It's Beginning to Look a (Little) Like Christmas

In my last post I mentioned going to the ballet for Thanksgiving. This is what I ended up wearing… after I went through a ton of options while still yelling, I have nothing to wear! before I finally decided on this. I'm telling y'all, being a fashion blogger is like, harrrd. 

I decided on something simple yet festive. When in doubt, wear sequins - especially at this time of year! Not only do I love the gold shimmer on this top, I love that it's a little baggy; it gives off this effortless but still va-va-voom appeal. Pair it with a black high-waisted A-line skirt, nude shoes to give me long legs and a red lip and I'm ready to be kissed under the mistletoe! 

Top: Clothing Swap | Skirt: Uniglo | Shoes: Target | Purse: Bugis 

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Life's a Beach

My boyfriend and I went to Sentosa Island in Singapore last week. I love that an hour on the subway and bam! I'm at the beach. It's heavenly. Sentosa is such a strange place to me. It's like no other beach I've ever been to. It's got a very suburban feel to it. Everything is carefully manicured and there's so much green grass and perfect flowerbeds along the pathways to the beach. I wouldn't say it's got that bohemian feel that a lot of other beach places have, but it doesn't make it any less fun. It's also nice to see so many different Singaporean and expat families from all over the world cutting back and enjoying the sun and surf, sorta speak. 

Wanted to keep my outfit simple for the beach - bikini top and skater skirt and voila! Easy peasy. I added my mom's wooden strawberry earrings she had from the 80's and red lipstick just to give a little extra punch. Wrapped it all up with my cat eye sunglasses to finish the vintage vibe. 

What's your favorite thing to wear to the beach?

Swimsuit Top: Cotton On | Skirt: Thrifted | Sunglasses: Modcloth | Earrings & Bracelet: vintage

Gimmie Some Sugar!

I saw this top and knew it was going to be mine even if it didn't fit my North American bustline. I was shopping in the maze of Bugis Street where they sell tons and tons of cheap, trendy and adorable clothing from China. The catch is that they won't let you try things on; you can hold it up to your body but that's it. So even though the petite sales lady looked skeptically at my lovely lady lumps, I instantly said, "I'll take it!" For $10 I was willing to take a chance on this pastel perfection with embroidered cupcakes. AND it's got polka dots and a crisp white collar. I  It's unfortunate that my camera in it's pathetic-dying state didn't do this flawless pale pink top justice. 

 Shirt, Earrings & Headband: Bugis Street | Skirt & Belt: Goodwill | Watch: Gift | Sunglasses: Modcloth 

The Secret Garden

Ya know when something feels right, it just... feels right? Dressing more consciously to my favorite style just makes me happier than a kitten with catnip. I feel like in Korea I was given so many clothes that weren't my exact style but still amazing, it was like a personal challenge to make it work. But after giving away most of those clothes (and having not yet establish a clothing swap group here - although if anyone in Singapore is down, email me!!!) I was left with only my favorite clothes. And the clothes I've bought in Singapore I've chosen a lot more carefully. For as long as I can remember, I've loved 1950's fashion. I can't be one of those who dresses up every single day in honest-to-goodness real vintage dresses. It's too expensive and my tastes vary too much. But I plan on adding more modern vintage-inspired pieces to my closet to mix and play with. Like this ModCloth crop top! It looks darling with this high-waisted full chiffon skirt but I am definitely going to switch things up and wear it with my maxi skirts and maybe some high-waisted denim shorts. 

And we must, must, must talk about these shoes. It's almost ridiculously scary. Do you remember me talking about my current obsession with low block heels? Well, son of a billy block if I didn't literally find the same exact shoes as the Kurt Geiger heels at my first trip to the Salvation Army for S$20! It was like Christmas came early! 

Another surprise gift was this little garden area. I knew there was a garden area on the 7th floor of my condominium, but when we went down there to take pictures, I gasped! I can't believe this is for me to use! It was like walking into Alice in Wonderland's garden - perfectly manicured green pathways and bright orange flower bushes. With my outfit, I felt like I could have been at some old-timey Southern picnic - expect for the palm trees, of course! 

What style feels right for you? Have you found any exciting little nooks and hiding places recently? Or the perfect fashion find? 

Crop Top: ModCloth | Skirt: Korean Thrift Store | Shoes: Singapore Thrift Store | Scarf: Comma (Korea) | Sunglasses: H&M | Necklace: Premier Designs | Earrings: Naughty Cat (Korea) | Umbrella: 7-11 

Santa's Little Helper

So this outfit is more loud and obnoxious than actual fashion. I wrote that and then thought, psssh, forget that; fashion is whatever you want it to be. Either way, this outfit was loads of fun to wear for SantaCon up in Seoul this weekend! Because I've been so so busy lately, I haven't been able to really slow down and enjoy the Christmas season (not that it's a very big thing in a predominantly Buddhist country). I was so excited to get out of my city and do something festive! 

I have been trying very hard to not show any double takes on my blog so far. Not because I don't think it's cool to wear things over and over again (on the contrary!) but so many people give me free clothes and I wanted to challenge myself to not get comfortable wearing the same things. I wanted to take advantage of the influx of the swag while I got it. When you're a part of an expat community - especially when people know how much you love clothes -  you get "new" clothes ALL the time from friends who are leaving the country. Also I think the expat community views things in a much different light. Back home, you're encouraged to build a grown-up wardrobe, invest in the basics and fill up your closet, fill up your house. When you're moving frequently from country to country or when you live in a tiny place like me, this isn't always a reality or even a desire. You enjoy the things that you have when you have them and then you give them away. In a way, it's very freeing. However, don't let me fool you. There are some things (more than I care to admit) that I refuse to get rid of, no matter what. 

So back to wearing things more than once on this blog: I finally broke down. You might remember this top from here and this skirt from here. There's nothing like the holidays to bring [things] together, amiright? I wasn't willing to invest in a Santa suit, so I decided to dress up as an elf with things already in my closet. A quick run to the local dollar store supplied me with the additional holiday cheer of the holly garland, the santa hat, and the bows I added to the brim.

What things have you been doing to get you into the holiday spirit?

Crocheted Shrug: Korean thrift store | Green blouse: Forever 21 | Skirt: American thrift store | Sunnies: Target | Belt: Charlotte Russe | Boots: DSW | Garland & Santa Hat: Daiso  

Crisp and Classic

A little while back I was asked to participate in an educational video for my university. For the past year, I've been teaching an extra curricular English conversation class in the evenings for the flight attendant majors. That's right! In Korea, there's a whole university major for being a flight attendant. Once you've flown with a Korean airline though, it makes total sense - the flight attendants are excellent! So the purpose of this video was to adveritse about this class to incoming students. I, of course, played myself and because the sound didn't matter, my students and I got to be really goofy hamming it up for the camera. 

So this is the outfit I chose to wear for the video. Something professorial but still fashionable and fun. I've been dying to wear this gorgeous pale blue sweater ever since pulling out my winter clothes. The small knit-work and the color is so feminine and sweet. I decided to continue the theme with my crisp white shirt buttoned all the way up, my silver feather necklace, and kitten heels. And I love this skirt - y'all know how I love chiffon fabrics and this geometric pattern is really the deciding factor that made me buy it.  

Sneaky Slip!

Sweater: Gap (Thrift Store) | Button-Up: Old Navy (Thrift Store) | Skirt: Thrift Store | Necklace: Sharkzone boutique | Earrings: Naughty Cat | Ring: Premier Designs | Shoes: Anne Klein