At the Lake

For my family, thrift store shopping isn't just a way to get cheap things. It's practically a religion. And when I go home, I have to always go at least once to my favorite Goodwill. I will ravenously thrust back hanger after hanger looking for the perfect pieces hidden on the rack. My mom and I will pile mountains of clothes in our buggy and then try it ALL on. It's time consuming but we've got it down to a science. So when I put this little white number on, my mom said, "Oh, you'll get a lot of use out of that. You'll love it." I was thinking of wearing it over my swim suit or for beach days. But when I bought a beige-colored slip to use with some of my finicky skirts, it occurred to me I could wear it under the dress and I could wear it ANY day!

The tradition in Singapore for Chinese New Year is to go through your house and get rid of old things you don't need and clean everything. Very similar to spring cleaning but in preparation for their new year. I've been doing that and when I was going through all my unorganized jewelry, I found this necklace. I made/designed it a couple years ago and can't believe I could have forgotten about such a lovely piece. I paired it with this fantastic set of bracelets my friend got me. When I opened the packaging and pulled it out, I said, "Ohhh. This is so perfect for me." Her response? "I know." Lol! I love when my friends know my taste. :) 

What things are you doing to get prepared for the new year? 

Dress: Goodwill | Shoes: Rack Room | Necklace: Handmade | Sunglasses & Bracelet: Gift
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3 Last Minute Fool-Proof Valentine's Gifts for Her

Valentine's day might be over-commericalized and very unimportant in the grand scene of things. But I can't help but think that's it's nice to have a day where you stop running the rat race and try and make your partner's day a little bit brighter. Sure, you shouldn't just do it on a holiday but it doing so on Valentine's day won't take away any brownie points either! 

1. Jewelry: Don't panic, folks. I'm not saying get her the million dollar diamond studs. Also, shopping for jewelry for someone else can be a bit intimidating for anyone. My suggestion: go simple and small. I'd confidently say that 98% of girls that wears ANY kind of jewelry - regardless of her taste - would wear a necklace. And the best way to win her heart? Choose something personalized. With this awesome thing called the internet, you can find any kind of charm on a necklace. Does she like origami, French history, Harry Potter, Cinderella, her home state, or Daryl from The Walking Dead? 

Well, then I got ya covered! My suggestion is google this formula: what she likes + necklace + etsy. Etsy.com is a great website of handmade, quirky, and personalized products. 

 Georgia / Origami / Cinderella  

Marie Antoinette / Hedwig / Mrs. Daryl Dixon

2. Perfume: Again, perfume tends to be a personal thing that can be difficult to pick out for someone. However, I believe that most women that wear any kind of body spray, perfume, scented lotions or specialized soaps would enjoy this kind of gift. Just peek into her bathroom - does she have any of this stuff and does she USE it? I do caution you though, this can be a popular gift so if she has more than 6 bottles of perfume, I would say don't bother getting her a new one. For me, perfume isn't something that I would personally buy for myself but I love getting it as a gift and I like changing scents to fit my mood. 

Again, this is a great time to personalize. But you get to personalize it to YOUR preference! Test out a bunch of perfumes and narrow down to 2-3 scents that YOU enjoy and think would be nice on your girlfriend. Then find a lady. A sales clerk, a friendly female shopper. Ask them which scent do they like more. If you wanna go crazy, ask a couple people and take a tally. This part can tend to be a little tricky because everyone's nose is different so take it with a grain of salt. But, this will allow you to get a female's/other perspective, just in case. An added suggestion would be when you write in the card, tell her why you choose that perfume. It smells like sunflowers, which you know is her favorite flower. Or it smells a little spicy, just like her personality. Yes, it's cheesy. But if you can't be cheesy and lovey-dovey on Valentine's day, when can you? 

Also, perfume doesn't have to break the bank. Bath and Body Works, Victoria's Secret, The Body Shop, Kohl's, Marshall's, Skin Food, and countless others all have scents under $30. 

3. A Personalized Date - Some people aren't gift-givers (or gift-takers) and I think that's okay! Don't feel pressured to buy her gift because everyone else is and marketers are pushing Valentine's on you. Maybe the bank won't cover it this month or maybe she's a minimalist or concerned about her ecological footprint (wish I was better at both!) While you shouldn't have to buy her gift, I think it is nice to do something for her. And one of the best gifts is your time. Has she been dying to see the new art exhibit in town? What's her favorite park? Has she been talking about exploring a new part of the city? And I'm not talking your regular Chilli's dinner and a movie date (not that I don't like those!) But I'm saying - think outside the box a little. Also, listen to her. If you do, she'll probably give you an idea and she didn't even realize she was! 

I personally think a picnic (outside or inside!) is a very cute and easy way create a date just for her. The planning and effort you take into preparing for the food and extra accessories before hand will really impress her. I found a great list over at Premeditated Leftovers on how to host the perfect (cheap!) picnic. 

One more thing! This may sound silly but I believe presentation of the gift is almost as important. But it's really, really easy. Many places like Victoria's Secret and Etsy stores will wrap your purchase beautifully so no worries. But if you're going to Kohl's or Marshall's, they will not. Just pop into your dollar store, Wal-mart, Hallmark or the equivalent of. Buy a gift bag and tissue paper that matches the bag. Yes, BUY THE TISSUE PAPER. Wrap the gift in the paper and put it at the bottom of the bag. Then on top of the tissue-wrapped present, put in 2-3 more pieces of tissue and fluff it. Make sure it is sticking out a little bit out of the bag. Like so: 

If you wanna go crazy, stick a bow on the side of the bag or tie ribbon on the handles. Then buy or make her a card. Add a personalized message about how much you love and appreciate her. Maybe a favorite memory of the two of you. Write the date on the top (she might want to keep it and remember your first Valentine's together). Put that card in an envelope and write her name on the outside. Stick the card into the side of the bag and make sure it's peeking out. Voila! You're done! So easy, right?  

At the end of the day, it's not important how much money you spent on her. What she really will be impressed with is how much time, effort and thought you put into selecting something just for her. Any guy can run into the store at midnight and grab a box of chocolate. But she'll smile when you tell her your epic story about how you chose your gift because it reminded you of HER. 

This Must Be Dirty Pop

Oi! It's been such a long time since I've posted! Sorry, y'all! I've had a lot on my plate because I've been moving... I let you know where my next home-away-from-home in another blog post soon! 

A while back, I went to a K-pop concert. My good Korean friend works for a company that hosts concert events and was able to help us out  with tickets- we got such stellar seats!  We saw Wonder Boyz, Ladies Code, Norazo, and a ballad singer. Norazo's performance was my favorite - it's a 2 man group where one is the energy (dancing and jumping around) and the other is the face (verrrry attractive guitar player). Wonder Boyz had some pretty smooth moves, too. We had a great time, even though the concert was a lot different from what I'm used to back home. We saw 5 performers/groups and the entire concert lasted only 2 hours! Everyone only sang about 2-3 songs each. The concert started exactly when it said it was going to and ended at the scheduled time as well. And the biggest difference of all - folks didn't really dance. They stayed in their seats until the performers asked them to stand up! My friends and I all wiggled in our chairs to the beat but some audience members were falling asleep! 

Because I didn't know what to expect from this concert I tried to go with comfort, style, layered warmth. Y'all know how much I love a good sweater dress and this pink animal print is just the right amount of funky. I put on the leather vest for extra warmth but also because I like how it hits me right at the waist. 

I think my favorite thing is all the jewelry. I'm normally too lazy put on a bunch of stuff but I love how it looks when I do. I'm obsessed with bracelet parties; one of the fun things is how versatile it can be. You can go boho,  mix-and-match metallics, or play with different textures. Chanel said before you leave the house, take off one thing but with bracelet parties, before you leave the house, I say ADD one more thing! 

Sweater Dress: Clothing Swap | Vest: Korean thrift store | Boots: DSW | Rings, Earrings and Bracelets: Gifted or Clothing Swap 

Faux Leather Leggings and Military Jacket for Errands in the Rain

I can't tell you how please I am with how this outfit turned out. To be honest, it was supposed to be a just a "throw on" kinda deal. I was running errands and needed something comfortable to wear without getting soggy in the rain (if you look closely, in some of the photos you can see rain drops). 

I hadn't worn these faux leather leggings yet and it was finally cool enough to do so. These things are awesome! They're faux leather in the front, and thick cotton in the back - roomy enough for my booty and lets my legs breathe. Man, you don't even realize how much the faux leather keeps in heat! 

This summer when I was checking out at DSW, we saw these hanging with the other leggings. I didn't try them on in the store and I was really nervous if they would fit or even look nice. And honestly, leather on my short stump legs? I wasn't convinced. But my mom convinced me to get them (thanks, Mom!) and I'm glad I did! I can't wait to style them with other things. 

For styling this time around, I just threw on my chambray top to keep it casual. The military jacket, hiking booties,  strong silver jewelry, and braids all organically came together to create this tough, outdoorsy kind of look. I love it. It's not something normally I go to but it was refreshing to wear something more masculine than I'm used to. It was also fun to wear three huge fall trends together, too: leather, military-inspired, and chambray. 

How would you style faux leather leggings? 

Shirt: Target | Jacket: Old Navy; similar here | Leggings: Jessica Simpson at DSW; similar here & here | Boots: Guess | Necklace: Handmade | Earrings: Naughty Cat

My Day to Night Look and Shopping for Spite in Korea

For this outfit, I needed something that would go from day to night easily. I was going to running around the city - late lunch with the boyfriend and dinner and drinks with the ladies. Well, when night-time came, all I did was stuff this vest into my leather backpack and change from my loafers to my heels. Easy-peasy. In my opinion, this dress is too short and too tight to be running errands during the day but by adding the vest, I felt like now it wasn't too overtly sexy. 

I got to tell you a story about this dress. And about shopping in Korea. I'm a size 8 in the U.S. but in Korea, I'm a size fat. It's a daily struggle for even the most confident or thinnest expats. Needless to say, shopping here can sometimes be a terrible pain. Especially when a lot of the stores only carry one-size-fits-all. I saw this dress and instantly loved it. It's such a cool geometric-print. I was looking for exactly something like this. I felt like I had a lot of cutesy-girly dresses but I wanted something sexy to show off my curves. I wanted to look and feel like a woman, not a kindergarten teacher (which was my job when I bought the dress). I also did not want a boring black dress. 

I grabbed this dress the minute I saw it and went over to the mirror near the dressing rooms. The sales clerk looked like she had just been electrocuted when she jerked her body towards me and threw her arms into a big "X", saying no in Korean. Now, I knew I wasn't going to be allowed to try on the dress the minute I walked into the store; I wanted to use the mirror. But the amount of aggression she displayed was very disheartening. She also was attracting a lot of attention from the other shoppers which made it even more embarrassing - I was trying to see if the dang thing would cover my butt. I still wasn't sure if it would fit or if it would look good on me - who knew if this would be a flattering print? I threw the dress at her and said I wanted to buy it. My $30 spite dress (I rarely spend over $10 on a dress). Man, I was pissed off. Luckily, this time my temper paid off and I think I look pretty dang svelte in it!  

I bought what my boyfriend creatively refers to as my "bowling heels" at a Korean thrift store and thankfully, trying on shoes is always a more pleasant experience. I also handmade my necklace last winter when I was inspired by the tribal-Native American trend. 

Sadly, my dressing room encounter isn't the first, last or worst story that's happen to an expat while living here. Have you ever been embarrassed when trying on something?

Dress: Eunhang Underground | Vest: Amber (Korean company) | Heels: Korean Thrift Store | Loafers: Target (Goodwill) | Sunglasses: Eunhang Underground | Ring: Clothing Swap | Necklace: Handmade by me