All Hail the Newcomers

Please believe me when I say that I never intended to drop off the face of the blog quite so dramatically and for so long. The transition to new city and the 9-5 schedule has been incredibly smooth so far, save for the horrendously slow internet both at home and at work. The unintended side effect is that I have become much less of a couch potato and generally more active in terms of seeking out other activities around the city — I am still surprised at how many people I know are in DC at the moment. My new internet haven for the moment is the local library.

Because it’s been so long since my last post, I owe you all a bit of a wardrobe update. I am happy to announce that getting a jacket is not necessary, as everybody is a bit more lax in the hot summer weather. In fact, I believe I may be able to wear even jeans on Friday. My uniform at the moment, and I believe for the rest of the summer, is going to consist of button down shirts, chinos and loafers. The uniform does not change drastically on the weekends for adventures around the city, except with chino shorts and sandals taking the place of the longer chino pants and loafer.

Though some have taken note of my lack of materialism on my recent AMA, I can assure you that I still give in to the occasional temptation, despite knowing better than to purchase more additions to the wardrobe, as I only have the one piece of luggage with me. I am a bit ashamed to say I was rather spendthrift this weekend, buying the following:

• Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray. Godsend for my limp straight Asian hair in the humidity of the city. It's great as a dry shampoo might I add. Investment grade: worth it.
• Warby Parker Preston glasses in Whisky Tortoise. My eyesight has deteriorated a little since I started college, so while I can still see quite well sans glasses, it does help to pick out faces in crowds for example. Investment grade: worth it.
•  Harry's The Winston razor. Though supposedly quite the stereotypical hairless Asian, I personally still see hairs that apparently no one else can see. Nevertheless, I am curious and I bought this along with the Aveeno Therapeutic Shave Gel as seen on Into the Gloss. Investment grade: ??? as I have yet to try it.
• Leather bag. My mother bought it for my sister so it’s a wash because I didn’t buy it personally myself. My sister didn’t like it so I picked it up. It’s absolutely enormous, so it’s a great alternative to my Everlane backpack. In hindsight, it looks like the iconic Bottega Venetta bag, which is a huge side plus. Investment grade: oh you bet it’s worth it. 

Things on my radar:

• Google Nexus 4 phone.
• New undergarments now that I can go to Nordstrom.

I’ll try to make more frequent visits to the library so that I won’t go AWOL on you guys again. Check out my AMA if you haven’t had a chance to yet in the meantime. Loved answering your questions people! 

Facing the Inevitable

VIA

I am sure all college students go through this at some point: the transfer from collegiate casual dress to something a little more professional. I have been luckier than most, in that my internship last summer in Greece had basically no dress code. Whereas this summer, working in relatively conservative environment in Washington D.C. means I can no longer get away with wearing whatever.

Thankfully, due to my obsession with menswear, I already have a good steady rotation of button down shirts, chinos and a great pair of tan wingtips to boot. What I am lacking is a great navy blazer, which to me would be the cherry on top of a great business casual wardrobe.

For my search for The Great Navy Blazer, I headed to Soho. After my eye exam at Warby Parker (just got a pair of Preston in whiskey tortoise!), I beelined for my usual hotspot of Uniqlo. I couldn’t be more disappointed since they usually have a great selection of office basics, which is replaced by designer collaborations and subpar summer prints. As Zara was nearby, I popped in just to check it out. I couldn’t find any navy blazer that I liked but I was awed at how on point the prints at Zara were. Someone either hacked into the Céline/Liberty London/J.Crew HQs or my mind, but it was very hard to walk out of there without buying anything. Thank god I’ve trained my willpower through periodical shopping fasts and general curation (more on this later). I did eventually found THE perfect blazer at J.Crew in the end—it was everything I wanted from the lining down to the buttons but sadly it costs more than what I would’ve liked. I’m still mulling over it because it was just that beautiful and utterly flawless. It would be a worthwhile investment as navy blazers are classic.

Last but not least, after seeing these cute pair of heels at Miss Sophie's Les-Antimodernes, I have been thinking about getting them too. Not only are they affordable, but they will be very forgiving for a complete heels n00b like me. At my height, heels are not necessary but knowing how to walk in a pair of heels in my books is still a good skill set to have.

So here you go, a complete update with regards to my stance on shopping and what I’m currently looking for. I can’t wait to start writing full length pieces again for C+C once I’m settled in Montréal.

My Current Uniform

Finals are finally over (well they have been over for a while now but it’s been hard getting back into the blogging game)! I’ve taken these photos a long while ago in mid April but it still holds true even now in mid May (can you believe it!). EVERYTHING goes so well with my chinos it’s insane. My jeans are definitely put on the back burners for the most part. The weather so far has been uncharacteristically cold...or maybe just last year was uncharacteristically hot. Either way, it’s pants and jackets weather still—not that I particularly mind.

As for other news, all the media attention over Bangladesh factory disasters, most prominent of which is Rana Plaza collapse and the latest being the Tung Hai Sweater Factory fire last week, has prompted changes in regulating the industry. This is great, yet more still needs to be done. Alas it is an absolute abomination that it had to take so many preventable deaths to warrant even minute changes in the fashion industry.

I have been creeping on all the great discussions on the topic, from Jess to threads on /r/femalefashioadvice to Lin. With regards to Uniqlo in Lin’s post specifically, this is a evidence of just how hard it is for well meaning customers (like Lin) to ascertain the origins and manufacturing process of their purchases, unless they are part of some convenient PR campaign (see H&M report at Jess and Everlane’s latest factory video). For those who argue against more regulation, it is economics 101 that for markets to be perfectly competitive, there needs to be perfect information, which is not the case here. As some someone who has tried to look into Uniqlo purely out of sheer curiosity, I have trouble finding the latest reports and figures too, since most of the up to date information is entirely in Japanese. Some things are mentioned, but only in vague statements in their annual report.

Two steps backwards, but at least one small step forward. What will this mean for the future of (fast) fashion?

P.S. Thanks for all the interest in sponsorship! I will respond shortly.

This Summer

I’m always jealous of the beautiful mood boards that so many graphic designers make and display on their blogs nowadays. Taking a page from Miss Sophie (who else?), here is my amateurish attempt at a mood board for the summer.

Make up for the summer = beach waves + a touch of bronzer + a perfect orange red pout with MAC’s So Chaud. Armed with best white tees ever, you can bet they will be part of my uniform this summer, though I have to say Marlon Brando as Stanley from A Streetcar Named Desire will always be the ultimate god of white tees everywhere. After my internship this summer, I hope to get off the grid to Vancouver Island and spend the rest of my summer bumming on the beach with a lot of books in hand. The Django Unchained (2012) soundtrack will also be on constant rotation (not pictured).

For everything else, I read Gear Patrol.

TO FINALS!

IMAGES FROM 1, 2, 3.

New In: Everlane

A few days ago my Everlane goodies arrived. You should have seen me skipping my way down to the campus center mailroom. The one showcased above is the Box Cut Tee, which had been high on my want list for spring. I also got the V (neck) White and a zip backpack in Military.

I wasn’t planning to do a post on them exclusively, but Kali expressed interest in reading what I think about them so here you go. I LOVE IT. I know I have been saying that quite a lot, especially after getting my Barbour coat finally but I mean it most sincerely. I think it’s due to planning and thinking about one thing so much that it becomes something of an obsession. Everlane more than delivered, on the account of the huge hype the label has received as of late from the Internet. These are the BEST tees I’ve ever owned, hands down, even compared to my mum’s CK ones and to the ones by Uniqlo (to which I am still a loyal customer). You cannot get better crisp white tees anywhere else, even without regarding Everlane's low price points. If you were wondering why the tee looks rather wrinkled, it’s because I’ve been wearing them nonstop since I got them — my friends can attest to that.

An unexpectedly great thing about Everlane is that they’re made in the USA, namely an entirely guilt free purchase in light of the horrific factory collapse in Dhaka, Bangladesh. (For reference: I have talked about fashion sustainability issues already before here and Jess just wrote an analysis on this particular instance on her blog.) I suspect is it due to this tragedy that Everlane has revealed parts of their factory process on their website to differentiate their practice from the grand majority of bigger labels out there.

I won’t bother reviewing the V neck as it is pretty standard in the way it looks on me. I am reviewing the Box Cut Tee instead, simply because the fit is more unique than most. I’m 1.71m (~5'7") and usually wear around US size 4. I ordered all tees in M and they were all true to size. I have slightly broad shoulders from swimming as a kid and the shoulder seams sit on the right spot. The length of the cropped tee is shorter than expected, though it does not come as too big a surprise since my boobs are so much bigger than the model of the Everlane lookbook. I don’t mind it so much as it does not reveal anything, however ladies with bigger busoms should keep this in mind when ordering the Box Cut Tee. I like how menswear-ish it is in design, though still constructed with the female body in mind so I get to have the best of both worlds. Hip hip hooray for female menswear lovers everywhere! The weight of the cotton of both tees feels substantial to me. Everlane will now be my one stop shop for all things basic tops. It’s just too bad things go out of stock/on the wait list so quickly. For a review of their silk/cashmere offerings, see Miss Sophie of Les Anti-Modernes.

A big thanks to my friend G for taking these photos. I was not compensated by Everlane in any way for this post. If you would like to sponsor me for the summer, click here for more info.

Modern Details Nº2

I really enjoyed doing the last Modern Details, so I figured I would try my hand at it again. It is so much fun digging around the wardrobe for the pieces I love, things that get their fair share of wear but otherwise don’t get enough appreciation for their beauty and character.

Now that it’s nice out again, I’ve been alternating between these Melissinos sandals and my white Chucks. I have first heard of Melissinos from my professor, who was with me on the trip to Greece last summer. The final push to shove came from Lindsay, who mentioned them in her post on handmade sandals. I’ve blogged about my trip to Melissinos already but I’ve never shown my sandals in detail. The model of this particular pair is Socrates, while the other pair is Olympia, just so you know.

They were affordable, despite being custom made (I can’t remember the exact price on the top of my head but trust me they were college student budget friendly). I’ve worn them so many times now that the soles have molded to my feet. The leather straps have become soft and supple to touch. I’ve oiled these sandals with olive oil twice only, since I didn’t want them to get too dark. Incidentally, I made the other pair too dark so I will try to get rid of the oil buildup and stain them again from scratch. I have heard from Ask Andy forums that cheap vodka should do the trick. For this pair, I probably should have washed off the salt stains, which has accumulated from the trips to the beaches on the weekends last summer in Greece. However, I’ve grown to like them as they remind me of all the good fun we (fellow classmates on the trip) had mucking around on the shores of Glyfada. What a sentimental sop I’ve become. They are, after all, the marks of something well worn and loved.

In case you were wondering, the nail polish is OPI's Monsooner or Later.

Modern Details Nº1

I finally got my copy of The Gentlewoman today and devoured it as soon as I was done with my essays. I also highly recommend reading Three Thousands’ interview with The Gentlewoman’s lady-in-command, Penny Martin (found courtesy of Lin). While I enjoy sharing insights into the way I curate and other aspects of wardrobe building, at the end of the day I don’t like being in front of the camera. I absolutely love the Modern Details feature in The Gentlewoman, and while I may never be nearly as witty as Catherine Roux (who is the writer of the feature for the magazine), I can use this format to do my usual show-and-tell without me having to pose. The pieces that will be featured in my own version of Modern Details aren’t necessarily expensive nor are they particularly luxurious by any standard, but they are what defines and gives my wardrobe its personality that renders it unique from other curators’ capsule wardrobes out there. Think of it as series of homages to my favourite details.

The first piece of my wardrobe that I'm featuring is my boarding school hoodie that I bought at the school book store the first day of class freshmen year of high school in 2006. It’s a pretty mundane garment considering it was mass-produced before being stamped with the school insignia and motto but makes incredible sense for me to feature it first, as it is probably the oldest thing I have with me right now in college.

I know I sounded like I absolutely hated the school in my recent birthday post, but while they were many lows, there were also highs. The only reason I thought it was relevant to bring up my high school then was to show that it was during a particular low that led me to fall in love with fashion and all its trappings. So yes, if you were wondering, there were great moments that I still think of fondly now...many of the memories which can be found embedded within this hoodie.

It is easy to romanticize about the entire high school experience now that I’m no longer there. Fabric paint stains from making crew team t-shirts senior year. A ripped seam from the class clown who wanted to try on a smaller size for laughs. Another small acrylic paint stain from studio painting class junior year. Sharpie marks from making posters for the literary art magazine for club fair. The colour is completely faded from countless cycles in the washer and dryer but it also means that it’s perfectly soft to the touch. The crazy thing is that I’m still able to fit into it seven years later, in a shrunken sweater kind of way.

The best thing most of all is that it can serve as a kind of an ice-breaker, in that a random stranger or two would recognize the name of the school. It’s an odd mixture of alums, alums of rival schools or someone who knows the school from the either of the two aforementioned kinds of people.

I want to thank those who deigned to comment on my more recent outfit posts. I ended them with small critiques of personal style blogs because I had missed the opportunity to comment on personal style bloggers when Suzy Menkes’ article exploded, in that I don’t think I get the right to complain about them if I can’t bring myself to even comment on it. At first, I thought if you’re going to put some serious time in your hobby, then the least you can do is to try and do it well. That was the idealist in me talking. After digesting your comments, I have now come to the conclusion that blogging is a medium that can be taken really in any direction across the spectrum. They don’t bother me all that much really—I can count the number of personal style blogs I read on one hand. Just as there are many less-than-satisfactory blogs out there, there also a remarkable number that continues to delight over and over again. The lesson? To each their own.

Take It or Leave It

one gift set 3 layering bands from glamrocksdesigns. two reigning champ crewneck navy. three everlane box cut tee white. four everlane ryan tee black. five reigning champ crewneck heather grey.

Like all my “want lists” in the past, these are just somethings like I would like to have but hey if I don’t manage to get around to acquiring them, well that’s okay too. Reigning Champ is a brand that I have been meaning to talk about more – they are a great brand hailing from my hometown of Vancouver, Canada. They make THE best basics for men. That however does not stop me from seriously lusting after their pieces.

I have been meaning to post more during my spring break here in DC but my internet has been quite spotty so far. So I'm afraid you would have to make do with only this post for now until I'm back at school.

+ THIS IS NOT A SPONSORED POST.

Team Americano

If there is one team I can get behind, it's Team Americano. Everything by Gant Rugger again is pitch perfect. There are no words as to describe just how beautiful everything looks (and no it's not neccessarily the dudes themselves). Long time readers by now can understand how it tickles my fancy for all things PITA.

More text heavy posts to come as the week starts! Here's to the redditor who says I do not post all that often (don't worry I lurk there too occasionally though not particularly in the FFA subreddit).

This is not a sponsored post and the opinions are all my own.

Hong Kong Mall Culture

On my way to see the art studios in Fo Tan, I stopped by New Town Plaza in nearby Sha Tin to grab a bite with dad, as Fo Tan is an industrial area with little options for good eats. Unbeknownst to my dad, there's also another reason why I went (not too out of my way though) to the mall: nostalgia. I don't think of myself as too sappy a person, but everywhere I go or do in Hong Kong seeps with nostalgia. The reason that nostalgia is so strong for me in Hong Kong is twofold: 1) I only go back once a year or less and 2) the pace of development is mind-blowingly fast. You see those NYC subway commercials by the MTA about how they are updating train stations – the first big projects in half a century or more? In comparison, Hong Kong's rate of change is supersonic. Spend more than a year away from the city? Et voilà, a WHOLE NEW SUBWAY LINE. The speed at which Hong Kong (and by extension most Asian countries in general) develops is pretty unfathomable to your average American (and perhaps Europeans too? I have no idea).

Malls in Hong Kong are nothing like the malls of suburban Middle America. New Town Plaza is the place where I frequented most often after going to elementary school (5th-6th grade) and secondary school (7th-8th grade) near here. I didn't go out too often back then, but whenever my friends wanted to go watch a movie, get something to eat, window shopping or people watching, this would be the default place to go to. Sha Tin was not a poor district by any means, however it was still a far cry from the more posh areas like Tsim Sha Tsui or Central or Causeway Bay. Therefore the mall itself was not nearly as upscale as the Festival Walk in Kowloon Tong, Pacific Place in Admiralty and IFC Mall in Central. This was utterly fine by my tween self. The mall had everything I could possibly want: great cinema, inexpensive yet interesting eats, and of course those sticker photo booths that I spent way too much money on in hindsight.

A few years ago (around 2009 if my memory serves me correctly), the mall went through a massive facelift. There was extensive renovations done throughout the place and the mall noticeably felt a tad more upscale. Although some bigger brand name sorts have started to trickle in, for the most part the mall still felt familiar. The places that I used to frequent – the photobooths, the cafés, the bookstores, the cinema – were all still there. As I grew older, my friends wanted to hang out in different places so for the years since I have not been back there at all. Four years later, the place has changed entirely. Big flashy European brand name shops are everywhere, taking all of the big store spaces that used to be occupied by smaller shops. That alone though wasn't what threw me off entirely. What truly changed the entire experience of the mall was not being able to find any of the places I used to go to, save for the cinema. There is little difference to a lot of the more upscale malls I've mentioned above.

Such development to the mall can be ascribed partly to the shopping power of the Mainland Chinese (the term may have slightly pejorative connotations nevertheless I'm using it simply as a way to differentiate between local Hong Kong people and the China Chinese). In the past only the wealthy would take shopping trips in Hong Kong, for the low taxes and guarantee that you would buying the real deal. As the upper middle class got more "sophisticated" along with the ever growing middle class, an increasing number of Mainland Chinese came down to Hong Kong for their conspicuous consumption. The phenomenal rise of Chinese spending power (increasing number of shoppers compounded by the increasing amount spent per person) led to a rapid expansion of brand name shops in areas where traditionally its inhabitants would not have the kind of spending power to sustain such high end stores. I used Sha Tin as an anecdote here but similar transformations can be found even in less affluent districts like Tuen Mun and Yuen Long.

It would be a gross oversimplification still to say that the Mainland Chinese are the ONLY reason for the mass proliferations of malls, versus brick and mortar shops on the streets. Hong Kong have alway suffered from an insufficiency of space. Malls are a far more efficient in maximizing the little real estate Hong Kong has in accommodating more shops, restaurants, arcades, movie theatres in one giant hub. The malls are easily integrated within the existing urban fabric through linking up to mass transportation systems like the MTR and underground passages to other buildings via the MTR station. It is attractive to real estate developers because you can easily stack malls underneath office buildings or apartment complexes. To investors it is an almost guaranteed return on your money because of the sheer amount of traffic that would come through the mall.

As an economist-in-training, I should be fully embracing the idea of malls for maximizing both utility and scarce resources. However as a consumer, I much prefer shopping on the streets. While malls are one of the reasons why living in Hong Kong is so convenient and easy, the clinical interiors makes for poor window shopping experience. The clear demarcation of everything the mall has to offer lessens the sense of discovery and wonder. There is more of an immersive experience to wandering and getting lost on the streets – the loud neon billboards, old school mom-and-pop stores and the streams of cars honking on the road. That is not to say that there isn't smog, some pushing and shoving and many run-for-your-life moments when crossing the streets, yet life feels so much richer and more fully lived this way.

Dior Spring Couture 2013

It's been a year since I last talked about couture.The photos of the latest couture shows this season are almost all out. As this is only Raf's second couture show (his first being last fall), I had to check it out. I'm not head over heels in love with it, but I do find some of the details he incorporates within his pieces are quite nice. It will be interesting to see if he will continue to keep up with his signature clean silhouette as he continues to work under the name Dior. I find myself missing the theatrics of past Galliano collections but I do welcome the new change in landscape for the world of couture. It does feel like going back in time when couture WERE wearable. All of the pieces in this collection adhere to that approach and I'm sure we are bound to see many of these gowns on the red carpet in the future.

Relevant Readings:

• Vogue's review of the collection by Hamish Bowles
• Suzy Menkes' take on it on IHT
• Cathy Horyn on this season's couture in general, NYTimes
• Hilariously random tidbit from NYMag
• Colin's Column on Haute Couture on BOF

Fei Fei Sun x Vogue Italia

Welcome to the newly spruced up Of Stranger Sensibilities, version god knows what. I know better than to constantly change the layout, for fear of alienating longtime readers, so I have held my hand back to not change too much by keeping the same motif of thick black borders only with the edition of better fonts. I suppose the timing is apt since its a) a new year b) almost my blog's second anniversary and c) I've just purchased a domain!! The final push to get my own space (err minus hosting) was seeing Amanda getting her own. It just seems so clean and professional...even if I am not one. I just got the domain so it will take a while for servers to redirect my blogspot to my own domain. The cool side benefit is that I get to have a cool new email account, which is updated for the e-mail icon under 'Find Me Here.' I will forward all the emails I have currently from that old account to this new one, but I can't promise that if you send me email to the old account in the future that I would be 100% guaranteed to get it. Just email me using my new account ok? I used Playfair Display for the post title, gadget headings and tabs, which I discovered via Google Web Fonts (hey Sam here is the link) and Gentium Basic for the body, which I found through graphic/web designer Breanna Rose, on whose blog I've first saw using it and LOVED it. I'll end all the boring blogger talk here and more fanfare plus blogger treats will come when my blog-niversary is here on the 27th.

Back to fashion news, the reason why I HAD to share this editorial, not only because it's fantastic and beautiful and I love Fei Fei Sun to death (after Liu Wen), but because it is a historical moment in which there is finally a Chinese model on the cover of Vogue Italia for the first time EVER on their January 2013 issue. This is a big deal since to my knowledge, this is the first time a Western Vogue had a solo East Asian (or maybe even Asia in general) model on its cover. I remember Vogue US doing the 'Asia Major' spread photographed by Meisel (too!) back in their Dec 2010 issue, but I thought it was more of a token gesture of "D-I-V-E-R-S-I-T-Y" more than a genuine appreciation for massive strides the models have carved out for their themselves (ugh how I've come to loath that term). As much as I love seeing mah home gurlz get represented in the big fashion glossies, I really hope magazines would stop doing Asia model issues, but rather treat these models as just models on their own right. Except that their ethnicity just so happens to be Asian, the same the way I hope plus size models will lose their plus size label and just be normal models themselves, even if there is a clear physical difference between the two. The reason why I dislike such labels is that it turns everything into a kind of a gimmick. I want these models to be successful not because they happen to be *insert label* model but get blue chip contracts and editorials by virtue of their own merit, by werking it like any other Brazilian or Russian in town.

If there is one good thing that came out of the huge buying power of the Chinese, this is it. I can still remember the days when there only Asian model out during the baby doll era of Gemma Ward was Du Juan, then along came Hye Park and Daul Kim (girl I miss you so much RIP) and joined later by Lakshmi Menon. It's so satisfying to see Chinese models almost everywhere you go now. I can't wait till the proliferation of Chinese models develops so that you will begin to see different kinds beauty other than the current preferred aesthetic of monolids plus insane bone structure (+/- pouty lips), since there are at least 56 officially recognized ethnicities in China alone.

This editorial is well done if a bit trite in being all studio shots, but if there is a bone I had to pick with it, it would be the heavy make up on the cover. I understand the difference between everyday make up and editorial/haute couture make up, however Fei Fei loses some of her character underneath the heavy contouring and eyeliner. Though what can I say, this is a great coup for Fei Fei and will sure be a career milestone in propelling her modeling career to stratospheric heights. It would AWESOME to see her in a big brand's beauty campaign. Holy cow I didn't expect I would write so much – it was supposed to be a simple pic sharing post. The full editorial is under the jump.

Menswear Heaven at Popcorn

It's a really good time to be a guy in Hong Kong right now. Or a menswear lover like me. Either way there are plenty of options and eye candy abound everywhere you go in the city, from the more edgy urban Japanese style to preppier Americana stuff that's still so popular stateside. I came across Popcorn while wandering around town after dinner with the parents and it's soooooo good. I like how they have adapted Americana to more Hong Kong tastes, what with the incorporation of sneakers, lending a streetwear edge for an audience that has yet to don chukka boots with the same gusto as Brooklyn hipsters.

Hong Kong: The City of Luxury Goods

COURTESY OF

I found this sitting around as a draft as I never got round to fully fleshing it out. I wrote this way back a few months after the Prada IPO (so tail end of 2011 to early 2012) so some of the information is rather out of date, however I hope this will serve as background info to later Hong Kong-heavy posts to come.

Yearly Review of the Fashion World 2012

COURTESY OF 

HAY THUR. Long time no see. What with my trusty old MacBook being taken away to get replaced with a new flashier bigger hard disk and begging my little sis to finally borrow hers for a few precious hours, I had little time to blog (thankfully I have been quite productive in my time off the blog by watching The Hobbit, which was pretty good and Les Mis, which was utterly fantastic in every way except for Amanda Seyfried but the combined forces of Hugh, Anne, Samantha and Eddie more than break it even and THANK YOU Tom Hooper for not letting me down after The King's Speech). I am not sure what most fashion blogs do in terms of an end of the year post (mayhaps a recap of their best outfits of the year? LOL) but here is a list plus my thoughts on what happened in the fashion world this year in no particular order, ranging from the mundane to the important:

Wanted: A Peacoat

The other day I borrowed my friends plain black peacoat before we headed out to the cafés in town to study. My god I loved the coat. It is so simple, yet so smart and chic. Smart chic is something I can sooooooo get behind. The coat was roomy enough to allow for another layer underneath without bulging, making it über functional and practical. As you can see above, my current go-to winter coat (apart from a black down jacket for when it gets down to below freezing temperatures) has been the same since sophomore year of high school: my wet-moleskin-looking coat with a faux fur trim on the hood from G-STAR Raw. I bought it when I was really into the aesthetics of military uniforms, and it happened to be on sale at J2 in Vancouver. I distinctly remember it being all sold out save for the one still on the mannequin, so the (very nice and patient) store staff had to yank it off the mannequin for me to try it own. Thank god it fit. While it has served me well over the years, and continues to do so, I long for something that is a bit more formal. In enters the peacoat.

In a way, the peacoat is derived from the military uniforms too, in that it has its origins from European sailors and are part of the US Navy uniforms. It would be really cool if I could find an army surplus store and get my hands on an actual US Navy peacoat. Think how great the quality would be and how incredibly warm it has to for it work well in active duty. The standard issue ones come only in dark blue, but I'm only into the black and or navy varieties anyway though I am open-minded towards tweed. This definitely goes onto the Christmas wishlist after more Uniqlo sweaters. I feel bad for wanting more coats only months after getting my Barbour jacket, but I have no formal-looking outerwear save for my trench coat (which is not at all warm!).

I have been more interested in military aesthetics again lately, as a matter of fact, now that I'm starting to watch Homeland. What's a girl gotta do in a small college town with great internet connection thanks to living on campus? And nothing else is on right now! Speaking of television, I can't wait to sink my teeth into HBO newest documentary on fashion, In Vogue: The Editor's Eye, which premiered yesterday in conjunction with the magazine's 120th anniversary. I am not the biggest fan of Vogue US (Vogue China takes the cake) but I do find the trailers intriguing. I plan to write on the documentary after viewing so keep your eyeballs peeled for it soon. Have a great weekend.

(Warmer) Winter Wardrobe Inspiration

COURTESY OF

I just came across of these photos of mah home girl Liu Wen, rocking chic fall/winter ensembles in the December 2012 issue of Dazed & Confused editorial titled '#homestyle', by photographer Benjamin Alexander Huseby and styled by Robbie Spencer. Having done a back to school fall inspiration post, I thought we could all use an update now that the temperature has dropped. I do realize though that is hardly a practical full blown winter inspiration with its shorts and blouses, but it does set a good 'tone' for the season if you will. It's great inspiration for me personally since I will be going back to Hong Kong for the winter to spend time with family (and of course squeeze some blogger meetups in!) before coming back to the USA to spend J-Term back at school.

It sounds overly naïve and stupid now, but back then whenever I went back to HK during winter break, I wondered how people immediately knew I came back from abroad, either from the UK or the US or Canada. My Cantonese can't be that bad? I haven't even spoken yet! Now that I look back at it, I was probably the only person not in a down coat with Uggs in 13º C weather (mid 50sº F), which is considered chilly for them while just another cool day in the Fall for me. I guess the cold arctic winds that came blowing down to Michigan over the Great Lakes have made me immune to the harshest of winters. I hope before the finals catch up to me that I'd be able to find and share another winter wardrobe inspo post that's more suitable, and thus relevant, to the present North American-European climates. Rest of the shoot below the jump (minus the studio shots that I thought weren't as pretty).

Lessons from Salsa and Tango

COURTESY OF, EDITED BY ME

I haven't talked about this on the blog at all, but guess what, I have been learning salsa and tango for a good few weeks now. I'm not really a "dance person" with requisite coordination or grace per se, but I do like learning skills. Despite having lots of fun at this Latin dance club that I went to with friends in Greece over the summer, I remember feeling so stupid and clumsy surrounded by more experienced dancers on the dance floor.

Lately, my instructor for both salsa and tango, Daniel, has been talking a lot about the different gender roles in dance, between the roles of the leader and the follower, the difference between the role of the males and the females etc. I won't go into that too much here (unless you want me to!) since what I found most interesting about his talk in relation to style and fashion, is the social aspect of dancing. The kind of tango we have been doing so far is the Argentine tango, which is different from ballroom dancing in that it is all improvised. Unlike ballroom tango that relies on flair and pizzazz to bedazzle the audience, Argentine tango is mostly about the chemistry between you and your partner alone. The older more experienced couples usually dance only the basic steps (with a trick thrown in from time to time as an "inside joke" between the two), since really everyone and everything else is secondary. What elevates Argentine tango to an art form depends on how "good" your partner feels to you and vice versa. Having spent 20+ years in Argentina perfecting his dance, Daniel has a lot of wonderful insights to share. The first being that in the past, one can expect that most gents could dance a little. Traditionally, people have learnt to dance through their elders and then practiced at social gatherings (both formal and informal). Due to the war and the unstable government that followed (he didn't specify about the latter, but I'm guessing Péron?), a whole generation of men did not get the opportunity to grow up learning to dance. This, coupled with more gender equality and changing ideas on gender roles in modern day society, makes it harder than before to judge whether someone would make a good dancing partner purely based on looks. You would think a seemingly worldly, smartly dressed, older gentleman would make the best dancer, but you could be very off. Likewise, the sloppily dressed younger dude might seem to be a poor dancer, though he could very well dance his pants off. There is no longer a clear signal for who would "feel" good as a partner, despite "looking" the part.

I like how this relates to style and fashion, because I firmly believe in order to look good, you must "feel" good about yourself. You can take this in many ways, whether it is feeling more comfortable in your own skin, a particular piece of garment and how it feels to you, or more literally against the popular beauty mantra of the day: il faut souffrir pour etre belle. Perhaps you feel more confident in wearing heels, or maybe you prefer flats – it doesn't matter. As long as you are honest with yourself, why should it matter to anyone else? It's not that I would like to dance with a complete schlubb (who would?), but sometimes it can be easy to forget what makes us "feel" good in favour of what just looks good. 

And This is Why I Can't Have Nice Things

As a fashion blogger, you would think that I have something as basic as NOT PUTTING ANYTHING WOOLLEN INTO THE DRYER now down pat. Oh no. You see, as a perpetually stressed out and sleep deprived college student, I absentmindedly took my huge wad of laundry (two and half weeks worth to be precise) down to the basement, thinking to myself, "look how clean and prepared I am for Thanksgiving break! Wouldn't Mom and Pop be so proud of me." I didn't realize anything had gone wrong until I took them out and started to pack. These were my favourite purchases of the season: lambwool sweaters from Uniqlo. *tear* Of course now I am looking up tips to try and stretch them out again. I know they won't exactly be the same as before, but I'd be damned if I don't at least give it a try. Among the tips I am going to try include are About.com's and Ehow.com's. I will update all should I be successful.

This is also the reason why I am abstaining from #CyberMonday today. I have browsed through certain sites and have taken note of few items, but really I don't need anything new in my wardrobe. Save for some formal office wear-type clothing for interviews later on the school year for internhips and schtuff however I am not in a rush to get them and I would like to try the tailored pieces in person to make sure they fit well. SO DON'T YOU DARE LOOK AT THE CASHMERE TURTLE NECKS THAT IS ON SALE AT UNIQLO JOY. It really doesn't help now that Uniqlo has an e-Commerce site (about damn time too might I add). Also I forgot to mention that I had torn a small hole in my pair of black denim from climbing onto the roof of a school building in the middle of the night the week before Thanksgiving break. Not advised kids! I know this all sounds badass and rebel-y but in reality I am a mild mannered goody two shoes. Thankfully this can easily be fixed with a needle and thread. I am going to cry myself to sleep now, first mourning what potentially could be the death of my newly shrunken sweaters *more tears* and secondly, no chic black turtle necks for me. If you guys get anything cool this Cyber Monday, please do share.

Temptations

As someone who prides herself on her mad skillz in curating, finding out what I like and what I don't like (it's a two way street), I am far less susceptible than your average consumer over being easily swayed by mere pretty things. In spite of all of that, I must say the new Louis Vuitton Fall "L'invitation au voyage" campaign featuring my favourite model by Inez and Vindoodh is incredible. I'm not even going to fight loving this, as a huge art lover (the Louvre being the locale of the shoot) with Arizona Muse of all models. Haven't loved a big fashion campaign this much in a long time (aside from lookbooks of much lesser known brands). The only issue I have with the video campaign is the overtly suspenseful music. You hear it in every thriller and I won't be surprised if even iMovie has it as one of their sound effects tracks. No one's gonna killed anytime soon here so quit being so serious over handbags? Awesome huge high quality photos behind the jump.