March Madness

Our 2017 Ckaos Calendar has been hitting the streets, and desks, with our 'Where's the Ckaos' series. March's image is courtesy of Eleni and was taken in Sydney. 

So what's been happening in the studio....

It's a TINY world

Cameron and Alethea recently visited the sustainable living festival to explore the 'New Jones' Tiny house.  There has been much discussion (bordering on obsession) in the studio about the tiny house movement between them.  Haven't heard of the tiny house movement?? Just ask Cam or Alethea next time you call the studio and they will fill you in! We take no responsibility for the hours you may lose looking at tiny houses on Pinterest as a result!

Check out the NEW JONESES Tiny House here!

An Evening with Sir David

Emma went along to see the world’s most famous living naturalist, Sir David Attenborough in his Melbourne show Sir David Attenborough – A Quest for Life for a thoroughly entertaining evening. 

It brought back memories for Eleni of working with Sir David on a previous Ckaos project for the Australian Academy of Science Enlightening Campaign.  We've included the video below!

Sugar Mountain

Laura attended the Sugar Mountain festival earlier this year, a hot day packed with experimental art, music and eating. She had so much fun she only took one photo for us!

Happy Birthday Sam

Sam, our resident accounts legend recently turned an age that we are not allowed to mention, but we can show you the awesome antipasto platters that Eleni just 'threw together' for the 'major milestone'

Back in the Studio

The Ckaos team have hit the ground running, hence why we missed our blog in January, well that and the fact that we spend out lazy Summer holidays enjoying the Melbourne sunshine. 

Our 2017 Ckaos Calendar has been hitting the streets with our 'Where's the Ckaos' series. February's image is courtesy of Cameron. and was taken in our own little laneway of Equitable Place. 

So what's been happening....

Falling into Summer

Laura, Alethea and Lucy all went to the Marion Bay Falls festival in Tasmania. The girls hitched a ride back with Laura's pilot Fiance, Mitch. 

Alethea's White Knight

Alethea attended the famous Melbourne White Night festival and shared some great photos with us. 

Summer Dreaming

Laura spent some of her summer holidays in Moolooaba, giving us all beach envy

Shooting for the stars

Emma spent much of her summer with the team at Everyday People preparing their AWESOME rocket clock for the Rainbow Serpent festival. 

Not a Roast of a Chance

Our August Kitschen Ckaos recipe is Roast Duck, Cucumber and Hoisin Sauce. Our 2016 calendar combines our love of food, photography and design. This year our mouthwatering recipes focus on the delicious world of Hors d’Oeuvre, so join us on our gastronomic journey of discovery.

 

Roast Duck, Cucumber and Hoisin Sauce

Makes 12

Ingredients

1 Lebanese cucumber
1 yellow capsicum, cut into 12 small wedges
1 roasted peking duck breast or 12 slices of roast duck
2–3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
24 garlic chives or onion flowers, trimmed, to garnish

Cut cucumber into four short lengths (about the same size as the breast pieces). Trim the sides of the cucumber to make it rectangular and then cut into three to make rectangular slices. Top each slice of cucumber with yellow capsicum, duck breast, hoisin sauce and garnish with garlic chives. Serve immediately.

Keeping up with the comings and goings

Things have been a little hectic in the studio this month as we welcome our newest Swinburne industry placement student, Lucy Murray. 
Lucy is loving life in the Ckaos studio... but not so much loving the sneaky photo taking!

 

Salt and Sky

Laura wasted no time once she was back from Europe to see the latest exhibition in town! She visited photographer Brooke Holm’s Salt and Sky exhibition in Fitzroy with an included Q&A session. 

Salt and Sky bought together a series of stunning aerial shots captured at the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Shark Bay, in Western Australia. It was Brooke’s intention to share how man-made structures can impact nature while shooting the series. Some of her stunning work can be seen on her website here: http://www.brookeholm.com/places/

Found and Kept

Alethea and Lucy have also been out and about, both recently attending the Melbourne Finders Keepers Market at the Royal Exhibition Centre. The Finders Keepers market is a massive three day event featuring over 250 independent art and design stalls.

Alethea was also the lucky winner of 'Drag Bingo' recently. In case you were wondering, the theme was Christmas in July — we're not that far behind what's going on!

 

Ms Monroe was in town

Lilly and Laura took a day trip out to Bendigo to check out the Marilyn Monroe exhibition along with everyone else in Melbourne. 

Marilyn Monroe remains one of the most celebrated and enigmatic film stars in history. She transformed herself from ordinary girl next door, Norma Jeane Baker, into a glamorous and universally recognised screen goddess. This fascinating exhibition has now closed.

 

Stay Tuned...

With so much going on this month we've decided to hold Laura's Europe foodie tour until next month. Let us leave you with just one mouth-watering photo to whet your appetite! 

For Goat's Sake

Our July Kitschen Ckaos recipe is Beetroot Blini with Goat's Cheese and Fresh Black Pepper. Our 2016 calendar combines our love of food, photography and design. This year our mouthwatering recipes focus on the delicious world of Hors d’Oeuvre, so join us on our gastronomic journey of discovery.

BEETROOT BLINI WITH GOAT'S CHEESE and Fresh Black Pepper

 Makes 32

 Ingredients

¾ cup plain flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
30g butter, melted
½ cup milk
1 cup purple beetroot, thickly grated or julienne
50g butter, extra for cooking
100g soft goat's cheese, rolled into a 3cm thick log
2 medium candy beetroot, thinly sliced
fresh black peppercorns or black caviar, to serve
micro herbs, to serve

Sift flour and baking powder into a bowl and make a well in the centre. Mix together egg, butter and milk and pour into the well and whisk until just smooth. Stir in the beetroot.

Heat butter in a frying pan. Drop tablespoons of batter into the pan and cook over medium heat until the underside is golden. Turn the blini over and cook the other side. Keep warm while cooking remaining batter. 

To serve: Top blini with goat's cheese, slices of candy beetroot, peppercorns and herbs. Serve.

Tips: Candy beetroot and fresh black peppercorns are available from select green grocers. If candy beetroot is unavailable, use regular purple beetroot. 

 

ALL ABOUT LAURA

So Laura has some exciting news! It involves a trip to Europe, a handsome pilot and some beautiful bling.

That's right, Laura and Mitch are now engaged. She has shared with us some of her awesome photos from her trip. We are going to ration her photos over the next couple of blogs — they are that good! Next month we feature her food journey, and trust us, it's worth checking out.

 

Here Kitty, Kitty...

Ckaos is known for having the odd visit from Zoe, Cam's hyperactive Staffy, but a visit from Gatsby the cat (@gatsbythecattt on Instagram ;) ) was unexpected! He made himself at home in the studio, as our door guard, staring down any unexpected visitors. 

 

Alethea and Henry

Alethea recently brushed up on her 1960's fashion when she visited the NGV for the Henry Talbot exhibition. This exhibition runs until the 6th of August — so you had better get in quick so you don't miss out. More info here.

Pickled Pink

Our March Kitschen Ckaos recipe is Salmon Mousse with Pickled Cucumber Salad. Our 2016 calendar combines our love of food, photography and design. This year our mouthwatering recipes focus on the delicious world of Hors d’Oeuvre, so join us on our gastronomic journey of discovery!

Salmon Mousse with Pickled Cucumber Salad

Makes 32

Ingredients
400g dense rye bread or pumpernickel bread  
1 cup fish or vegetable stock
200g fresh skinless salmon fillet
1 tablespoon gelatine
1/3 cup water
250g cream cheese, softened and cubed
1 teaspoon horseradish cream
2 tablespoons finely chopped dill
1 cup cream, lightly whipped
200g fresh skinless salmon fillet, extra, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon white vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
½ teaspoon sea salt
2 mini cucumbers, thinly sliced
dill or parsley seed, to garnish

Trim crusts from the bread and cut to fit the base of a 20cm square baking paper lined pan. Heat the fish stock in a small saucepan to just below boiling point. Add the salmon fillet and poach over low hat for 5 minutes or until barely cooked. Remove salmon from the cooking liquid.

Process the salmon, cream cheese, horseradish cream and dill with a stab blender or food processor until smooth. Season to taste. Sprinkle gelatine over cold water in a small bowl and allow to stand for 5 minutes to ‘sponge’. Microwave on HIGH in 10 second burst until dissolved. Stir in gelatine and gently fold in whipped cream. Season well to taste. Spoon mixture over bread and refrigerated for 1-2 hours or until set. Top mousse with thin slices of salmon. Using a sharp knife, cut the mousse into 5 x 2.5  pieces. In a separate bowl, combine vinegar, sugar and salt. Add sliced cucumbers and stand for 5 minutes.

To serve: Top mousse with slices of cucumber and dill. Serve.


A MODERN TAKE
Laura and Emma recently visited the NGV Andy Warhol Ai Weiwei exhibition. Presenting the work of both artists, the exhibition explores modern and  contemporary art, life and cultural politics through the activities of two exemplary figures – one of whom represents twentieth century modernity and the ‘American century’; and the other contemporary life in the twenty-first century and what has been heralded as the ‘Chinese century’ to come. This exhibition is on at the National Gallery of Victoria until the 24th April 2016.

TIME TO PLAY
Jessica Walsh recently gave a talk about the benefits of play.  In her talk, Play by Your Own Rules, Jessica spoke about the value of play, and its biological and historical significance. She discussed how play lies at the heart of any creative process which requires innovation, and how one can enter this state mind. “Every great game has a strict set of rules, and I think the same goes for design. I think limitations help creativity thrive. It’s difficult to do something great when the possibilities are endless,” Jessica explains. So we took Jessica’s advice….

CHEESE FEST
It’s been a busy start to the year at Ckaos with the team visiting a number of exhibitions around town, and we even managed to squeeze in a Friday Arvo Cheesefest!