BonBons

The cold has arrived in Hong Kong.  Now to be fair 15 degrees is not exactly winter in non-tropical country terms, yet it is a big drop for the Hong Kong inhabitants especially as it happened overnight. I think the closer you are to the equator the less subtle are the temperature changes. Over two days it can go from 25 to 15.

This weekend flew by far too fast. A little flashback to my Saturday morning, which I spent snuggling in bed, with hot cinnamon porridge and a book by Stephen Fry. When it gets colder I love opening the windows and letting the cool air in, I snuggle under the blanket which acts like a cocoon of protection, the sausage dogs act as mini heaters and I feel rightfully lazy after a long week of work. I also suddenly realise that I am a creature of winter that in the last few months of  blazing Hong Kong heat and humidity has forgotten how winters work. 

What does one really wear? Where did I store away my old jumpers? Do I have hot chocolate in the kitchen cup board? Fleeting, sleepy questions cross my mind. As my brain senses the chill outside the blanket it slows down, preferring to use the energy to heat my finger tips, that are getting cold from typing outside the blanket. There is so much to do, but I stretch out, as much as I can, the beautiful morning of bright blue autumn skies, indulging in every second.

Time flies so fast it is impossible to stop it, the morning laziness was replaced with the usual running around. Business of Design conference, meeting a friend to discuss an event we want to host, quick dinner, early sleep, morning hike with some girlfriends, lunch, sleep, Detour Design 2011 exhibition with some London bloggers and designers, and a stroll around Sheung Wan and here we are, it's Sunday night and I am about to tell you a story about  BonBons.

This week I broke a month long shopping fast.  It felt like breaking a successful low carb diet: no matter how virtuous, mindful, victorious and skinny you feel you always end up having that piece of  cake. On Thursday night I went to the launch of my friends jewelry line; colourful candy like spheres of goodness - the unique BonBons. I have spotted them on Paola (of the designer duo Tangram) in October and have been wanting to get my hands on them ever since. Now Tangram are a new awesome brand that deserve their own post, I met them through JJ from the Wanderlister. Colombian fashion designer Paola Sinisterra and her Spanish designer husband Igancio Garcia are my favourite HK nomads: creative, different, worldly, with a passion for cooking (check out their food blog) and design, they are always exploring Hong Kong, always quirky and full of energy and ideas.

BONBONS, are Tangram’s first accessories collection. Initially, Paola wasn't planning to make them for sale she made them for herself, but people kept on asking where she got her necklaces so she realised it was time to launch a small collection. Every necklace is a unique assemblage of pieces collected over time in different markets around Hong Kong and the South of China. All the parts were salvaged from different small stock remnants and put together by hand in unique combinations. What I love about Tangram is how every detail has been thought through, starting from the logo and the spotless grey packaging. 

What I like as well is that BONBONS are really one-of-a-king and limited to 15 numbered pieces available at one of the coolest Hong Kong concept stores Signed By (43 Tung Street) and through e-mail for those not in Hong Kong.

Supporting local extremely talented young designers, buying unique pieces that are closer to art objects than simple necklaces, sounds very much like mindful consumption, what a fun to break a shopping diet.

P.S. The first four photos below are from the Tangram Campaign S/S 12  and were shot by Xue Tan one of my favourite young Asian photographers. 

P.S.S.PSSSt.... The Bonbons will be in SignedBy all of December. On the 10th of December Tung Street will host a Christmas special with all the studios and shops show-casting Christmas merchandise. Most excitingly as the original Bonbons are almost sold out, Paola is finishing a second collection with a more marine theme for the event.  Cannot wait!!!!