It’s been quite a rollercoaster of temperamental struggles getting dressed for ‘fall’ these past few days. More so than any other years that I’ve experienced fall in New York so far.
So, despite the 78-degree weather this past weekend, I threw on a few things that I haven’t gotten the chance to wear since last fall/early spring as a continuation of my ‘fall refresh’ series.
It’s safe to say that nothing is more versatile than some really chunky knits. See how I wore this one last April 2016.
Time seems to be flying by but October feels like forever. This eternity mixed with humidity and my lack of excitement for anything Halloween related only makes this all feels even longer.
My personal motto is - if you can’t beat it, endure it. So, I went and got myself this Puzzle Bag I’ve been eyeing for a while (you’d know that if you read my JW Anderson Mini Velvet Piercebag review).
You’re probably thinking, really? A crop top in October? And you’re right. I’m not crazy; it’s the weather. I know I shouldn’t be complaining about the warm feels, but I’ll be the first to shamelessly admit that you’re not a real New Yorker unless you make some sort of remarks about the temperature every day.
Bet you’re already thinking — “she’s going to probably complain about how cold is going to be for the next 6 months or so.”
With this idea in my head for quite some time now, a series like this one I'm about to share with you is long overdue. I'm calling this my 'Fall Refresh' series, but really, it's more of a recycling set of posts on how I'm restyling some of my favorite pieces again for this fall.
In the recent months, I've been spending more time reading up on sustainable fashion and reflecting a lot on the differences between sustainability in the various methods that have been advocated with the fashion industry. For me, 100% sustainability is just not realistic or possible at the moment, and it has been something that was really hard to come to terms with. However, I've also figured out that while I can't commit to sustainability fully, I can at least contribute.
One of the ways in which I can support sustainability is by choosing more quality clothing and buying less to avoid getting caught up in fast fashion and creating extra waste when it comes to garments and clothing. Quality clothing is quite subjective and can mean a variety of different things to different people - but for me, quality clothing depends on two factors. One, how much wear I can get out of it and two, how timeless is the piece.
If you caught my #OOTD 101 post earlier this year, you're already familiar with how this works. You'll also know that I've been working really hard at this for the past few years. It's simple. I invest in really quality pieces or pieces that I really like and make sure that I'm able to wear them often to fulfill either or both of the standards in 'quality' clothing that I've set for myself.
For the fall season, I couldn't think of a better piece to kick off this series than with a knit that I got through a collaboration with a sustainable fashion brand, Gudrun & Gudrun. I thought it would be a good starting point, as this was a sweater that I wore at the beginning of this year while I was visiting Kyoto in the cold.
When it comes to sweaters, it can be quite tempting to have as many as possible. I totally get it. They're soft, cozy and comfortable. But for me, I've learned over the years, that no matter how many sweaters I own, there are just a few that I tend to wear over and over again. Keeping this in mind, I'm constantly turning myself away from another black or grey sweaters, and even camel as of late. The trick is to find a really unique one so that it stays fresh and does not collide with trends and easily go out of style. Most importantly, go for a sweater that you just feel good wearing and one that you wouldn't mind wearing over pants, skirts, and any kinds of denim.
I'm a sucker for monochromatic creams and beige when it comes to knitwear in the colder months, so this look is pretty much my first outfit, but for a warmer fall day.
The whole point of this series is basically to show you something that the fashion industry really doesn't highlight on because it could possibly hurt the business aspect of fashion. There aren't many fashion 'bloggers' out there, that I've seen, happily flaunting something that they wore more than once. But I think personal style is different. There are already so many walking mannequins out there that instead of trying to get the latest designer items or the trendiest pieces, it's more important to add value to the money you spend and the time you invest into fashion if you care even just a little.
You “crossed the line” versus, I “crossed the line”, versus ‘Crossing The Line’ all have different connotations to me. The first one usually means that I’m ready to cut you out of my life, and the second one means I really fucked up (since I usually don’t know when to stop and go overboard and rarely admit something’s my fault) - but crossing the line this time is just me trying to be a smartass about my laced up corset over striped shirt.
I’ve always been quite an underachiever that’s hard on myself (if that makes any sense). At the beginning of this year, I was out of a job and wasn’t quite sure how this year was going to unfold. I told myself I’d go easy on me for a while and let things happen. Pass forward to September and I had probably my most exciting NYFW so far with my work opportunity. If you’re an older reader of this space- you’ll probably know I like to refer back to old happenings quite often. I literally celebrate every small win because that’s just how I like to keep moving forward (I do it kind of quietly though, I think - I can’t help it, I’m a Leo). But I feel like, in the last few months, I’ve crossed some lines I’ve been dying to get through.
I’ll warn you now that there’ll probably be a lack of styling posts for a while as I’ve just been crazily working and preparing for a month long trip in Tokyo this coming October. Finding new ways to wear old things, like this corset topI last wore in Hong Kong, has been the only thing that's been keeping me trying to blog. Totally forgot about these studded Isabel Marant flats in their dustbags 'til now too. Besides, summer fashion has never been quite my forte, so I hope there’ll be some interesting things to put together for fall.
The last few months have basically been my awkward teenage years but in my personal style growth life’s span. With the rise of fashion in the form of Instagram attention bait, it’s been quite conflicting to “experiment” with trends while still staying consistent. But for someone as stubborn as myself, I still can’t see how a Gucci belt makes me any more fashionable than I might or might not have already been. Guess I’d rather toss my two cents back into my loosely hung pockets.
From untasteful details to obnoxious logos and patterns, I just can't seem to find any of it relevant in my life...but here I am.
I mean, what did you think tropical print with green velvet would look like? It's not the first time you've seen me in a decked out kimono, but this was my first time wearing one as a dress. Quite frankly, I had no idea that I’d ever wear something like this either. Funny story is, I had bought this kimono on a whim while planning a trip to India. I somehow thought the tropical print would be a tongue in the cheek kind of statement against some of India’s architecture - but my trip got postponed and I went to Venice to celebrate my 24th birthday like this.
Everyone somehow confuses me for someone who’s “minimal” because of how selective I am about the things I choose to own and wear. Living in a big city doesn’t allow you to have much because your apartment bedroom is the size of a regular closet compared to 80% of other cities in the world with exception to Tokyo or Hong Kong and a few other cities I’ve yet been to.
They said traveling teaches you a lot, and while that’s true — travel also changes the way you live and your perception of personal belongings and their values. Material wise, gold has always been the standard monetary currency for centuries, but that’s relatively no longer true. At one point, you were highly regarded in the bubble of social media if your ‘aesthetic’ was minimal - but that’s all b*llshit to me, and you all know that.
To be honest, I really have no idea where this blog has been going these days. At times I find the outfit I’m wearing quite generic, and I really miss creatively thinking about how to style things. The more I force myself to blog, and document these outfits and photos, the more I’m confused as to whether what’s my personal style is anymore. But while I’m lost, I’m telling myself that I’m still finding my way, especially when I recognize that there’s something about this and that, that I don’t feel fits me.
So yeah, you might be thinking - floral top with cutout shoulders AND ruffles AND a metallic gold pair of shoes? Are you even on the right blog? Well, welcome to one of the outfits in which I too surprised myself I walked out of the house with.
Growing up, my mother has always taught me this one saying real gold does not fear the test of fire.
And as I’m turning 24 this month, this statement’s meaning becomes more refined for me. It’s a saying about being true to yourself and testing yourself over time because adversities are what makes you better in your very own ways. As a shoe person, I just couldn’t help but gift my self a gold pair of shoes that’ll walk me through to some bigger travel adventures this coming year.
I have a hate love relationship with everything that’s trending lately. As much as I’ve tried to ignore florals, they’re just somehow creeping up in my wardrobe one after another.
Of course, the term ‘couch florals’ is coined to summarize up prints that feel a bit more vintage - and I couldn’t help but title this post ‘Couch Florals’ because it reminded me of this flower-printed couch that my parents got when we first moved into our New York apartment.
Lots of good memories on that couch, like the time my childhood friend and I would use it as our stage and sing our grades school hearts out to Usher’s ‘My Boo.’
I guess the thing with what you want and don’t want, as I realized growing older, is that life doesn’t really let you choose, but it gives you just the option to make the best of it or not. And memories, especial dear ones, hold them close. So that when you are forced to reconcile with what you hate, you have something that keeps your heart soft.
