer with a slow fire..

7) heat up wok,add oil and fry the old ginger..after about 10 strokes add in dark soya sauce..about 3 spoonfuls..and after stir frying for another 5 strokes add a wee bit of water and then, open the lid of the clapot and pour the whole stuff into the claypot..right on top of the meat. remember to close the lid of the claypot now!

after 15mins,Open the lid and add the taupok into the claypot..Dip a spoon into the boiling mixture and taste..add watever u need to boost the taste and then quickly close the lid!

To me, whenever i cook, alot of it is based on the feel of the moment..Don’t believe in the regulations of using how many teaspoons of this and that because, it all depends on the fire of the day and the different textures of the meat that y r using on the actual day of cooking..so, you will have to agar agar:)

When the delicious smell of the lemon grass and old ginger and salted fish fills the air, and the pork looks springy and succulent and the sauce looks nice and thick, your dish..my dear…is DONE:)

enjoy your attempt and let me know how it turns out:)

After a grueling eleven weeks we are now into the last installment of Home Decor 4.

To wrap up this season, we were thrown the topic of Alternative lifestyle.

Not an easy topic though..because, anything goes…My interpretation of this topic would be a decor that is not mainstream and does not adhere to  conventional styling..It has to reflect the personal taste of the owner, their likes and their needs..and it should all gel together and becomes their home.

For this last epi, we were assigned this loving family where much love is found in their four room flat…the happy couple jusssst got married and we so hoped to give them a lovely wedding present::)

We spoke..listened…and understood that they wanted a brand new look to their place..liked black,white and grey..loved mosaics…loved their dog….loved minimalism..and so..we started our overhauling:)

Actually, i found their place to be quite retro inspired..

first and foremost, since the ceiling already has checks, we decided to amp it up and do a chessboard effect on the ceiling,which we felt was rather “alternative”..alot of work on this and kudos to my two fantabulous helper and the wonderful family…Next on the checklist, we decided to mosaic the shoe cabinet that u see on the right hand side of the above pic and transformed it into a one and only mosaic shoe cabinet u see below:)

Since they love their doggy sooo much, we decided to have its portrait to be done on the wall..not painted..but with mosaic!

I wanted an alternatively styled lamp to shine on them while they were eating..and so..we d.i.m this one of a kind cutlery chandelier:)

The transformation went on and on…..

Before                                                             After

Before                                                                      after

But victory was not ours…

Nevertheless, i felt truly privilleged to have worked with this family because, i am touched but the bond they had..the warmth of a complete family.

This has been the most challenging season ever..because for each and every episode, my team and i push ourselves to create something that is asthetically pleasing as well as challenging ourselves to d.i.m stuffs that we had never done before..and here’s a recap:)

So here’s to everyone who played a part in this season of HoMe DeCoR..

May All Be Well and May All

Live Happily Ever After….

Koh and Ivy’s living room is really huge and frankly, six thousand ain’t exactly gonna fill up this living room.But fortunately, Just Anthony, the shop dealing with all the china furnitures ie really kind to us and i got to choose some wonderful wooden panellings to complete my design for Shanghai chic..

As the name suggests, chic=fashionable and thus, my approach is to give all the olden chinese furnitures a new lease of live and making it in white to make it appear current..which actually, in shanghai, you seee alot of this approach in terms of design:)

How did we transform it? i guess, this once, let the picture speak for itself:)

Before                                                         After

And on the 3rd day of the Lunar New Year, we were rewarded with a big fat ang paos:) 3 Yeses!

HUAT AH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

再过一会儿， 新的一年。。就开始了

我祝愿大家在虎年 ： 事事顺新。。心想事成

与此同时， 也祝贺大家情人节 快了。。

Have a fantabulous Chinese Lunar New Year and a beautiful Valentines day

May all your dreams become reality and May love prevails…

Simply me

bryan

and this episode we are tasked to do industrial funk.

After much research, industrial funk= Cemented walls,steel,black,white grey and …Bright coloured fashionably chic furnitures.

We got May and Fann and their four room flat..and this is what we got:)

To do the cemented walls, we needed this much of this!

Never done this before…and this is wat u did not see on screen..lots of hard work and lots of sweats

We have to stay true to Industrial funk..and so, for this episode, i decided to forgo the fanciful lightings with warm lightings.Instead, i opted for florescent tubes but, d.i.m our very own light shades but using acrilic sheets..

I decided to let my creative juices flow and did a wall mural of industrial funk.Using the kartell mirrors that we purchased, i incorporated lorry stickers, floor grinders,pvc pipes and created this huge wall mural..

Another area that we d.i.m. would be the use of the laminate sheets that resembled metal sheets that we so often find at industrial sites.Also, we constructed a tool box that doubles both as a storage space and as a coffee table..

Instead of curtains, we opted for metallic blinds….

We were thankful for the eventual results.

I am even more thankful to my dear contestants,who had so much faith in us even when we truthfully declare that we know nothing about plastering of walls…and allowed us to try it out on their walls..

Such faith is a rare commodity in this present world..

I am glad that i got to experience that…

Time flies…

Not only are we into year 2010 but it is now already the 9th episode of home decor 4..3 more to go and the end of this season is drawing close..

This episode we dwelt with the topic of Pacific Homes..and after much research we concluded that lots of places are linked to the Pacific Ocean and thus, we decided on the Iconic Hawaii, which is nestled in the heart of the Pacific and known to the whole entire world, to be the best representation of Pacific homes:)

My contestant for this episode is the effervescent Lynn and her handsome hubby Dave, together with their lot of lovely friends who came to helped out, i must say, that this is the episode that i really had fun!With the hawaii theme in mind, we set to recreate this modern simple decor 4 room flat into a home that exudes the charm and sunny disposition of a Pacific home:)

I did a direct translation of bringing the ocean into the living room simply by using this fantabulously pretty shade of tiffany blue and even though i am not a fan of blue, this colour really gave off this wonderfully pacific vibes that calms all mind:)Also, the vibrance of life of the Pacific Ocean is directly translated into the colourful arrays of decor items and also, nature represented by the canes and raw wood console and wooven rug…

Set in a tropical climate, the pacific ocean region is bustling with life! birds and flowers are in abundance and that’s why,nestled in the corner, a flower arrangement of flowers found in that region..also places at some corners, intricately carved colourful birds found in the pacific region:)

After much research, i found that the native fruit of the Pacific is actually pineapple,which i directly translated it into this wonderful lamp that i found(in the shape of pineapple:)) and also the rug that we chosen and i also found a frog which thrives only in the pacific region and thus, it became my inspiration for my art piece, which is going to be the first time i am going to draw on a canvass using acrilyic paint instead of my usual wooden planks and emulsion paints:)

To adorn the walls of the dining area, what do people most do on the Pacific Ocean ???? Surfing! and a mirror surfboard is thus created:)

Fruits are one of the staples of the pacific and thus, we set up this fruit platter and cocktails to actually feel the way of life in a pacific home:)

BEFORE                                                               AFTER

In the end, Somehow or rather, the judges felt that we went off the topic..We might not have stuck a printed picture of the ocean on the wall, but choosing Hawaii, an iconic part of the pacific ocean, as an inspiration  was clearly not a mistake and actually letting people experience the feel of living in a pacific home on top of the decor should be an integral part of decor.The decor should encompass life.

Dave, though the end result might not be the birthday present you so hoped to receive, nevertheless, me thinks u are already blessed with a wonderful wife and beautiful friends.

so here’s to you from a new friend,

Happy birthday and aloooooooooha!

Can’t say that i had a rowdy birthday..On the contrary, it was really quiet and..well, the couple of us and my mum went out for dinner but, oh man, the food sucks big time!  interestingly, that was our first visit there and it will be the last..a truly unforgettable yet forgettable birthday dinner! euewwww! fortunately i had the company of my mum and two of my pals if not, it would have been the most miserable birthday of all times:(

Anyway, that aside, coming back to the topic of the day…I have been to quite a few places..covered a fair bit of europe..but, i have never set foot in Holland( unless u consider transit in the airport as being there) and this time round, on March the 13th i will fly once again with UOB travels, visiting Paris,Belgium and Holland!!! all ten days ending up in the vast tulip fields that takes many breath away:) i have always wanted to visit the Netherlands and this time round, i am finally getting around to do it:) CHEERS!!!!

The weather is going to be superb..cold but yet bearable..the romantic Paris, the belgium chocolates and the tulips…can’t wait…hurry time..hur.r.y!

wait with me….or,

come fly with me:)

This week we were tasked to go minimal…and that, my friend, is more difficult than ever! because to create the less is more effect, the few pieces of furniture that is allowed in the space has to speak volumes.Furthermore, it is not simply minimalism we are dealing with but, the additional twist to the topic is ARTHOUSE!euewwwww!!!!!!!!!!

To start off with, we have yet again a four room flat and its original state is rather minimal:)

We decided to go with an art house showcasing love, and thus, a poem written by jarrod is stenciled onto the wall..

Since it is supposed to be an art house, i decided to D.I.M a one of a kind console to house the lcd and this is the end result..

And to have a drawing, i drew this version of smiling face..which did not go well with the judges, who deemed it unoriginal and a tad unfitting for the decor..Frankly, that stung quite a bit as..well…it took a whole lot of effort to draw something of this scale,given that the time alloted was less than four hours….

BEFORE                                                                     AFTER

At the end of the day, we won..

The pleasure that filled our hearts stemmed from the fact that we did all the stuffs ourselves..we conceptualised,we bought the wood, saw the wood,glued the wood, painted the wood..all were done by our very own hands and the eventual result got us feeling really gratified:)

and so long live D.I.M= Do It Myself