Merry Christmas In Manila

I was really excited when I got the invite to my friends' Christmas party in Manila. For one, I got it during exam week so it was my ray of sunshine during those grim days in the library. Secondly, Cesca's house is just phenomenal and I can't imagine anyone having a lousy time in such a wonderful place. Thirdly, I went to their Christmas party last year and just had the most amazing time!

This year's party was just as fabulous. Sure, I kinda freaked out when I found out that it was happening on the same night I fly into Manila (I basically went from the airport to her house!) AND that any black attire was STRICTLY prohibited. But I had such a grand time...it didn't matter that I was completely exhausted because of jetlag or that I kinda felt semi-uncomfy in my pink outfit! hahaha

The Arrivas(Iza and Klar): two of my best friends looking ravishing as usual

Oh Monica! One of my nearest and dearest. We spent a crazy night on our way home the day after! I think my entire clan shocked her when she stayed for dinner in my house :))

Janna is probably the sweetest person I know in this world. She is also Little Miss Dress Up's number one fan after Rosanna's family and my family! I have missed you so, Janna Marie My Love. And check out her ferosha shoes. I love them.

The Arrivas with our lovely host Cesca. Thanks a billion for such a marvelous night. I had so much fun!!!

:D

Bustier: from Scotland
Skirt: Culte Femme
Shoes: Zara
Clutch: Moss
Cuff: Jul Dizon

I finally wore my beloved cuff! Last summer, award winning designer Ginny Dizon sketched a couple of Blackamoor designs for me and I finally settled on this because I just love how the breastplate looks like a giant fan from afar. I've waited for months to see this beauty (their craftsman fell ill) and it was so worth the wait.

The cuff is set in silver with some of the details plated in yellow gold and black gold. My mom donated a loose South Sea pearl from Jewelmer for the turban and the rim is lined with white sapphires. The breastplate has seed pearls and white sapphires scattered all around the yellow gold plated silver leaves. The cuff itself is made out of the most beautiful shade of dark purple stingray skin. I love it so much. I've even christened him with the name 'Poo-bah'!

Thank you so so much, Ginny! Everyone has been complementing your work. It's truly an art piece that I will love and cherish for years to come :D

Because We Just Wanted To Share The Christmas Spirit

 

Merry Christmas!!! Hope you guys got everything from your wish lists!

The Comeback Kid

After thousands of miles and icky airplane food...guess who's back in town (for 3 days) ?!? 

Little Miss H!

We spent pretty much an entire afternoon parked on the Healthy Option's couch treating it as if it were our own private lounge. But when we DID get off our lazy butts we...


bumped into oh so stylish people (like Bea)


Meet our gorgeous friend, Monique

ate too much (in both Pepper Lunch AND then Cibo)


and goofed around inside dressing rooms

The Same Game

(TheSart, StockholmStreetStyle)

It seems that everyone around the blogsphere seems to be experiencing the lovely (?) fall weather. I envy everyone who gets to get all wrapped up in coocoon coats and oversized scarves. I can only dream about stepping out wearing a fabulous fur hat. But no, since I live in a country where its pretty much summer all year round, I would have to settle for the next best thing -- our fake-cold December weather. 

Me: thrifted grey sweater, Zara jeans, Juan shoes, vintage Roberta Di Camerino bag

My sister: Mimi sweater, H&M jeans, Gucci bag

Lately, there's been a cool breeze so I've been taking advantage of it by wearing sweaters and jackets. I guess yesterday, my older sister had the exact same idea. I picked her up in her house only to see her wearing pretty much the same thing! From our grey sweaters down to our matching red pedicures and wedges, it just shows you that we really are sisters.

In Dire Need of A New Camera

1- Top: Thrifted, Belt: Vintage, Skirt: Vintage, Shoes: Pura Lopez, Earrings: Jul Dizon
2- Top: H&M, Skirt: vintage, Belt: New Look, Sunglasses: Fendi, Bag: I forget, Shoes: Carvela x Kurt Geiger

My silver accessories : Snake bracelet - FollieFollie : 'Balls bracelet'- Gaea Crafts : Rhinestone in silverplated metal: Claire's Australia

These are some of the outfits I wore this week. I hope you guys get a good idea what they look like despite the very poor quality of these pictures that failed to capture the draping of my purple cardi, the folds on my white top, the stitching of my blue skirt and like everything else that has to do with the details of the clothes. I really need a new camera. The Sony Cybershot 5.1 I'm currently using takes the worst photos so I'm thinking of getting a new one when I get to Singapore...unless someone decides to give it to me as a gift. :D haha. Hiiinnntt.

To all you fashion bloggers out there, what camera would you recommend? Nothing too complicated please. I am very incompetent when it comes to technology. Srsly, I just found out recently that you can pause/play using the spacebar in the Macbook. And I've had mine for 4 years. oh dear, im such a grandma.

Grab This Month's Chalk Magazine!

Thanks Bianca!

Do pick up a copy and check out the other fab blogs as well!

The Little Misses will make up for lack of posts next week when they are finally reunited :D

Work Work Work

Lily Aldridge

Sorry for the lack of updates!!!! I've been swamped with schoolwork 

since Christmas break starts in a few days so I'll be back soon :D 

Can't wait!!!

Ready Steady Hedi

source: Hedi Slimane's London Teenage Portfolio from the Dazed and Confused January 2009 issue.

Why oh why couldn't I be a cool london teenager???

Playing Hooky

SM dress, Dean and Trent jacket, SM leggings, H&M shoes, H&M bag

Every time I wear this dress I feel like an inmate. I think it must be the stripes. I really think they should get rid of those bright orange jumpsuits, and bring back those striped ones don't you think? 

But I guess the jail striped dress was appropriate for last Friday since I played hooky. Instead of going to school I ended up in the mall. I know its too early for it but I'm really developing a bad case of senioritis. Graduation is still in around 3 months and I'm already too lazy to go to my classes. Imagine how restless I'll be by February!

Cleaning Out My Closet

Ahh...the joys of opening a tidy closet! Yesterday, I edited my wardrobe for my quadri-annual clean out. I got rid of 2 bags of previously loved clothes which I will be giving to my friends, selling on ebay and donating to charity shops.

Voila:

If one's closet is in any way the extension of one's personality, I truly must be the dullest person alive. The color peeping in the bottom shelf? Sleepwear. ha!

When I first moved in to this apartment, I thought I'd buy some nice decorative pieces for that rack above my bed..but the lack of storage forced me to use it as a makeshift bag rack. (hmm..makeshift? it has been serving the same purpose for 3 years.)

Piles of accessories beside the single most useful thing I own : my vaporizer!!! My skin can't stand the dry weather so the humidity this little thing provides truly is a skin-saver.

My mom got me this rack when she visited me last spring because she couldn't stand all the temporary hooks I had attached to every flat wall surface for all my outerwear. :))

This has been like a detox for me. It feels so good to get rid of unnecessary crap. And fine, I might be cheating a bit because my storage still holds some coats I may never use...but 2 bags to give away is pretty good considering my last clean-out was just 3 months ago. :D

After the clean-out I decided to reward myself by finally purchasing the perfect pleated skirt from Oasis that I've been dying to have...

This picture has been a constant inspiration for me. It's been in my desktop inspiration folder for about 4 years now. I don't even remember where I nicked it from...probably vogue espana. But omg, it constantly makes me crave for the perfect pleated skirt.

The simplicity and the femininity of the outfit compounded with the allure of the chic lady is perfection. She is living evidence that creativity + restraint = beauty.

Trying on the skirt with the top I was wearing earlier that day.
Top: Oscar de la Renta
Wool sweater: Mastina
Skirt: Oasis
Shoes: Zara

Clearing my closet THEN buying something to add to it? I may really be suffering from self-defeating personality disorder! I should just give up. hahah.

On My Quest To Build The Perfect Wardrobe

It has always been my goal to be a thoughtful shopper who considers the quality and wearability of an item of clothing at a price point appropriate to my financial status. I’ve dreamed about my perfect de-cluttered wardrobe filled with pieces I loved that I could mix and match to create different looks that will carry me from one season to the next.

In an attempt to make that dream a reality, my wardrobe went through a massive overhaul a year ago. I plucked all the unnecessary articles of clothing, assessed what I had and made a wish list of the things I wanted to incorporate to it. (Most of my colorful clothes went to the charity shops and have found homes in the closet of some of my friends. I’m so glad I kept all my brocade jackets though. It’s the one non-minimalist thing I cannot resist!) The TFSers from ‘The 4-5 piece French wardrobe’ thread were especially helpful when I was editing and streamlining. The thread itself was a fountain of information and tips on how to use existing pieces and seamlessly integrate new items to your wardrobe.

Since cutting down on the amount of things I owned, I’ve put more thought on the things I purchased. The ‘cost per wear’ method of assessing an item by the number of times you will be able to use it has been very helpful in defining not only my closet but my style. And when mushrooms of sale racks start sprouting up in high street stores, I’ve found that a good way of stepping away from something bargainous but completely impractical is by asking myself : Would I buy it if it had the original price tag on? If the answer is no, it makes it so much easier for me to walk away…

My closet is still a work in progress and I am far from having the perfect wardrobe. I am, after all, still living on allowance. And being a self-confessed sale-a-holic doesn’t help either. But I’m working on it. I’m looking to invest in 1-3 items a year on high quality items that will last me a lifetime. (This year, it has been a Balenciaga bag, a Blackamoor on stingray cuff, and a vintage jumbo xl quilted Chanel bag.)

I can only hope that one day I will become a shopper like the-search-for-chic. Someone who knows how to exercise restraint and has a closet with ‘high standards’. :D

photo credit: The search for chic

Rebel Without A Cause

I've hated Jenny's character since the beginning of Gossip Girl (even in the books)  but ever since little j turned on her rebellious side she's becoming a bit more bearable. Not because her character is sooo much better ( she's not) but because I'm starting love everything she wears. I think her outfit in last night's episode (O Brother, Where Bart Thou?) was pure perfection!!!

old tee, thrifted skirt, Aranaz bag

Obviously, Little J inspired.

Black! Black! Black!

hahahah! :D

I wore this outfit to my church's carol service. Every year we spend an evening singing Christmas songs followed by some yummy mulled wine and mincemeat pies. :D I think I had too much fun this year and probably annoyed everyone beside me for singing too loud! haha. I couldn't really help it...it's hard not to sing with our incredible choir and instrumentalists.

Oh, and I thought I'd share a picture of my beautiful city in Christmas time.

Edinburgh is STUNNING in December.

Wallflower

Topshop sequined top, thrifted skirt, vintage shoes, Topshop cardigan

I finally checked out Topshop after a month of self control. I found the perfect bowler hat which I would love love love to have but it was way out of my budget for the week (and the week hasn't even begun!) because I already spent my allowance on a couple of books and magazines. I now must add Topshop (oooh and Zara!) gift cards to my wish list.

Found the new Nylon in Fullybooked. Has it always been P395 (or 300something) pesos? I remember I used to buy Nylon all the time for P500! I feel cheated on :( Unless the prices have just gone down because its gotten more popular?

Oh and do you know if you subscribe to Paris Vogue it costs around P10,000+ a year?!? Since I'd rather spend that money on clothes, I guess I have to stick to seeing some of the editorials online...unless someone wants to give me a subscription for Christmas? I can only hope.

Mine!

Can I just say...Oasis has the best sales associates. I went to the store today and had the most wonderful time shopping. The one assisting me was so helpful in trying to find the military jacket I had seen online. Then, the girl manning the fitting room was so patient in getting me all the right sizes I needed. As if this wasn't superb enough service, the girl at the till gave me an extra 20% off on top the VAT reduction!! (She told me to be discreet about it cause she wasn't really allowed to do it but I can't help but blog about it. I love her. She is SO my favorite person today.)

I LOVE the people of oasis! And yes, their clothes too...but the people more.

photo credit: shoes - kurtgeiger.com, belt-newlook.co.uk, jackets and vest: oasis-stores.co.uk

Nature of The Experiment

old cropped top, SM skirt, Aldo shoes

Ages ago (see! the walls are still white) , I tried giving the crop top a go but I forgot to make post on it. Played around a bit with an old shirt and my favorite high waisted skirt!! Wore it with a jacket of course, to keep it from looking too daring, because if not, my grandmother would probably have had a heart attack!

Anyway, have you guys finished Christmas shopping??? I haven't even started! I didn't realize Christmas was just around the corner...Time flies way too fast! 

Oh and am I the only Filipino who isn't watching the Pacquiao and De La Hoya fight???

Edit: Pacquiao won. 

Dear Santa

source: Asos, Net-a-porter, UO, F21, Topshop

Just in case Santa decides to pay a visit since 

I think I've been very very very good this year. 

Que Sarah Sarah

This is my beautiful friend Sarah and one of my favouritest people in Edinburgh. She's an amazing artist and is currently doing costume design in the Edinburgh College of Art (imsojealous). I don't think I've ever spent a dull moment with her - we've scared truck drivers, bowed and curtsied at painters, sang songs we don't know the lyrics to, helped an old lady cross the street to grab a cab and scoured bins around the city for some treasures. haha!

Here she is with our amazing find of the night. We spotted a treasure bin in Lothian Road with printers and saw this tiny table which is , in Sarah's words, "the most perfect table to eat dinner in while lazing in bed". She ended up carrying this thing the entire night...Twas hilarious!


I can't wait to spend the weekend with you in Madrid, crazy! You, Laurenzo, Izzy and I will create havoc in Espana.

Teacher's Pet

thrited blazer, random oversized shirt, vintage shoes, SM leggings

Another one of my favorite thrifts finds. People might think I'm crazy for wanting to look like an 80's school teacher/someone's grandmother. But it was too perfect to resist! 

Actually, maybe it could pass off as a love child of the classic Chanel jacket and that famous Balenciaga blazer? Since I can't afford either, this is probably the next best thing. 

 +  

=

Yes? No? Maybe? I think I'm I just forcing the issue. Hahaha!

When I wake up in the morning...

No, I don't step outside and take a deep breath and get real high. (It's too freakin cold. No seriously, i'm scared for my eyes sometimes because I feel like my tears are going to turn into frost.) Instead, I try on outfits.

I woke up this morning with an outfit idea that I just had to try on. I haven't brushed my teeth, eaten breakfast, combed my hair or done anything a normal functioning human being should do...but I have, so far, put on earrings, tried on an outfit, taken pictures of myself, blogged and peed. Screwed priorities? I think so!

I used to get these bursts of outfit ideas during the night. Believe me, there were many a nights when my mom would walk into my room with a myriad of clothes lying in the bed and me peering from it all wearing something completely ludicrous. I did make efforts to avoid this by waiting until the whole house was asleep before running into my closet so that no one would catch me carrying clothes to the guest room. (I never understood how my mom could make a walk-in that was as big as my room but couldn't manage to put a full length mirror in it.) I still got caught anyway.

So back to the outfit..I'm thinking of wearing this tonight, tomorrow and like for the rest of my life. But for a dinner tonight, I'll probably throw on some accessories, add 2 pairs of tights + 10 layers of anything that would keep me warm lest I want to contract pneumonia and die.

Wearing a Nicole Farhi top that was way overpriced (Darn those really friendly sales associates!) ; A Gamme de Coleur thrifted skirt and Zara shoes.

Ugh I cant wait to wear this in Asia without the unnecessary layers!

Lace-y Daisy

vintage lace top, Topshop harem pants, Chanel belt, Juan shoes (obviously my new favorite!)

Since I'm still obsessed with all things lace. I traded my favorite black Aldo platforms for this vintage lace top that my sister has. For two weeks, this pretty little thing is mine!!! 

sources: ??? I really have to remember to keep track of it all!

If only I could pull of lace trousers like Karla!!!

P.S. I want to thank everyone for their lovely comments! I love reading what you guys have to say :) 

Editrix

source: Misshapes

Her top is too awesome! 

The hunt begins...

the white + stripes

Marc by Marc Jacobs dress, SM belt, Janeo shoes, Aranaz bag

I was made godmother for my niece's baptism, so I decided to look "holy". 

Hence, the white lace dress. 

Because sharing is fun

If you live in the UK (yes Char, I'm talking to you!), go grab the December issue of Glamour with Leona Lewis on the cover. They're giving away nail varnishes from Nails Inc London worth £10.50. The magazine costs only £2 so this is an absolute bargain. They're not samples sizes either so were talking about 10ml of shiny-colorful-goodness.

You can choose from 4 colors:

clockwise: Picadilly Circus (hot pink), Victoria (deep red), Tate (blood red), South Molton Street (clear with a pink sheen)

I love love love nail varnishes so this is an absolute treat for me. I bought 4 December Glamour magazines so if you want a free copy just tell me. Imagine if they were giving away OPI, I would probably have 20 Glamours lying in the flat now.

I'm still gutted no one told me about Benefit lipgloss giveaway for the May issue!! Can't believe I missed out on that.