France or not??

After we came back from the trip to Paris, 1 question is always in our mind... This isn't so important for our daily life but I asked my curiosity and I have decided to search about its answer,,,

The question is...

Is French fries from France or not??

We met a lot of dishes with french fries in Paris... But I'm not sure why, I feel it's like a fast food!!! It's not my imagination of French food!!!!!! Because we went not so bad restaurant! Especially near the tower, we went great cafe, they called me "Madam"! Why? It's like fast food! Whenever we ordered some dishes, they came with french fries.

Especially in English, why it is called French fries??

Once, a couple from America who were sitting next to us in a cafe, have tried to discuss about the same question! And finally they asked the cafe's waitress about why french fries are called FRENCH?? Is it from France?? And she said "Yes, we call it French Fritz in French."

OKOK,

I don't trust that~~~~~~, because you broke my dream of French food!!!! It's like fast food!!!!

So, I have tried to search about why it's called french fries.

The answer is that it's from Belgium (not France), and at first Belgian immigrants have brought it to America, and because they were speaking French so that American thought that they are from France and it has been called French fries in English (in America).

Actually what I was surprised is how America is great to influence Japan!! Because since I have started to learn English, I have thought why Fried potatoes (we call it Fried potatoes in Japan) is called French fries in English. We have never know why because we have already had an image about where it comes from, it's from America! Japan didn't have french fries in the past for sure, we have our own food culture, but after we have finished the war, a lot of things from America have been increasing not only from America, but also from the other countries, areas, cultures... I only have an idea that French fries should be American fast food...

How much Japan has been influenced by America??


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Designer icons?

Simple and nice icon~

Download

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New Domus Academy~

Just after the “old” students gone, DA nearly change everything, here I would like to share the new views of Domus Academy!




Size of the school still the same, but I heard that for this academic year, there are more than 200 students ...

*The 4 pictures already show all of the area of Domus Academy! (35mm camera lens)

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High Class Ayumi??

During my research of lighting design project, my Google has searched "High Class Ayumi" on the topic.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What!?

What's this?? Higher class than me??



Actually it's just a package of chop sicks called Brand New High Class Ayumi Japanese Chop sticks (light brawn), but it has been selling in yahoo-shopping in Singapore............. Light brawn is not the same as light(ing) design... It is Google's problem!!!!(>_<)

It costs 3.0 SGD(Singapore Dollars), ¥237 and 1.5 euro. Wow, it's cheap! I mean if compare with chop sticks in Italy...even it's high class!

But anyway it's high class than me. I have to tell this to my Italian friend, she will not be able to stop laughing.



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Lighter!?

In Milan, I know many kitchens still need to use external fire to light up the gas (stupid). For our kitchen also, so we bought a lighter before...but unlucky, it didn’t work one day so that we bought a new one from a shop. We bought that from “High tech shop”, which is a shop in Milan selling expansive lifestyle products (They increase the price so products become expensive). we’ve chosen a lighter cost 7euro.


For the new lighter, I don’t know who design and produce it, I only know it didn’t work after 4 days... as I am an industrial designer, if I know the products which designed by me finally like this...I will prefer to change my job. Someone may question that is not designer’s job... but I would like to talk about the button on the lighter also, we can never switch it one when you hand is wet.


This is a lighter? Or I should ask who is the designer?




So finally I break the old light and make my own one, I didn’t concern about the appearance, it become a form follow function lighter~


The most important thing for a lighter - can bring with fire!


My lighter!

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My environmental design brain?

I'm using my environmental design brain these days.

Actually for Salone del Mobile, I'm using another brain... But these days I'm using environmental design brain!!

The reason why is that I and Eric are now doing brain storming about an international design competition from Japan. It is from Koizumi, which is lighting consultant company in Osaka and have big annual student competition in the world about lighting design. Their business is proposing design solutions mainly for lighting environment but also they are proposing total domestic lifestyle surrounding lighting design.

Why we have decided to join it is related with why we have decided to start this blog together.

Before I mentioned we have totally opposite type of thinking, sense of value, and design process even in daily life. But we have respected each other since we have started to have some conversation. And why not we will propose or design some new things that we never be able to design if we are alone! And this time, we have totally opposite approach to the competition concept from the company also in the brain storming. But it's great because I have inspired by him in the way that I have never thought about. And I can feel that he also inspired by my approach to the concept. These days my brain is really brain storming a lot!! Competition title is "In search of the Way of Light, global environment of the future". Such a huge title!! Check the details at their website!



Ayumi's collection and Eric's collection. You can easy to identify which one is mine. Hahahahah


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Idiocracy!

Idiocracy - We've just watch this movie tonight, this movie try to introduction what will be happen in the future if people not to use their brain (or cannot use...). As a person who stay in Milan for more than 1 year (Italy), when I was seeing this movie, its really touch to what I'm feeling, and I would like to introduce this movie to everyone, especially to the Italian who can UNDERSTAND English~ may be they can find out something similar to their daily life.

http://www.foxmovies.com/

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Coming soon...

Actually we are preparing our Homepage these days. This is the first time for me to create homepage by my self... So I'm thinking to make it with "flash" or "dreamweaver".

Does anybody have some opinions?? We would like to share our portfolios, experiences, personalities and visions what we want to do together. We would like to share it as much as we can to the others, because it will be fun!

But honestly, we have many things that we couldn't organize them yet. These days we are waiting but I'm working as a consultant to built one big project in Salone del Mobile 2007 in this April!!!!

Picture in Salone 2006

But you know,,, Salone business is crazy, especially as you know( if you have visited salone, there is Fuori Salone that the city will be opened for furniture or some installations during the period of Salone, it's the biggest design week in the world),so that every places where is related to the exhibitions or showrooms, galleries are all occupied with a huge amount of money!!!!

If you curious about the price to book the space during the salone del mobile in Milan, it costs 1200 euro for 1 day...and from this year, we need to pay 1800 euro for publishing the name in catalogue.
You know what? Our rent costs 820 euro(share by 2 people) per a month.

And I realized that 1 euro is 155 Japanese Yen now!! I can't say like this but it's Fuc**n' expensive!!!! Europe is crazy! I will go back to Japan immediately when I finish my project in Milan!!!!!!!!!! ¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥

It's a big business, if you have a place in Milan where is located in hot areas for designers!


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Birdhouse

Designer’s birdhouse

In our house, there are 2 special family members, I don’t know how old are they when we brought them home.

Instead of keep them in the jail, we are more prefer to keep them more space, so I spent 5 mins to create a birdhouse for one of them.

The material came from my honey’s shoes box, I’ve modified a little bit for the food and water container, also I prepare the step for the bird to go back home.


Tidy up itself

Some close-up view for the birdhouse!



Enjoy~

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waiting...

These days we are waiting... keep waiting, and waiting... for a long time...
"Italy is the country that they give a fantastic dream to the others."



When?? I can't remember but when our classmates all together and were talking about our 1 year in Milan, we all agreed with this phrase.

This country is amazing, if you will visit here as a tourist, you will never know that but when you will live here and try to apply "permission of stay"(this is really problem) or some competitions(this is the first time for us)... you will realize that things you dreamed before you come here was really dream. Nothing won't work in order, you have to wait wait wait, keep waiting...

But anyway it's Italian time, we have no choice...

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"Fleshpot" stories??

Do you remember a movie "Moulin Rouge"?? It was talking about a night club in 1980's of Paris. The director was Baz・Luhrmann, he expressed a story surrounding the history of underground culture in Paris, in his original fantastic way. He was using a retro design dresses and musics combining with modern style as a musical show in the movie, and it shows us something that we can imagine the period that Moulin Rouge was prospered.

"In the closing decade of nineteenth century Paris a new period retrospectively christened La Belle Epoque ('the beautiful period') was born. As its name suggests, the Belle Epoque was characterised by relative calm, prosperity, enterprise and social freedom."

I saw a movie called "A memorial of Geisha", in Japanese it's "Sayuri" last year in Italy, this is also the story about a geisha house (a kind of traditional night club in Japan). Many classmates and friends asked me about the story of the movie is truth or not. But the important thing is not that it is truth or not, is that the story is the one that I can believe it's possible. I red the novel of this story, and it is written by an American novelist. He researched a lot about geisha story in Kyoto, I heard.

The same as him, I think these kinds of areas and histories are including a lot of sad but romantic, and dramatic stories inside. I can respect something and I feel humaneness in these kinds of stories.


In Paris, we have visited the place where Moulin Rouge is still there. It was quiet and becomes a tourist place, we can see many tourists taking photos around, so do we. But at night maybe we can still find some romantic but hidden stories in the same place... maybe.

Moulin Rouge is here!

Happy New Year 2007!

We would like to say "Happy New Year" to our friends who always visit this website~