55 Closet Rules: Part 1

Since I was buying too much, I lost the high.
The shopping high, which is important. It’s like a mini-multiple orgasm. No no no, actually, it’s more like a love-story:
- There’s the first time you lay eyes on the perfect article. Thunderbolts.
- Then the purchase, which hurts a little, but we quickly forget.
- The arrival at home when you first take your new treasure out of the bag, your first intimate moment together = the high.
- The first night you spend together (Don’t even try and tell me you haven’t slept with a pair of Louboutins before.)(Totally kidding.)(Well, but that totally describes what is the high)(I actually have thought once or twice about sleeping with some of my shoes, I swear.)
- The first time you go out, officially together.
- And then… Of course, the first Instagram.
Now that’s what I call the high! Like little butterflies in your stomach for an outfit! The emotion!
And I had lost it. I treated my new clothes like a sac of potatoes I just bought at Gristedes. Get home, put them in the closet, no excitement, no afterthought, and that was it. Zero.
Since I’ve started buying less, the high is right back in it and it feels good. I almost, almost, slept with a pair of shoes in bed the other day.
You have to protect your clothing love stories. It’s important.
{from Garance Dore's 5 Commandments of Style}

The very loverly story above got me thinking about my commandments of style. I previously started a style blog dedicated to commandments of style (more or less) but it kind of flopped because I didn't have the time to really run it properly. Added to which my closet is in such a state of disrepair, I hardly think I am qualified to write about it. That said, having lived in a shopping mecca for 1.5 years and gone through many different style stages (plus the fact that I love to talk about my shopping stories) (lololololol), I'd like to set some rules here, both for my future reference and yours. (That's what this blog is) (My diary/letter-to-future-self) (Which you happen to have the link to)

So here goes Part 1: my style stages!

Pretty much how I accessorized back then: Carpe the Anna Dello Russo out of the Diem!
Understanding the changes that your personal style has gone through, as well as the personal choices that led you to it, is quite important in that (a) it hones your shopping trips down to knowing what you want and what you definitely do not want; and (b) you have a more refined sense of what is 'you', and will hopefully take less time to get ready.

I was a shopaholic since forever, but had little conception of style (in the sense of having style icons as opposed to randomly piecing together items I saw in shops) until I moved to Bangkok. This is when I became style-crazy (no kidding). I think it began when I picked up my first InStyle (ahh, that magazine)... and made my first trips to flea markets and wholesale malls.

When I was fourteen I was practically heavy shopping every weekend. I'm kind of embarrassed to admit it now, actually, because I spent so much, but also because I had little idea of the concept of quality. So I was picking up cheap but ... Cheap (you know what I mean) items that I would pair most crazily with an assortment of accessories. To this, I raise the horrifying memory of a pair of luridly purple tights, which I bought on impulse and never wore.

(You won't get the scope of this till you see the pictures, but I'm not uploading any 'cos they're that bad.)

When I got back to Singapore, I didn't shop for quite a while, though shopping was still therapy for me. I think I developed a more minimalist sense of style around the age of sixteen or seventeen. One of my key mottos is still Chanel's "Before you leave the house, take one thing off."

Credit: Sea of Shoes
My shopping style became more of buying what I really wanted and really would wear, with the exception of a few impulse buys. The most obvious change was in my accessories- I've strayed away from too many statement-making ones over the years. The odd thing is that this probably came from a change in personality, as I (hopefully) grew more mature and learnt to sieve out what's important from what's not. In the same way, my style became a reflection of who I am, and I'm slowly learning to really stick to what works.

All in all, quite a haphazard reflection (oops), but I'm glad I got this down!

PS. I tagged this piece 'Closet' because I hope to do a feature on mine soon c:

54 summerkissed

summerkissed

summerkissed by adaydreamer featuring pearl bangles

I had hoped to deliver a more inspirational set, but here're Sea of Shoes' instead.

53 Porcelain Skin, China Print


Another filler! I'm still looking for the perfect China print shirt. Cotton On came pretty close but I still think their items are overpriced. Anyhow, I'm going for a shopping trip with the Love group during the holidays-- can't wait! Hopefully I'll find something then.

52 Russian Pointes!


Here is a picture of me (or rather, my foot) in my new Russian Pointes! I've come to realize that buying Bloch Suprimas was quite a silly decision-- nothing against the shoe or brand, since I am still quite emotionally attached to Bloch, but after doing some research online it seems they are the very pair my feet are not suited to! (High arch, wide feet, uneven toes...) I'm hoping all my failure at pointework so far can be at least 50% attributed to wrong shoes and not weak feet. In the meantime, here's hoping these Russian Pointe Rubins will serve me much better.

51 Restless


 Our hearts are restless until they rest in You.

-St. Augustine

Just a beautiful quote to tide both you and I by.

50 Look What Arrived!

Book: Audrey Style, by Pamela Clarke Keogh

I sped through it in two days. It was fantastic.

What you get:

  • whole page-sized, high quality photos of Ms Hepburn herself. Either I have been living under a rock or not all of these photos are the common kinds you see everywhere-- more love
  • extensive quotes and anecdotes from everybody who mattered in Ms Hepburn's life
  • two page snippets on various specific details, such as her dog Famous, her kitchen, and her style basics
  • a more wholesome picture of Audrey the person, rather than Audrey the style goddess, much unlike the title suggests.
This book is not a book about fashion or style per se. I think it's much more a guide to being a lovely person like Audrey was-- and that style encompasses personality and character as well, which makes for a very refreshing, very inspiring read.


49 A New Hankering

A New Hankering

A New Hankering by adaydreamer featuring skinny jeans

...after printed, breezy tops and pastel jeans, of course! I've been hankering after a slight style overhaul (away from flared dresses, mainly) for a while, but my hunt for the perfect printed top is still ongoing.

48 How I Study

I have an Econs test tomorrow and took perverse pleasure in procrastinating by taking photos of my progress... or lack thereof.
"I'm not going home, not really."

An ambivalent owl drawn during class

All laid out, ready to go

Heigh-ho, it's off to work we go

about forty five minutes in

a new addition to my wall of inspiration

about an hour in, sugar rush desperately needed
Disclaimer: my desk is usually not that neat. But I moved all my junk to the bed, wiped off the dirt and dust, turned on the desk lamp and air conditioner and presto-- pretty good library simulation!

47 Ode


I want you to feel
The way words feel
The way words make me feel
Uplifted, understood, unraveled,
Like I just discovered the beauty of language—
All by myself.

I want you to understand
But not to associate me with music
Not to remember, when your fingers
Touch strings and you remember our broken ones,
Not to remember the time you played
And I sang
And it was almost magical
for the two of us.

Not that, please don’t remember the person and shut out the music;
Please understand that music’s beauty is multi-causal and multi-dimensional--
And multi-usable as well,

There are so many other words and tunes I need you
To feel
And so many other persons out there I need you
To understand.

46 All That Glitters

Dainty Gold Accents

Dainty Gold Accents by adaydreamer featuring an anchor ring

As promised, a post on some of the more delicate gold pieces I've amassed recently! I took most photos with my phone this afternoon and I'm glad they turned out so well.
ASOS Gogo Philip Heart Charm Necklace
This beauty has tarnished a little since I bought it, and I was initially wary of its shape, but I've come to love it and frequent it as a chunkier, more substantial alternative to the one below.
Heart necklace, bought from Isetan
This one has an odd story behind it: I originally bought its predecessor from a Taiwan street vendor in 2010. I wasn't supposed to stop --my friends and I were rushing to the far bigger market across the street, and this lady had set up store outside a convenience store, if I remember correctly-- but she had such a big trove of dainty gold earrings set out that I had to take a look. She offered a bargain deal for 3 pairs, so my friends and I all snapped them up-- I still wear those I bought! Right before I paid, I spotted this necklace dangling from a makeshift cardboard display, and she offered me a cheaper deal for it.

Fast forward few months later, back in Singapore, when I moved house, it got hopelessly tangled up in its own chain and I couldn't untangle it. I was really heartbroken because I thought I'd never find it again-- then, around the end of last year, I found its silver version in a neighbourhood shopping mall, of all places! Even though I don't really like silver as much as gold, I bought it because who knew when I'd find it again?

The happy ending came at last-- around last month, my mother was out shopping at Isetan and spotted this. She bought it immediately because I had often moaned to her about finding my gold necklace again. So now I have 3 versions -- one tangled gold, one silver, and another much-worn gold-- an investment piece indeed!
Lovisa arrow necklace
 ...I only shop at Lovisa when there're sales on. So I bought this one in a set with the one below-- the two necklaces were originally going for $20!
Lovisa Karma necklace
 This one now, has a special story to it as well. Back in January I went to Bhutan --and I still can't wait to go back-- and one of the tour guides had given my friend a Bhutanese name, translating to "sunflower". I wanted one too, so I asked him if he could please give me one. He took his time with it, and I was so worried he'd forgotten because I was really curious! Finally he came up to me and told me my Bhutanese name could be "karma". I was surprised, because I thought he was referring to the Buddhist idea of reincarnation and cycles and 'what goes around comes around', but he shook his head no. He said in Bhutanese, it also means "starlight". How beautiful is that?!
Of course, I'm hoping he wasn't pulling my leg.
I also forget whether it was "starlight" or "stars". !! 
So when I spotted a pendant necklace with my Bhutanese name on it, I had to get it.
Lovisa rings, set of 3
 These 3, together with the two necklaces above, for $13! Crazy.
ASOS Love skinny torque bangle
A little liable to come off when shopping, but otherwise a pretty sweet deal. My first foray into 'armswag'!
an interesting reminder from Pinterest
Have a wonderful Sunday and week ahead!

PS. Ignore the weird formatting of this post, I accidentally deleted it and had to copy and paste it back in--stupid long story but ew, at least the content's still there!

45 Lace Underpinnings

Lace Underpinnings

Lace Underpinnings by adaydreamer featuring floral lace shorts

I'm still trying to find a way to make this blog a blend of my interests, without sacrificing its use as a personal diary of sorts for me to keep track of my own progress, life-wise. In the mean time, I hope you don't mind the mix of effusely personal ramblings with spam of Polyvore sets!

44 Issue 2: Dresses


How lovely is that lilac dress?!
 If I ever get a chance to manufacture a dress, this lilac one's (top, bottom left) definitely on my list.
As promised, collage of perfect dresses ahoy! I'm glad my two style icons, Emmy Rossum and Miranda Kerr, managed to find prominent places. They're the only two celebrities whose style I get so constantly excited about. Pardon for the somewhat haphazard styling: it seems my graphic roll kinda rolled to a stop after the last post.

In a sneak peek before my camera battery died: all that glitters is gold! A few pics of my collection of dainty gold trinkets when I can, up next.

43 Classic Update: Blouses

In the works: a long feature on dresses! I had too many pictures of perfect dresses in my folders for a single graphic, and I'm not ashamed.

On a side personal note, I went out by myself on Labour Day for a long, slow jaunt through favourite shopping haunts (half-rhyme) and scored 2 necklaces and 3 rings from Lovisa for $13! I love bargain deals. I've also been accumulating a lot of dainty gold finds recently, and will document them when I can. Soon. Also happened to be wearing a blouse (a favourite: soft, Peterpan-collared, navy blue and with swan prints) when I bought them: discovered blouses, half-tucked into my favourite shorts, make for breezy, effortless shopping outfits.

Another exciting note: I ordered Audrey Style online! The hardcover was a whopping $80 from Kinokuniya, but I managed to find a paperback copy for $20 online. Such a score: I was so excited flipping through it at Kinokuniya, it's full of delightful (then again there aren't any Hepburn photos which aren't) photos and interesting tidbits about her life and style.

Was tempted to get How to be Lovely (another Hepburn guide) and Grace Kelly Style too, but decided to keep it at one style tome first. Reviews when I get it.