Quirky 50's

Quite a quirky look for a comeback post don't you think? That is if you've even noticed that I haven't blogged for about 2 months. Even this look, I'm afraid to say, is a backlog. Still better than nothing, right? The direction I was heading for this was reminiscent of the quirky 50's laundry/resort wear look, made modern by itty-bitty distressed denim shorts and a contemporary print.

Of course, such an outfit required an equally fun occasion to wear this to. A mini vacation with my boyfriend seemed perfect for this. More specifically, in time for Labor Day weekend. Man, this just shows how old this post is though! Haha. No matter. Every outfit I post here is like an entry to a diary anyway.

top- Forever 21
shorts- Cotton On
leather sneaks- Forever 21
headband- Forever 21

XO.

Eat Street: Aguirre

Sharing with you now some photos of my food excursion at Aguirre Street in BF Homes (yet again). I came with the purpose of documenting all the food I sampled that day for a project that I did for school. First stop was Sensei Sushi Bar, a restaurant you might have heard of quite recently or more appropriately, seen a lot lately on instagram. What makes it different from your typical Japanese joint is that it combines western and other Asian flavors and ingredients to their sushi. The fusion is executed sublimely which only ups the umami level of the cuisine.  

First dish was both delicate and bold --- in flavor and in texture. Fried oysters topped with kimchi (2nd photo). It boasted of the flavor of the sea combined with the spice and acidity of the traditional Korean side dish. It was coated in crisp fried batter which eventually melted in my mouth thereafter revealing the slimy and mushy softness of the oyster. What delighted my palate the most though was their tuna and scallop dynamite sushi (1st picture). Chunks of fresh tuna inside the sushi rolls made rich and velvety with cream cheese (anything which has cheese in it is bound to be delicious though, right?) and topped with crispy batter-coated scallops. It was literally an explosion of savory goodness in my mouth. I am going back for this. 

After a full-bodied and flavorful start, we headed next to Larcy's for their cupcakes. I fell in love with their red velvet cheesecake cupcake during my first visit and residing in the North leaves me only a few chances to revisit. Therefore it was only natural that I went back for the red velvet cupcake that captured my heart. This time we tried their Speculoos cupcake and Hot Frozen Nutella Smoothie as well. I'm not much of a fan of both Nutella and cookie butter spreads so I didn't really care much for them. It was my boyfriend who ordered these (very macho my dear haha) and I got to try them out of sheer curiosity. For someone who can't be bothered with them and surprisingly enjoyed them, I could say that they would extremely delight fans of Nutella and Speculoos. They're that good. 

Soon it was time for dinner. We wanted something fancy and ended up in The Girl + The Bull. We got their Pork Confit with potato puree and their 100 % beef burger with fries. It was our 2nd time back and the entrees that we had that night were only okay. Leave room for their desserts though especially their famous Faux Twix! 

We finished off a whole day's meal at Magnum Opus Fine Coffees. This was the perfect end to our day. We sat outside the shop and sipped coffee under the black night sky.

I had their Belgian Heartbreaker served cold which tasted more chocolate-y than coffee which was kind of the point. Meanwhile, Mark tried their hand brewed single origin coffee which had notes of a citrus-y flavor (orange I think) and got too excited and ordered another cup of a much more potent type called Draft Spro which closely resembled the taste and fizz of beer. This was Mark's favorite part of the trip as he enjoys drinking and knowing more about coffee. The staff was very knowledgeable of their concoctions and they humbly explained every drink that we ordered. The purpose is not just to simply gulp down the drink but to appreciate its art and subtle varying flavors. I liked this part of the trip because of its novelty and the conversations exchanged during the night. 

XO.

Skirting The Issue

Pencils skirts are kind of my thing lately. Having been sent to the Office of Student Behavior twice now for wearing short hemmed skirts with a corresponding punishment of attending a seminar aptly called Turning Over A New Leaf (I had to pinch myself real hard under the table to keep myself from bursting into a fit of snarky and disdainful laughter in front of this stern officer) just made me more determined to ditch my itty bitty skirts...for a while. And yes, I wore this outfit to school Mr. Skirt Police. 

top- from years ago
skirt- Forever 21
shoes- Zalora 

XO.

The Little White Dress

The LBD is indeed an essential in every girl's closet but there's also the LWD which I think is given little appreciation. After all, wearing white has proven to be quite challenging to put on while managing to look pristine the whole day. Nevertheless, it's just as important and effortlessly stylish as its black counterpart. 

dress- Forever 21
denim jacket- Forever 21
shoes- from Hong Kong

XO.

Emerald City

Dressing in theme for much awaited movies and stage plays is so fun and exciting for me. This is one of the few times I get to expose my geekery for something and use fashion to show it. Last time I did was for Harry Potter, I think. The event for this one was Wicked the musical staged at the CCP in Manila which offered me this great backdrop for this outfit. Quite ironic to shoot this look near the water since the Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba, fears water as it's the cause of her doom. But that bit of weird coincidence was a fun inside joke in my head. 

It was very nice to see that a lot of people also dressed in theme. What was real funny for me though was noticing a bunch of guys wearing pea green shirts who were smiling and looking amused at my green skirt as I lined up for the entrance. I guess they found a fellow geek in me haha. My outfit was actually inspired by Elphie's look when they went to Emerald City. My bowler hat served as the Witch's black pointy hat, spherical sunglasses that every Ozians wore at the city, black crop top to signify her black frock and of course my skirt that matched her green-colored skin! 

My boyfriend even joked how I could've won best costume of the day if there was indeed one. Haha. #commitment

crop top, shoes- Forever 21
bowler hat- H&M
skirt- vintage from the 90's (mom's)

XO.

Golden Tiger

I just had to post at least one look donning a sweater for the holidays. It might not be as noticeably chilly now than the past couple of years but there's something about a snug wool-y pullover that just completes the yuletide season. They didn't call it sweater weather for no reason, right? 

sweater and sequined skirt- Landmark
necklaces- Forever 21
shoes- Scarlet for Zalora

XO.

Color

Before the year ends let me post a look that in my opinion is perfect for all the festivities happening around us now. Quite frankly I didn't have Christmas in mind when I put together this look. My inspirations though were nothing short of fun and color that's for sure. Upon picking up this skirt, an onslaught of vivid images of anything Latin America coursed through my mind. Cuban lady dancers wearing ruffle-y rich-colored skirts and headwraps. Chunky gold jewelries that clinked and clanked. Fruit baskets and headdresses. The feathered costumes found at the Carnaval in Rio. Of course, the resulting outfit wasn't a literal and direct translation. I subdued all the excitement by pairing the skirt with black and finished it off with gold accents. As you might have observed I am quite cerebral when it comes to dressing up. Nothing quite compares to the thrill of interpreting inspiration through fashion for me. It's like having an inside joke for myself. :)

crop top- Forever 21
necklace- Forever 21
shoes- Scarlet for Zalora
skirt- Landmark

 XO.

Panels

"You seem to be wearing just tank tops lately", that's what my boyfriend noticed about my style choices recently. Very keen my dear. I'm guessing it has something to do with feeling kind of lame because it's that time of the month. Need I say more, really? Let's all be thankful I'm not just lounging around in sweatpants. Haha! Quite fascinating how hormones also play a huge part in our way of dressing. Logical though and not improbable as it directly affects our moods which consequently, affects the way we express ourselves. 

The theme for today's outfit post is, unintentionally, panels. You can see it on my leggings and on my bag. This type of detailing is subtle but it makes a flat monochromatic attire look more interesting. The sheen from the patent and leather somehow go well with my silver accessories too, don't you think? This was my outfit when I went to see Sarah Geronimo's (a local singer/actress) concert last night hence it was also practical that I wore something comfortable and concert-friendly. 

tank top and leggings- Forever 21
shoes- Scarlet for Zalora
bag- Kate Spade

XO.

Flora

Nothing quite like a good pair of floral printed shorts (in this season's hottest cut--the origami of course!) to spruce up your wardrobe. This print though is quite different from my usual. For one, it reminds me of those resortwear graphics without bordering on garish. What I also find nice about this is that by being in this print, this trendy skort can still remain usable even when it has finally run its course because floral is practically timeless. Even when this particular style of skirt/shorts is no longer trendy, you could still put it to good use by wearing it to the beach for instance! In my recent browsing of Zalora's runway report for their Ezra line, it was shown there how much of a staple in women's closet this print is! Because really, what would scream girly/feminine better than flower power? 

As for what event I wore this to...this was my outfit when I went to see Lisa Macuja-Elizalde's last ballet performance of La Bayadere. It was such a fantastic experience to have watched it for the first and last time. You can view some photos that I took on my instagram! This get-up was perfect for such an art-filled event, I must say. 

top- Bench
skirt- random brand
shoes- Gibi
necklace and sunnies- Forever 21

XO.

By The Cafe

You know how some people have this love-hate relationship with junk food/desserts/whatever-their-guilty-pleasures are? Well, mine's coffee/tea. Just last week I was sent to the ER for hyperventilating and my doctor advised me to avoid anything that has caffeine seeing that I stress over things too much and don't handle uppers well. It's not the first time I've been told this and I obediently let a whole year pass me by without it but I gradually eased it back in my system again last year. Now though I'm back to abandoning coffee and specifically my latest addiction: milk tea. I'm a late convert, you see. 

It's quite funny how this whole post is so ironic now. :)

crop top and skirt- Forever 21
stockings- random
shoes- S&H
bag- Kate Spade

XO.

Halloween 2013- The Femme Fatale

How was Halloween for you guys? I went to the province with my family and celebrated the holiday there. Here are a few instagram pics taken that day. I went as a femme fatale in a film noir. My costume was actually thought of the last minute---a few hours before I left town! These were just normal going-out clothes that I put together to form a jumpsuit of sorts. I was quite lazy to come up with a costume that entails a photo shoot this year unlike my previous Halloweens which you can read about here and here. So how did you celebrate the holiday? Tell me all about it, I'd love to know. :)

XO.