jason mraz, malls and independence

jason mentioned malaysia in his blog .. he even put a pic of stadium negara there .. nice pic – he is rocking his fisheye of late – i noticed .. heh .. pretty soon i shall be rocking my sis fisheye too … heh .. just gotta get some films first .. anyway – yay for the stadium negara pic – now it shall be famous – so padan muka to all you mega malls developers who originally wanted to bring that building down .. shame on you .. im sorry did jason mraz put a pic of ‘the pavilion’ or ‘midvalley bloody megamall’ in his blog? .. I DONT THINK SO .. its like a dime a dozen and its the same everywhere .. so eff u guys .. down with the malls and demolishing of historical buildings!

on a semi-related note .. malaysia is so weird .. several years ago all these money faced developers were fighting their ass off to bring down stadium negara and stadium merdeka .. STADIUM MERDEKA can u believe it?? .. i mean come on .. and in exchange of what? .. another mall? .. another tesco? .. another hi-rise exclusive ridiculously priced condos? .. for fucks sake man .. have an identity will ya  .. sheesh .. it would suck for u if ud have to list out shitty malls as part of your countrys architectural history .. and these ppl (and by that i mean ppl in the ministry) dont think do they .. theyd go ‘ooh were rich in cultural heritage .. bla bla bla’ .. and your evidence to support that is ‘the biggest mall in ASIA’? .. ‘the tallest twin tower in ASIA’ .. eh .. im sorry – thats just stupid .. so anyway .. back to my point – so NOW – recently i guess .. victoria’s institution received that national heritage award thing – and its just a stones throw away from those two stadiums .. i mean – wtf? .. first u want to kill the most important building in history .. but next minute youre celebrating it and all the buildings around it .. i dont get that .. i mean dont get me wrong – it IS the right move (for once) .. it is just extremely weird thats all

ppl dont pay enough attention to restoration of historical buildings here .. and that is just sad .. i for one – think that stadium negara should be more well kept and more .. how should i put it .. ‘celebrated’ and ‘proud of’ than klcc .. i mean it has a history man .. u can build great buildings but u cant buy history .. so i know its nowhere near the grandeur of lets say the coliseum .. but still – it is of great historical importance to us .. and its just sad that its left in an unkept state .. and only used for concerts or footballs matches and stuff like that .. anyway – in short – money hungry- mega mall building – two face politician/whoever in the government who gets 10 million for approving to demolish historical buildings to make way for megamalls/condos should all go back to the ‘japanese occupation’ era and get tortured their balls off AND THEN they should be asked ‘so is a place where we declare INDEPENDENCE important?’

 

 

yea .. i dunno whered this patriotic bug came from either .. highly perplexing

air well airwells

i am right now drooling at the latest house sneak peek in design*sponge .. it features eliza jane curtis’ house in buenos aires ..  it looks great, love how she uses color and how rustic everything looks ..

the ceiling and the floor is to die for! so much character .. the room is small and yet so cozy – one thing that i love most of all is that it looks airy – big open windows .. ventilation is a must for me

you can check out all her other rooms from the link .. but my favorite room would have to be her dining area

“This is our diningroom. It was once an open courtyard but now it has a glass roof. There are still old tree stumps embedded in the poured concrete floor. I love how many older buildings in Buenos Aires blur the lines between indoor space and outdoor space.”

i love it too!! .. well not in buenos aires – but i love that concept too .. ive always wanted an indoor garden or creepers like the moneyplant to dress up a feature wall – stuff like that .. to me it gives that fresh feeling .. and i love what she had here – its not really inside and its not really outside .. LOVEs it !.. saw something similar in melaka too – with the old portuguese houses along jonker street – apart from it being beautiful to look at – i like the whole concept of it .. most of the houses are long and narrow like shotgun houses so they would have like an airwell in the middle of the house in order to have some form of ventilation .. and it looks great .. anyway – my point is that the indoor garden kinda blurs the whole indoor outdoor area thing .. which is of course why i love it so much

pic above is not from one of the melaka houses – its the cheong fatt tze in penang .. but the concept of the indoor garden is similar .. maybe not as intricate and beautiful – heh .. this house is one of a kind

Digesting Brad Pitt

when i first saw december’s issue of architectural digest i think i made pukes faces and rolled my eyes a couple of times .. u see brad pitt was gracing the cover of architectural digest – what the hell?? .. he dominates all the thrashy mags and now he wants architectural digest too? .. see this is why i NEVER pick up this mag .. i have always HATED .. no thats putting it mildly – i DESPISE architectural digest .. to me its just too pretentious, snobbish and all of the ppl featured and things in there are too friggin rich for their own good (well the things are of course absurdly expensive) and everytime if i flip through the pages its like screaming ‘HA HA! were rich and ure fuct! now watch us be all rich and buy 10000 dollars tacky gold door knobs while u guys rot in those worthless painted wooden door knobs .. you poor people”.. seriously .. thats how it felt .. plus they never really have good designs … its all too much to me .. so when i saw brad pitt on it – i was like yea whatever .. but then a few days ago i was so pissed off that i couldnt find anything interesting to read at the bookstore that i picked up architectural digest with brad on it … and i saw that it would prolly be something about ‘make it right’ foundation – so i figured why not .. at least i wont have to blind my eyes looking at gold trimmings in those rich ppls houses .. and to my surprise – i kinda enjoyed the article .. ive read .. well more like glanced thru an article about brad and ‘make it rigth’ before BUT of course i didnt think much of it cos at the time it was still at its early stage and i saw a video of architects presenting their designs to brad pitt .. ok i wouldve taken it more seriously if brad pitt wasnt a hollywood actor whose lovelife and what not appears on perezhilton on a daily basis .. plus the article mentioned that brad also had a part in the designing which prompted a nasty remark from me – i think i even commented on that site .. heh .. something like ‘yea ill bet they only let brad choose the tap fittings’ .. heh ..

but anyway after reading the bit about ‘make it right’ foundation in AD and also checking out their site – few things i found interesting :-

• they completed a few model houses -  and it has a modern /minimalist design to it that i love .. they even have photos of stages of construction on the site so u could see how everything is being built from foundation to the roof and also the finishing result
• having looked at some of the houses that were there before and i love old houses and im so pro-restoration its not even funny- i understand how some ppl might feel about these new designs but i guess the new design would handle the climate better and thats whats important .. you can see some of the old houses from this interesting blog
• they explained a few stuff about the design, what factors were taken into consideration when designing ie sustainable living and theres this concept that i wasnt aware of before called ‘cradle to cradle’ which is generally using things that could not only be recycled but also would benefit the land/environment etc .. all houses are also fixed with solar panels
• all houses have to be below 150k .. as most residents are from the lower income (which is also why bthey opt for sustainable design) and altho im not really sure but from the site i think all 150 houses are sponsored or going to be
• they had to be raised up quite high from the ground level in case of flood – about 8 ft (which is HIGH!) .. each house would have an attic and an escape hatch on the roof – to escape in case of a flood ..
• they have a completely different way of building houses compared to malaysia .. heh .. im super amazed at how the whole house was prefabricated .. like everything – haha .. they just built the foundation and just slap the whole house on top .. heh well not slap – but it sure looks as easy as that .. compared to over here where we have to cast cement mix and wait .. and wait .. and wait .. and cast .. and wait summore .. u get the pic .. i think the word i was looking for is ‘superfast construction’
• they used a special type of wood for the structure which has a blue tint and is treated to avoid termites and fungus .. nothing special but the blue tint makes the whole structure looks cool .. plus theyre using treated materials to avoid mold – i never really get what is the big deal if a house has mold problems UNTIL i did this office project recently and it was infested with mold EVERYWHERE .. on the walls, ceilings, doors and it even gets to the furniture .. and it just looks gross and creepy – like im in an episode of some japanese horror show .. um scary
• all houses were built using donations and not money from the government cos somehow they didnt think that that area is worth developing – due to it being close to a canal – the source of the flood (which is also why all the houses had to be raised) .. ok  i would understand why they dont want ppl to live there – its dangerous .. too many lives were lost and they dont want to risk that .. plus if its a flood prone area (and the worst hit) who would want to live there .. but what brad is trying to do is to just basically bring that area back to life ..
• i was really surprised that this was originally pitts idea and it looked like he put a lot of effort in it – which is really commendable .. and its nice to see the results after one year and see the ppls reaction .. stuff like that .. altho i am a lil bit irritated by that hat brad pitts wearing on the cover ..
• they actually have demonstrations or training of sort on how you could maximise all the sustainable design features that they have incorporated which i think is super cool – cos not only u get a house, ure also taking care of the environment AND u get free education .. so its great .. and i read somewhere that once you turn green – ull sort of open your eyes to new things and ull find ways to make everything green .. so hopefully this happens
• i like the whole concept of this foundation – of course due to the fact that its giving these ppl homes – which i think is great due to all the bad things that has happened to them .. and also the fact that u sorta know where your money goes to if uve donated .. i mean u see results .. im not saying that all the other causes or foundation are not worth donating to cos u cant see anything – its just that its NICE that you could see what uve donated for .. bleh – u get what i mean
• altho i hate architectural digest - and the article about sustainable living and cheap houses looks sorely out of place amongst the overly expensive houses “what?!? a HOUSE for $150 000???  i bought a freaking POT that cost twice that much” .. i guess mr pitts point was to get donations from the filthy rich ppl who read AD .. so thats cool

anyway .. all in all an exemplary effort from mr pitt and my hats off to him ..  i would now like to apologize for making fun of his pornstar moustache (when he had one) and also having this misconception of good looking hollywood ppl having tiny brains and will never do anything useful except filling up those tabloid pages .. heh .. u know stuff like that .. but i guess i have a newfound respect from him now so now he has a free pass to make one shitty movie – no wait i think he might have to use that for ‘legends of the fall’ .. heh

insanely beautiful rug

this rug is da shiz

and the owner has the concept that I would love to have in my um future house .. modern sleek meets bohemian chic .. heh

look at the ceiling – plain concrete ceiling but it has soo much character due to the uneven formwork .. woot! .. huge windows – check .. simple dining table – check .. absolutely stunning rug – check .. heh

nbm

i feel like kicking myself for missing this one .. national building museum in DC when i was there .. shizzers .. like reaaallly!!!

it wasnt really the case of so many places so little time .. its more like ‘but i did museums last year!!’ kinda thing .. so .. big regret now .. not really happy about it .. wish i could stop reading how good the museum store is and how it is the ‘best museum store in DC’ … aaargh ‘apartment therapy’ sucks .. heh ..

ok stop reading now ..

House on a Cliff in Chile

saw this beautiful house at modern residential design – and if theres any house that would make me want a summer house more – i think this would be it .. its a simple house with one bedroom and one bathroom .. from the stats its only 55m2 (well it does look small), took only 3 months to built (HOLY CRAP! thats like 3 days in dog years and its so unheard of in my book) and costs only USD 15,000 to built .. its information like these that makes me want a summer house even more .. and it really doesnt help that the accompanying photos of the said house is OH SO BEAUTIFUL .. well i guess the land must cost a bomb no? .. i dunno – its in chile – maybe its quite cheap to get land by the sea over there – altho i think that would hardly be the case cos i think land by the sea ANYWHERE would definitely cost a bomb .. but i guess thats where u reduce the area .. and make it on a cliff

ever since i saw houses on cliffs in cameron highlands – ive always dreamt of having one – as a summer house or as a house that i live in all year round even .. i mean it cant be that bad eh? .. beautiful air .. beautiful scenery of the plantations .. life could be worse .. heh .. but anyway, this house – designed by Alvaro Ramirez and Clarissa Elton – looks superb perched on a hill overlooking the sea .. its divided into 2 sections – living/dining on one side and bedroom/bathroom on the other .. its a really simple layout and well it should be that way for a summer house .. who would want cluttered, complicated and messy design .. all you need is a million dollar view, a bed and bathroom and youre all set for a very relaxing vacation ..

the man with the plan ..

back of house .. looky at the view .. whatevs man .. im so jealous

dining, living and kitchen – all in one section – simple and cosy .. i just LOVE the idea that the architect had – putting things to the absolute minimal so that you dont focus too much (or maybe even at all) on the things but instead focus on nature and the scenery outside .. plus the whole idea for a summer house was to go on a holiday, relax and take your mind off all the clutter that is work, schedules and big city life ..

what id give to be able to wake up to this everyday ..

doggy sunbathing ..

ok as much as i love this house and the beautiful view .. i do admit that the height of the whole structure is quite worrying if not altogether scary .. and the lack of any form of barricade didnt help .. its especially worrying when you have pets around like cats and dogs – cos sometimes they could just run around chasing for a bird and forget that their crazy owners house is built on a steep cliff .. but i guess a simple railing could solve the problem ..

but u know security-wise i KNOW for sure we cannot build this type of houses in malaysia – with the rampant break-ins and everything .. i am STILL searching for a design that would give you security but also aesthetically pleasing .. yes still searching – so far ive only come up with airbricks .. while that would let air in and out – it does totally zilch for the view of outside from inside of the house ..

this house would look great in one of those beaches in kuantan .. i dunno why but ever since i did that hyatt hotel in kuantan project – i totally LOVE the beach there .. yes its not as beautiful as the other islands like perhentian etc .. but its still clean, sea is blue, white sandy (clean) beach and most importantly – there were only a handful of people even on weekends .. so its just extremely quiet and relaxing .. and i love the breeze (somehow langkawi doesnt have that same kind of breeze) .. ah well – oh and theres a mcdonalds by the beach.. how cool is that! .. the experience that i had eating a yummy mcdonalds sundae while lying on the beach with my friends is something ill never forget .. and wish i could do over and over again! .. and its funny that just the other day we were talking about it and it really dawned on us (yes all 4 of us) after taking a few holiday trips together that the kuantan beach was really really the best beach and had the best i dunno setting or maybe even vibe to it .. we kept talking bout how we want to go back and how good it was .. funny how we didnt really realise it then – i mean we totally enjoyed the trip but just didnt realise how awesome it was until later ..

anyway .. if ure ever in kuantan .. hyatt is a nice place to stay

great designs by kevin mark low

found this site – kevin mark low - a malaysian architect .. and i am loving almost all of the designs featured on his site .. interesting enough i saw a few of his project being shown in the newly published ’architects of malaysia’ book .. i was quite surprised by that – not becos i think he didnt deserved it but becos most of the time, when all these photographers and designers bla bla bla would definitely choose something more malaysian – as in using lots of wood and stuff .. and true enough i think most of the designs shown in the book have some timber elements in it .. only a few didnt .. really loved some of the designs and id probably write about them in the near future .. if i can find anything about them .. which reminds me – i WANT that book .. and also some books on small lofts – i dont know why but i just LOVE to see how people would design and manipulate small spaces .. and i love lofts cos i just basically HATE compartmentalization, walls, ridiculously LOW ceiling height so on and so forth .. i mean i wouldnt totally do WITHOUT walls – but id keep it to a minimum ..

so anyway back to kevin’s design … my favorites are:

steel entry mat

 

how cool is this .. well not to mention smart .. heh .. doesnt trap dirt and you could just wash it off if it gets dirty .. altho i wouldnt use it where people would walk underneath the ‘mat’ so maybe just put some sort of  a drain at the bottom of something ..

 

stairs

cantilevered stairs

such a space saver and makes a space look more well .. spacious .. which is ultra important if you dont have money and all you could afford is a small house .. and i love how he uses post tension cables as the railings .. so it would be safe for children – i guess .. well unless if you have a lil brat who would stick their heads in the railings or in between the stairs .. one thing tho – im not really a big fan of cantilevered anything .. cos to me – no matter how safe and sound the design is .. i feel like its going to just give way one sweet day .. so i might want to rest my stairs on a sturdy piece of steel .. or two

mesh steel stairs

 

love the mesh steel stairs as it would allow more light and air to pass through .. somehow it looks more sturdy and sound .. altho i believe it is in some ways similar to the cantilevered concrete stairs – the piece of steel that is holding it to the wall is just too small for me .. but at least its safe for kids 

double layered roof tops

   

it gives out that layered look that i LOVE so much .. it also looks clean and uncomplicated and most important – keeps the house cool .. i am still wondering where does the wiring go .. hmm .. thinking back tho .. after seeing lots of these so called rough, un-finished design – im kinda liking the wiring concept that we used to have in the olden days .. i can clearly remember staring at the ceiling in my kampung and looking at all the wires jutting out of each fan or light switches .. and i think its back in fashion now … heh .. or i might be wrong

sanitary fittings

   

when i first saw the first pic i just totally flipped cos ive never seen a toilet with such a high ceiling before and i was wishing that thered be more pics of the toilet .. but there werent .. so i was a lil disappointed .. but it opened my mind to a different concept of a toilet .. ive always LOVED an outdoor-ish feel to the toilet with a toilet with an open roof would being my ultimate choice for a toilet .. but of course theres the safety youd have to consider and also those wonderful peeping toms .. so i guess its pretty much out of the question .. so my second choice would be to use airbricks for walls .. OR i can do this – have massive ceiling height or my toilet too .. heh ..

anyway .. notice how he uses the normal taps or that simple and rustic look .. no important italian designer shit here .. which i think is just very very cool .. love it .. i never liked those shiny stainless steel things anyway ..

 

ok maybe in the first pic he used a designer-ish tap but in pic 2 its the normal ones .. and i LOVE the visible piping and everything .. LOVE em .. and im loving the concrete sinks altho im wondering how did he manage to have that with what looks like timber flooring ..

wouldnt mind having a tub made out of concrete at all .. normal practice would be to install a tub right at the corner and fixed to the wall .. but he did something different here and installed it as a loose piece .. like the sink above .. so it looks nicer .. and i cant really see from the pic but is he using those steel gratings on the floor? .. if he is – um ouch! but i think its brilliant ..

as i have mentioned earlier .. ultimate toilet for me would be with an open roof ..

 

air bricks

   

this is such an amazingly super brilliant idea .. AIR friggin BRICKS! .. i LOVE it .. not only does it give that retro seventies feel to it .. it makes a space super airy … and for someone who just loves – as in i would rather DIE than have no ventilation – this is a marvelous idea .. cos i want lots of air in my room and cross ventilation and all that shit .. but i dont really want too many windows as i want some privacy .. plus when i have windows i must have grilles for safety .. and in malaysia you cant have too many windows cos its just too hot .. so .. this is the answer that i have been looking for .. airbricks .. and lots of it .. woot! .. altho as u can see from the second pic he uses the airbricks as a second wall or filter for the glass walls .. but i guess using airbricks for your wall would be nice too .. and of course cheaper

louvred wall

another great idea to bring the outside air in constantly .. keeps the rain out and ud have your privacy .. so whats not to love about this ..

pool

  

ok having a pool might be a little too much .. plus maintenance bla bla bla could get a wee bit expensive .. but looking at this i was thinking that a lap pool would be nice with just bare concrete finish all around .. the uneven walls gave it character .. altho i might opt for a darker kind of finish ..

bookshelf

  

ah an open bookshelf .. any design that requires minimal cleaning up is always fine by me ..

 

plate rack

 

how cool is this suspended plate rack .. very cool i must say .. would definitely like one for meself

 

postbox

yes he designs mailboxes too .. and i kinda like this .. altho i would probably opt for those cute ones – still this is very nice

so those are the few things that i liked – hopefully i could incorporate that to my dream house .. heh

my dream house

i think i have actually found my perfect dream house ..

its actually the 700 palms residence by steven ehrlich and its in california .. most of the things that i would like to have in my dream home is evident here .. such as :-

• high ceilings (read : EXTREMELY HIGH)
• the use of recycled materials such as timber and steel
• 60% to 70% of the walls are glass
• super-cool and very creative space-saving staircase cum cabinet
• living room / dining area that fully opens up to the courtyard, thus bringing that outdoor feeling indoor
• no partitions, no dividers, no compartmentalization (bad fire hazard – but WHATEVER, style above safety .. heh)  – just a big open space joining the living, dining, kitchen and family (tv)area
• bare-faced bricks
• minimalist and simple design
• oversized windows
• oversized doors
• oversized everything
• im not really big about the external steel beams with the canvasses .. but evrything else is MARVELLOUS!

oh look .. an opportunity for a long holiday

in ROME … wooohaaaa!

I want to go to Mars

what the fuck … 11pm and im still at the office ..

its times like these that i get pretty fucking depressed and just feel like shit in general

heard five for fighting’s 100 years just now and somehow evrytime i hear this song id feel sooo iono .. empty and depressed … but i like this song .. its a nice song .. its just that the lyrics makes me feel crappy

100 years 

I’m 15 for a moment
Caught in between 10 and 20
And I’m just dreaming
Counting the ways to where you are

I’m 22 for a moment
She feels better than ever
And we’re on fire
Making our way back from Mars

15 there’s still time for you
Time to buy and time to lose
15, there’s never a wish better than this
When you only got 100 years to live

I’m 33 for a moment
Still the man, but you see I’m a they
A kid on the way
A family on my mind

I’m 45 for a moment
The sea is high
And I’m heading into a crisis
Chasing the years of my life

15 there’s still time for you
Time to buy, Time to lose yourself
Within a morning star

15 I’m all right with you
15, there’s never a wish better than this
When you only got 100 years to live

Half time goes by
Suddenly you’re wise
Another blink of an eye
67 is gone
The sun is getting high
We’re moving on…

I’m 99 for a moment
Dying for just another moment
And I’m just dreaming
Counting the ways to where you are

15 there’s still time for you
22 I feel her too
33 you’re on your way
Every day’s a new day…

15 there’s still time for you
Time to buy and time to choose
Hey 15, there’s never a wish better than this
When you only got 100 years to live

it was prolly so obvious that i was feeling down cos one of my colleague was like ‘why so black face?’

bleh … theres SOOOOOOOOO much of work to do .. and it doesnt look like its fucking ending … my langkawi project (which at first i felt so proud of) is supposedly completed … but fuck i kept having to go to langkawi and now the bloody scope of work has expanded … what was it called again? moving scope of work something … NOT GOOD … not good at all … and on top of that i have a NEW project which im sposed to be in charged of WHOLLY … yes WHOLLY … my ass is SOOO going to get whacked .. i can see it now …its SOOO in the future … god i might at well wear that stupid bullseye target thing on my ass and be a bloody walking target … shit … i dont know how im going to handle this shit – and its bloody off track … well not completely off but im not on schedule … cant seem to find the time to focus on this shit … every other thing keeps popping up

can i just bloody fly off to langkawi for a fucking week and switch off my handphone … god thatll be a near-heaven state that i can only dream of

yesterday was my cousins grand wedding in a grand ballroom … but i wasnt super excited as i was sposed to be … due to a few things – tried to get all excited and happy .. but theres always that one shit thing thats at the back of my mind that keeps me from getting to that level of excitement … i shouldve been all excited and happy like a giddy schoolgirl … but i wasnt

but lets not discuss

or dwell on that

eh .. went to one utama yesterday and there was this exhibition by architectural students from some college … decided to just u know look around and see whats up .. quite interesting – but one thing that really caught my eye is this one poster of a mosque in alexandria … that was not much of the building but mostly on the kids going there on a class trip (imagine that) taking pics and having fun … god of ALL the things abt uitm id miss THAT the most … my “History of Architecture” class .. god that was my favoritest class EVER … the lecturer was great – the subject : AMAZING … and thered always be a class trip for you to go to places like greece or turkey and visit all these magnificent ancient buildings … thats like the ultimate superb holiday for me … and its always fun when u have a whole class having the same interest as you do … i mean u know as oppose to going around with ppl having ZERO interest in old buildings and when u say something like ‘god the use of space is so interesting and the high ceiling gives movement to the room .. aesthetic design of the interior also complements the exterior as it stays true to the whole form of the building’ .. and you wont get a ‘huh? .. GAWD get a life!’ .. heh .. kidding .. i never get that .. but itd be nice to have someone to share shit with .. and im not talking bout life partners

whatever .. did i sidetracked?