Ms Bag Charming

A rock-chic bag charm that I just made. It's chunky and sparkly, just the way I like it! :D

By the way, I have not worn the pink shutter shades yet. So far, I've been too chicken to wear it. I can see clearly through it, although it may look better perched on top of my head. :p

My Definitive Fashion Victim Moment

I was lusting after some neon pink shutter shades here on ebay and happened to see this pastel pink pair after lunch today at a Thai street fashion exhibition cum stall at Vivocity. It was definitely a fashion-victim moment for me when I bought it on impulse but I'm a happy victim. Haha

I Heart Sunglasses

I love this new pair of Marc Jacobs sunglasses with a yellow diamante on both sides of the frame; it's almost movie-star like. I imagine that I'm really glamorous when wearing it..hahaaSince then, I've been obsessed with more sunglasses. The obsession became stronger after I saw this Lolita movie poster: Heart-shaped sunglasses! It's kitschy but still I'm obsessed with getting a pair. Probably a pair in a more "serious" color so that I don't look like I'm pretending to be 18 (or 12 for that matter).

I love this oversized black pair on ebay:

More sunglasses that I like below, although I'm not sure if there will be occassions to wear them: A pair of white wayfarer sunglasses with colored hologram hearts on it.

A pair of pink (what a delicious shade of pink!) shutter shades ala Kayne West:

Diamond Ring Brooch

This "diamond" ring brooch which I bought from ebay, is something that I've been looking for in a long while. It arrived last week in great condition and I love it! It's quite a big pin and will be fun to pair with other pins for a cluster-of-pins look!

"New" Clutches

My mother found these 2 lovely clutches when clearing the study. These were kept in dust bags and are in great condition. I hate clearing things and this has got to be the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow for me :P

The chain strap for this brown clutch can't be used as the loop at one of the ends is broken. It's a lovely clutch so I'm not too heartbroken that it can't be used as a sling.This green purse was bought in Changi Airport in the 1980s and my mother has never used it before. It has a brown strap and is lined with velventeen. Although this is not exactly every girl's type of bag, I love the emerald green shade!

What the Contents Say

This is an entry that is way overdue now that the Chanel Mobile Art exhibition has already moved from Hong Kong to Tokyo. Zaha Hadid's mobile pavilion is inspired by the Chanel 2.55 bag as are the art installations by 20 international artists.What interest me was the photo-literature style of French Artist Sophie Calle, one of the artists commissioned for this exhibition. She advertised in the Japanese media for an artist to carry out her concept of getting strangers to sell their bags together with the contents. Japanese artist Soju Tao signed up and the subsequent collaboration is exhibited in this pavilion. A statement of the fine line between art and life? Perhaps.

What is definite for me is that it has piqued my interest in "styling" the interior of my bag as well. No more old receipts and other useless stuff in the bag and absolutely no more embarassing moments digging for items in my big carrier. Everything is tucked neatly in little pouches, a wallet and a coin purse. :)

(Photos from International Herald Tribune)

Patricia Smith Moon Bag

Graphics on bags and purses are seeing a revival now (cue Prada, LV). For something a little different, I just love this 1980s Patricia Smith Moon Bag (Milwaukee, WI). Artist Patricia Smith designed the panels herself; each panel is covered in resin and is detachable for interchange with panels from other bags (not that I have any others in order to do that). I like motifs and this one has a irresistable graphic of a butterfly flying with the moon in the bacground. Love the soft maroon leather and how the strap can be kept for this to be used as a clutch.

(Photos: Vintage Instyle)

Betseyville Telephone Wristlet

My sister bought me this Betsey Johnson Betseyville Telephone Wristlet! It's made from black patent PVC and comes with a pink sequined lip bag charm and a gold 'diamond' studded bag charm. There's even a detachable retro-style telephone receiver with telephone cord attached! It's kitschy fun and it's just so cute!

Front of the wristlet: Back of the wristlet:
Ring Ring! It looks inspired by this:This is a 1970s telephone bag where the phone can plugged in and calls can be made! Also available in red at LaPochette Vintage Purses.

I will away on a business trip for the next few days until Sunday! See you when I'm back. :)

My Outfit Today

The dress I wore yesterday belongs to my Mother. It's a batik-print dress which my Father bought for her in the 1970s or 1980s from Indonesia (batik is a traditional art form of Indonesia). The dress is super comfy and great for the local warm/ sunny weather. According to my parents, the dress came with a matching clutch although I have not seen it yet. It would be so cool to carry a clutch in a matching fabric!

According to Mum, the dress was meant to be worn in a loose style, with a rubbered waist and meant to be puffed up near waist/ hips. I have updated the look with a wide brown elastic belt instead and paired the dress with my patent Pink Miu Miu and Purple Anemone polka-dotted sling (yes, again but in a different look entirely. I'm glad these 2 pink items are so versatile!).
Me in my best Superwoman pose:

My Mum was so slim then that this is the only dress that I can wear from her old wardrobe. The others are just too small! I'm glad to be able to wear this one, it feels like I'm getting even closer to her. :)

In Love with a Spring-y Dress

I tried the red Agnes B floral dress while shopping on May Day and it looks terrific! I'm usually very decisive, but I just can't decide if I should get this. It's fun to wear, great for the warm Singapore weather and absolutely very Spring-y! But it's still a flimsy and very simple piece of dress that is retailing for S$495 (belt not included hahah)!

To buy or not to buy, that is the question.

My Outfit Today

Celebrated my birthday with a little polka-dotted fun today!

Wearing my black Moschino Jeans dress with silver-tone zippers all over (including 2 zippered side pockets which I like), pink patent leather Miu Miu slingbacks and carrying my Purple Anemone polka-dot sling with a black ribbon pin. I haven't done the matching shoes and bag combination for years...so decided that I will try it again today. It's so not fashionable to do so (by some quarters) that it's appealing to me.

Birthday Cake

Hello Kitty is one of my favourite fashion icons and my colleagues celebrated my birthday for me yesterday with a Hello Kitty character cake! It's so cute and I love how they have incorporated my initials into the cake design! Thanks! :)

Lace Gloves

While blog-surfing, I was captivated by the McQueen and Zucca runways shots where the models were wearing sheer nude tone leggings with beautiful lace patterns on them (I saw the photos from one blog but cannot remember the blog name; if you are the one, please let me know! Thanks.)

Of course, there's nothing similar in the stores yet, but I found this pair of lace gloves from Takashimaya instead. It's beautiful, very comfy to wear and can glam up any outfit instantly!

I bought the olive green pair, but there are white, pink, purple and blue ones available in the shop too. Beautiful colors!

(Photo: Alexander McQueen SS 2008, Zucca SS 2008)

Wear Palettes

I've been reading about Wear Palettes and it seems like everyone is raving about it. WP has painstakingly complied the colors of photos from the Sartorialist. The colors on the site, looks great and everything, but I genuinely don't get it. I've been puzzled for a while and finally I pluck up my courage to blog about this today. I'm not trying to be offensive, just curious.

Why would anyone want to refer to a palette for? Is it more as a resource for the professionals? I thought the fun about dressing up is to mix and match my own colors. The process of thinking through whether the colors match is part of the fun of fashion for me.

Then again, I'm a layman, and not a graphic designer for that matter. If anyone could enlighten me on Wear Palettes, I would be most happy to hear from you.

Post-script on 24 Apr AM: I found the words to describe another puzzling thought when I woke up this morning - there are millions of wonderful permutations with colors, so by limiting ourselves to a palette, we are missing out on a lot more?

Hot Pink Dr Martens

I read about these colorful punk-inspired Dr Martens in the latest issue of STYLE magazine last Thursday and had to get them. I had in mind the pink ones which are in such a lovely hue. The very next day, I telephoned Front Row to reserve a pair so that I could get them after work on Friday evening. Only one pair of pink Drs left and it's in a size 39, they said.

Had to work a wee bit late on Friday and could only walk over to Front Row late in the evening. The boutique closes on Friday at 8pm but, Chin, the store manager was so nice to wait for me as I speed-walk over with a colleague (who was very nice to rush with me too) and arrived at 810pm.

The pink Drs fitted perfectly but the red ones caught my eye too! The red ones were in a most delicious shade of crimson. Dilemma, schilemma. Having to decide in 5 minutes, I choose the hot pink ones as they were the last pair (only 12 pairs of pink ones in Singapore at the moment).

My colleague and I went to Front Row during lunchtime again today and she bought a black pair of boots too. They look great and make me wonder just a tiny little bit if I should have bought the more versatile black ones instead. Too many colors to choose from. :)

Black and Sequined Cheong Sum

I went to the thrift shop again today, to see if the gold and black puffy-sleeved top was still there. It wasn't but I found this black silk-like cheong sum instead. It had beaded and sequined detailing in rainbow colors (double wow from me). It even had a Singapore tailor's address on its label, I simply love this!

Wonderful detailing with the different colored sequins on the Mandarin collar:

I'm not sure if this dress is vintage and not clear what's at the address now (will check it out soon though). The label with the Singapore tailor's address:

FlowerByKenzo

The only fragrance that I never get tired of is Kenzo's FlowerByKenzo. I get irritated by other perfumes just a few hours after wearing them. My nose is super sensitive and I can't stand smelling the same smell the whole time. On the other hand, FlowerByKenzo is light, breezy and somehow reminds me of a baby's sweet breath.

Kenzo has organised a photography competition; just take any photo of a poppy (get one from the Kenzo counters if you don't have one; I definitely don't) in whatever way you fancy. Plant the poppy photograph in a virtual field at FlowerByYou and wait for the contest result in July 2008! Check out the digital poppy field! It's quite surreal.

I even found a FlowerByKenzo fan website here! Apparently, there are 5 members in Singapore according to the listing. I wonder......

Ze-Ze-Zebra Prints

I've always liked animal prints (even through the days when it was deemed unfashionable), I'm glad that they are a timeless classic, always guaranted to be in vogue during the next trend cycle. Even though I own a tiger print mini skirt, a long-sleeved black top with just a hint of tiger print, my favourite is the zebra fabric. The print is classic and what could possibly go wrong with black and white?

I saw this lovely dress from Neiman Marcus with such a flattering yoked neckline and cut-in shoulders:There's this flirty-pretty zebra print skirt from ebay too for a reasonable price:
For added allure in a small package, a sexy zebra print bikini will be just stunning!

Thrift Shop Visit

As planned, I made my way to Something Old, Something New yesterday. It was raining heavity late morning but luckily the sky cleared by noon. My Dad dropped my off at the thrift shop with me carrying 3 bags of donations and a pair of old clutches (the walking aid, not the purse haha).

The thrift shop was brightly lit, well-ventilated and it was definitely a comfortable shopping experience. I met Anna Tsang, one of the 3 ladies who set up the thrift shop. Anna was wearing a deconstructed red and black top which she designed! I would have requested to take a photo of her, if my camera battery has not given way! Did I want to kick myself in the butt then!

Before I went to the thrift shop, I promised myself that I would only buy 1 item there. I found quite a number of lovely items in the shop and it was a struggle deciding what to buy. Take a look at the pictures and guess which one I bought in the end? :)

Struggle #1: A purplish pink wrap around top with green and light brown straps. The fabulous color caught my eye and I think this would be great for the boho look.
Struggle #2: A black tank with lace embellishments strategically sewn on. This is made of stretch material and the shape is rather good. Quite a steal at only S$2. Great for layering.

Struggle #3: This black suit with gold buttons and white lace all over it. I don't fancy the jacket but the skirt is really pretty.

The skirt with white lace at the bottom that caught my eye, underneath the jacket-that-has-too-much-detailing:

Struggle #4: I found this beautiful turquoise blue jacket in a corner, at the end of the jackets rack. This fitted jacket has fat round buttons, and black and gold detailing around the round collar (I like this kind of collars) and sleeves.

Struggle #5 and #6: A Laura Ashley fuchsia pink corduroy shirt with ruffles. My camera battery gave in at this moment and I could not take a picture! Right next to it, I found a classy black and gold striped blouse with puffy sleeves (imagine that!). Just when I was thinking about it, another girl took it to the fitting room (if she didn't buy it, I'm going back next week to get it ).

I had fun and it was a good shopping experience. I'm also impressed that the shop assistants were very efficient: by the time I left, I already see the things that I brought neatly tagged and displayed on the shelves.

I'm definitely going back there again. For your information, the shop is opened daily from 11am to 430pm (closed on Sundays).

Rakku Shoes Wheel in Singapore

Read about this some time ago and I've been wanting to get this from LA. The Shoe Wheel is an amazing mobile shoe storage unit that can hold up to 30 pairs of shoes. I like it that the shoes can be seen at a glance and that the shoes can be stored so neatly! I hope though that it offers enough ventiliation so that the shoes will not spoil easily.

Just realised that the Rakku Shoe Wheel is now available in Singapore too for S$129 from Whoa-ho! It is also available at the following shops in Singapore:

1. Ameba (Parkway Parade Shopping Centre)
2. Anthropology (Raffles City Shopping Centre and Scarlet Hotel)
3. fourskin (The Hereen)
4. Kendo Lifestyle (Bukit Timah Plaza)
5. Molecule (Great World City and Marina Square)
6. Mono Yono Lifestyle (Suntec City Mall)
7. Wembley Gifts and Lifestyle (Hitachi Towers)

Rakku has also created the Shoe Pod which can hold 12 pairs of mens' shoes, up to size 14-plus. I think it will be neat to get 2, one for each of us, or should that be 2 for each of us, considering the number of shoes that we have?

Thrift Shopping vs Thift Donations

These are 4 of the belts we cleared out, now that we are preparing for renovation. I still like them, especially the top-most one with the shiny buckle but they are too small now since these were most likely bought when we were teenagers (excuses, excuses).

Read about this thrift shop, Something Old, Something New, from Fashion Nation who read it from Cherry Magazine (yeah, it's a long list of references). Since I live in the East, which is near to this shop, I'm planning to bring these belts and other hair accessories among others, there this Saturday. I hope that someone who is slim enough will love them!

When I'm there at the shop, I really have to restrain myself so that I don't buy more things back than what I bring there. In the meantime until Saturday, I'm going to continue with the packing and fish out more goodies.

Here's the location of Something New, Something Old for easy reference: