Jplus 2015 12 20 lores

Vol. 3 No. 5 I December 20-26, 2015

ON-LINE SHOPPING APPS A JPLUS TECH GUIDE BEST SERVED COLD ICELANDIC RHAPSODY JOJO MAYER JAMS JAZZ AT MOTION BLUE

time traveler LUTHFI HASAN shares his VINTAGE SECRETS

Editor's note

Check List

In the Age of Mechanical Reproduction

Jakarta

vintag

e/meut ia

ananda

Spoiled for jazz growing up in New York City, I was thrilled to hear that Motion Blue Jakarta set up shop at the Fairmont Hotel in Senayan. The high-end jazz club recently brought Jojo Mayer to town, so we sent Dylan Amirio to report.

As Dylan writes, Motion Blue wants to offer a playbill – and listening experience – that rivals that of The Carlyle Room or even the famed Blue Note in New York, to which it is indirectly related.

He predicts that the venue will revivify the local scene. Check out Dylan's interview with Jojo Mayer and the club’s director.

Meanwhile, our cover story is on Luthfi Hasan, the owner of Jakarta Vintage and a connoisseur of all things linked to tempo doeloe (days past).

Thinking about what Luthfi said about the appeal of vintage during his interview, I remember what Walter Benjamin wrote in “Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction” in 1936: Once art lose its traditional or ritual functions, we appreciate it for political reasons.

Accordingly, the things that we like today are things that can be made inexpensively and marketed widely – which is why Luthfi’s vintage creations have special value: They’re unique and crafted with thoughtfulness and style.

Luthfi’s also (kindly) shared tips on how to best search for vintage goods in Jakarta and elsewhere – just in time for the holiday season. But if your shopping list runs toward the modern, don’t despair: We’ve also got a curated guide to local smartphone shopping apps in our “Tech Treats” section.

Some good news: JPlus is slated to be published over the holidays. Lifestyle journalism elves are currently crafting a travel cover story for Dec. 27, when we’ll go to Mexico and visit Oaxaca, which is as famous for food as it is for the Monte Albán pyramids.

Happy Christmas for all those who observe – and enjoy the weekend!

Chris Razukas jplus@thejakartapost.com

mark my words

Celebrity...Fashionista...

Technopreneur?

Fashion’s love affair with celebrities in the tech era is shameless – and smart.

Words Willy Wilson

Have you ever browsed through Dailymail and thought: “Who the heck is this Chanel-clad nobody?” or “What is this D-lister doing in NYFW?” Guilty as charged, I do indulge in junk sites and tabloid rags. No, I’m not into the fictional celebrity feuds, but I love how the editors include their readers in policing celebrity outfits.

What’s interesting is low-brow media’s increasing obsession with fashion. There are fewer “Brangelina Bids Adios” stories and more “Jennifer Lawrence Wears Dior for Lunch”.

Obviously the marriage of pop culture and fashion is nothing new – Audrey Hepburn and Givenchy was a match made in heaven – but never before in the history of contemporary culture have both sides exploited each other so much, forging an artistically destructive yet commercially beneficial relationship.

People working the fashion industry are now demi-celebrities, and as celebrities are entitled to call themselves fashion “insiders”.

We have no one but ourselves to blame for the attention-seeking monsters that call themselves celebrity fashionistas (or, God help us, technopreneur celebutantes).

In the era of a 24/7 Internet, celebrities and the fashion industry are capitalizing on the incessant need of people for information. The only way

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to meet market demand is to craft and exploit your image.

The once-exclusive figures behind the high-fashion industry now need to cultivate a mass-market appeal – and celebrities are the go-to vehicles who can guarantee instant buzz and consumer interest.

So who cares if Kim Kardashian wears the wrong kind of Balmain? What matters is that she was photographed to death wearing them – so that when Balmain’s Olivier Rousteing released watered-down versions of the dresses under H&M, Kardashian's 30 million followers created a global fashion frenzy.

I have a feeling that most of those who looted H&M stores – online and off – knew more about Caitlyn Jenner than Pierre Balmain. Within the fashion industry, Balmain’s embrace of Kardashian as muse may have raised eyebrows, but there’s no denying her influential global brand.

However, to attribute such public hysteria solely to her is an overstatement.

Balmain’s 29-year-old designer Rousteing, with an Instagram army numbering around 1.8 million, is a social media star in his own right.

Rousteing is a talented designer – and even better marketer. His selfies with beautiful #bff - Jennifer Lopez, Gigi Hadid and the Kardashians – carry the same weight as traditional fashion campaigns.

And the girls are just all too happy to pose for free wearing his designs. He has turned his own personal social media savvy into

a hype machine that saved the French couture house from bankruptcy.

Such an ideal partnership doesn’t occur very often in the pop culture universe. The problem starts when celebrities are more obsessed with becoming – as opposed to creating – a fashion label.

Case in point: Singer-songwriter, actress, dancer, social media influencer and occasional model Agnes Monica, who marked her foray into fashion with the launch of ANYE in October. I believe she can be a lot of things, but “chief creative officer” of a fashion line she is not. Her own look – a bit of Wang, a bit of Riri and a whole lot of ghetto - doesn’t scream originality. Let alone fashion.

But I’m sure ANYE will enjoy commercial success. After all, she has a huge social media following that passionately watches her every move. In the social media pecking order, hers is a blue-chip brand. And you can’t blame a girl for milking her own brand.

I mean, Rihanna was recently named as Puma’s creative director for womenswear.

Heck, six comedians whose cheap jokes dominate evening prime time on local TV just released a fashion line early this month.

Moral of the story: any celebrity with a massive online cult following can make the cut in the fashion world.

Sad. But true.

Mark My Words shifts focus between food, fashion, parenting and travel each week.

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Wide-open spaces

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Giant gem of a watch

ask A designer

It’s About Time

JPlus Team Editor Christian Razukas Art Director Budhi Hartono Graphic Designer Hengky Wijaya Marketing & Advertising Sales & Marketing Director Ady P. Pamungkas

ady.pamungkas@thejakartapost.com

Marketing Executive Deasy Rasjid

deasy@thejakartapost.com

@JPlusSunday JPlusSunday

SundayJplus jakplus.com

On the cover Luthfi Hasan Photo: Meutia Ananda Stylist: Ananda Adityasanti Wardrobe: Bluesville at Stow-Jakarta & Lutfi Hasan own shirt Location: Jakarta Vintage, Darmawangsa Square, Jakarta.

talk of the town COACH LAUNCHES INDONESIAN FLAGSHIP STORE Grand Indonesia, Central Jakarta

Coach, a leading New York design house featuring modern luxury and lifestyle accessories, has just unveiled its flagship store at Grand Indonesia.

The 330-square-meter retail space is warm and inviting, reflecting the sophisticated yet playful refinement of New York – the city the brand has always called home. It is the company’s seventh store in the country and features a full range of Coach goods.

During the grand opening party, Coach launched its exclusive new Saddle bag and Kiti Swagger products.

While the Saddle bag is inspired by an iconic silhouette first introduced in 1972, the Kiti Swagger is a limited edition Coach Swagger bag designed by international superstar Ariana Grande.

RAFFLES HOLDS SPECIAL SUNDAY BRUNCH Cipiutra World, South Jakarta

The Raffles Hotel Jakarta’s newest executive chef, Daniel Patterson, wowed guests on Dec. 13 with a special Sunday brunch menu that mixed both local and international cuisines.

Patterson collaborated with local gourmand and celebrity chef Petty Elliott to combine their culinary expertise. The pair prepared a la minute dishes featuring local and international festive favorites.

Chef Daniel created a special English menu with chestnut soup; a turkey, chicken liver parfait and Christmas pudding; while chef Petty introduced foods from Manado such as oyster dabu dabu and a delicious spicy pork dish served in bamboo.

RIA MIRANDA HOLDS LATEST TRUNK SHOW Senayan City, South Jakarta Renowned Islamic fashion designer Ria Miranda recently teamed up with Wardah Cosmetics and hijup.com to present her latest annual trunk show at The Hall in Senayan City.

The Dec. 10 event, which comes hot on the heels of her participation at Jakarta Fashion Week 2016, put on display her Spring-Summer 2016 Collection.

It showed off 60 works that she spent six months designing.

The overall goal of the partnership between Miranda and her sponsors was to help realize the dream of making Indonesia as a center for Islamic fashion by 2020.

ELC SPREADS XMAS LOVE WITH NEW TOYS Grand Indonesia, Central Jakarta

Garuda Indonesia to debut signature dishes from star chefs Mega Kuningan, Jakarta

ELC recently celebrated the Christmas season with a new series of toys that will enable kids to explore the boundaries of their imaginations and creativity.

Each of these toys has high play value, are educational and safe to use. They are designed for children up to eight years of age.

They include a big city garage, a Bosch work bench, a key boom board, a wooden train table, a rosebud country house and a drop & pop giraffe.

It's all part of ELC's activities for welcoming of the holiday season, which also included transforming the ELC Store at Grand Indonesia West Mall earlier this month into a playland filled with red, green and gold decorations.

Garuda Indonesia held a signing ceremony at the E&O Restaurant on Dec. 11 to mark its collaboration with three master chefs to bring in-flight food for the flag carrier to the next level.

Starting in February, first-class and business passengers on select flights can expect dishes from “Street-Food Chef” Will Meyrick, Chef Gilles Marx from AMUZ and Chef Felix Budisetiawan from the Sriwijaya fine-dining restaurant at the Dharmawangsa.

Dishes to be served include ayam betutu with long bean yellow coconut and peanut salad from Meyrick, steamed barramundi fish fillet, ginger rice in lime coconut sauce from Marx and sixhour braised kalio-style beef short ribs, celeriac gratine and baby root vegetables from Felix.

JPlus December 20, 2015

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good Living

Wide-open spaces you've got design questions. we've got stylish answers Words Rebeckka Wong, The Straits Times (ANN)

Platforms mark out spaces in open-concept areas

Tempered glass for bathrooms for safety I am worried after reading a report about the glass door of a shower cubicle that shattered and killed the home owner, who fell on it. How can I prevent this from happening?

Open-concept spaces are appealing, but if you can see everything at a glance, would it not make the home look cluttered?

Home owners have embraced the open-concept look, largely because it makes small spaces look larger.

It is more challenging to design an open-concept space than one with walls - you have to zone it for functions such as lounging or dining.

There are many ways to do that while leaving the space uncluttered.

Use bigger pieces of furniture, such as sofas and console tables, to zone areas in a subtle way. You can do the same with flooring by using materials such as tiles and rugs.

A slight change in level (with a low platform) also signals a transition to another “zone” without breaking the line of sight in the space.

You can also mark out areas with partitions. But make sure they have designs that open out to the other side, instead of blocking out the light and space completely.

Define spaces before planning lighting Photos AFP, creative commons, Courtesy of The Design Practice

I like the look of track lighting.

How do I use them effectively to light up my home? Can I use them for mood lighting?

Before you light your home, here are some basics. There are three main types of lighting - task, mood or ambient and general.

General lighting is used to light a space overall, task lighting focuses illumination where you need it and mood lighting creates ambience.

A good lighting plan would have a combination of these three types.

Track lighting can be used for both general lighting as well as mood lighting (when used with a

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JPlus December 20, 2015

dimmer switch), says April Kwan, regional interior design specialist at home furnishings chain Ikea.

With several spotlights along the track and when placed above workspaces, they can provide good overall illumination in an area.

The individual spotlights can also be directed to enhance features, such as a wall with art or photos, so that the surface does not look flat.

“Plan lighting in a home by first defining the functions of each space. Indicate where task lighting is needed. Then decide on the mood and general lighting,” says Kwan.

Untreated or annealed glass will break into large shards that can cut and even impale, causing death in some cases. This is not recommended for bathrooms and should be used only in other parts of the home, such as for glass cabinet doors. They can also be used within aluminum frames.

Tempered glass is glass that has undergone a high-heat process, so that it crumbles into tiny pieces with no sharp edges when broken.

Interior design firm Museum Homes’ principal Alex Kwan says this is the best option for bathrooms.

For greater durability, he recommends using 12mm-thick tempered glass panels instead of the standard 8mm ones. However, the price of the thicker glass is 40 percent more than the thinner one.

He says, “Tempered glass has a high tolerance for impact, but if the impact is at the corners, it might shatter.

“For bathrooms, the right way to mount glass panels for an L-shaped shower cubicle is to set the glass into an aluminum U-channel on the floor and wall and secure it with silicone.

There is a layer of rubber insulation between the aluminum and glass, but that should be kept to a minimum to reduce friction.”

Tempered glass may cost about 50 percent more than regular untreated glass, but having peace of mind is priceless.

To check that you are getting what you pay for, look for the manufacturer’s mark on tempered glass.

Cover scratches on wood with walnut or coffee grounds How can I minimize the appearance of scratches on my wood furniture? Will more varnish do the trick?

As a natural material, wood is prone to scratches and dents, especially for tabletops and flooring. More varnish is not going to help – you will only hide the natural beauty of the material.

Light scratches are easy to remove and you will be surprised at what you can use.

To cover scratches on darker-colored wood, dip a cotton swab in moist coffee grounds and apply to the scratches. Wait 10 minutes and wipe the surface with a dry cloth.

For light-colored wood, rub a shelled walnut over the scratches, leave it for a while,

then wipe with a dry cloth.

For deeper scratches, Jodie Low, marketing executive at Mountain Teak, a supplier of teak furniture, suggests using a wood repair stick, which can be found at local hardware stores.

“Choose a shade that is closest to the color of your furniture and run it along the scratch.

Finish with a layer of varnish.

“Do note that the effectiveness of this method depends on the type of stain and varnish on your furniture,” she says.

tech treats

Shopping via smartphone

yY U u BB

like shopping in real life, but with less hassle WORDS Andry Togarma Hermawan D

The festive season is here, which for some means doing more shopping than usual. Unfortunately, the weather – and traffic – are unpredictable, making getting to and from the mall a challenge.

Fear not: There are a host of shopping apps – locally designed and offering local delivery – that you can access via tablet or smartphone. To help you choose, JPlus has curated five Customerto-Customer (C2C) shopping apps that are worth a try.

Shopee

Tokopedia

Compared to the other apps on this list, Shopee is the youngest. However, it has one thing that differentiates it from its competitors: The ability to ask for a bargain. For questions regarding an item, you can also chat directly and privately with the seller via the Shopee app, so there is no need to make contact using other methods.

Payments made through the app (bank transfer or credit card) are guaranteed by Shopee, so you your money will be in escrow until you receive your purchase – unless you chose to meet the seller and collect the item yourself in person.

Around since 2009, Tokopedia is one of the largest C2C online stores in Indonesia. Most payment methods are accepted – bank transfers and credit cards as well as offline payments through Indomaret – and are protected by Tokopedia until you receive your item and have no complaints.

Tokopedia works with six delivery services in Indonesia to get your product, although availability depends on sellers.

Bonus: Some items are also sold wholesale, which means unit prices go down as you buy in large quantities.

Bukalapak

Like Tokopedia, Bukalapak, which has also been around since 2011, offers bank transfer, credit card and offline payments through Indomaret – and more. For instance, you can check the availability of the items that you want to buy, since sellers have to list the quantities they have on hand.

On shipping, Bukalapak also offers delivery through several courier services, with shipping fees automatically calculated based on your location. One thing that makes this app different is that sellers occasionally offer free shipping.

Qoo10 Indonesia

An online marketplace from Giosis – a joint venture with eBay – Qoo10 Indonesia is a localized online marketplace. Since it is considered “international”, you can find items sold by people in other countries too. Payment options are more varied, including options for PayPal, FinPay and BBM Money.

Qoo10 Indonesia also offers daily deals and group buys, which provides discounts for limited times.

Other notable features include coupons and “Qpoints” that you earn from transactions, promotions and by being active on the app.

Kaskus Jual Beli (Beta)

Kaskus is the largest forum in Indonesia, comparable to the popularity of Craigslist in the West. Unfortunately, it is also one of the biggest places to get scammed while shopping online. Realizing this, Kaskus has developed an escrow services called “Brankas”.

Kaskus’ shopping app, Kaskus Jual Beli, is still far from perfect. Still in beta, the “Brankas” feature can’t be utilized in-app. So for payment, you will not be protected and need to collect the item and make payment yourself. However, compared to other services in the list, Kaskus Jual Beli has more second-hand item listings and rare items.

Apps available via Google Play and the App Store.

Be a smart online shopper lways read the descriptions and specifications A of an item before you buy. If needed, make a screen capture of the product page as proof before opening a dispute.

The best price doesn’t always mean the best

for you. Consider where the seller is located and try to calculate shipping before you finalize your transaction.

Always check a seller's ratings and reputation – and how they interact with customers on product discussion and review pages.

When you receive your item, check its

condition and function. If it’s not as described, talk about it on the resolution page as soon as possible.

If you are into bargains, comparing prices from different stores or apps is a great move. At least it’s easier than going from one brick-andmortar store to another to comparison shop.

JPlus December 20, 2015

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cover Story

Remembrance of things past Vintage lover Luthfi Hasan crosses time, specializing in integrating beautiful pieces from days past with modern design.

Words Sebastian Partogi Photos Meutia Ananda

Y

ou might be excused for missing Luthfi Hasan’s humble shop Jakarta Vintage, given that it’s tucked away amid a host of parked cars in the basement of Darmawangsa Square in South Jakarta.

Enter the shop, which specializes in the furniture and decor of days past, and you’ll feel a different vibe: A framed black-and-white poster of Marilyn Monroe hangs on the wall and mod 1960s-style chairs and sofa invite you to sit down. A turntable plays keroncong, or traditional Batavian-Portuguese music, and every time the hour strikes, the vintage clock on the wall sounds off.

“This atmosphere reminds me of my happy childhood, since I grew up surrounded by these objects,” he says.

While Luthfi, a political science graduate from University of Indonesia (UI) working in advertising since the 1990s, declines to give his age, he says he got interested in vintage about 20 years ago – after receiving a set of old-time chairs and a turntable from his parents as a wedding gift.

His interest, however, intensified around 2009, when he moved to Cinere in Depok, West Java and had to redecorate.

“I started hunting for objects at various flea and antique markets in Jakarta – on Jl. Surabaya and at Taman Puring, among others,” Luthfi, who was born in Bandung, West Java, said.

Writing in his book Happy Vintage, which was published in March, Luthfi said that vintage

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cover Story

Luthfi on where to find the best vintage in Indonesia Luthfi on selling your vintage stash Have three cupboards of vintage objects but no idea how to sell them?

Here are some tips from Luthfi.

Do your homework “You need to do loads and loads of research in order to be knowledgeable about vintage in order to know whether your possessions are valuable and worthy or not – and whether the dealers are reliable or not. There are lots of blogs specializing in ceramics, furniture or clocks. Visit their blogs then contact them.”

Talk with experienced dealers “Compare notes […] to know whether your object is valuable or not.

Discuss price with the dealers.”

Connect with collectors “Ask dealers to connect you with collectors. Typically, collectors don’t mind paying high prices to get the objects. You’ll be able to make a profit more easily when dealing with collectors than with the dealers, who need to get a margin from their trade.”

reflected a "slow" lifestyle – "A great alternative for us urban dwellers living in a fast-paced, constantly connected environment.”

In a recent interview with JPlus, Luthfi spoke about how the idea of breathing new life into vintage pieces first came to him.

“I was buying stuff for my new home.

I used old wood and ‘reinvented’ it, for example. I learned how not to dispose of things easily, but instead tried to create with them,” he said. “This is what I mean by a slow lifestyle – as opposed to the more instant approach of buying newly manufactured goods at a furniture retailer.”

His love affair with vintage started

Vintage vs. antique Vintage refers to objects which under 100 years old that can still be modified, according to Luthfi.

Meanwhile, an antique is something older than a 100 years that loses value after modification.

at that moment, Luthfi said. “The experience inspired me to write a book on vintage interiors. I decided to take a baby step toward that ambition by setting up the Jakarta Vintage blog in 2012, consisting of store reviews and some other things.

The blog was an unexpected success: People started to ask Luthfi to curate vintage auctions. He said he realized that there was a hunger for vintage in Jakarta that was a business opportunity.

“People’s interest in vintage objects keeps on expanding. There’s a book called Chasing Cool that says people want to be cool by associating themselves with cool people, taking a cool profession – or by possessing cool objects,” he says.

A drive to be unique on social media coupled with relatively low barrier for entry has fueled his business, Luthfi adds, pointing to a horse statue inside a jar in his store. “It costs only Rp 20,000 [US$1.42], but this rare object will add distinctive color to your house.”

This motivated him to set up Jakarta Vintage store in early 2013.

It’s not enough just to find pieces from tempo doeloe (the old days), Luthfi adds. “To make vintage a long-lasting

“Vintage shops get their stuff from ‘pickers’. Pickers are different from a scavengers – they are the ones who knock on people’s doors asking whether they have objects that they no longer use. Then the pickers channel the vintage products to traders, who will showcase the stuff in their shops,” Luthfi says, naming his favorite markets in Indonesia: Triwindu Market, Solo, Central Java Specialization: Ethnic, colonial antiques, vintage and contemporary.

Big draw: It’s the biggest, neatest and most complete market in Indonesia.

Cikapundung Market, Bandung, West Java Specialization: Vintage from the 1960s and 1970s, urban and pop art.

Big draw: Strategically located in the middle of the city.

Minus: Irregular opening hours, not very neat.

Jl. Surabaya, Central Jakarta Specialization: Fabric and ceramics.

Big draw: Wide diversity of products, quite neat, tourist friendly.

Minus: Traders jack up prices due to many foreign tourists.

Blok M Square basement, South Jakarta Specialization: Vinyl records, old books.

Big draw: Accessible and air conditioned.

JPlus December 20, 2015

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cover Story Luthfi on places in Jakarta with the best vintage vibe trend, you need to make it current by adding contemporary nuances to it.”

This is where the graphic design skills he acquired from advertising came into play, working as a vintage consultant, designing interiors and art installations.

Luthfi integrated vintage with pop art when he was asked to contribute to an exhibition on the legendary Prince Diponegoro early this year, ripping out the upholstery of tempoe doeloe chairs and replacing it with fabric upon which was printed old pictures of the National Hero, along with hashtags acknowledging Diponegoro’s idealism.

As an interior designer, he’s also worked for the visual artist Ika Vantiani and gallery curator Deborah Iskandar.

“When I design someone’s space, the fundamental question is whether he or she is minimalist, classic or eclectic,” he says. “I always pay attention to [their] favorite activities. If they don’t like cooking very much but are avid readers, for instance, then let’s not concentrate too much on the kitchen but focus on creating a comfortable reading room instead”.

He added that his approach was to combine vintage, ethnic and contemporary elements in proportion so rooms would not look monotonous.

For his work in interior design, Luthfi won the Interior Designer of the Year award from MNC Home and Living in 2015.

He’s also a representative of the Indonesian Society of Interior Designers (HDII) and member of the Indonesian Society of Future Designer.

While local interest in vintage is rising, the market will always remain a niche, Luthfi says. “Vintage runs contrary to the practical, pragmatic side of mainstream lifestyle.”

Luthfi on negotiations Research: Don’t be an impulsive buyer, Luthfi says. If you like something, ask the seller to keep it for you then go look around to see if other shops have it for less. You can also check the Internet.

Stay cool: Don’t show a seller that you really like an object. Time to channel Lady Gaga and put on a poker face.

Dress modestly: Wear something casual. Try not to bring a big bag or a wallet. Keep your money in your pocket.

Always always bargain: Don’t pay at the initial price, even though you might consider it affordable.

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Honey and Me coffee and eatery Jl. Wijaya IX No. 4A, Kebayoran Baru “I love the 70s home vibe evoked by this building. There are lots of vintage decorations here, yet the interior design is still quite light.”

Kosenda hotel Jl. KH Wahid Hasyim No. 127, Tanah Abang Glamorous design evoking the vibe of the typical homes situated in Jakarta’s prestigious Menteng area; with unique and nonmainstream furniture.

Potato Head Garage SCBD Lot 14 (Ex Bengkel Kafe) Featuring vintage yet grand designs from the 1930s, expressive, and quite daring in using 100 chandeliers inside.

Morrissey hotel Jl. KH Wahid Hasyim No. 70, Menteng Mid-century, modern Scandinavian style with clean-cut design.

A New Era

it's about time

for Dive Watches Ressence Type 5 has a clever advantage over other dive watches. It gets a minimalist overhaul.

When Ressence first showed off prototypes of the Type 1 watch in 2010, its system of rotating discs (instead of traditional hands) was something totally new. Then, with the Type 3, Ressence upped the ante and added sealed chambers filled with oil to the mix. While the watches have contained a few different features over the years (date, temperature gauge, day of the week), the formula has always been pretty consistent. So the question for collectors has always been, “what comes next?” The answer is a dive watch.

The Type 5 starts with the same basic formula as Types 1 and 3 but adds some new features specific to diving. The 46 mm titanium case has a prominent silver-colored bezel around the main timekeeping dials, where the date indicator would be on the Type 3.

It has grooves protruding from it between each of the 10-minute markers, letting you turn the bezel to time your

dive ( just as you would with any other dive watch). Crucially, it’s not sealed inside the oil-filled compartment with the other discs, so it operates independently of the timekeep mechanism itself, and it’s unidirectional, meaning you can’t accidentally give yourself more underwater time than you have air for.

The dial itself contains a few indicators, all nested as with previous Ressence watches. The main hour dial now has big bubbly numerals at the 3, 6, and 9, making it a little easier to read quickly. What looks like the seconds dial is actually a “runner,” a requirement for the watch to meet international diving watch standards (ISO 6425).

This one makes a rotation every 90 seconds, not every 60, and functions as a shock absorber for the oil inside the watch too.

Finally, an indicator for the temperature of the oil sits between the sapphire crystal and those discs (giving them that seamless

appearance).

While a diving watch might not seem like the most logical direction for Ressence (I was pretty surprised when I saw a prototype a few weeks ago), there’s a major benefit to a watch like this under water: Because the oil projects the markers up to the crystal’s surface, you can view the time perfectly from every angle.

There’s no space between the crystal and the hands to create distortion or reflection, and the watch looks exactly the same in or out of water.

Rather than just create another extension of the Type 1/Type 3 families, founder Benoît Mintiens has made something genuinely new that might bring some new customers into the fold who found the previous models a little too austere.

Photos: Courtesy of Ressence

Words Stephen Pulvirent, Bloomberg

From early photos, I didn’t think I would like the watch nearly as much as I did in person. It’s new and different, but still very Ressence.

A Giant Gem This $980,000 Richard Mille Watch is carved from pink sapphire.

Photos: Courtesy of Richard Mille

Words Stephen Pulvirent, Bloomberg When you want a watch to be lightweight and durable, you make it out of steel or titanium. When you want it to have some gravitas, you make it out of platinum or gold.

And when you want it to be totally absurd, you make it out of solid pink sapphire. I’m not even kidding with this one.

The new RM 07-02 from Richard Mille, nicknamed the Pink Lady Sapphire, is an automatic watch encased entirely in pink sapphire. It’s important to note that this pink sapphire case isn’t carved out of a massive, naturally occurring stone.

It’s made from the same sort of synthetic sapphire used for watch crystals. First the huge piece of pink sapphire has to be created in a lab with sufficient purity and clarity to allow the light to shine through without inclusions.

Then it takes almost 40 days for CNC machines to mill the case shape out of the block. If something goes wrong, the whole thing will crack or shatter and must then be thrown away.

Once you get past the sapphire, you’ll find other precious materials involved,

too. The central dial section is a piece of smokey mother of pearl, and set around the dial and into the winding rotor on the back are dozens of small diamonds.

The RM 07-02 isn’t all about looks, though. Say what you will about Mille’s choice aesthetic, his engineering is downright brilliant. The titanium screws used to hold the case together are a special design that reduces the torque involved in sealing the case parts together, which keeps the sapphire from cracking and ensures a tight seal.

The balance spring in the movement is also free-sprung, and a watchmaker can adjust its weight distribution to get super-accurate performance, plus the winding rotor can be fine-tuned for the right amount of force. Mille didn’t pull any punches here.

The price tag? A whopping US$980,000.

That’s a lot less than the $1.65 million that Mille’s last all-sapphire watch, the RM 056, sold for, but it nonetheless makes the RM 07-02 one of the most expensive watches commercially available today.

JPlus December 20, 2015

9

wanderlust

A reason to go back Iceland’s language is as tough as its landscape WORD JIM HEINTZ, AP

I

celand’s challenges include boiling hot springs, frigid waters and vast wildernesses where sudden fogs leave you terribly alone.

For me, the most daunting challenge was the tungumalanamskeidid — a course in trying to learn the language.

On the three-week course, I found Icelandic deserves its nickname “Latin of the North” with a complicated skein of six noun classifications, each with up to 16 different suffixes; five families of verbs; an archaic and insular vocabulary and a penchant for serpentine words.

Also like Latin, it’s only marginally useful, spoken by just 0.005 percent of the planet. My aim wasn’t pragmatic.

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wanderlust

On previous trips, I’d become infatuated with Iceland for its primeval landscapes and enveloping hush. But the scenery wasn’t enough for me. I wanted more.

The language course in Isafjordur, a town of 2,700, appealed to my romantic side.

Geographically and emotionally distant from spiffy, stylish Reykjavik, Isafjordur crouches on a dogleg spit jutting into a fjord dwarfed by 2,000-foot mountains, with corrugated-iron house facades sprouting long tresses of rust. Though minuscule, it is the largest settlement in the Westfjords, a region more thinly populated than Mongolia that sees relatively few visitors even as Iceland’s tourist traffic soared some 300 percent over the past decade.

It is a fine place to experience what Iceland was like before Bjork and Sigur Ros made the country a paragon of coolness, and also a good place to be studious. There are no distractions aside from the only liquor store within 100 miles and the pristine nature that starts at the town’s edge.

The latter gave me my first serious taste of Icelandic’s difficulty. Asked what we’d do on the weekend, I wanted to tell the class I planned to hike to a waterfall-filled valley.

In Icelandic, “the waterfalls” is fossarnir, but if you’re going to them it’s fossana,

except if you’re going from a long distance, in which case it’s fossanum. If the spray gets you wet, they’re fossanna.

The trip began to seem like too much trouble linguistically. But I went, and they were pretty (fallegir, fallega, fallegum, whatever).

Keeping track of all this required pages of complicated charts. “If you’re learning Icelandic, you don’t need Sudoku,” said Peter Weiss, a German who’s learned it well enough to become director of Haskolasetur Vestfjarda (University Center of the Westfjords), where the course was held — a handful of rooms in a building that includes a frozen-fish warehouse.

Some students delighted in the game aspect, particularly American software designer Jim Brink and his mathematician wife Norah Esty. Their systematic minds pursued the grammar with zest, writing declension charts on a whiteboard for fun. But even they got overwhelmed. A day before exams, a drawn-looking Brink sighed, “Last night, we figured out there’s 144 word endings we need to know ... I think.”

For all the complexity, Icelandic has spasms of radical simplicity, which can be equally perplexing, as in the sentence “Bondinn a a a a.” That can translate as, “The

farmer by the river has a sheep,” but figuring it out requires counterfactual thinking: In a country where sheep outnumber humans nearly 3-to-1, it’s hard to imagine a loser farmer who only has one.

The grammar’s tough, but the vocabulary could be a joy for its offbeat poetry. Icelanders resist incursions of foreign words, preferring to adapt the lexicon of 9th century settlers for modern developments. Telephone is simi from the word for thread, a computer is tolva from number-sorceress, and my personal favorite: Soda to an Icelander is a gosdrykka — an eruption-beverage.

The course returned all of us nominal adults to a juvenile state, feeling both vulnerable for how little we could actually say and smug about what we could. When I was able to both remember and smoothly pronounce the serpentine word for nurse, hjukrunarfraedingur, I was so proud that I wanted to fake an injury so I could go to a hospital and show off.

The town shopkeepers mostly treated us like good children, patient and amused by our eager clumsiness. Though I did get a few doglike looks of incomprehension at my accent, which is tarred by an Ohio upbringing and feathered by 20 years of living in Russia and Sweden.

I wasn’t able to lose that accent enough to meet one of my goals: to convincingly pronounce Icelandic’s “-ll,” the phoneme whose mangling by foreign newscasters during the 2010 Eyjafjallajokull eruption gave a laugh to presumably all 320,000 native speakers. There’s a ghostly “t’’ in there, an appealing sound like a soft pigeon coo, that remains elusive.

It’s a reason to go back.

If you go..

LEARNING ICELANDIC: Haskolasetur Vestfjarda’s threeweek course is in August; one-week crash courses in January and May; uw.is/icelandic_courses/.

GETTING THERE: Isafjordur can be reached on Air Iceland from Reykjavik domestic airport (an hour by road from the international airport at Keflavik) though the landing is harrowing: Planes fly up a narrow fjord, then pull a tight 180 to avert a mountain while descending steeply. Public buses run several times a week.

STAYING THERE: Isafjordur has three smallish hotels, some guesthouses and tourist apartments, one campground in the town center and another gorgeous one fringed by waterfalls 5 kilometers away.

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culture Vulture

Jazz in motion JOJO MAYER MUSES ON MAHLER AND THE DEATH OF JAZZ AT MOTION BLUE, JAKARTA’S NEWEST JAZZ CLUB WORDS Dylan Amirio PHOTOS Wendra AJIStyatama

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relentless ball of energy graced the stage at the Motion Blue Jakarta jazz club at the Fairmont Hotel in Senayan, Jakarta, recently.

In the middle of his second night of a threenight residency, American drummer Jojo Mayer and his band NERVE gave the crowd an intense and beautiful sample of their firebrand free-form electronic jazz stylings.

Playing breakbeat-influenced drums that reminded me of Aphex Twin (or even Venetian Snares), Mayer suddenly shifted into an R&B-tinged free-ish jam reminiscent of the Robert Glasper Experiment.

It was not the only sound hopping going on, as Mayer and Nerve tossed in dashes of Rush, which segued perfectly into prog-jazz sounds like those of Jaga Jazzist.

Throughout the set, Mayer was in continuous motion.

The 52-year-old drummer remains rooted in the oldschool vibes of Buddy Rich and Gene Krupa, with the energy to match, too.

The accompanying keyboard and bass were relatively chill to Mayer’s heat.

Bassist John Davis used his loops and pedals to present delightful tones that a friend lauded as “not corny – unlike many jazz bass sounds I’ve heard here”.

Meanwhile, keyboardist Jacob Bergson was reserved, showing youthful tenacity on the synths and a Rhodes piano, evincing a modern pop-tinged style we’ve seen at play in his work with indiepop acts like Here We Go Magic and DIIV. And to think if the band had played at any other jazz club in Jakarta, the results would have not been the same.

NEW KID ON THE BLOCK Motion Blue Jakarta is, without a doubt, the best musical venue in the capital.

Formerly named the Cotton Club, Motion Blue has an atmosphere that’s intimate, with huge booths overlooking the floor, where tables sit barely meters from the stage.

Simply put, Motion Blue’s multi-million-dollar

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culture Vulture sound system puts the quality of every other music venue in the city to shame, whether we’re talking jazz or not.

Such quality is to be expected, given that the club is the local branch of the famed Motion Blue jazz club in Yokohama, Japan, which itself was set up by the Japanese branch of the grande dame of New York City’s jazz scene, the Blue Note.

The upscale club featured a clientele that was swank (I was told the ambassador of New Zealand was in attendance that night). That’s natural, given Motion Blue’s location on the third floor of the ritzy Fairmont Hotel.

“Nowhere else in this city can you find a jazz club with an atmosphere this intimate, a sound system this great and great acts performing every time,” Motion Blue’s director Harry Nijo said in an interview. “It’s just simply worth the money.”

He has a point.

Perceptions of jazz in Jakarta tend to

be cliched, with fans favoring traditional standards – something that has led to many, many lukewarm shows.

However, Motion Blue’s upscale approach (it bills itself as a fine-dining restaurant with music) might just benefit local jazz bands while developing the taste of local audiences.

The only other venue that might have rivalled Motion Blue is the sadly demised Red and White Jazz club, in Kemang, South Jakarta.

At Red and White, owner Indra Lesmana and his jazz band played forward-thinking jazz with good, if not great, talents typically on the bill.

In the three months since it has opened, Motion Blue Jakarta has hosted acts ranging from local jazz legends like the Oele Pattiselano Quartet and Fariz RM, international stars such as Lee Ritenour and David Benoit, to local jazz or jazz-influenced acts such as Voyage and Renata. The December program features performances from Imelda Kei

I think Gustav Mahler said it well: ‘Don’t pray to the ashes, pass on the fire.’ And our music is the fire that we’re passing.

and rising star Danilla.

Range is certainly not an issue here.

BACK ON STAGE NERVE played two sets that night, each an hour long with an hour break in between.

Modern/futurist jazz rhythms bounced off the venue’s sleek black walls as the band’s first set ended, brought to a close by the title track from NERVE’s latest album, Ghosts of Tomorrow.

Before the last song, Jojo gave a short lecture on the virtues of free-form jazz and the great potential behind every failed musical experiment.

During the break, Jojo spoke with me about the genre, saying that despite believing jazz was a “dead art form”, NERVE was a vessel for continually innovate his sound.

“As an art form, jazz has no cultural relevance anymore – but that’s why we created a platform that enables the core elements of jazz to happen: Improvisation, swing, innovation, self-expression. You know, actually playing jazz rather than just performing it,” Mayer said Jojo describes his music as a way to transform the spirit of the jazz from its heyday into something that’s his own, channeling the spirit of legends such as Charlie Parker and the influence of modern musicians like Aphex Twin.

“I think Gustav Mahler said it well: ‘Don’t pray to the ashes, pass on the fire.’ And our music is the fire that we’re passing,” Jojo adds. “We’re always stretching for something new. Our music now is not the final product, it will always change.”

And change it did.

NERVE’s second set was more laid back, with Bergson mostly shining in the first quarter: Plinking chords on the Rhodes, Prophet Synth and the grand piano beautifully, while Davis played deep loops on the bass.

Jojo, as usual, was his usual lithiumbattery-powered self on the drums.

The chill atmosphere of the first quarter-set quickly evolved into a menacing sound. A dubstep DJ on the stage might have delivered the same kind of beats and intensity – but with far less grace.

During the set, one patron was grooving. “This kind of music should belong on the Djakarta Warehouse Project bill! It’s so danceable, yet no one is dancing!”

The electronic-fused second set was so danceable that it was hard for me to sit still and enjoy, so I stood up. The same couldn’t be said for many patrons in the venue that night.

Previously, Harry said that he considered moving out some of the dining tables to make a dance floor for the gig, but changed his mind. “Music this good should be enjoyed sitting down.”

His words rang true during NERVE’s jam during a second encore, where they played a mellow tribute to the experimental electronic artist Delia Derbyshire.

In the end, the intimacy of the venue and NERVE’s fiery performance made the gig one the year’s best for Jakarta.

Motion Blue Jakarta has its eyes set on an elite crowd and the club is hosting some of the best acts on the planet with an amazing sound system.

Standing, sitting or grooving, you don’t want to miss an experience like that.

Jojo Mayer

For more info, visit jojomayer.com

Motion Blue Jakarta

Hotel Fairmont Jakarta, 3rd Floor Jl. Asia Afrika No.8 Telp. +622129039189 motionbluejakarta.com @motionbluejkt Cover charge starts at Rp 250,000

JPlus December 20, 2015 13

good Living

Stay moisturized Actress Katie Holmes is the global brand ambassador for haircare brand Alterna.

WORDS Gladys Chung, Straits Times (ANN)

1. Jo Malone Orange Blossom Cologne I use different fragrances all the time, but I always come back to this cologne. I have been using it for years. I just love the citrus undertones – it is simple, clean and elegant.

3. Alterna Haircare Bamboo Smooth Kendi Dry Oil Mist A stylist turned me to Alterna years ago. I was drawn to the brand because the formulas are free of harsh and synthetic chemicals. I am obsessed with the Oil Mist and carry it everywhere. It is great for touch-ups during the day and infuses my hair with moisture.

2. Olay Regenerist Regenerating Cream Cleanser While I was growing up, all the women I looked up to used Olay, so it reminds me of timeless beauty. The brand is also based in my home state, Ohio, so I have a natural connection with it.

4. SK-II Mask I got into these sheet masks when I started traveling more. I love wearing one on flights or when I am sleeping, to keep my skin nice and hydrated.

5. Tom Ford Blush I always keep a powder blush in my purse. Tom Ford has some really beautiful shades. That is my little trick because you never know what the day is going to bring. And blush can wake you up and make you look presentable.

Photos: AFP, Courtesy of brands

Over the years, the thick brunette mane of Katie Holmes has been fashioned into flattering styles that have kickstarted trends. There was a sharp bob, a pixie cut, a choppy chin-length crop and now, a tumble of curls. Fittingly, the actress is the global brand ambassador for haircare brand Alterna.

In an e-mail interview, the mother-of-one shares her beauty must-haves.

6. Purple eyeliner While I like to keep my make-up natural and typically opt for brown and black, I have recently started to use purple eyeliner. It makes my eyes look greener.

7. Water People always forget this. Staying hydrated is important and makes such a difference to the skin. I always drink lots of water and exercise to help take care of my skin and health.

Don’t let the frost bite KEEP YOUR SKIN AND LIPS SUPPLE AND SOFT IN COLD WEATHER WITH THESE PRODUCTS

How do I ensure that my skin is well-protected in cold, wintry weather? Nothing ruins your winter holiday or business trip quite like dry, cracked, painful and flaky skin.

To prevent that, remember a few things: • Buy a thick face and body cream. You can never use this in Singapore’s humid weather, but it is exactly what you need for cold climates.

• Stock up on rich lip balms to prevent lips from cracking.

• Start your skincare routine the moment you step out of the shower, when the skin is still moist and supple and skincare products are better absorbed, than when your skin is extremely dry.

• Stay moisturised throughout the night as the heaters in the room will suck the moisture out of your skin while you sleep.

• Drink lots of water to keep your skin hydrated.

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Here are some products that will keep skin protected in cold weather:

1. Sulwhasoo Essential Lip Serum Stick, S$50 Blended with camellia oil, apricot kernel oil and the prunus mume flower extract to moisturise, protect and smoothen lips.

The No. 2 balm also stains lips with a natural pink hue.

Wear it alone in the day or under lipstick, or apply a thick layer at night as an overnight mask for the lips.

2. Creme de La Mer Moisturizing Cream, $280 This iconic product is a fail-safe option for keeping skin protected in subzero temperatures all day. A little bit goes a long way.

3. Lancome Absolue Precious Cells Nourishing Lip Balm, $70 Made with acacia honey and rosehip seed oil to prevent lips from becoming dehydrated and cracked.

4. Cle De Peau Beaute Intensive Fortifying Cream, $210 If thick and heavy creams are unsuitable for your skin no matter the weather, try this rich but relatively lighttextured product to keep skin moist without a greasy afterfeel.

5. Chanel Sublimage La Creme Texture Supreme, $546 This is a new version of the best- selling La Creme. It promises to be more potent due to a new extraction method to distil the new active ingredients from its key plant source, vanilla, which is said to have skinregenerating effects. +Gladys Chung, Straits Times (ANN)

From sour to

tasteBUD

sweet

A traditional recipe for baked apples with vanilla sauce Words and photos Theodora Hurustiati

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German proverb says that beautiful apples are probably sour, cautioning us that no one is perfect – and that even gorgeous-looking fruits might turn out to be acidic.

The way I see it, though, flaws can be turned into features if we work with the imperfections to our benefit.

Take those aforementioned sour apples. Their tartness may not be enjoyable, but given some time and care while cooking, sour apples can become intensely sweet – making them brilliant for desserts!

Apples are in season now. In Europe they’re usually harvested in autumn and they last all through winter, if stored in a cool, dry and dark place.

In Germany, apples are widely consumed as snacks, processed into apple juice or transformed into luscious desserts, like this bratapfel, or baked apples.

The recipe, typical for this time of year, is often served as a sweet conclusion to a Christmas meal.

Just like many other traditional German desserts, baked apples are usually served with a luscious vanilla sauce.

There are just too many versions of bratapfel out there, so I decided to experiment with the ingredients I had at in hand. Enjoy!

• Prepare filling by mixing walnuts, flaked almonds, almond meal, dried cranberries, cherry jam and cinnamon in a bowl until they stick together.

• Wash the apples carefully. Slice about 1/3 of the top part to create some sort of caps.

• Remove the seeds and the tough center with an apple corer and a teaspoon. Stuff the hollows with the sticky nut mixture.

• Line an oven dish with parchment paper. Add about 0.5-cm of water and place the stuffed apples and the “hats”.

• Bake at 180º for 20-25 minutes until the stuffing is just golden and the apples are cooked but are still slightly crunchy. Lower oven temperature to 160° and bake for further

•

•

•

•

Serves 2 2 tart apples (like Fuji or local Malang apples) 25g walnuts, roughly chopped 25g flaked blanched almonds 25g ground almond 50g cherry (or apricot) jam 10g dried cranberries (or raisins) A pinch of cinnamon powder

Vanilla sauce 200ml fresh cream (or milk) 1/4 vanilla bean pod 20g caster sugar 3g cornstarch 1 egg yolk

•

10-15 minutes until skin is slightly wrinkled if you prefer them softer.

While the apples are baking, prepare the vanilla sauce. Mix egg yolk with cornstarch and sugar. Beat the mixture just until slightly frothy.

Insert cream with the scraped vanilla seeds in a saucepan. Simmer over a low heat until it’s just about to come to boil.

Remove from heat.

Incorporate about 1/3 of the hot cream into the egg mixture and quickly whisk to prevent the egg from curdling and to dissolve the sugar. Pour this back into the saucepan containing the remaining 2/3 of hot cream.

Put back onto the low heat and keep whisking until the sauce comes to boil and thickens.

Serve warm.

Jakarta-born chef Theodora Hurustiati, a 13-year resident of Udine, Italy, was the runner-up in the TV cooking program La Scuola – Cucina di Classe (The School: Classy Cooking).

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trendDIAL NIKE 2015 Basketball Christmas Collection

Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, LeBron James and new kid on the block Kyrie Irving are getting some festive signature sneakers this Christmas. The 2015 Nike Basketball Christmas Collection is tribute to the players in fire and ice. Bryant’s “KOBE X” sports a fiery multicolor Flyknit on the toe with five golden rings on the heel to depict the champ’s success, while Durant’s “KD8” Christmas sneakers are a concoction of naughty and nice with red and black details and a textured heel mimicking hot coal. Meanwhile, Irving’s “KYRIE 2” is an ice-colored shoe that’s complimented by a zig-zag graphic that’s meant to look like teeth. Finally, Jame’s “LEBRON 13” has a holiday feel, with details such as snowflakes featuring an icy version of “King James” with a lion logo as a lace lock, along with a shattered ice-inspired “13” on the heel. The collection will be available online and in retail stores on Dec. 26. +Banyubening Prieta

DIESEL BLACK GOLD PRE-FALL 2016

If you’re into jeans and leather jackets, check out Diesel Black Gold’s new Pre-Fall 2016 series. The collection gives a full range of leather and jean-based designs with a splash of razzle-dazzle. DBG designer Andreas Melbostad has come up with durable outerwear in parkas and motorcycle jackets that play with proportions.

Another interesting piece is velvet-print jeans, offering a continous pushback on the technical frontier, with velvet printed directly onto the surface of jeans, creating an eccentric touch.

Paired with one of the turtlenecks, the combo will be cool wear for a night out on the town. +Banyubening Prieta

NAUGHTY ORNICE? Some potential presents for you

F is for Fur – and Fabulous

When Dutch beauty Julia Van Os appeared on the Fendi A/W15 runway earlier this year, all eyes went to a furry green pompom with her initial dyed on it. Aptly titled ABCharms, the fox fur accessories are completely hand-made by the house’s legendary artisans. This, by far, is a less freaky version of Super Karl - another fluffy charm with Karl Lagerfeld’s head attached to it. +Willy Wilson

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PAT MCGRATH

Makeup genius Pat McGrath is shaking the beauty world today, unveiling a limtied-edition eightpiece kit featuring foil-like pigments in yellow gold, neon blue, burnished copper and fuschia colorways for her Phantom 002 line. The best thing about MacGrath’s new color quartet is multi-use pigments, black eye gloss and black gel liner.

The makeup set also includes a blender and flat brush. Phantom 002 is available on patmacgrath. com from Dec. 15 – just in time to get your look on for the holiday. +Banyubening Prieta

Star Quality

There are few things that will excite grooming junkies on Christmas Day, but these six gorgeous Aesop gift kits might do the trick. Each kit is named after a constellation: Auriga, Cepheus, Perseus, Andromeda, Delphinus or Cassiopeia. Our pick is Perseus, inspired by the constellation named after the Greek hero who beheaded the snake-headed Medusa, which consists of a body and face cleanser along with a post-shave lotion scented with Moroccan Neroli.

Aimed to balance and hydrate the skin, Perseus is the perfect gift for the modern-day heroes in your life. +Willy Wilson