Asides from design, food and cute animals, Jia and I love travelling. Strangely, we have yet to go on a long trip together, especially since our travelling styles and sightseeing preferences don't differ much. We are considered laid-back travellers who prefer to travel without a tight schedule and crazy checklists. Think along the lines of gigantic mountains, gentle oceans and lakes, spring flowers, wild animals, park benches and we will be there with a flask of hot drink, snacks and a book. It is no surprise that a cool and cheery Spring day is our definition of good weather and absolute happiness. 

We would love to travel and explore more corners of the earth, if not for exorbitant airfares and the cost of accommodation. We may not have that kind of money to jet set around the world but dreams don't cost much, especially if it's a Pinterest dream! Travel photos on Pinterest makes me salivate at the computer screen and it tickles my wanderlust dreams. Therefore this month, we put together some travel destination pins that left us weak in the knees and dreaming of the next flight out. 

Jeju Island, South Korea

​​Jia: I am finally heading to Jeju Island in November and after some hours of ogling at gorgeous photos while researching, I can safely say that I am totally ready to do some major sightseeing and trekking! As I will be visiting the island with my mom, I hope that I can find trails that would not be too tiring on her. More reading up is necessary and I got to finish it soon! 

Krakow, Poland
Morskie Oko (The eye of the Sea), Tatra Mountains, Zakopane
​
Jia: When I was living in Switzerland a couple of years ago, it was an unfulfilled plan of mine to visit Krakow, Poland and the nearby(ish) Tatra Mountains in Zakopane. Now that Min and I are firming up plans to go back to Switzerland, I have figuratively dusted off my plans and research for Poland. I definitely need to visit Poland soon to quell my wanderlust! 

​Yangshuo, China

​Jia: About five years ago, I discovered that most of the mountains I was painting during my  childhood years of Chinese calligraphy and painting lessons belonged to a small village called Yangshuo in Guilin. Ever since then, it has been a travel mission of mine to visit Yangshuo but I just have not made it there despite my various trips abroad. It is time to buckle down and start realising this dream of mine!

-

Where do you hope to travel to next? 

x Min

Sunday Stickies is a column where we reflect on the past week and pen those thoughts down on sticky pads. Expect notes to ourselves and others, advice, reminders for the week ahead, quotes, and anything random actually.

Who knew that a few gulps of sour tea can do so much harm? Our last Sunday Stickies post must have confused many of you as we received emails and direct messages on Instagram asking after us. So sorry about that!

In the intense heat during our event last Saturday, we made the wrong decision to continue drinking our barley tea that had obviously gone a little bad. It was sour but we drank the remaining few gulps without much hesitation to quench our thirst. It was all fine until Sunday evening... that was when all hell broke loose. In different corners of our tiny island, we were both down with food poisoning and muttering under our breaths about the cursed sour tea and our stupidity. So kids, here is a health tip: do not drink tea that has gone bad. 

Due to our illness, the studio was trudging along very slowly during the first few days of the week. Thankfully, we got better and work resumed as per normal! We are so relieved that August is coming to an end as that would mean the completion of a few major projects. If you have also been facing a rough month, hang in there with us! We are reaching September pretty soon! 

Jia: Have you ever craved for food that you should absolutely not be eating after recovering from a bout of food poisoning? All I have been craving for is to sink my teeth into a lusciously hot buttery toast. I wake up and think "butter toast" and when I am having my usual meals, I too, think "butter toast". The thought of butter toast is haunting me and I am so annoyed that I have yet to fulfil my craving. Just a few more days of the usual no-nos to rest my stomach and digestive system. But for now: no chilli, no oil, no dairy, no life. 

-

How has your August been? Are you looking forward to the new month?

With Love, Min+Jia. 

Spaghetti with Marmite is one of my favourite pasta dish and it is one of my go-to recipes for potluck parties and celebrations. I came across this recipe many years ago in one of Nigella Lawson's earlier cookbooks and I absolutely loved it. The original recipe is as simple as simple gets and I had no good excuse not to try it. There is really nothing special to it, just simply plain ol' Marmite and spaghetti, and we are good to go. Mmm, two of the best things on a plate. 

I was all set to impress Jia with this simple dish when she raised a worthy question - "why do you use Marmite and not Bovril?". Here's a wee bit of background information: I love Marmite and Jia loves Bovril. I have never understood the existence of Bovril but Jia simply prefers the taste of Bovril. Just like that, we decided we need to recreate this dish with Bovril and then compare the two versions to see which dish taste better! 

Cast your votes! Who stole our hearts in the end - Bovril or Marmite? 

Mushroom Linguine with Bovril/Marmite
Recipe inspired by Nigella Lawson, Spaghetti with Marmite
Serves 1
Prep time: 5 mins | Cooking Time: 15 - 20 minutes

Ingredients:
55g linguine 
1tbs garlic, minced
75g fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 stalks spring onion, cut into 3cm strips
1 handful of coriander, roughly chopped
1tsp Bovril/Marmite
1tsp olive oil

Instructions:
Cook linguine or any desired pasta as per packet instructions. Add a generous amount of salt and half a tablespoon of oil to prevent the noodles from sticking. After about 7-10 minutes, remove the pot of linguine from the fire, reserve some pasta water, pour the rest away and dunk the pasta in ice water to stop it from cooking any further. Set aside.

In a separate pan, heat olive oil and add minced garlic. Gently fry garlic over medium heat until it turns light brown. Add sliced mushrooms. Add some of the reserved pasta water to pan and let the mushrooms cook through. When the mushrooms are soft, add a teaspoon of Bovril/Marmite to the pan and stir well. Add more pasta water if the consistency is too dry. When the Bovril/Marmite has dissolved, add linguine, spring onions and coriander. Toss well and be sure to coat every bit of noodle!

And... you are done! Eat it while it is hot and garnish the dish with a lot of shaved parmesan cheese, lemon juice, and more coriander!

And the winner of our little cooking experiment is the... Mushroom linguine with Marmite!

We absolutely love how flavourful Marmite is; every bite is smoothly coated with Marmite goodness and saltiness. The taste is pretty similar between the two but in the end, we concluded that Bovril was lacking in oomph. The taste was definitely weaker and less flavourful. We also loved how the lemon complements the saltiness of the dish, so remember to add some zing to your noodles!

-

Which side are you on - Bovril and Marmite? :)

x Min

How has August been for you? The month has been pretty rough on us and we seriously cannot wait to be done with August as it would mean the completion of many projects. As a way to tide us through the craziness of the month, we have created new motivational wallpapers for all your tech! 

I love the giddy feeling I get whenever I change the wallpaper on my desktop or mobile phone. Everything just seems so fresh and new in an instant! If you are having a hectic month too, we hope the new wallpapers will cheer you up and spur you on.

As always, we have prepared the wallpapers in three sizes. A HD quality wallpaper that is super sharp and excellent for bigger screens (like a 27" iMac), a compact yet crystal clear wallpaper perfect for 13" screens, and a parallax wallpaper for your mobile phone and tablets. To download, just head to the Downloads section and choose your preferred size! 

-

Like the Disney vibe? 

<3 Jia

Sunday Stickies is a column where we reflect on the past week and pen those thoughts down on sticky pads. Expect notes to ourselves and others, advice, reminders for the week ahead, quotes, and anything random actually.

This week's Sunday Stickies is going to be a little different. Why? Because we are both down with food poisoning and are bedridden. Our sudden bout of illness isn't reflected in our stickies as we prepared our stickies on Saturday night while we were struck down on Sunday night. So, we are signing off early now. 

Talk to you soon!

With Love, Min+Jia.