Tuesday, March 31, 2009

how to ... have a proper pillow fight


These amazing images are via philippe leroyer's photostream

Head's up to those in need of venting some serious frustration, or just looking to have a grand old time revisiting their childhood. World Pillow Fight Day is taking place this Saturday, 4 April 2009. Find out where you and your pillow should go to join the fun on this website.

In New York, the pillow fight is taking place at Wall Street & Broad Street at 3:00 PM. I guess they figured all the Wall Streeters have a lot of pent up aggression to release this year! I'd be weary of standing next to someone with a Patek Philippe.

Fastest Clickers Ever

Hautelook shoppers have the fastest fingers ever, I swear. Within 15 minutes these La Rok dresses were all sold out. I guess at prices of $119.20 for these dresses it's not a hard decision to click "Checkout." Oh well. Better for me. I've just paid off this month's CC bills and I am seriously not allowed to shop anymore.

Watercolor Florals

I never thought I'd fall for florals, but I've been really liking the look of watercolor florals on summer dresses popping up this season. I think this strapless dress from Kimchi Blue at Urban Outfitters is so pretty and not too painful on the pocket at $58:

This filmy strapless maxi dress from Victoria's Secret makes me bemoan my height and inability to wear long dresses. If I order this, I'd have to lop off all those pretty layers at the bottom just to be able to walk in it. Arrrrgh. I hate being short. If you're tall enough for this, VS is giving 20% off orders over $50 today, which is a nice little discount because this dress here actually costs $168! Really, VS, really?!?

There's some version of this sexy silk caftan at VS every season, it seems, in varying fabrics. This faded flowery fabric's quite pretty. Again, you can get 20% off the $118 pricetag if you buy today.

Can't wait for the weather to warm up a wee bit more so I can float around the city in airy summer dresses!

Monday, March 30, 2009

Spring Blooms

The Cherry Blossom Girl's amazing pictures and the sunny weather today got me in the mood for spring and blooms. I am officially in LOVE with these camellia espadrilles by Bettye Muller at Anthropologie. The $368 pricetag is causing me pain though.

*sigh*

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Indian Brunch

One of my favorite ways to spend a Sunday afternoon is to dig into the $8.95 buffet at Bawarchi, the Indian restaurant a block away from our apartment. I brought Sonu here for dinner once, who's Canadian-Indian, and she and her brother gave the restaurant pretty good ratings in terms of the authenticity of the dishes. The only place they could get better food, they said, was from their own mother (We all know Indian mothers make the best food right?). Pretty strong reviews, Mika and I thought.

I always tend to go crazy and pile as much food as possible on my plate when I go (as evidenced by the picture above). But I should really limit myself to some rice and loads of the Chicken Tikka Masala, the addictive boneless chicken tandoori swimming in creamy tomato sauce. It is sooooo good, but I always sabotage myself by loading up on other good but not as good stuff. It is a wonderful feast to have on a Sunday afternoon, and amazing rescue for those who spent Saturday night partying too hard. There's nothing that some hot, rich, saucy food and delicious mango lassi can't cure, I say!

Where: 1149 1st Avenue at E. 63rd Street, New York 10065

Momofuku Noodle Bar

After years of wondering about but not really feeling compelled to try the famed Momofuku ramen, we finally stumbled into the Noodle Bar this afternoon. I was starving and raring to eat anything so even though the $16 ramen price tag elicited "what the f*cks" from our party, we dove in anyway.

Our friend Wendy ordered those oft-praised pork buns. Being Chinatown frequenters, our eyebrows raised at the $9 pricetag for two tiny pork buns, of course. One bite made us a bit more accepting. The white bun was soft and creamy, and filled with pork slices rather than the usual shredded pork. Each pork slice had an ample bit of fat and crisp skin, and was seasoned with hoisin sauce and paired with refreshing cucumber slices. It's like a cross between a pork bun, a peking duck roll, and krispy pata (for non-Filipinos, that's deep fried pork belly). Good stuff and perhaps worth coming back for.

Now on to the ramen. Considering that I was starving, I expected to be more blown away than I was, if the Momofuku ramen was indeed so wonderful. But it was just alright. The broth was sufficiently salty and tasty, but not as complex as, say Ippudo. The ramen itself also did not have the perfect al dente consistency as, say Ippudo. What I did like was the wonderful pork slices in the soup (David Chang knows his pork belly, I concede) and the poached egg. Nice stuff. But overall, was it worth $16 and worth coming back for? I think not.

Where: 171 1st Avenue between 10th & 11th Streets, New York, NY 10003

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Finally, some McQueen

I finally got something McQueen from the darned Target collab (I'm still sour about my zig zag dress cancellation, can you tell?). I received the harness bikini top last night, and I'm pretty happy about it. I got it to use as a sportsbra, not a bikini top—girl, I shiver to think the horrid tan lines one would get from using this as a bikini top! I'll use it for Bikram today, but as of last night it already got good reviews from the boyfriend who went, "Whoa, sexy" when I tried it on. It's definitely my sexiest sports bra right now. If they still have it in XS when the collection goes on clearance (retail is $19.99 so not that cheap), I just might get a few more.

Update: Holy cow I LOVE this bikini top-turned sportsbra! It stayed perfectly in place during class and looked damn hot too! I couldn't tell you about wicking capabilities as this is Bikram yoga and you're just plain old drenched in sweat the whole time. But I absolutely love it, and now kinda wish I didn't spend $$ on random sportsbras from Amazon, and instead just bought 3 of these. I hope, hope, hope they stay in stock til the clearance sale so I can get a few more without guilt!

Got Lucky!



I didn't realize there was a promo going on when I ordered a bunch of stuff at Amazon Apparel. I was really just looking to save a buck on some sports bras and shorts to sweat in for my Bikram class. It turns out that if you spend $25 in apparel or shoes at Amazon, you get a free 1-year subscription to Lucky or Details! Cool stuff. These days, anything free is good ...

Friday, March 27, 2009

To be young

Image by Heather Glison at One Love Photo

After weeks of denial, I took a good look at next month's credit card bills and my current bank balance, and then thought about the expenses of our upcoming Vegas-Grand Canyon-San Francisco-Napa Valley-Seattle trip and felt quite troubled. And then I saw this beautiful picture at this wonderful blog and just had to smile. How wonderful would it be to be that young and carefree again?

Would you like some jelly?


I think these Reva jelly flats by Tory Burch are sooooo cute, and not bad price-wise at $95. However, I'm not sure that I'd want to wear closed jelly shoes during the steaming hot summer. I like my feet to breathe in the heat ... but still, they're so cute!! And I seem to spy little air vents on the side so that might work ... These would be so fun at a pool party or out sailing; not so fun at the beach (little sand particles stuck in jelly flats = ick). I don't know. I'm on the fence on these.

Topshop Cometh

Less than a week and Topshop will FINALLY open in Soho!!! Can't wait to try on these babies:

Any Whispers About Wink?

Everyone seems very quiet about the Wink Warehouse Sale, which started yesterday. No reviews. The only thing I found was a tip on Racked about last year's sale, which pretty much said to "spare yourself the subway ride" if you're not in the neighborhood. Hmm. Guess I'm skipping this one, but if you are in the neighborhood, here are the details:

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Reading Material: Schott's Vocab Blog

This is such an interesting read. Schott's Vocab is a blog that compiles modern words and phrases, which range from silly (McSaint refers to a "perenially perky" employee at McDonald's) to the disturbing (corrective rape refers to the use of sexual assault to "cure" lesbians in South Africa). The blog not only introduces new terms but also provides a pulse on what's happening all over the world.

I am fascinated by the term amortality. It sounds so desirable and yet so troublesome.

Yves Saint Laurent for Net-a-porter


I don't know if this falls under designer for less since it's still Net-a-porter prices. But this dress, I LOVE.

What's the opposite of buyer's remorse?

Stuff I missed on Rue La La today. This Kooba purse was just $99!! No wonder it sold out in flash.
I'm really unhappy about this Alice + Olivia dress, which was only $79 because I had it in my cart but failed to checkout right away, so I lost it. ARGH!
Oh well.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Black and White

I think dresses masquerading as two-piece outfits are so cool. Visually interesting and yet so easy to wear. I especially like these ones from Forever 21 because each dress costs just $22.80!

Pretty things to look at

Swarms of little ants and butterflies look so amazing against a stark white background. Bailey Doesn't Bark makes these quirky cups, saucers and spoons that look like they've been swarmed with ants. It made me think of those Dior Homme by Hedi Slimane shirts with a bee stitched on at random spots, and thus found out about the brand's current fixation with butterflies. At Dior Homme's Paris store, Italian artist Andrea Mastrovito created a gorgeous installation of black paper butterflies. So simple but so beautiful.



Images of Dior Homme Paris via Wallpaper

Summer Satchels

My on-the-ball shopping partner-in-crime Sonu turned me on to the Felix Rey for Target collection. I'll admit that I'm not really a Felix Rey fan (I don't hate their stuff, but I'm not crazy about them either) but I quite like what they've done with Target.

This is the perfect summer beach bag. I think all of the bags are made out of canvas and PVC. I normally frown upon PVC but since it's just a trim and these bags are meant to be abused over the summer, PVC is not such a bad idea. I love the sleek design and the cute details, especially the shell clasp; too cute for words:

These envelope clutches are very cute and summery too. They're fairly large at 13" x 2.5" x 8 " which would make them a great day-to-night bag. At just $29.99, such an inexpensive but fun summer update to your wardrobe. I like the gray version but ultimately the gold one is more versatile.




These bags are only available online, not in stores. All three are eligible for free shipping and 10% off with a minimum purchase, too.

Green Tea Kit Kat

Strange, intriguing and true. Our Japanese friends have recreated my favorite chocolate, Kit Kat, in a green tea flavor. I ended up having it for breakfast out of sheer curiosity.



It tastes similar to the white chocolate Kit Kat (verrry sweet) except with a hint of green tea flavor—very much like how a green tea frappuccino from Starbucks would taste. Very interesting and worth a try, though the original Kit Kat retains its special place in my heart.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Tracy Reese on Gilt Groupe

Loving this outfit being sold on Gilt Groupe right now at the Tracy Reese sale:

Love the braided one shoulder top and LOOOOOVE the shorts with embroidered ikat pattern and rivets:

Unfortunately, can't muster up the courage to spend $78 on shorts, even though they are gorgeous ones. The top is nice but its only made out of viscose and nylon so I can't justify the $88 price either. But love the look, wish it cost a little bit less.

Bebe a la Balmain

Was looking through the Bebe spring catalogue and realized there are some things with a very Balmain a feel. Take this look, for instance. Doesn't this ...

... look so much like this?
Especially if they used this belt, which will be available at Bebe this spring:
This dress ...
... totally reminds me of this gorgeous Balmain dress:

I've got a Vegas trip coming and I think these pretty little things be totally perfect for the partying to come. So trying these on when I see a Bebe store!

EDIT: Whoa! I just realized the first dress costs over $200! Bebe, what the hell do you think you're charging me? My credit card isn't budging til you knock some $$ off that crazy price.

Monday, March 23, 2009

Foiled Again: Alexander McQueen for Target zigzag dress

I have beef with Target today. I ordered this dress on March 4, 2009, literally on the day that the collection dropped.

The ship date was atrocious, something like first week of April, but I bought it anyway because I had been wanting this dress since I heard about the collab. After a week, I hear from my friend Sonu that she received an email from Target saying that her order for the same dress cannot be filled and so it is cancelled. I received no such email so I clung to the hope that I would get mine. But last night, the email came in with the unceremonious message:

Unfortunately, the following item is not currently availablefrom any of our sources.

"Alexander McQueen Ebony/Charcoal Zig Zag Print Dress - 1" [Apparel]

We have cancelled this item from your order.

Just like that, my hopes were dashed. What I want to know is, what kind of fuckery is this Target???

Friday, March 20, 2009

Hello Junior Drake

How come we've never met before? Gorgeous quadruplets on sale at Hautelook.com for $264 from $528. I'm not allowed to shop, but far be it for me to deny you a gorgeous bag!

Snakeskin

After checking out Shopbop's Lookbook for today, I've come to the conclusion that I need strappy snakeskin heels for summer. Or maybe strappy snakeskin flats, since heels are useless in Manhattan. Snakeskin just adds a little something to a LBD or LWD.


Of course now that I've decided I want them, they seem near impossible to find! The Loeffler Randall open-toe booties in these pics are a bit out of my reach at $695. Time to start hunting for snake!

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Club Monaco brings on the Bling

I was lured to the Club Monaco website after reading on My Delightful Obsessions that students can get a 20% discount from my favorite thing to come out of Canada (next to Sonu, of course). I'm not a student and haven't been one for awhile, but anyway, moving on ...

While it was a total downer to be excluded from the discount, it was a joy to see these v. cool accessories Club Monaco is coming out with this spring. The necklaces are bangin! Priced at $69, $79 and $129 from left to right, so I'll probably end up with the leftmost one if I buy any of these. Or maybe the cobalt blue? (Sonu is nodding her head in agreement ... or maybe whipping out her credit card?) It adds such an amazing pop of color to any outfit.



These cuffs are pretty awesome too. No price on them on the website so it'll be a suprise. I'd kill for the wooden and yellow gold one though I'm sure that this, like every other cuff, will not fit me too.

Thank you Club Monaco for the gorgeous accessories. Now if you'd put them on sale right now, we'd love you even more.

Spotted and Now Coveting: Balenciaga Giant Work Bag

I saw this beauty cradled in the lap of an über well-dressed chick on the bus yesterday. I am hearting it hard. The vintage lambskin leather is beautiful and looks good with everything—black, brown, gray or white combos. The hardware is edgy but still polished. And it is large enough to carry my life, which is important to me.


Must it really cost S1,825? To be able to afford this I'd have to cut out Bikram from my life, as well as daily lunches out (not fabulous ones mind you, just $8 salad lunches pretty much). I would have to refrain from buying ANY bags for the next year (I can't cut out shoes because they wear out quickly in New York and I can't exactly go barefoot). SADNESS. I wonder if a Balenciaga sample sale can will fall out of the sky soon and put me out of my misery?

Gilty Pleasures

Gilt Groupe is definitely my favorite online sample sale website right now. They just seem to have the most amazing finds! Today I bought a white jean mini from Habitual for $58, heavily discounted from the original $187 pricetag! I had a $10 credit too (I don't really recall why ... I guess someone I sent the link to bought something) so it was like getting free shipping. Amazing!

The Maltese crosses on the pockets got me. But I'm sure I'll get a lot of use out of these in the spring and the summer, so I'm really happy about this purchase.

I was totally coveting these pieces from Alexis Bittar too but since the necklaces were $150 and $195, and the earrings $125, I thought I'd restrain myself. But these turquoise pieces would be perfect for summer. I'd love to layer these two necklaces:


I'd probably wear these earrings separately cos I don't like wearing jewelry on every part of my body all at the same time. But I love the delicate vermeil on the clear quartz.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Skirting the Issue

My coworkers think its hilarious when I complain on casual Fridays that I wasn't able to wear jeans because they're in the wash.

"You say that like you only have one pair."
"Um, I do."

Ok I have maybe 4 or 5 pairs of jeans, but only 1 pair of blue jeans suitable for work. I'm fine with having just one since I'd really rather be wearing a skirt anyway. But you know what would be the ideal scenario in my eyes? Wearing a denim skirt for casual Fridays.

Some pieces that might make the cut from Urban Outfitters:





Ok maybe the last one is too short for work, but it's way cute for weekends. Gotta get my lil hands on one of these!
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