Holy Grail - Personal Must Haves and Best of 2013

2013 is almost coming to an end. I cant say that it is a pity, and yet it has been one of the most fulfilling and enjoyable years of my life. Through all the ups and the downs, I have learnt a lot and have come very far both physically and mentally.

That being said, I thought that I would do a personal recommendations post to share the things that I loved in the year. From materialistic things to other more mentally stimulating items, these things have helped me throughout the year.

So without further ado, lets begin! :D



Beauty

Best Eyeliner: Hypersharp Liner - Maybelline

I have tried a number of eyeliners before and none delivers as much as Maybelline's Hypersharp liner. It has such a fine pointed tip that it makes extremely precise wing points. However you do have to spend a little more effort if you wanna draw thick lines.



Best White Eye pencil: NYX white eyeliner pencil

The one I tried using before was the Maybelline one and even though I love the brand the particular product was absolutely atrocious. As in really. It could not glide over my eyelids nor waterline and just simply broke off when I applied more pressure to get the colour out. Horrible.

NYX's white eyeliner on the other hand was so smooth and creamy when applied and the colour payoff was really good and opaque as well, making it a dream to use.



Favourite Lipstick: MAC Matte Lipstick in Russian Red

As you all have realised by now, red is my go-to lip colour for every occasion. Many people are really afraid of the colour because they think they will look like a clown, but I think it brings just the right amount of colour to my face. Pinks make my teeth and skin look extra yellow while beiges and browns make me look like a granny. The only other colour that I use would be deep plum shades, and only the super dark ones.

Out of all the red lipsticks that I have tried, my favourite will always be my MAC lipstick. Not because it is my only high-end lipstick, but because of the perfect shade of blue red that makes my teeth look slightly whiter and also because of its matte finish. The colour also matches most of my clothes.

However, it might have a competitor next year because I do wanna try out Revlon's Really Red matte lipstick which they brought back recently, and it is more of a neutral red rather than a blue toned one. Hmm, maybe...




Favourite nail polish: Model's Own nail polish in Southern Lights

I saw this nail polish quite early on in the year but only decided to get it for prom as it was really pricey and heck, it was the best decision I have ever made. I have used the nail polish since then every single day. It is really sparkly and glittery and the pale bluish undertone of the polish gives it a really ethereal presence.

The colour reminded me of the aurora borealis / australias, and I later on found out that its name was derived from the phenomenon.

Oh one more thing, the nail polish lasts for a really long time. As in really. I put on three coats of it and 2 and a half weeks later it is still super perfect looking with no chips whatsoever.


Favourite Brand: NYX

The products are high quality and value for money. Nuff said.





Fashion

Favourite trend: Midi Skirts

To be a little more specific, the full-skirted version as opposed to the figure hugging one. The figure hugging one is great as well though, but it tends to emphasize the hips which can be really unflattering.

Ala Miss Dita <3

I am probably one of the rare few girls in Singapore who are OBSESSED with midi skirts. It hits around below the knee (tea length) which IMO is the perfect skirt length for every single woman out there.

I have many friends who shy away from this trend as they either think it doesn't fall properly or looks frumpy. Well yeah, that may be the case, only if it isnt done right. I think the rule of thumb for midis are that it should sinch the tiniest part of your waist before it flares out. It doesnt matter where the skirt hits below your knee, the vibes that the midi gives always remains the same: classy, ladylike and sophisticated, something that was highly emphasized in the former part of the 1900s.

Which brings me to my next point...........



Favourite Fashion Era: Mash of 1930s to 1950s

Sure, each decade had different silhouettes and styles, but one thing thats for sure, clothes of this era have a key focus - style with class, elegance and a hint of sensuality.

Slinky bias cut evening dresses of the 1930s, emphasises the natural curve of a woman.

My personal favourite silhouette.

I think this is around the late 1940s where skirts began to be a little fuller. However the structured shoulder remained. 

50s models. It may not be a pin-up photoshoot per se but the poses are similar! 

Sexy fun and playful.

Most-used bags: 

The Editor's Market - Fluoro panel clutch

I remember shopping with Nicole and seeing this clutch and went: OMFG I HAVE TO GET IT. I contemplated about getting this for a really long time as it cost 50 dollars which to me was a really big splurge. However now that it is in my wardrobe, I have been using it ever so frequently.

It is the perfect statement piece for all my evening outfits, and it stands out especially well against my favourite outfit colour schemes, ie. black white and blue. Just admire its majesty from the picture above.

Vintage Satchel Bag from Bugis

Okay, this is not really the one I got but since I was too lazy to take pictures....

I didnt wanna get a brown satchel because I dont like the colour at all, but since it was the closest to black (which I wanted) and at only 33 bucks, it was a steal. I have brought it everywhere with me, from school to work to the recent China trip. In fact, I have used it so much that the strap is now broken (oops). I'm trying to get my dad to fix it for me.

I love how the bag is much bigger than my other two satchels and that the colour is neutral enough to match most of my outfits.

White vintage bag from princessess.com.sg 

Yup this bag

I got this bag this year and it is absolutely gorgeous. I didnt even know that I would be using it that much because its white (not really the best neutral as it stands out much more than the other neutrals) but surprisingly, it suited many of my summer outfits and I got even more wear out of this than my satchel.

Social Media
We all can't live without it.



Favourite Youtuber: clothesencounters

Cute, sexy, intelligent, articulate and well spoken. All her videos are very well put together and unlike most other beauty/fashion gurus on youtube, she doesnt sound air-headed and has good exposure to the world around her.

Favourite Instagrammer: @collarious

Featuring my fellow classmate Wei Min! Even though there are many instagrammers who post beautiful pictures, I like the fact that her instagram in particular not only contains really abstract pictures but also very relatable to my age group.


Favourite Blogger: Ladyironchef

I guess I don't need to explain any further, everyone knows who he is. The photos he takes are of really high quality, has really good PR skills and best of all, behaves really classily.

Favourite blogshop model: Andrea Chong (special mention - Valerie Wang)

The thing that attracted me to Andrea was her impeccable taste when it comes to styling clothes. It is on par with famous international bloggers. Feminine and tasteful, she is definitely a blogger to look out for. Her super bubbly personality is a plus point. (I really do not get the hate she receives on The F Word..... what, you guys jealous of her?)

I think you guys can already see the trend in the kind of people I look up to. Valerie is an ultra talented girl majoring in art and can play the clarinet really well. She has an amazing body and an exotic face too. The whole package.

Bloggers like these two should be getting a whole lot more attention.







Music

Best song: Blurred Lines - Robert Thicke

Sure, this song might have had a lot of criticism for being sexist, but the beat is so freaking catchy and never fails to get me moving right along to it.

Favourite song [contemporary]: Wherever You Are - One Ok Rock

Heart-wrenching, beautiful melodies fused with touching words. Absolutely perfect. This would be the song I would dedicate to my loved one, whoever he is in the future.



Favourite song [classical]: Rhapsody in E flat minor - Dohnanyi

Close fight between Muriel's Chopin Nocturne in B major (which was my jam last year) and Ying Yin's piece, but this won in the end. It is dark, stormy and passionate, just the kind of thing im into.


Best live performance: Who Wants to Live Forever - Adam Lambert and Queen at Kiev

Nerd Stuff - Stationery, Books

Favourite notebook: Typo A4 Spinout Notebooks

Typo notebooks have the funkiest prints which make them really fun to write in. I used typo notebooks to write my notes in for all my subjects throughout JC 2. I also like the perforated sides of the pages which makes it easy to tear them out.


Favourite Pen: Exam Pen from China

Everyone who borrowed it raved about how good it was. Really. China pens are THE BOMB please everyone do go to China and lug boxes of stationery because they are so freaking cheap and awesome and even the ones with cute prints are really good in quality ok end of spazz

Favourite Highlighters: Mildliners (special mention - cheapo highlighters)

I think every student loves their mildliners. They are not in-your-face like florescent highlighters, the colours are soft pretty and dainty which makes all highlighted words so pleasurable to look at. A little pricey but worth every cent.

Special mention: You know those cheapo highlighters with black and silver pinstripe designs on them? I am actually obsessed with them since they get the job done really well and are inexpensive.

Best Book: The Why Axis by Uri Gneezy and John List

Even though this book is essentially non-fiction, maybe even documentary-like, the writers wrote the book by recounting their experiences in a manner of a novel, making the book really entertaining to read. Furthermore, it explains very well how economics and social circumstances are inextricably bound, when everyone else thought that they are two separate matters altogether. An amazing read.

Favourite Book: The Business of Fashion

My love for non-fiction books doesn't end there, I have one more to recommend on this list. The Business of Fashion is basically a textbook on how to run your own fashion business (well duh). The explanations are simple and clear cut but very detailed, just the way a textbook should be. (I hate it when writers try to fool us with all their mambo jumbo and cant drive their point clearly across)









So, this is my holy grail of 2013, whats yours? :)

ACJC Prom 2013 - Masquerade, Unmask the Night

Hey guys!

So, it has been a hell of a week after As. Went for the class chalet (which was so much fun, not to mention how much glee we all had playing cards with Darshini), got ready for prom right after that, then had steamboat with the sisters the next night, then met up with poh yin the next morning *Phew*

I have yet to confirm my spot for my job (just realised) but then the managing director has already contacted me regarding the position so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I also had my first violin lesson in 2 months today and I found that I could play (surprisingly) decently. Since I am more free than ever before, I have no more excuses to not be practising my instruments anymore.




Anyway, as I mentioned before, this post is gonna be primarily about prom so lets get this shit on.

My prom was held at the Marriott Hotel which explains the slightly higher cost compared to most other JC proms. My mum alighted me at the pick up point and no, it wasnt directly in front of the hotel but instead before a whole bunch of shoppers. Imagine my embarrassment stepping out on to the pavement in my extra frilly dress in full view of all the other dressed down people -.-

The first person I met there was Nicole and OMG she was so so gorgeous! I walked up quickly with the intention of hugging her and TRIPPED over my heels (which were super impossible to walk in especially without the platform). But I managed to get back my balance and being the earliest two in our gang, we made our way to the second level to hobo before registering.

Speaking of which, Melly burned me in her text to Nicole, saying: Wow Theo's early!
Watcha tryna imply, dear?!

With the pretty girl ^.^ (picture's blur ): )

The super awesome door gift we received after registering. A literal key chain with a lovely note and a 5 dollar Kbox gift voucher. 

I suspect that a portion of the money we paid for prom goes into getting these things as well as the prizes for the lucky draw, they were really generous when handing out free stuff.

The gang arrived half an hour later and we went to the photo booth to get a few shots. This is how they turned out:

Not bad, huh?

The guys had to jump coz the girls were too tall xD Chae Han's face is particularly funny

We waited for everyone to settle down and the prom finally started. The food that was served was soooo good, but unfortunately many people at my table didnt seem to enjoy the dishes much..... which was a pity because those decadent dishes dont get served often. Especially the jellyfish and octopus and abalone mushroom. I decided to forego those dishes that they actually ate and just focused on enjoying the seafood haha

The best dish of the night that no one seemed to like (and which I ate more than half of)

So now comes the most important part of prom: Photos and selfies with all the glammed and gorgeous. Just choosing my fave photos and special mentions, the rest of the photos are up on facebook!

 Super loving this photo of me and Issy.

Her prom dress was 5 bucks, she hardly did any makeup except for eyeliner, didnt do her hair at all except a little hairspray, AND SHE STILL LOOKED LIKE THAT.

I spent so much effort and money but she? Effortless. Applause.

Oh, the super hot and sizzling Goh Qian. What more can I say that you cant already see?

The hair and the cutouts are especially badass. 

Speaking of badass, Clar was THE bad ass of the night, her hair was almost hot pink and had a white leather jacket thrown over her dress complete with a Chanel bag. Unfortunately I dont have a full body shot with her so I cant display the majesty of her outfit.

Full body shot of Melly and I! She looked so sweet in her dress :> 

and her hair was so thick (a jealous thin-haired girl speaking) 

My primary school classmate Kimberley! Havent interacted with her properly since the beginning of last year HAHA but we took a nice photo to commemorate our pri sch days together ^.^ 

When I saw Yingyin I was just like Oh. My. God. 0.0 

The fact that she had barely any makeup on and simple slightly teased hair just added on to the gorg factor. 

she looked SO slim and tall and the way she walked was so regal-like.

Again, another one of the girls who looked effortlessly chic.

Ok the way I described this doesnt sound so amazing but you have to FEEL and experience it for yourself to really know what Im talking about.

And yep, the amazing classmates in one shot! (Weimin's sparkly dress is so pretty lol)

So that was part 1 of prom. I didnt know that I would be having a part 2 until during the middle of dinner, Qian invited me to join her and gang to Butter Factory since Melissa Ng couldnt go. 

I initially wanted to go with Issy to Mink but I realised I didnt have an actual table so I decided on Butter Fact instead. 

Immediately after prom, the gang and I hopped on my mum's car and drove off to Fullerton. I displayed my awesome changing-in-the-car skills by slipping off my prom dress and into my clubbing one all under 2 minutes (mission accomplished :D).

Even though all of us were early we couldnt enter the club because Huihui's birthday hasnt reached yet. Honestly I think they are a little too anal about this thing coz like Hello it was only half an hour to her birthday and you expect us to wait outside? But we did that anyway and we all played a little game of truth-or-dare. It was short but pretty fun.

So here are the pictures:

Photo with the gang! Me being Melissa Ng's replacement lol 

The amazing view at Clarke Quay 

The bar with sexy lights and all 

There were different DJs in two separate rooms at Butter Fact and I definitely enjoyed the song mix by these two DJs more! A good mash of pop, old-school, hip-hop and R&B songs, and the transition from slow to fast songs was so smooth and matched everyone's dance stamina. 

 Toast to Jiahui's 18th! Happy birthday Hui Hui!!

Rawr 

We look surprisingly fresh even after hardcore dancing and a few drinks

Jia Hui and Darsh left early so only the four of us were left. We wanted to get more cocktails but the club closed really early at 3, which was a really weird closing time because number one people are just starting to get really high and number two the sun hasnt risen nor has the public transport opened so no one can get home except through cab. So the group had no choice but to hobo outside the hotel.

Exhausted but happy shot with Saumya :) 

Hobo shot 1 

Hobo shot 2 

We then walked to Macdonalds to get something to eat and saw a few ACsians from the Mink side. Some of them looked fine and dandy while others were completely wasted.

Wei Min looks darn fresh even at 4am in the morning. How on earth does she do that?

Anyway, we stayed up till 7 the next morning till we finally decided to go home. 

It was certainly an interesting experience clubbing. I finally understand the connection between the dancing and the alcohol. If we skip the alcohol and try to enjoy the music and dancing alone, it can get pretty stuffy and tiring especially if the place is extremely crowded. The lights are also pretty distracting because they keep flashing. Thus, the alcohol will induce you into a state where you are in a slight daze (but still in control of your senses) and only then can you fully appreciate your surroundings. 

As the melody ascends to the climax, the lights around are flashing, and went you let your body go and just feel the music, you will reach nirvana. Well, that's how I felt at least. 

So here are the usual OOTD details:

Outfit:

Headpiece - www.etsy.com , Beasley's Wonders

Dress - Handmade by Zhuang Tai (old lady at Ang Mo Kio), fabric from Chinatown

Heels - www.aliexpress.com

Makeup:

Eyeshadow - Naked Palette 2 (white and silver and black) By Urban Decay

Eyeliner - Hypersharp Liner by Maybelline

White Pencil Liner - NYX Slim Eye Pencil in White

Eyebrows - Colourstay Eyebrow Liner by Revlon

Lips - Matte Lipstick in Wine Not by Revlon  X  Black Label Lipstick in Extreme Red by NYX

Contacts - Freshlook in Sterling Grey

The whole concept of my prom look was 'Ice Princess'. I think after a whole life of warm and bright colours, I wanted to cool my look down a bit by working with cooler colours and thus explains the steel blue and silver/white colour palette.

It was hard for me to come out with an outfit that could really stand out from the crowd, after all, it is getting increasingly easier to obtain awesome dresses in Singapore now.

I basically took inspiration from the fifties prom dresses that were really poofy and frilly. People in those days paid a lot of attention to detail, something that many people tend to overlook or choose to forego altogether in fear of looking ridiculous. 

Being another one of those people who's afraid of looking too over-the-top, I had to find a balance between the frilliness of a lolita and the simple clean lines of the urban chic dresser.

I also looked toward ice goths for the ice-princess look, especially the makeup and outfit pieces part. I knew I definitely didnt want my outfit to be saccharine sweet and bimbotically girly, So I kept my makeup slightly darker with the purple dark red lip and the silhouette more elegant with the tea dress length without the huge pouf so typical of the fifties.

And to top off the look, I decided to get a clip-on circlet to substitute an actual tiara and princess silver glitter heels that looked like an absolute dream (but a nightmare to walk in). I personally love the repeated motif of the circlet, dainty but intricate enough to stand out.

So, how did I fare for this prom outfit?