Souvenirs

This is one of my favorite outfits I've worn in a long time - it's so colorful and fun and has so many great details. To make it even more fun, each piece is from a different country!

I got the dress for $6 at a resale consignment shop called Uptown Cheapskate in the States - similar to a Plato's Closet where they will only resell things that are from certain store or of a certain style. While the hunt from a regular thrift store or Goodwill is fun, it's sometimes nice to just go through a whole rack of incredible deals and know most of them are trendy enough to take out the guess work. I particularly love the lace detail on this dress - the straps on the shoulders and then the lace panels on the sides. And what a great color combination - mint and navy!

The hot pink scarf I got in Cambodia. We went on a tour outside the city of Phnom Penh with Grasshopper Adventures - I highly recommend them! We biked on an island in the Mekong Delta and got to take in all the sights - mango trees, farm animals, the children running along side us yelling "Hello! Hello!" Our guide was amazing and she took us a silk farm where we got to see how they make the silk from beginning to end. And of course, go shopping for silk products!

The earrings I purchases on a trip to the cloud forest in Mindo, Ecuador while studying aboard there. An Ecuadorian woman had the cutest little cafe where she made her own jewelry. When I saw she had cleverly beaded parrots into the earring design, I had to have them! Mindo is known for having a lot of birds and butterflies so it's a perfect souvenir - on top of that, we got to go flying ourselves while zip lining through the forest!

The purse is from Thailand but I must admit I didn't buy it. It has been collecting dust on a shelf at my work and finally I asked my boss what the deal was - she said I could have it! Score! I know that it was most likely made in Thailand though as I always see similar bags when we pop on over there. I've said it before and I'll say it again - I love Thailand! The food, the beaches, the laid-back, kind folks and did I mention the food? And this purse - the colorful embroidery is top-knotch.

And then the sunglasses and shoes are from Singapore, where I currently live! I wore this outfit to go see the new Mona Lisa exhibit. If it comes to your city, GO SEE IT. It's incredible. The whole exhibit is explaining the history behind the "discovery" of a second, younger Mona Lisa and then all the proof that it is indeed a Da Vinci through and through. That man's genius is astounding, the exhibit was so fascination and best of all - we got super up close and personal with the painting! I couldn't believe it. I've seen the other (older) Mona Lisa in the Louvre and man, it's a zoo there! It was so chill at the Singapore exhibit - we just walked right up to it (it was in a glass case).

Thanks for letting me take you down memory lane!

Have you picked up any good souvenirs yourself lately?