The Bold Wears Gold

Here's a throwback set of photos from the photo shoot we did with my sister a year ago or so.

A simple quote I can relate with this styling is:

" BE BOLD AND WEAR GOLD"

Who wears the color gold and matched with black in broad daylight?  .... I did!

I always find black and gold beautifully elegant.  Do you agree with me?  

I actually have posted a similar set of fashion styling photos from my blog post on the turban trend last year, see HERE.

What I Wore:

gold turban - Choies (choies.com) // top and skirt - Palacio de Fashion // gold t-strap mary janes - Janilyn  // watch and gold stretch belt - G. Country Mall Department Store // sunglasses - SM Kids Department Store // pearl accessory earrings - Siam Street Night Market, Bangkok // "love" bracelet - Ayala Alabang Town Center

Live in style, every day!

Poem: Confessions of A Girl

CONFESSIONS OF A GIRL

With herself at twenty, she realize

That life is vast, too arduous to summarize

Unbeknownst, transition occured rapidly

She was urbane then, now she defies the world madly

Twenty years, she have had just enough or so

She wanted to cease but something is urging her to go

She is not faultless, yet she is trying to be good

Still not heard, often misunderstood

Miseries never fail to cross her way

How she desired happiness will forever stay

She have sought for acceptance, not rejection

She is living in accordance to people's expectations

She feels alone despite she is in a crowd

She have excelled, were they really proud?

She grew in the world with her own hands

She have struggled to discover where she really stands

She have landed on the ground and have reached the peak

She seemed strong although she is still honestly weak

She may appeal clumsy with unstable personality

Immature, irresponsible and unwitty

But she says, "If you take time and sit with me,

You will happen on that there is more that just what you see."

She have fears but she is confused where to seek shield

They gave her wounds but she is unaware on how it could be healed

Her life is cruel at times and have brought destruction

She is tired yet challenged with her life's imperfection

This her story, this is her strife

And these are just confessions of a girl's unhappy life.

---END---

Original: 4-20-2003

My Realization:

Juvenile years are indeed demanding and bewildering.  This poem I have written a decade and three years ago is a manifestation of the kind of life teenagers, possibly a greater fraction of the young population, are probably experiencing and struggling in their youthfulness.  But as of this writing, 13 years later, this poem reawakens a memory of my old younger self, of how inevitable life's challenges were and uncovers a reality of how my life has positively evolved 360 degrees from then on.

Fashion Experiment

DRESS on DRESS on PANTS

sheer tierred dress worn as top + peach textured dress worn as skirt  - Sigh Styles closet / black stretch pants - unbranded / peach floral brooch - G. Capital SRP / floral sneakers - Guess at Ross -Woodstock, Georgia, U.S.A. / hair clip - SM Accessories / sunglasses - G. Country Mall / earrings - Siam Street Night Market / lipstick - MAC Toledo



Live in style, every day!

Fashionably Creative, I Am

" The truly creative person seeks to reveal and not to conceal.  They tell the truth about the truth." 

- Rod Judkins from the book, The Art of Creative Thinking.

Fashion is one form of the arts and so fashion is one outlet for creativity.  I am currently reviving what I used to be fond of doing - creative personal styling.  Many of my days for the past years were somewhat wasted, in the sense that I have suppressed my freedom of self-expression for personal style.  

Here I am now, catching up and exploring the umpteen possibilities I can exploit to reveal the creative person in me, through fashion.  I am breaking barriers, disclosing what is real, because I am confidently declaring that I am fashionably creative.

My fashion sense may seem atypical, unconventional, maybe unwearable for day-to-day, appears to be tainted with a flight of fancy, unpredictable - either in merrymaking mood or a stoic display of my favorite palette: black and white. But, that personal style extremely satisfies my cravings for creative self-expression.  

 I strongly desire to be an instrument for inspiration to other people, to help them bring out the truth of who they really are, fashion-wise and to motivate them to take off those shackles of hesitancy.

What I Wore:
Dress / sunglasses - G. Country Mall Dept. Store / 2 sets of silver earrings worn as 1 piece hoop-chain earrings - gifted by mom / cobalt blue stretch belt - Landmark in Makati / headband - Ald0 / Lipstick - Avon 

Live in style, every day!

100% You

Quoting J.A. Byler today:

The best thing about being 100% yourself is that, while you may face rejection, you can NEVER be replaced". 

Individuality may no longer be a dilemma to people in the world nowadays is congested with amplitude of opportunities to express oneself and boldly explore sole distinctiveness.

Just being you, 100%, is the key to unlocking the endless possibilities that await us all in this jungle of circumstances - mixed with a heap of success and luck.

What I Wore:

cotton + mesh top - Palacio de Fashion / black and white sweater tied around the waist - G. Capital SRP / black and white jogger pants - G. Fiesta Mall / sling bag - gifted / peep toe silver pumps - G. Metro Ayala / sunglasses - Aldo

Live in style, every day!

Trend Alert: S/S 2016 - Turban

Turban days are here again!

Spring and summer days are fast approaching and trend alerts are knocking on our doors, ringing on our phones and flooding our social media notifications.

 I like reading fashioners.com for trend alerts for all seasons of the year.  

Here's my take on one of the season's Hair Accessory Trend: TURBANS

Here's a brief history about Turbans via the wikipedia.

A turban (from Persian دولبند‌, dulband; via Middle French turbant) is a type of headwearbased on cloth winding. Featuring many variations, it is worn as customary headwear, usually by men. Communities with prominent turban-wearing traditions can be found in the Indian Subcontinent, Afghanistan,South Asia the Arabian Peninsula, the Near East,North Africa, the Horn of Africa, the Sahel, and parts of the Swahili Coast.

The origins of the turban are uncertain. Early Persians in modern Iran and Phrygians in modern Turkey wore a conical cap (Phrygian cap) encircled by bands of cloth, which historians have suggested was developed to become the modern turban, but other theories suggest it was first widely worn in Egypt. An early attestation for knowledge of the turban is found in the Roman author Ovid's Metamorphoses, dating to the 1st century BC.

Why do people wear turban? Well aside from making it as a fashion accessory for the hair, there are more important and valid reasons why this is being done by people.  

All Sikh Gurus since Guru Nanak have worn turbans. However, covering one's hair with a turban was made an official policy by Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Guru of the Sikhs. The main reasons to wear turban are to take care of the hair, promote equality, and preserve the Sikh identity.

What I Wore:

gold turban - Choies (choies.com) // top and skirt - Palacio de Fashion // gold t-strap mary janes - Janilyn  // watch and gold stretch belt - G. Country Mall Department Store // sunglasses - SM Kids Department Store // pearl accessory earrings - Siam Street Night Market, Bangkok // "love" bracelet - Ayala Alabang Town Center

What I Wore:

black turban - Choies (choies.com) // yellow embroidery top - Palacio de Fashion // stretch pants - White Gold Department Store // yellow embellished shoes - LandMark Department Store, Makati // stretch belt - SM Ladies Department Store // sunglasses - SM Kids Department Store // pearl accessory earrings - Siam Street Night Market, Bangkok // pearl accessory necklace - Choies (choies.com)

Live in style, everyday!

Fashion Styling Concept: Bohemian Glamour

Christmas season is never complete without having to attend even a single Christmas party.  And one of the most awaited Christmas parties that I attended this year was our company's party which was to be held by division or by department. In our case, we prepared for a department party only since we do not belong officially to a certain division as we are directly reporting to the President & CEO of the company.  With this, we were at an advantage of being able to conceptualize anything under the sky and made it happen the way we imagined it to be.

And so, we agreed to take the BOHEMIAN concept and entitled our party as BOHEMIAN FLAIR.  To complete the concept, each one of us had to be in our most Bohemian-looking outfit.  And see below for the outfit that I have decided to strut on the party.

Foremost, let me define first what B O H E M I A N means..(via Pinterest)

(n.) Gypsy, Wandered. A person, musician, artist or writer who lives a free-spirited life and believes in truth, freedom, and love.

 This was quite an unflattering photo, but this was the only most decent solo photo of mine that was captured.   We had a fashion walk to allow the judges to look over at our outfits and to judge how we model on the catwalk.  Oh, I forgot to mention, the outfit and the modeling was a contest.  Yes, a contest.   And it soaked up us all in a "temporary intoxicating" pressure.

The list below was the awards that were declared:

BOHEMIAN PRINCE
- outstanding male, most participative, best-dressed male, "head turner" -

BOHEMIAN PRINCESS
- outstanding female, most participative, best-dressed female, "head turner" -

BOHEMIAN MODEL

- best catwalk during the fashion show -

BEST BOHEMIAN OUTFIT - Male category
- male with the best Bohemian/Boho outfit -

BEST BOHEMIAN OUTFIT - Female category
- female with the best Bohemian / Boho outfit -

 But can you think of what concept I had in mind in pulling off this look?  

I called my ensemble as BOHEMIAN GLAMOUR.

Here's a decoding of my BOHEMIAN GLAMOUR look:

1.) The dress - which was the centerpiece, was of multi-print vibrant flowy dress, typical peasant style off-shoulder neckline; length was maxi and I have to slice the dress on one side for ease on my strides and to inject a mod-chic style.

2.) The accessories - which gave more jazziness to the ensemble, was a conspicuous display of a well-coordinated in color and in material (f.y.i. color coherence is part of my fashion advocacy) trinkets that can sum up to femme elegance style (this is a self-declared personal style delineation) and that pink turban that shouted "boho" at its fineness.

3.) The shoes  - a semi-boot cut wedge sandal with ample fringe - will always complete a look, and the pair I donned did its job seamlessly.  The fringe is a staple of Bohemian style.  Not to mention the fuchsia color of the footwear that perfectly coordinated with the dress and the rest of the accessories.

The most essential facet in my look is my personal fashion advocacy - see HERE -, which on a daily basis (when not in uniforms) is being carried through, of Color Coherence / Color Coordination and Elegant Experimentation.

What I Wore:

maxi dress - G. Capital SRP Department Store

pink turban - Siam Square in Bangkok, Thailand

wedge fringe sandals - Kay in Hong Kong

peach feather / faux diamond + chain earrings - XOXO

"Love" earrings - Siam Street Night Market in Bangkok, Thailand

faux pink crystals+ stones ring - Bellagio in Las Vegas, U.S.A.

long chain necklace - Forever 21

stretch bangles - SM Accessories

gold + black stretch belt - G. Country Mall Department Store

What I Wore:

scent - Victoria's Secret Pure Seduction Blush Fragrance Mist

lipstick - Wet & Wild 511B Nouveau Pink / Nouveau Rose

nail color (pedicure) - fuchsia pink - Caronia (Stellar frosted) & gold  - Chic-Chic Mirror Nail Polish

make-up by Dani Shei 

And I went home not totally empty-handed as I bagged the BOHEMIAN PRINCESS award with this cute customized trophy and a little envelope with a quite substantial cash.

Here's a photo of the group:

Hope to have shared another fashion styling concept that you can take inspiration with on your next themed parties.

Live in style, every day!

Discovering Brera

I have a new product brand discovery and the name of the brand is BRERA (Art Lab) made in Italy.

The brand BRERA  (Art Lab) is honestly very strange to me.  I have no single idea, nor heard about BRERA until I scored this precious gem from one of the vintage (possible second-hand or pre-loved) shops in one of the malls in Mandaue City.  The store sells branded vintage pieces like bags and clothes and is now a favorite of mine as I have bought another bag from their store recently- for myself and for my mom-  and definitely will be frequently dropping by to do some shopping in this vintage hub.  The sales lady has already known me by face and was generous enough to give me ample discounts with my purchases. 

I am not a bag lover and I have been repeatedly declaring this, as I am more of a clothes and shoes addict.  I seldom  buy bags for myself.  My arms are always wide open when it comes to bags as I receive gifts or hand-me-downs from either my sister or my mom.  It is always a surprise when all of a sudden I do shopping for bags.  

With sight of this purple-fuchsia-magenta color combo and that artsy design on the front of the bag, despite the price was quite high as I expected, but I went impulsive, more when I knew it was on 50% off sale. At first, I was somehow in doubt with the price but nevertheless, I got the bills from my pocket and paid without haggling as I was in so much awe with the design and the quality of the bag.  The sling bag never looked shabby, nor used, nor antiquated.  It was in perfect condition, just like a brand new item up for grabs.

I have not yet reached the official website of BRERA Art Lab, but their social media page in facebook did confirm how creatively and beautifully the bags are designed.  I am more amazed now. Kudos to the team who gave birth to the  brainchild of BRERA Art Lab.

What I Wore:
fuchsia dress (same HERE) - Never Been Kissed @ Robinsons Department Store / polka dot top (same HERE) - Cyecle /  fuchsia patent leather pumps - Payless / sling bag - Brera Art Lab / black stretch belt - SM Ladies Department Store / sunglasses - G. Country Mall / pearl drop earrings - gifted by my mom

I am now on a lookout for anything BRERA Art Lab.  I wish to own another BRERA Art Lab bag to satisfy my art cravings in a bag format.

Live in style, everyday!

Opposites Attract

Opposites attract, would you agree?

The phrase was the exact title of the feature I once had in Sun Star newspaper... last year.  It took me again this long to post about this feature because of endless priorities that never cease to surprise me.  Anyway, this contribution that I did for Sun Star is dear to me mainly because (1) I offered the concept and was instantly approved and (2) because black-and-white is my all-time favorite color combination and working on about it is such a gigantic pleasure.  Last fall-winter 2014/2015, black and white was one of the trends of the season, and this time for fall-winter 2015/2016, Graphic Black and White in particular, as seen HERE, is again in trend.  Scroll down to see the unpublished photos for the black-and-white concept.

SUN STAR Newspaper Shopping Bag section - Opposites Attract

Date published: February 28, 2014

You can read more about this feature/contribution on my other blog, see HERE.

Clothes - CHIC VINTAGE / Fashion Styling - SIGH STYLES

Live in style, everyday!