Give more colours

If you read my post on my on all things colourful (or too colourful, sometimes), you could understand my apprehension on overly kaleidoscopic hues. Sometimes I do feel confident to wear gaudy colours, but sometimes I feel tired of coordinating and I want only all black wrapping my body. I envy those very disciplined fashion personae with monochromatic/all-white affinity - Ivana Carpio from Love Aesthetics, for example, is so restrained in her selection, that she owns nothing but blanc blanc blanc.  

Not so summer kicks

Past-season fashion will always be in fashion (well, in my books at least), depending on how classic and relevant the design is. Due to the ever changing and rapid turnover of trends I find it too fleeting, and not to mention expensive to keep up with the latest styles of clothing. Hence buying last season items at a fraction of the original price is one of the ways for me to enjoy fashion without creating a huge dent in my bank account which is already burdened with monthly bill payment, etcetera.

What are you wearing?

We have been extensively scouring for affordable bargains whilst in Paris and that includes WALKING from one department store to another, going to certain multilabel stores (not just Colette) and the high street is not spared either. But what would this blog be without a good old outfit post?

Whilst Arman has brought about six winter-appropriate jackets/coats or so I've been limiting myself with three outerwear (well, four including a reversible H&M x Margiela piece). It's always a bit of a conundrum when it comes to selecting proper winter clothing (the sizing and pricing issues, of course). But luckily those women's Undercover x Uniqlo quirky stuff came to the rescue. Anyhow I still did not manage to maximise the clothing part and I'm blaming this entirely to my not-so-spacious American Tourister suitcase which basically tilts to the side when packed full. I guess that is the peril of travelling on budget...

Arman is wearing something appropriate for the Burberry Prorsum show - he's wearing trench coat by Burberry Prorsum (obvs), Prada bag (in front of Prada Galleria Vittoria Emmanuele II, how appropriate x2), Raf Simons jeans, Carven boots

Summer sales happiness

It's good to know that MUSA has managed to clear much of their inventory from SS2010 and beyond, in order to move on to their next project which is still in a hush hush mode. But it's sad the venture into independent European labels is rather short-lived though. I try not to toot my own horn here but dare I say I am among the lucky persons (but unlucky financially, if you'd like to think the other way) who managed to scoop a great bargain that this sale offers (offers, as in present tense. Yes, it's still ongoing). 

As I tweeted previously the Christopher Kane items at MUSA are so greatly discounted it surpasses the London sample sale calibre. I'm not exaggerating! Now the seemingly unattainable FW2011 tartan print shirt becomes my possession at a fraction of the original price...

I tried to pair the (here's my attempt to create a new colour vocabulary) dusty gold t-shirt with a nearly-matching jacket, tailored to my petit frame. Remember when the jacket was a tad too large? The pleated wool trousers are from Et Vous, a French label, acquired during a separate MUSA sale. I love the baggy yet tailored silhouette, the pleats, and the best thing is they're cropped at the ankles! They actually come together with a jacket but the Gaga-esque exaggerated shoulders made me think twice to wear it...

I'm wearing a custom-tailored jacket from eBay, Christopher Kane FW 2011 tartan print shirt, Et Vous pleated trousers, Comme des Garcons Shirt shoes, Ayame socks, brooch from a market in Sabah

It was not a coincidence as Arman and I decided to wear Kane's t-shirt from the same collection. The purple hue is a more vibrant option than my more subdued version. This is further augmented by a shiny clutch from Marc by Marc Jacobs. I guess outfit color-coordination speaks volumes in terms of reflection of the wearer's personality - perhaps the notion of bright colors equals to outgoingness and vice versa is indeed a tried-and-tested concept...

 

Arman's recent trip to Johor Premium Outlet has resulted in this interesting beaded sneakers from Adidas x Jeremy Scott commercially successful collab. Arman always gets amazing footwear on our jaunts to JPO but I, on the other hand, always come back empty-handed due to the lack of small boyish shoe size there.

P/S: By the way, if you haven't noticed we have joined forces at Dunia Fashyon and Arman has put on some wonderful news, e.g. all the Oroton updates. 

Have a great weekend!

written by Hafidzudin
twitter: @naboonies

Batik-ed

I have been slightly crazy over prints (this is not a new occurrence at Dunia Fashyon - I just dabbled in paisley prints recently), and, following my subsequent jaunt to the Jonker's Walk, I have acquired this batik print backpack from a store called Next KK.

It has never crossed my mind that this seemingly souvenir-laden shop which aims at the flocks of tourists offers something that I myself would really buy... the memories of backpacking days in the Europe crept in: I had history of falling into such tourist traps where buying overpriced Hard Rock Cafe t-shirts, town-specific fridge magnets, key chains and postcards was the objective proof that you have been in, say, Paris or Berlin.

 

Ann Demeulemeester goodness

I cannot help but, from time to time, to put on this hooded tunic from soft diaphanous cotton fabric. Without question the cult Belgian designer always knows how to produce a fine quality piece yet at the same time befitting the contemporary wearer. Personally I can wear this tunic with the loose linen Thai fisherman pants to echo the drapery effect of the top, or, pair it with a corduroy vest, also from Ann D. Talking about value for money, I have been wearing this tunic for quite a while now, tracking back my entry regarding my trip to Antwerp more than two years ago...

 

  

  

Here I am wearing the drapey + drapey combo, composed of Ann Demeulemeester tunic shirt, linen Thai fisherman pants from eBay, accessorised with Celine Bi-cabas lambskin bag and Comme des Garcons x Generic Man pebble leather brogues with Vibram soles.

A Box from LN-CC

The wonderfully efficient online boutique LN-CC has shipped my order within merely 3 days! Imagine a parcel traveling half the globe within that short period of time? Honestly I think they have a really clever marketing strategy because I'm looking forward for another purchase from this London-based company, all thanks to the speedy delivery...

Even the box comes with a fine little detail - a drawer handle can't look any more adorable than this braided strings.

What did I order you may ask? Not to mention I was taking advantage of the free shipping and heavy discount on few select items, and it turned out some of them are within my reach financially. And of course I had to take the opportunity to sample on things from interesting labels that I have been eying on for quite some time...