Tag Archives: fashion

True Calling: Major Art

I entered this great contest by The Natori Company that I received today in my email.   Click on the picture for the Facebook link to enter the contest (you can also enter on Twitter).  My entry is in the quote below.  Good luck to those who enter!

Major Art

Choosing to have an art major was a difficult decision for me because as the daughter of Filipino immigrant parents, it was expected that I choose a different path, preferably something in the medical field like a nurse or doctor.  But luckily my parents understood that my calling was to choose a path less travelled by my friends and relatives and to choose a major of visual arts.  I’ve always been very creative, both musically and visually, so choosing an art major was natural for me. 

As a result, my time in college was one of the most enjoyable experiences in my life.  I was at my most creative, working with film,  video and music (I also became a choir director at my church).  It afforded me some incredible opportunities that I will never forget, like the many shows I got to work on for MTV; working with Toni Braxton on a made for TV movie for VH1 (“Play’d”); and most notably, working with Denzel Washington on a major motion picture (“Antwone Fisher”).

I’m currently in a different career that allows me to have time for a family (which was difficult when I was a free lancer for film and video production), but I do not regret at all the decision to have the chances and opportunities that I did as an art major.

Very Grey & Lazy Saturday

It’s a bit cloudy today so I’m just at home with my son while my husband plays golf and my mom takes some time off from babysitting all week.  These kinds of days allow me to just play all day with my son, while doing a few chores in-between until the rest of my family ventures home.  It also allows me to do a little bit of on-line shopping and perusing through my magazines.  I just got my Urban Outfitters and Downeast Basics catalogs, a coupon from Bloomingdales and an email about Bona Drag’s newly updated website.  In addition, I still want a few things off of Lulus.com, so there’s plenty for me to look at around the web today.

Here are a few highlights I found, which seems to be heavy on black, white and grey (click on each picture for a link to the item).  Hope everyone is having a wonderfully lazy weekend as well!

Club Monaco Online Exclusively at Shopbop

I’ve always loved Club Monaco from the moment I went to their store at the Eaton Centre in Toronto, Canada in the early nineties.  Like H&M and Roots, I felt that I had to get my fill every time I went to Canada.  Come to think of it, many of my favorite stores require me to travel great distances (see the previous post about my Primark jacket for proof).

Because of this, I’m always seeking favorite brands on-line.  Unfortunately, Club Monaco was one of those lines (like H&M) who do not have an online store.  Another happy email popped up in my inbox that changed that:  Shopbop have an exclusive capsule collection of Club Monaco available online (click here for the link).

In the meantime, here are some of my favorite pieces (click on each picture to enlarge).  Enjoy!

How Far Would You Go to Get What You Want?

For my Coat of the Week, I’m going back a little bit in time to 2008 for a fun little story of how I got my beautiful teal coat. 

I saw a version of this jacket on ASOS and loved it.  I would have purchased it for the £70 they were asking for at the time because I was attracted to the color, shape and ruffles.  Then as if it were fate, I received an email  update from Catwalk Queen (see my Blogroll), reporting that Primark had the same jacket for only £25.  I sadly discovered that Primark does not have does not have an online store, which meant that I had to actually go to a store to purchase it if I wanted the great price (click the picture for a link to the Catwalk Queen 2008 blog entry about the coat).

As luck would have it, my husband and I already had a trip planned to see the San Diego Chargers vs the New Orleans Saints game at Wembley Stadium (yes, American football).  This meant that I could get my coat in person and try it on! 

Once in London, we made the trek to the Primark on Oxford Street because we tried one in Wembley near our hotel and they didn’t have the coveted jacket.  Not knowing just how far it was up or down Oxford Street Primark was, we hopped off of one of the Tube stops on Oxford and ended up walking many, many blocks before actually getting to the Primark store in question (I was just reminded by my wonderful and understanding husband that it was eight blocks or so).  At five months pregnant on a cold October evening, I must have been very determined to get this coat to have walked that far.

We arrived at the store about 30 minutes before closing and almost didn’t find the coats because it was a madhouse, apparently due to a huge sale.  My only worry was not getting the fit that I wanted because I was showing and I would definitely want to wear it many times after pregnancy.  A wonderful thing about this coat is that it is very forgiving and roomy in the waist area, which was discovered after a very quick try-on.  This meant I could get my regular size and still have it roomy enough while pregnant.  We were not about to try to come back again the next day so we had to rush to the register, passed the crowds of people doing the very same.

After my triumphant purchase, we headed outside only to discover that a Tube stop was only a block away on the opposite side of the street.  Whilst heading to said stop, a chase had occurred right outside of Primark where a well dressed security guard tackled a would-be shoplifter and dragged her back across the street and back into the store.  On the way back, we stopped at New Look and then a small department store (I think called BHS?) where my husband purchased one of a few remote control mini-helicopters.

All in all, a very eventful day.  There are so many details I can remember and the memories all come flooding back each time I wear my beautiful teal coat.

Shoe of the Week: Steve Madden Luxe

Because the weather is still quite on the warm side here in California and because I’ve purchased so many of them lately, I will continue my “Shoe of the Week” pictorials until the climate here changes to more appropriate “jacket weather” (The Wedding Singer).

Pictured left are the boots that I’ve raved about here.  The Steve Madden Luxe Yea Clog Boots (from DSW) are surprisingly comfortable and look fantastic with skirts and jeans.  I love the platform clog heel and rivet details.  The top buckle tightens slightly to allow for a more snug fit around the top of the calf (if that’s where it hits you for your height).  Since I still have my Jessica Simpson suede black boots from last season (that still look great), I got the taupe as pictured.  I see these becoming a staple in my wardrobe for the fall, winter and beyond.  Keep an eye out for these to appear in many a pictorial to come!

Yin & Yang

The Oxfords I bought from Bona Drag by Jeffrey Campbell (seen here and here) got me thinking about things that are two-toned.  I’m all about color blocked and striped shirts, sweaters, dresses…you name it!  There is something so mod about the two-toned look.  Here are some things I found that are fabulously dual spirited, Yin & Yang if you will.  But one thing’s for sure, it’s not all just black and white.  (Click each picture for a link to the item)

Black & Bone Hathaway Wedges - Jeffrey Campbell (so fabulous I had to feature them again!)

Hand-Knit Sweater – Stella McCartney

Wingtip Heel - Kimchi Blue

Varsity Jacket – Members Only

Premium Two-Tone Hard Clutch - ASOS

Savitr Boots - All Aaints

Optical Persuasion Stripe Coat - Blaque Label

Suede Lace Front Pump - Kimchi Blue

Back Zip Jacket- Stella McCartney

And just for fun…

Brass Knuckle Heels - Patricia Field

Tea Time

The weather out here in California has gone up several degrees this week, so my “Coat of the Week” idea didn’t quite make sense, even when most of my day is spent in an air-conditioned office.  Since I’ve been wearing these great shoes everyday from the moment I bought them (seen here and here), I thought I would make this more of a “Shoe of the Week” pictorial. 

Along with my platform pumps, I wore a tea dress with my brand new ring that I got from the Thread Show (seen here) and black tights for contrast.  Pretty tea dresses are wonderful things to own because they can be dressed up or down (I like mine in polka dot, ditsy floral or Liberty prints).  Although it’s as hot as it is, I tried to ring in the fall by topping the outfit off with a cardigan.  But I’ll be drinking iced-tea instead of my favorite piping hot English Breakfast or Earl Grey with cream until the weather cools down again.

Outfit:  Topshop tea dress; H&M cardigan; clutch from Urban Outfitters;  Target brand tights; Bamboo shoes; Rings by Forever 21 and Nifty Curly; my own prescription glasses

Pull This Thread

On Sunday, I went to a great independent fashion event called the Thread Show.  What is it?  Here are a couple of quotes from their site:

THREAD is a curated showcase of the best emerging, trend forecasting, style breaking, genre bending fashion designers, and the music and art that rock their world.

THREAD is a dynamic one day retail environment, bringing new fashion and art to more than 200,000 fashion savvy, trend pushing, music loving, taste making movers and shakers, all keen to get first dibs on what drops next in the emerging fashion designer world.

The San Diego event was held in a “recycled” space at the Horton Plaza mall and reminded me of a space out in the Reseda/Ventura area that held several booths of independent vendors selling everything from handmade jewelry and fashions to vintage and reworked items.  The Thread Show, however, premieres up and coming fashion, accessory and home-wear designers.  It also includes a salon, a bar, a DJ, food samples from local eateries and two runway fashion shows.  Since this was my first time attending, I walked around a little to get a feel for the event.

One of the first vendors I stopped and made a purchase from was called Double Take Fashion.  Owned by identical twins Nicole and Shelley Dozier, they began their business as a way to cope with their own personal illness.  They are based in Los Angeles and this was their first time at the Thread Show.  The little bolero jacket Nicole is wearing is adorable in person.

A booth called Nifty Curly was one that I stopped at briefly, then came back to to really dig into all of the wonderful pieces they had available.  Ellen of Nifty Curly stated that the pieces are “Upcycled Handmade”, meaning they get their leather pieces directly from apparel, accessory and furniture manufacturers to get the best quality possible.  There were so many pieces to select from!  My purchase for the day was the cute little button ring that had a gold leather band (third picture down of the Nifty Curly series).   Other standout pieces included coated leather leaf pendants (they looked so life-like), the “Wonder Woman” leather cuffs, and the leather wrap-around wrist bracelets that were actually hidden wallets!

My final purchase came from a booth called De La Luna Designs.  At first, I thought that the pieces had artwork on them.  I found out later through their website and after talking to the designer, Virginia Ayala, that they are re-worked vintage pieces.  The purse that I purchased was a vintage snake-skin purse with a cut-out fabric flower that was coated onto the purse.  The resulting look is amazing, as you can see in the pictures below.  They sell their items wholesale and their website has locations on where you can purchase these one-of-a-kind pieces.  I also love their tagline:  “Bringing Earth To Life Through Design.”

My day at the Thread Show ended with a fashion show, showcasing some of the designers who had booths at the event.  Because of where I was standing and the fact that I didn’t have my husband’s wonderful camera, my pictures were less than worthy.  I included just one of the shots of the runway where I had an actual full shot of an outfit.  Note to self:  take the hubby or another friend to future events to allow for better photo coverage.

I absolutely loved going to the Thread Show and I have to thank my friend for turning me onto this fantastic event (that’s you Christina!).  In chatting with Dara from Elle Communications (a local PR, marketing and event planning company whose client is Thread Show), I found out that this is a seasonal event occurring during the spring and fall.  Because of the indie vibe and exciting atmosphere, rest assured that this is an event that I will be attending season after season, whether it’s here in San Diego or elsewhere.

Easy Like Saturday Afternoon

We decided to go out for the day with Dominic on Saturday.  After a little bit of a delay (because we were deciding where to go), we ended up at beautiful Kate Sessions Park.  I brought my new shoes and one of my favorite clutch purses because I wanted to try my outfit a little dressed up with heels for some pictures.  I wish I could wear shorts to the office, so this outfit represents how I would wear them.

After taking pictures, I kicked off the heels and threw on sandals so that my husband and I could run around with Dominic and his little soccer ball.   Although it’s almost October, the weather is still so sunny and warm enough to wear lighter fabric (although I’m anxious to start wearing coats and layers!).  It’s times like these that I love living in San Diego.

Taking care of Dominic between shots.

Wearing the Bamboo shoes from Lulus.com seen here (so cute and surprisingly comfortable!)

Outfit:  Burberry sunglasses; Kimchi & Blue top; Clutch from Urban Outfitters; Twelve by Twelve/Forever 21 shorts and ring; Juicy Couture bracelet; Bamboo shoes

Photos by Deon Chen

Coat of the Week: Semi-Casual Friday

 

After a full morning of taking care of some things for my mom yesterday, my sister came over in the afternoon to help me with some of my “Coat of the Week” pictures.  I think she did a great job, don’t you?

A cashier at the grocery store said to me, “I love that jacket, you must be receiving tons of compliments on it!  It’s something that can make any outfit feel sexy, either dressed up or down.”

I couldn’t have said it better myself!

Outfit:  Rodarte for Target jacket; Burberry sunglasses; Forever 21 tank; Juicy Couture hooded shirt; Tiffany Keys Heart necklace; 7 For All Mankind “A” Pocket Bootcut Jeans; Steve Madden booties

Photos by Rholnna Jiao