Outer Smile

What’s happening up there in the North? Not to be all superficial, but I have been hearing bad news about snow from all over Northern Hemisphere. Seems like you guys are dealing with such extreme malevolent nature power. I can only say good luck.

We are not doing really well here either in Indonesia, super rain season had demolished most of the main roads and ruined our daily schedules. And if it’s raining, flood will come in no time. Bam! Another flood season. Luckily, the flood didn’t really affect my side of the city, but still… I felt pretty bad for those Jakartans who had to deal with muddy water and snake (yes, they found one swimming happily in some broken poles and it’s quite big. Don’t worry, I think it found a way to escape from the zoo or something).

Here’s the deal though: try to look anything from its bright side. Hey, I know the winter sucks, but at least you can put on your outerwear and be all chic. We, on the other hand, had to buy the biggest, ugliest, most colorful rain coat that would turn into pieces in no time. At least, we never need to deal with snow (sometimes it sucks though, not to be able to do all those ‘western’ funs).

People has been asking around in social media about what clothes they should wear in this kind of weather. Let’s all remember that Fashion Week is going to happen next month and it’s not a really big motivator. Don’t worry though. Keep calm and look for the slickest black sweater you can possibly find (like this), then put on your skinny jeans (or jeans, if you have put on some weights) (dark blue or grey will do). Last step?Cover them with coat.

Here’s the fun part: you can experiment with your coat this time! Yeay!

I am really suggesting you to play with cuts and silhouettes because trench coat is just so mainstream (read: boring).  How about Maison Martin Margiela for H&M coat? I know it’s so last season, but remember we are no fashion trend victim. Or if you insist on something new and ‘high’… fine, let’s go to Prada and buy one of their gorgeous mural coats. Artsy, well-cut, warm, fuzzy… okay, I am going to stop right now. 

See? Winter can be fun too! Yeah, let’s enjoy it! Winter spirit! Snow! Rain! Dancing in the rain while listening to Taylor Swift  Beyoncé and pretending we are in her so anticipated music video! Woo-hoo! 

Almost forgot, try to wear real boots please! High heels are pretty as always, but you are dealing with gigantic piles of wet snows, mud, and God knows what. Being safe is always more fashionable than anything. Am I right? I know I am right. 

Image taken from The Sartorialist. Edited by Gimme Good Style.

All Pride in Heels

Andrea Sachs (yes, Devil Wears Prada) (did I spell the name right? I haven’t read the book since… the sequel came out) (bah! Such a lame sequel!) says that everyone in fashion world (or everyone who is conscious enough about fashion or work for Miranda Priestly) wears heels… like all the time. She doesn’t understand why or even bother to try to crack the code.

Why women wear heels all the time? Why they bother to hurt their feet? Is it because of their heights? I don’t think height really matters because the highest heel is around… 10 centimeters? Not really helping at all. After asking here and there I get one reason why heels are always trending: they make women feel sexy, sophisticated and just like what Beyoncé always say: Who run the world? Girls! 

The answer is quite expected, but it popped another question in my head: why women think they’re sexy when they’re wearing heels? Right, I knowww… I am questioning such an obvious thing to women. That’s why I stopped asking my girl-friends (friends who are girls mind you!) and started to chat with some of the ‘men’. 

Why men think women are sexy when they’re wearing heels?

My first correspondent answer with a perfect poker face: the boobs (and butt).

Yes, when women wear heels, their bodies change into a certain position that maximize the chest and butt areas. It’s not vulgar, more like… courageous movement to enhance their physical advantages. And men love boobs (and butt). End of story. 

The second reason is… the slow movement. 

There’s a reason why Carrie Bradshaw has never run with her Manolo before. Who can do that such thing? There is a good effect when you can’t run though. When you walk slowly, there are enough moments for men to look at you wholefully. From head to toe to head again. Their brains can finally process all the crucial things needed to score a woman. Quite… egoist, but these are men we are talking about. 

And of course the fantasy… 

I think every man has watched Basic Instinct or at least heard about the movie. Sharon Stone with that white dress and white pumps, hanging in the chair with her legs crossed in such position… what man can resist such a thought when seeing a woman with heels (and walk/sit like Sharon Stone)? Heels look so sophisticated and elegant for women, but men look heels as something wild yet sexy… sexually. Such a fantasy, huh? 

Honorable answer: meet her in the eyes! 

The main reason God creates heels is to enhance women’s heights, so they can compete men in term of heights. Let me tell you a secret: men love it when someone looks straight at them in the eyes. It’s respectful for both sides, it’s intelligent, it shows confidence, it’s a bit romantic, it’s seductive, it’s the elegant way to flirt, etc etc etc. 

My head is burning now. A lot of strange answers (sexual answers) for one fashion question. I guess heels make women and men think more with their feelings than brains. But clothes are indeed emotional though, just like what Project Runway once said. 

Flats… heels.. sneakers… at the end of the day, who really cares about our feet anymore? 

Image taken from Jak and Jil

Mullet?

2014! New Year! Woo-hoo! What did you do for New Year? Partied all night in Times Square? Threw your old stuffs and bought new ones? Or searched the internet for new fashion trends, which is quite a hot topic since fashion week is just 2 months from now?

I spent my New Year’s Eve by watching Project Runway (lame alert here). Okay, season 9 (so…dated!) The designers amazed me in both good and bad ways. I love to see them fight to the last drop of their bloods (or fabric) (just watched The Hobbit. Again. So dramatic, no?) But I just couldn’t hold my barf when I saw their designs. Some are indeed great… others are ‘off’. Have to quote Michael Kors here.

The judges go on and off about ‘creativity’ every single season, you know what? Screw creativity. This is a show. A TV show. You have to steal people’s attentions. America’s attention to be precise. And there is nothing westerners love more than… sexiness. Admit it! We let Jersey Shore and SATC aired for decade and skip CNN for those two (economy? politics? laws? crimes? terrorists? Who gives a shit about them?) And don’t let me talk about The Kardashians! So lame yet we keep on talking about those hotties in leotards.

That’s the  right direction!

Of course sexy can’t come as easy as snapping your fingers (I can’t snap my fingers! Don’t know why!) It needs attention and carefulness…. maybe a little bit complicated techniques, like what Alexander Vauthier does. Yeah, I know Project Runway designers don’t have the luxury of time (shame!) What comes in my mind is something simpler though. Just one item. For bottom part. Not sexy-amazing, but versatile enough to manipulate…. 

A mullet skirt. 

A mullet has short length on the front to show your legs yet keep the balance with its long flapping tail. Sexy and edgy in one shot. I don’t know why mullet is a rare scenery in Project Runway… maybe because it takes a lot of time (really? One of the designers has sewed thousands of handmade flowers in one day!) Or it hasn’t come in their minds yet. Well, if the latter is the right answer… those guys better think of this quick and make it works! 

Image taken from Carolines Mode

Roar Roar Roar!

Congratulation for Katy Perry in gaining number two spot in album selling this week based on MTV daily Instagram feed (waittt…. is it accidentally rhyme?) (I am such a poetic blogger!)

Number one belongs to Beyonce, but we can forget about that. Or talk about that LATTER. This post’s star is Katy Perry and I love her so much, I am typing this while listening to her megahit ROAR. Okay, maybe some people say this song is just ‘casually’ catchy just like her other songs…. Well, they aren’t wrong, but who cares? ROAR has done it’s purpose and at the end of the day we’re all singing it like crazy. Yes, yes, we can’t deny that we all want to have the eye of a tiger or become a champion. Pfft, who doesn’t want to kick an ex-boy/girlfriend in the ass? 

Anyway, most of Katy’s fans are showing their loves by singing the song all-day-all-night, just stop long enough to read about her newest achievement, then sing even louder. But Katy’s fans in high-fashion world aren’t used to sing loudly with their Gisele-Bundchen-husky-expensive voices. They show their loves by wearing what literally means ROAR.

Like a tiger backpack for example. 

P.S: Alrighty, forget about high fashion fans’ loves whatsoever. Katy Perry’s ROAR has somehow revived the old tiger-print back on the street. Even though the style hasn’t really made a big big news, it’s quite addictive. But Beyonce is also on the move and… well, ROAR is not on the top like it used to be, so… maybe it’s the right time to channel your inner tiger into something less… obvious. 

Talking more furiously maybe? 

Image taken from The Sartorialist.

Hibernating (aka Rain Coat-ing)

When I am not hibernating, I am busy locating my rain coats. Seriously, this rainy season is making me feel a little moody. Or lazy. I don’t know what to do, I don’t know what to eat (too lazy to get creative and cook something like pasta-with-veal-and-parsley-leaf-combined-with-gastronomical-grapes) (forget veal, I don’t even have proper nuggets in my fridge). In short, rainy season means hibernating for me. 

It’s not like I don’t want to go outside and have a nice rainy walk or something. Just like what I’ve said before: I don’t know where my rain coats are. Every single stuff in my cupboard is contemplating some mysterious moves to hide themselves from me. Or maybe I just don’t have anything to begin with. Time to go and buy a real kick-ass rain coat. Yes, I mean it. Kick-ass rain coat.

This might not sound important to you, but finding great rain coat means finding the right motivation to go out, and finding the right motivation to go out means no-hibernation for me, no hibernation means I don’t have to sleep all day and watch my already sexy stomach turns into it’s even sexier version. See? My whole life depends in this coat.  

Okay, let’s start then: Uhm, the requirements needed to fill in order to find the right rain coat for me:

• Talking about length. It has to be long because I have a quite tall body. But it shouldn’t be too long until I have to make sure I don’t ruin the coat every time I walk across some filthy pool on the street. 
• Talking about size. It has to fit me just right. Not too bulky or too warm because we are talking about Jakarta’s humid rainy season’s weather. It has to fall easily from my chest to somewhere around my thigh, but fit perfectly on my shoulders. Well, imagine Harry Potter’s robe… with hoodie. 
• Talking about colors. Transparent. Best color ever (for rain coat)!
• Talking about functionality (aka weight). It has to be very light (and easy to fold), so I can carry it anywhere I want without having to figure out the best way to tuck it (violently) inside my bag. BUT not too light until an easy breeze is enough to tear it to pieces. 
• Talking about brand. I haven’t decided anything yet… but Muji can be a strong candidate. 

Hmm, I guess that’s all I need to challenge the rain (and my hibernating habit). Oh well, let’s have some sleep then!

Image taken from The Sartorialist. Edited by Gimme Good Style

Psycho-Fur-Addict

Winter… ah, such a romantic scene we have out there (read. you have out there since the view is always the same in Jakarta. Desert). You know things like snow (pff… snow? What snow?), hot coffee, cafe with romantic lights and a partner (much subtler than BF/GF things, no?) Not just in life, but even in more important matter like… fashion. And I dare you to say: what’s more faithful than a fur coat? Say it! Come-on!

Okay, I am not mad. I just feel guilty. I always feel guilty when it comes to my adoration to fur items. I don’t care if it’s fur coat or fur headphones (or so I’ve heard), as long as it has that soft, warm, fluffy surface, I am in. I know fur is an indirect act of animals genocide, and I know those animals are too cute to die just for our needs of beauty, and I know faux leather/fur doesn’t help much BUT I just love them so much.

I love the way a good fur coat falls in a woman’s body. Rejoicing her body shape yet at the same time telling people she is a sophisticated woman. A glamorous one. That fur-woman also generates this sad, luxurious feeling. She feels like she’s an unused ornament of the past for her rich husband. She is lonely yet she is strong and will be fine…. until she finds a new lover that can match her style.

Inside and outside.

All of them just flashed in my eyes like a complete movie. I even predicted the fur-woman will get an Oscar (not for best actress, mind you. For best custom)(duh!) Oh, this is holiday right? Can we please please please adore fur without this guilty feelings for a moment?

Pretty please?

Image taken from The Sartorialist

Moto Classic

Have I told you this thing before?

Sorry guys, I am currently in this dreamy-exhausted state of mind because of my final exams week. If you are wondering why I am still blogging in this kind of weeks, well I have to stay in shape for the fashion week, no? Or else my brain would freeze and I will only write ‘beautiful’ in my yearly fashion week reviews.

Anyway, have I told you before that motorcycle jacket is the new classic item? Well, if I haven’t, there you have it. Motorcycle jacket aka biker jacket is not just a cool jacket for bad girls/boys anymore, it has joined the long list of classic items. And I believe it is in the same line with little black dress.

Actually, I was kinda confused why it is so hard to accept moto jacket (such a cool idiom, isn’t it?) as one of the classic items. We all confess that we have one in our cupboards and if we don’t, we do want to have one. It’s like having a piece of both luxury (of the leather) and chicness at the same time. Plus, you can always wear your moto jacket basically anywhere you want, making it even more versatile than little black/white dress.

Oh, don’t get me started on how-to-not-look-boring-inside-your-old-moto-jacket. Please, you can make a really heavy dictionary on how to wear moto jacket.

Well, I vote for my Moto. How about you guys?

Image taken from Garance Dore

P.S: The image above is how to wear your moto femininely. See? There are a lot of styles to explore out there, even if you have just one classic item: your moto!

Immortal Winter Soldier

Winter can be unpleasant for those who have limited to no coat budgets (talking about me. Hooray!) I had no idea before, how expensive a single long coat can be (and how long it really is! My whole body seems to shorten in just a few minutes. I have to tell you that I consider myself as tall, but I am like dwarf, if you compare me to those Westerners).

Maybe because I have been living in t-shirts and pants all this time, until I realize I DO need coats/jackets for certain occasions (cough… fancy holiday… cough). I remember people used to tell me all the time that coat is such a long-lasting item that you don’t need to replace. Immortal, that’s it. And I strangely believed them, partly because I was trying to save some money to buy something else (cough… cool shirts from Muji… cough).

Then like a silent assassin, this picture struck me straight on the face. More like a bitch-slap. Scars… too much scars in one’s jacket until it looks more like a battered up anti-bullet vest, that just had a rough visit to World War II-like war zones (or World War Z kinda world), than a warm cozy outerwear. I was terrified and ran back as fast as I can to Zara (not Burberry, sorry people!) and decided to buy one giant black sweater that looks really really strong.

It’s always nice to have one or two bullet supplies, no?

Image taken from The Sartorialist. Edited by Gimme Good Style

Bigger And Not Better

Is bigger always better? We all know the answer is NO.

In some cases, it’s better to go smart and choose a simple thing than choosing an over-decorated, bigger alternative. What people don’t know is same principle is used in fashion.

Bigger is not always better.

Okay, okay, I have a lot of examples that range from clothes’ sizes (gasp!) to more business like matters like prices, etc. But this is Monday aka Monster Day aka The Gloomiest Day of The Week, I need something a little bit more refreshing than clothes’ sizes.

Let’s have a small talk about big-accessory-is-not-always-a-better-accessory instead. 

As you already know from the beginning of this little blog: I adore big accessories. Some people may say big necklaces, bunch of tiny bracelets with different colors, super-huge pendants, and oh-la-la earrings are not their things.

Well, I am not one of them!

When it comes to styling people (read: making a collage in Polyvore and critically judging my sister outfits), I always go big in accessory-hunting. My sacred rule is only one; no more than one big accessories. Oh, okay, one more thing: look out for the clothes (not all clothes are big-accessories-friendly).  

And it works all the time, like a magic charm. 

The thing is I have shown you how good simple style is, but I just realized that I have never given a bad example of ‘over-the-top’ style. So, here we are….

Big HAPPY necklace (it’s happening I think…), big earrings, a skully body-type (no offense), yellow dress with brave cuttings. All of them are too.. full for me. Too wrong.

Ah-ah, not my style. 

Just take it easy guys. Apart from art, fashion is just a mix between simplicity AND functionality.

Hail to the likes of Jil Sander and Alexander Wang, I say!  

Image taken from Jak and Jil 

Ten Thousand Shades of Style

What goes around comes back around.

Yes, thank you Beyoncé. What goes around indeed comes back around in term of love. Same business in fashion, even though critics and reporters fiercely tell us that ‘fashion is always new’, we can’t deny that, at some point, fashion becomes quite repetitive.

We’ve seen that dress before, we’ve seen that pattern before. And don’t get me started on ‘inspired by archives’ press releases.

Aw, come-on! It’s like telling the whole world you are basically remade the whole late collections into its newer, more glamorous, more expensive, and less classic versions. I am totally not buying it.

In short, fashion is not that new.. and so do we.

I am not saying we need to buy new clothes every day in order to become ‘exciting’ or ‘sensual’ or ‘fashionable’. Nah, sometimes it’s okay to accept the fact that you don’t have many options when it comes to fashion (especially budget fashion).

It is not okay, if you accept the fact that you can only pull of one style all the time (aka you are boring.) I dare you to say NO aloud to the sky (very cinematic, I know.) We are definitely not boring. We may be broke, but we will NEVER be boring.

To prove my argument here, I give you Shini Park, the extraordinary blogger/photographer/web designer behind the successful Park and Cube.

I’ve seen her in plaid shirts a few times before (not always, but quite memorable), which is quite rare considering her ‘ah-so-fashion’ blogger status and her quite unlimited DIY skills. What interesting is, even though I have seen her plaids again and again, I never feel that she is playing the same style.

And that’s not because I have a weak brain cells when it comes to memorizing facts and tiny little details.

Anyway, Shini’s plaid sometimes can be sporty, feminine, work as supporter, work as main item, work as main item and accessory and supporter.

It’s so versatile in exciting manners!

I totally fall in love with this fact and create a new fashion philosophy:

Fashion is not about how many clothes that you have or how many collections a designer can make. Fashion is creativity, and to challenge another side of yourself. 

… Pff, I know I am a genius. I just know it.

Image taken from Park and Cube