HOT: UK Overgrown, Panelpop, 117 Brunswick St, Fitzroy

I'm a little disappointed that I won't be in Melbourne this weekend, as otherwise I'd be completely immersed in State of Design, Victoria's design festival.

Fortunately, some of the events are open during the course of ten day festival. So today I decided to visit the venue closest to me, Panelpop, which is displaying a series of photographs entitled 'UK Overgrown'.

This small exhibition displays a handful of photographs by Collingwood-based photographer Adrian Lander, taken while he was visiting London, Sussex and Wales. The works explore our desire to tame the natural environment around us, but if we're not vigilant, Mother Nature will laugh delightedly and quickly reclaim it. The atmosphere of the pictures ranged from creepy to comical, with my favourite works being a pair of photographs of 'plants gone nuts' - a hedge looking like it was about to attack a suburban garage and a vine creeping up a lamp post like strangler fig, pointedly juxtaposed against a background of uninspired cement buildings and other man-made objects. The other work I loved was a photograph of another lamp post, but this time it looked like the electrical wires were radiating from an organic core.

While I was giggling at the cheeky plants, Tony the owner of Panelpop told me to touch the paintings. Wow! I could feel the ridges of the panelled fibreglass house and the coarseness of a hedgerows under my fingertips. Panelpop specialise in what they call a 'new art medium'. They claim recycled wood from people who would normally throw it in the tip and reuse polystyrene from the Queen Victoria Market stallholders to reinforce the back of the frames. The framed surface is given a coating made from gypsum based cement and industrial by-product which means that the works are scratch and weather resistant and don't require glass protection.

If I had a spare $980 then I'd be buying one of Adrian Lander's prints and hanging it on my balcony next to my vege pots. As such, I might have to be content with uploading one of my own photos to Panelpop.

HOT: Anada, 197 Gertrude St, Fitzroy

If you have a Monday birthday there aren't too many options for a birthday meal, so I was delighted when Tranzie suggested that they treat me to dinner at the Spanish restaurant Anada, one of those funky Gertrude St places that I just never got around to trying before.

The chef has previously worked at Moro in London and Movida so with that pedigree we quickly decided on the 9 course banquet ($48). Unfortunately my camera couldn't handle the dim lighting so I can't show you the procession of delicious dishes, from little glasses of celeriac soup with black salt, sardines wrapped in vine leaves and pork cheeks with crispy crackling and rice pilaf. I highly recommend the banquet for its breadth of flavour and textures, and you come away extremely full (so I don't recommend splashing out on the 12 course banquet). In fact, I suspect the proper adult-sized portions makes Anada the 'Anti-Gigibaba'.

HOT: Gertude Walkabout, Gertrude Street Projection Festival, Gertrude St, Fitzroy

Like High Street Northcote, Gertrude Street is a creative hub which runs an arts festival in partnership with residents of the street. The annual Gertrude St Projection Festival exhibits projection art onto shops, restaurants and pubs and this year artists had to interpret the theme of 'dream'.

On a wintery Thursday night some of my book club members and I joined Gertrude Walkabout, a walking tour from Smith St to Nicholson St conducted by the Gertrude St Association. The talk was particularly informative because en route we ran into some of the artists, who were able to discuss the inspiration and techniques behind their work.
I was entranced by the work of the feature artist Yandell Watson, particularly Night Walkers. If you weren't looking at it closely you would just think that it was the tree casting the shadow on the wall, but then things didn't seem to quite match up....within the shadow leaves would float away, borne by an invisible wind, rain would drizzle when it was dry, a person's shadow would walk by but there was no one around and then snarly night monsters started emerging and creeping up the wall. Her other work was a projection of posters for a girl band, then kind that you'll see pasted everywhere in Fitzroy. But again, out of the corner of your eye you'd catch one of the members blinking at you, or wave. Or was it merely your imagination?

When you glanced down the street the most eye-catching works were the colourful large-scale projections on pubs, one on the Gertrude Hotel of Ian de Gruchy's drawings and another playing with the colours and contours of the Builders Arms (Kit Webster).

Some of the smaller works are worth mentioning too. The round window at Bar Radio was perfect for displaying projections and when we arrived the barman/artist came out to tell us about his video of speeding balloons. Basically, he noticed a hot air balloon race from his friend's apartment window, so he set up his camera and went back to sleep. So it literally was a work devised from dreams!One of my favourites was at craft store Cottage Industry, where the mysterious and shadowy installation consisted of tree branches and small projection screens. However, on closer examination, all the tree branches had been wrapped in crochet (by Pene Durston, the owner of the shop)! To be honest, I was more mesmerised by the detail and time it would have taken to crochet these branches (and the tree outside the shop), rather than the projection of cutesy animals being killed.

Some of the works really enhanced the vibe of Gertrude Street and it's a shame that they were removed after only a week. Now, I wonder where I can get hold of a set of tree doilies?

NOT: Tony the Tailor, 313 Smith St, Fitzroy

Tony the Tailor is one of the few old-school shopfronts remaining on increasingly gentrified Smith Street. The signage is chipped, the windows are dusty and overall it presents an indifferent attitude to the hipsters.

When RM's pants needed mending, it was an opportune time to support a local long-standing business. I thought that despite the dingy exterior, the business must have survived for a good reason.

Sadly, Tony the Tailor was a disappointment. When I first entered, Tony was extremely crotchety. It may have been his bad back giving him trouble, but I was a bit put off by his cranky attitude, like I was disturbing him from his important work (he appears to make police uniforms) and when I tried to pin down a pickup time, he just told me that I should just come by and they might be ready. Secondly, all that was needed was a sewn patch. When I came to retrieve the trousers a few days later, I was told the week after. Then again, the week after that. Tony's attitude didn't improve over the three weeks, and when the pants were finally ready to pickup, he handed the garment to me with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth.

I don't care if the repair only cost $25, and I should support a one-man band running his own business. I just don't want to wait three weeks for a simple repair, nor do I want my clothes polluted with cigarette smoke. I'm going elsewhere next time.

HOT: The Searchers, 93 Smith St, Fitzroy

In a bid to save money, RM has been valianting attempting to curb his book-buying habit. I think this is a worthy goal given that at great cost we have recently packed, shipped and unpacked twenty boxes containing our combined book collection, and when we move again I don't fancy packing and moving forty boxes of books. Plus, we have a library 5 minutes walk from our house, with more books than we could ever read in our lifetime.

But I don't want to be known as the no-fun-fiancee. So when RM turned his big sad puppy eyes at me, I couldn't bear to deny him a little look inside The Searchers. The airy, well-organised and well-stocked shop is the antithesis of the dusty higgledy-piggledy mess of your usual secondhand bookstore (they also sell vinyl records) and I'll admit it's a pleasant place to browse. But naturally RM couldn't just browse - he came away with The Road by Cormac McCarthy (even though he warned me from against this supposedly unreadable book to my book club!) and The Art of Travel DVD by Alain de Botton.

HOT: Peter Watson, 113 St David St, Fitzroy

Peter Watson supply their ‘seriously good food’ spices, sauces, marinades, oils and condiments to hotels and restaurants around Australia. You can also buy their sleek, black-labelled goods from the small neat store which adjoins their kitchen factory off Smith St. I’m still in the midst of the stocking up my new pantry, and I confess sometimes I’m easily distracted from the essentials: flour, sugar and salt, to digress into Cuban Abado, Barbados Bajan Seasoning, Asian Dry Marinade and Quince and Chocolate Jam (at 50% off!).

Update 15 June 2009: With winter soup season starting, I've been needing a lot of chicken stock lately. So RM and I have partaken in two roast chickens in as many weeks and we agree that the Cuban Abado and Barbados Bajan Seasoning, rubbed into the skins with olive oil and lemon juice, have been superb.

HOT: Time4Fitness, 2/131-135 Johnston St, Fitzroy

The first time I visited Time4Fitness I was struck by the gym's sweaty smelliness. Well, the smell seems to have dissipated, but I still wouldn't shower there. Oh well, for $12.95 a week I can't be expecting too much glamour and its basic setup and proximity to my house will do the trick. They have the usual cardio and weights equipment, magazines to read, a smattering of morning and evening classes and service is super-friendly.

HOT: Panama Dining Room, Level 3/231 Smith St, Fitzroy

When I first dreamt of living in Collingwood, I dreamt of living in a huge warehouse apartment with lofty ceilings and huge windows like those in the Panama Dining Room.

This dimly lit and palm-fronded dining room was buzzy on a Sunday night as we settled down for a low-key dinner with friends. The menu was an eclectic Mod Oz mix - from wagyu beef steaks with mash, crisp pheasant pie to a wet, spongy spinach and yoghurt souffle with subtly Indian spiced vegetables. The food was pleasant but not outstanding, but combined with the ambience it worked as a great local restaurant.

HOT: Old Kingdom, 197 Smith St, Fitzroy

Another day without a fridge meant another chance to explore our local takeaway establishments. This time, Old Kingdom, a slightly shabby (and thus authentic) Chinese restaurant which serves up well-priced Cantonese dishes. On a Sunday night they were bustling with large tables of Chinese families digging into the restaurant's speciality - Peking duck. You have to pre-order but from my quick glance of the dining room, everyone had planned their trip to Old Kingdom just for the duck.

Our meal-on-the-lounge-room-floor consisted of a nice salt and pepper crispy skinned chicken and a slightly oily vegetable and tofu stirfry, with white rice, all for around $25.

HOT: The Sartorialist at Cutler & Co, 55-57 Gertrude St, Fitzroy

The Sartorialist's blog is so famous that even my mum follows him. So you can imagine the tsunami of anticipation that engulfed Melbourne's fashionistas when Time Magazine's top 1oo design influencers announced that he was holding a party to meet his Melbourne readers.

Oh dear, what to wear???

Given that most of my wardrobe was still in shipping boxes, I didn't have much of a choice of outfit. Never mind, I briefly practised my model posing, then skipped off excitedly to the hot new Andrew McConnell restaurant, Cutler & Co.

Never have I seen so many zany hats, colourful pocket squares and androgynous men in such a small area. Everyone was trying to be cool and nonchalant, while clearly eyeing everyone else's outfit. RM and I claimed a spot at the bar and entrenched our position by ordering a couple of tapas. The food at Cutler & Co was not cheap, but it was impressive. We had a delicious squid escabeche, some neanderthal cutlets of extremely tender duck confit and narrow wafers balancing shreds of crabmeat.

And then ....there he was, Scott Schumann in the flesh. People started jostling to get near him (in a cool, nonchalant way) and at one stage there was even a queue of admirers waiting to talk to him. To his credit, there was no diva attitude - he seemed quite at ease with the crowd, freely answering questions and talking about his experiences in Australia. I didn't push to get closer to him because I discovered that I didn't have any intelligent thoughts other than 'OMG, he's really really short!''. But I do wish I'd elbowed aside some of the groupies so I could have gotten a photo with me towering over him - probably the only time I'm ever going to look like a model.

HOT: Dogs Breakfast Trading Company, 245-247 Johnston St, Fitzroy 3065

I'm not sure why you'd call your stores such an unappealing name as Dogs Breakfast, but its name belies an appealing store if you're into homewares and replica furniture.

Unsurprisingly, I was browsing thoroughly aisle by aisle, picking up fabulous things like plastic microwave containers and sheet sets. RM flitted around uninspired until he spotted the 50% off Nood (New Objects of Desire) zebra magazine rack, which should go perfectly with our new black-white-silver apartment.

HOT: Babka Bakery Cafe, 358 Brunswick St, Fitzroy 3065

When I was a kid, every trip to Melbourne involved a pilgrimage to McDonalds because I was deprived of filet-o-fish and fried apple pies in deepest, darkest Tassie.

When I grew up, every trip to Melbourne involved a pilgrimage to Babka Bakery Cafe because I loved the food and the friendly neighbourhood atmosphere. I was happy to see that it had not changed in my time away, and as participant of the 2009 Hot Cross Bun challenge, it came out with flying colours. Their buns had the right amount of fruit, lightly spiced and only $2.

HOT: Chocolateria San Churro, 277b Brunswick St, Fitzroy 3065

The aroma of chocolate hits you before you even reach the door of Chocolateria San Churro, a specialist Spanish chocolate cafe which does fantastic long strips of churros with your choice of white, milk or dark dipping chocolate. Although Jen found a hair stuck to one of her churros (the waiter responded with 'cool'), it was a delicious end to our fleeting Melbourne catch-up.

HOT: Alimentari, 251 Brunswick St, Fitzroy 3065

Who knew that a pork sandwich could be so good?

Alimentari is a bustling little cafe which serves an array of salads and sandwiches to the lunching crowd on Brunswick Street. You wouldn't think it was that exciting, but wait until you bite into their focaccia with roast pork, celeriac, celery and raisins, accompanied with some blood orange juice. $9.