Wide Brim

Repeat after me, I need a wide-brimmed hat this summer. Lol! Once again apologies for the utter lack of posts lately but as you can see below, the weekend was well-spent somewhere up North doing teambuilding activities with my Retropop instructors family. :)

I hope that from the pics below I’ll be able to convince you that a wide-brimmed hat is the chicest accessory you could ever have on your summer getaways. It doesn’t hurt that it doubles up as an extra protection from the sun too. ;-) 

Wide-brimmed hat: Zara

Pic 1 - Dress: Unbranded; Shoes: Rubi

Pic 2 - Swimwear: Unbranded; Pic 3 - Swimwear: Bench

Leave Room in Your Life for Art

Leave room in your life for art. Okay. Did I just really use that as a title? Haha.

We all have our pet peeves in social media right? One of them for me is using non-related quotes as caption for selfies. I won't go in lengthy details about this but let's just say that (1) I realized this habit can't be avoided in this over-sharing culture of today (2) I love my friends that I've come to tolerate this stuff and (3) I've just committed this sin myself. But atleast allow me to explain.

To start I have to bring up this convo I had with a much younger friend in the gym years ago (I call her shobe, Chinese word for younger sister). To be honest I can't recall exactly the topic but I remember telling her something like "...but I'm not an artist..." and she ended up explaining to me vaguely how I'm into fashion styling and that somehow is being artistic.

Is fashion an art? There has been much debate about this. But does it allow you to be creative? Then of course the answer is yes. Okay I'm going round in circles on this but please bear with me. Obviously, it has taken me a fashion and arts school enrollment to appreciate more fashion and styling in a whole new level. And what I like most about this is the challenge that comes with every homework editorials assigned to us. I realized that is what I have been doing all along trying to come up with different mix and matches with my everyday wear. An inspection of my WearToday (Cassey Cakes for shameless plugging, lol!) account suggests that yeah I am capable of not repeating the same mixed combo in a year. Of course it doesn't mean anything when you fairly have enough items in your closet so we'll deal with the limited amount perhaps next time? Because as they say, scarcity is the father of creativity? Saaayyy whaaaat??? Hahaha!

Because I'm a quote hoarder too, I'd like to add one more here that just recently all made sense to me lately. Find 3 hobbies: one that make you money, one to keep you in shape and one to be creative. Yes, I found the last one in fashion styling. And when Business Insider said that successful people usually work on a personal passion project, of course I'd like to be successful and I consider styling as that project. :)

To end, I'd like to share this quote from this designer Varvatos who doesn't think himself as an artist,

“If you’re creating and you’re new, and you’re pushing the envelope – I definitely think it’s a form of art.”

Top: Cotton On; Skirt: Bugis market in Singapore; Denim Jacket: Mango

Shoes: Zalora; Sunnies: Flea market in Osaka

Festival Spirit

Blame it on my Western dressing influence but Coachella is coming this week in Cali and I can't help but get a bit excited. Having said that, allow me to recall this poignant conversation I had with my Polish ex-boyfriend when we were still together. We were about to enter the mall when we came across this Korean mom whom he found so cute with her loosely thrown together articles of clothing and a strapped baby carrier. When he found out that I don’t share the same opinion about the woman’s laidback style (no jealousy here and he asked for my opinion to which I said "it's okay"), he simply stated “You all try to dress just like the Westerns do.”  Oh-kay. We didn’t really exactly have an argument about it but style is all about preference and it’s not my fault if I look up to Western fashion for inspiration. Right?

Anyway, back to Coachella. Yes it is a music festival but over the years with it's celebrity attendance, it has become a fashion festival too. I'm looking forward to what the celebrities would be wearing for the affair. Some has even predicted that with different retailers partnering up with the event organizers (hello H&M!), this event is well on its way on becoming a runway show soon. Fun!

If I were to attend a Coachella event, this is prolly what I’d wear. Instead of the usual cut-offs, I’d wear this asymmetric skirt I got on sale online. The event takes place in a desert like location in Cali so I think this crop top would pass for some abs (albet invisible, lol!) display and a wide-brim hat for protection from the sun. Lastly, I’ll finish this look off with some festival-ready ankle booties. All black may not be a typical color but the Kardashian sisters made it work some years ago! ;)

This is exactly what I wore to a street party held at concert grounds of Mall of Asia two weeks ago. What's best about this is that once again, it had the Topshop seal of approval in my Instagram. I really hope to see them use my photo one day. :)

Hat: Unbranded; Top: Topshop; Skirt: Zalora PH

Shoes: Mango; Bag: Charles 'n Keith

Spring Has Sprung

I really think it’s funny that for several times now, Timehop informed me that an article of what I was wearing on a certain day was worn on the very same day in the past years! If it’s not the same cloth, sometimes it’s the same color scheme. Amazing right? Could there be a scientific theory here? Hmmm….. I’d like to think that maybe I really have “less clothes” so I have this tendency to wear them again and again but then one glance in the current messy state of my room now tells me otherwise. Yikes! Which brings me to my main topic for this post. SPRING for spring cleaning. But let’s talk about spring first. Haha!

Aaah, spring! For us living in tropical countries, maybe this change of season doesn’t really mean much at all. After all, we don’t know how it’s like to endure months of bitter cold and anticipate dropping layers of clothing with a rise in temperature. But having been acquainted with many Japanese students of mine for years now have taught me one or two about their culture and the relevance of this season (posted in my other blog here). Actually, it doesn’t really take so much to love it. You just have to step outside and see the blooming flowers and you’ll fall for it. It was the very reason for my travel last year in Osaka – to see the cherry blossoms. Well, second reason is to meet in person some of my students who’ve become friends of mine. :)

Last Sunday, it was the very same day last year when I first beheld the beauty of Sakura. I took out this floral frock (post here) and paired with this skirt (as seen here) to reminisce everything. Prior to that, I’ve already been sporting lots of blooms and there is no Timehop reminder needed for this. Because those beauties when experienced doesn’t need a constant reminder. It’s forever felt in the heart and will forever be yearned for.

Dress: Warehouse;Skirt: The Ramp; Shoes: Marks & Spencer

So I guess I’ll talk about spring cleaning next time. Enjoy the gallery of more floral prints below, the lighter and dark blooms! :)

Dress: Karimadon; Vest: Forever 21; Scarf: Plains n Prints; Shoes: Marks & Spencer

Dress: Mango; Vest: Mango; Bag: Bugis in S'pore; Hat: Unbranded

Shoes: Dorothy Perkins

Top: Unbranded; Vest: Forever21; Trousers: Tomato

Bag: Charles 'n Keith; Shoes: Dorothy Perkins;

Sunnies: Flea market in Osaka