FERANY LAN

it's good to get away from styling casual, everyday pieces (both for clients and myself!) every once in awhile. I had a great time with Ferany, the designer of these dresses, discussing the concept and all for her first campaign for her debut at Jakarta Fashion Week. I noticed that she used airy, flowy fabrics for her collection therefore I translated that same light feeling into this lookbook : simple, no fuzz/drama, just understated elegance.

ANOTHER BLACK DRESS

another blog post, another black dress..I think I might have covered all sorts of black dresses in this blog.. from the bandage, the low back-long sleeved, the flowy mini.. the more recent asymmetrical midi.. these are only some the only ones I could remember going up on the blog. I still got a whole section in my wardrobe that I've never photographed.. Today's LBD edition features a maxi piece complete with features that I adore : a slit around the legs and right at my back.. It's from one of my favorite local brands : Velvet ! my son is craving for milk as I write this.. gotta go !!

NOT QUITE DEFLATED

Hello again everyone ! It's been awhile since I hit blogger.com on my browser's most visit lists. I've had my delivery about 2 weeks ago and I am still trying to adjust to my new routines while having to swallow all kinds of weird confinement meals everyday (not the type of foods you'd like me to photograph nor discuss here). I've been meaning to write but just as I get myself settled infront of my laptop, there's always something that forces me to get away from it. Either it's feeding, baby poop time, some guests, or a list of other things that needs to be prioritized.

Like all expecting moms, I knew that I was going to be busy moments before and after my son is born (yes it's a boy even I've never mentioned on the blog before...) and I'll be on confinement and the only place I'm allowed to go out to is *errrrrrrr* the hospital... so I planned ahead and saved some of my maternity outfit photos in hand for this little photo absence days. not exactly sure when I'll be having the time to post again but hopefully I can get some of my little dude's photos on the blog! :)

BUMP WRAP

Finally got my ass back in front of the camera the other day. My pregnancy blogging plans aren't going as well as planned. Turns out that my last trimester is draining my energy much faster (while increasing my appetite much more) than I thought. Annnddddddd my body temperature is as hot as ever, which translates to extreme sweat fest (I was blessed with moderate wind when I took these photos, God tells me that the blog needs an update). The sweat fest creates headache and sticky hair strands on the face ain't pretty for the camera. Not sure how much more I can still update until my due date here, but I hope that you'll still be my lovely readers ;)

DIAMONDS IN THE SKY

Months ago (or perhaps even almost a year ago!), I bought these white jeans at a very low sale price thinking that I could do some DIY damage on it. Bad news was that I couldn't find any time to accomplish the DIY mission. Good news is that these jeans make a great addition to my maternity wardrobe! They fit just nice and the flared extra long hem actually makes me look taller (at least I think so...)

MAXI ADDICTION

I've always liked seeing passerby strut effortlessly in their floor sweeping numbers but I don't think that I've enjoyed the comfort and ease of maxidresses THIS much myself until my pregnancy. No tight-ness discomfort.. or not even the need to worry that the bump will make the front of my dresses ride up (making it impossible to not wear something underneath). Now I am on the hunt for more maxidresses! basic tank styles like this one from Velvet's Days line are my favorite..

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.

LA FLEUR

When it comes to fashion, trends come and go (... and come again) but some trends manage to stay and last longer than others. The la fleur (flower in french) trend, as my dad's Belgian friends described the other night, was definitely one of those ones with staying power. From small to larger prints or even the 3-Dimensional popping ones, la fleur have been quite a hit on and off the runway for slightly more than a year if I didn't miscalculate. Plus, there is no need to wait for the spring sun to shine... Designers such as Dolce & Gabbana and Erdem have been famous for incorporating the la fleur aspect into their collections all seasons round. The once girly-associated-trend has finally left it's prissy days behind and gained it's part in the edgy and luxe world.

As for my own take, the darker and more sophisticated la fleur look has always been preferred. For today’s look, I've combined some dark abstract la fleur prints along with the 3D belt. When I first purchased these pieces, I never knew that I was going to wear them very often! I usually opt for simple plain colored apparels but as the trend grows on myself, I find it amazing on how la fleur can take simple pieces to the next level. If it wasn’t for this post, I might not even realize how often I post la fleur pieces of all sorts for the blog.

HAPPINESS

This dress I'm wearing today literally screams "H A P P Y". I opened my package from my friend, Gloria, who designed this and I loved it the second I unfold it. I don't usually like piling on so many different colors but the dress somehow pushes me to add even more colors for the look (ie. red necklace, yellow bangle, turqouise bag.. Almost went with my red pointed pumps, but I 'stopped'). I've posted a little sneak peak of the dress a couple months ago on Instagram but this never actually made it to a proper photoshoot for the blog. So here it goes !

BRIGHT ADD ONS

As usual with holidays.. It's always hard for me to make proper outfit photos ( or perhaps I am the real picky prick when it comes down to my own photos LOL). So yes, you guessed it.. These photos were shot in my hometown. I am currently in Batu, Malang (east Java). and instead of going out, I have decided to stay in my room, turn the tv on and just enjoy the fresh air (and uhmm... blog this post). I haven't been able to relax much like this throughout 2012 so this is something I could really use.

Back to the outfit! With the uncertain weather in Jakarta and my jam-packed schedule in December, I'd say that dresses are the safest bet for me to transition from this event to that. This printed one from PICNIC was an instant love. The color packed prints is real pretty on it's own but I've decided to play up the colors even more by adding bright accessories and shoes !

NEOPRENE

Ever since the sports luxe trend became a hit, one of the pieces on my wishlist was a neoprene piece (neoprene is the fabric usually made for scuba suits by the way..) To be honest, I almost gave up on finding a piece that suited my style. Almost everything I saw was either too Dolphin-Diving-Club looking or it was too body skimming (read: not flattering for my no where near victoria secret angel body). I gave up and honestly I almost forgot about that trend I loved.. That is until I saw this blinding neon pink scuba dress on PICNIC. The webstore that seems to be fulfilling every other trend wishlists of mine, has done it again. It's snug on the top half and extra poofy on the bottom for that perfect ladylike dose.

CAPE TOWN

I am really happy that I finally finished editing this set of photos. Trust me, it is quite of a burden not having the energy and/or time to update this blog especially when I usually update every 2-3 days. The skies have been blessed with beautiful cloudy afternoons lately (yes, I find cloudy days beautiful although it may be depressing if I lived in London or something like that) and that meant that I get to wear this tartan cape from PICNIC. Since the cape was already a stunner, I paired it with simple basic items I have in my closet.

WICKED WEATHER

Wicked weather season is back and by "wicked" I mean that the weather has been unpredictable. Scorching hot in the morning, heavy rain during mid-day, and bright sun in the afternoon again... Not that I spend a lot of time outdoors here (correction : I don't do outdoors except when I'm walking to the carpark), but the temperature does highly affect my dressing cues. My foolproof solution for an all-in-one-weather-appropriate outfit is to make myself warm in the upper torso while keeping the rest "cool" with a mini bottom. That way when the top is warm, your legs sorta feel warmer too..and when it's hot, your legs get a breeze of air and the top half of the body also cools off (or is that just me?)

I'm happy to have this large sized cropped sweater added to my wardrobe! I currently only plain colored knits so it was nice when the awesome local brand I've been working with, PICNIC, carried a variety of prints in their store (both online here and offline at Gandaria City).

CLUB DAHLIA : BACKSTAGE

as requested.. the glamorous behind the scenes at Sebastian Gunawan's Club Dahlia continues ! I'm currently putting together during my afternoon break at this office. Still lots to do before the long weekend in Indonesia. Most of these shot were shot earlier during the day when the models were still in their 'off duty look'. enjoy the photos and don't forget to vote for me at the AXIS Blog Awards HERE (takes you less than a minute.. no sign ups, just pure voting) every vote means alot to me :)

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)

SEBASTIAN GUNAWAN : CLUB DAHLIA

Jakarta has been really kind to me when it comes to this week's traffic. I have magically travelled from the south to the north and to the west without my need of showing my daily-congestion-rage on twitter (.. or Path). On Tuesday especially, I managed to go to Sebastian Gunawan's Club Dahlia show venue in a mere of 40 minutes (usually 1 hour and 20 minutes).

I love watching things goings on backstage and going "oohhhs" and "ahhhs" over the beautiful garments. Usually when the show starts, I sit down and watch as the models strut, but not for Club Dahlia. I somehow enjoyed staying at the back while I capture the busy team running around changing the models clothes.

The collection, as stated by the designer himself, was inspired by a club in Florida known as Club Dahlia. He finds that although women may be sweet and all at first sight, they have strong character and a mysterious side. Many of my favorite trends from 2012 such as brocades, laces, peplums, and asymmetrical cuts became the key elements of from this collection. All 95 looks and six wedding gowns from his Sebastian Sposa line was adorned with a lace or fishnet headpiece, created by another Indonesian talent Rinaldy A Yunardi, that covered half of the model's face leaving that feminine yet mysterious impression.

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.

WAFFLES & HOUNDSTOOTH

I am addicted to prints like I've never been before and for the past weeks, I've been looking for something houndstooth-ed. Not exactly my cup of tea, but there is something retro and mod about the print that I love. PICNIC, one local brand I've once spoken about during my early days of blogging, was kind enough to allow me to choose a couple pieces from their webtore.. And guess what I found.... a houndstooth skirt!

SOMERSET

I guess one of the best things I got from blogging is to be able to have friends from different corners of the world. That includes people from countries I've never even been to, and all thanks to technology we are able to be connected to each other. As you might have reckoned from Instagram and Twitter, I met up with Qin, Fhenny, and Catherine on a Sunday noon for brunch. I had fun giggling so I didn't bother taking photos (other than my iphone ones) during that.. But we took a bunch during our walk to the nearby skatepark ! special thanks to fhenny and catherine for my outfit photos

ANASTASIA

I'm in the middle of a pile of photos that are waiting to be editted. These shots happen to be one of them. They are some photos from my test shoot with Anastasia @ Posh. Isn't she amazing? I'll post the whole lookbook when I'm done.