NOT YOUR AVERAGE CUPCAKE

You know how certain brands can scream out specific characteristics? Say, Mary Katrantzou and prints.. Alexander Wang, sports luxe.. or even Dior's elegance.. Well, this local brand I am introducing you today screams nothing but 'sweet'. Even when you first hear the brand name, I am pretty sure that all things sweet will come to your mind.

So here goes the brand name : Petite Cupcakes. People who know me well might wonder "hmmm... Michelle and sweet-ness don't really go together.. That girl is 90% in greys/blacks on a daily basis and she's never sold on the whole pink & girly concept." True to every single word of that.. But ! Here's what I like about Petite Cupcakes : their collection is not cheesy sweet. Instead, I like to categorize them as the prim & proper-sophisticated kinda sweet. Like this dress I am wearing, it's mostly beige, got a lil ruffle hem, plus a dash of watermelon-neon-pink for the perfect dose of feminity. Just nice. and it's not just great dresses the brand has to offer, there's also the tops, skirts and even shoes up for sale on their chic webstore.

PASTEL TARTANS

Ever since I saw Dries Van Noten's Spring 2013 show, I can't seem to get enough of tartans. The print is a classic yet it's versatile enough to be transformed into different vibes. And since I'm struck on the ladylike trend, I quickly ordered this pastel tartan a-line dress right away after I saw it off shop-picnic.com (another wonderful addition to your list of local online shopping sites btw)

TIME MANAGEMENT

I actually wanted to write "no time for photos, been busy" for the opening sentence of this post but I hit backspace because that's really boring even when that's the fact. *ps. I am so glad that I found these photos from July lurking in one of folders as I am short of photo stocks*. What's more funny is when I read my favorite blogs and I find that most bloggers write somekind of phrase that resembles "I've been busy lately.. got exciting projects.. or sorry I've been on hiatus". I couldn't help but scroll through my own posts and I've been writing that phrase for a long time as well (my to-do list only gets longer, no kidding.)

Lately, I've been disappointed by certain companies who don't take bloggers seriously. I am not sure how the system works overseas but over here, I feel like we are the "free promoters". I understand that we may not have a company or fancy smancy offices but we are humans who put effort into our blog posts just like how news/fashion/etc reporters would in their articles. Blogs don't just poof out of a cloud.. Layouting takes time, emails take time.. building a twitter audience is also another thing.. I don't reply comments as diligent as I used to but I give kuddos to those who can reply the 100th comments on a single post (try blog walking with Indonesia's slow connection).. and for myself, I spend a total amount of 4-5 hours (sometimes more) for just a single post. Not to mention that most of us also have a day job or are still dealing with assignments from our teachers. Anyway, my point is : blogging takes time.

From that amount of time we bloggers put into, we do want a better reward and compensation than just an item/exposure. We're not always after some money but offering a more mutually beneficial collaboration scheme would be much more appreciated. Through conversations, I've learned that many bloggers don't have the guts to say no. I know what it was like because I felt bad when I rejected a company during my early days as a blogger. But now, I have learned to say no when offers aren't up to my bartering standards (note : saying no is not a bad thing as long as you're polite - see here for info). Perhaps most bloggers coming from Indonesia haven't spoken out about this issue out of their head. But I feel that it's time that our work gets appreciated and rewarded in a more appropriate way.

CHANGE IS GOOD

To make it up for my lack of posting, there 18 photos ! Well actually the situation was more like this... My assistant is still under training when it comes to using the camera. Hence, I take a tripod and have her fire the shutter (or I click the remote to get specific shots) and since I have been spoiled by Christy's presence for almost a year, I need to get my self-portrait neurons back in action.. And by that, I mean taking more photos than usual. Hence, I had too much frames that I couldn't bother narrowing down the selections furthermore.

You will notice that I don't keep the same accessories on me at all times (hat & sunglasses for this case). I tried to keep the hat on throughout the shoot but it was too hot and I could only last 10 shutters (..or 20 quick ones) before I sweated like a pig. There was also the sun that came out of a sudden and from what I have experienced, squinting and teensy asian eyes don't go well.. some improvisations throughout was definitely needed. Perhaps I should make a post on how I really change up accessories on a day-to-day basis..

VIOLETS ARE BLUE

Any close relative or friend of mine know that I am a die hard purple lover. Being a color that comes from red and blue, I find that purple has both warm and cool properties. To me, purple is my color of versatility. I find it easiest to dress down or dress up in purple. I also find it easy to mix purple things into my outfit.. and last but not least, purple seems like a good blend of feminism and edge in one shade. Glad that I finally managed to create my head to toe purple look now !

CORALISTA

If I hadn't had a blog, I wouldn't have noticed that the orange/coral trend has hit on me. In just a week, I've worn three outfits (one not being documented) that utilize orange as it's main color. Today does not involve another color block technique, but instead, I paired the bright hue with neutral picks. Coralista also happens to be one of my favorite blushers from Benefit Cosmetics. It deposits the right amount of pink/peach for an everyday natural flush.

DEEP REDS for @SHOPATVELVET

one of my latest styling works for www.shopatvelvet.com. Deep reds and burgundy shades were perfect for the upcoming Christmas holidays! Yes I know the numbers are not in order.. but I prefer putting the looks up in this order instead of following the numbers. Instead of linking the items one by one, I put together a little list via Fashiolista at the end of this post :)

SWEET DREAMS

I am often questioned "what do you think of the growth of fashion in Indonesia?" during interviews and my answers have always been something like "yes.. [insert some shallow justification here]". I've never really given much thought to the question until just last night. Yes, market and business-wise, fashion is quite at its peak at the moment. The easiest way to justify that would be the growing number of online retailers. From Facebook sellers, blogshops, and even to webstores, sometimes I feel that I may not need to get up from my couch to get what I want (even my contact lens solution is bought from an online retail). One of my latest online discoveries was Dream Shop. Specializing in casual wear, Dream Shop carries a selection of tops, dresses, and bottoms for girls who have that feminine and sweet vibe. I personally choose some floral pieces for another print-mix look..

BEHIND THE SCENES : COSMOPOLITAN

some behind the scene photos during the cosmopolitan photoshoot I did last month ! the issue is out now and my feature is on the little Shopping : Shoes and Bags booklet that comes with it :)

ARMOR ARM

cool colors on one of the hottest days I've experienced here in jakarta. the more I see Celine's minimalism, the more I love it (and Zara does a great job of making an affordable high-street version of it). I have a similar skirt from the spanish brand in green as well. I liked the cut alot, so I decided to get another one in cobalt blue a couple weeks ago. Paired it with this lovely bright green pocket top from velvet, add another color (yellow) and I'm off for my Monday.

I found another way to utilize my scarves. I purposely put them inside a bag and have the ends hang loosely. I quite like the effect. How about you? :D


my guy says that my bangle looks like one of those superhero guns coming out from the arm...



silk top c/o VELVET, zara skirt, ASOS bronze bangle, hermes bangle & scarf, beatrix ong shoes