SingStyle: Trendsetters on the island

You've all heard about the Satorialist (if you haven't then beat yourself around the head with your Choos!), well this is my Singaporean version of it! I'm here to show everyone that when it comes to fashion, Singaporeans have style and attitude.

I'll be carrying my camera around the streets of Singapore and snapping people with standout style.

This means there won't be any jeans or hotpants-wearing people in my edition (unless it is revolutionist!), so only ladies and gents with super stylish, original and most importantly individual looks will make it to Sing Style.

Name: Andrew Tay

Age: 30

Occupation: Men’s Fashion Designer

Outfit: All from his own collection (Chota at Illuma)

Shoes: Red Wings

Your style in 3 words: Depends on mood

Favourite shopping outlet: CineLeisure in Orchard

Style tip for the guys: Be more adventurous!

Andrew’s look screams attitude and individuality. Not just that he designed the clothes, but also his cross-body bag, funky hair style (some serious mullet!) and those glasses are just so cool! The key to this look is the oversized t-shirt peeking through which adds extra depth to the ensemble. The perfect answer to the challenge of layering in Singapore’s humidity.

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Name: Justin Quek

Age: 31

Occupation: Store manager, Ninos Felices

Outfit: All from Ninos Felices, Cathay Mall

Your style in 3 words: simple, neat and sharp

Favourite shopping outlet: The Cathay mall and Haji Lane

Style tip for the guys: Add more colour!

Justin Quek works the tailored shorts with shirt combo (which is not uncommon with trendy Singaporeans now) but the splashes of colour in the belt, watch and shoes give it an extra twist. He owns it! What makes the outfit work is the colour/formality clash in the shoes which complements the short/shirt combination. If you’re going to rock this look you should pay particular attention to the shoes.

If you like what Andrew and Justin are wearing, make sure you keep checking the blog. I will be featuring both local boutiques (Chota and Ninos Felices) in future posts very soon!! Watch this space!

Sing and the City

Looking as fresh and elegant as her infamous onscreen character Charlotte ever was, Kristin Davis was in town tonight where it was a case of life imitating art, stylistically at least.

Kristin’s off screen style is so similar to Charlotte’s and she seemed as sweet, down to earth and approachable like the character we all loved her for.

Wearing a stylish yet understated outfit (a cute Marc Jacobs silk top and Prada skirt), Kristin had her hair tied up in a ponytail with very little make up on her face. She definitely looked like the girl next door and refreshingly for a celebrity, has managed to chat with people and kept a smile on her face most of the time.

And just because she made an effort to colour-coordinate her outfit with my dress (think she read my first blog post), I had to take a picture with her J

So here you go SATC fans!

Feeling like Carrie Bradshaw!

Standing out for not being different

With rows of boutiques in the painfully trendy Haji Lane fighting for attention, one store stands out oddly enough for trying to blend in with the crowd.

Bellezza Couture stands out with its rather sombre choice of display

Shockingly there isn’t a pair of fitted chinos on display, but that is precisely the USP (unique selling point) of the new store Bellezza Couture.

Its owner Amanda Chiang has fulfilled her childhood dream by opening the tiny boutique just 2 months ago.

Sisters Amanda and Anjelica Chiang at their boutique

And while its staple of light separates - ideal for work, lunch or those who don’t want to plump their feathers in public – shouldn’t appeal to Haji Lane’s immaculately-coiffured crowd, it is obviously doing something right.

Because while Belleza Couture is currently what real estate agents might creatively call ‘cosy’, the store is currently working on expansion plans to take over the floor above.

While I admire the drive (and am jealous of the ambition), I don’t quite get the logic behind what must be an expensive location.

Despite the pretty pieces in the shop, the adherence to the Singapore monotone office code (except for few blazers and a Cristopher Kane-inspired galaxy print top) makes it look rather bland in comparison to other shops on the same street that made a reputation by being unique and individual.

Christopher Kane's 2011 Resort Collection, and a top with the
similar galaxy print (SG$39) at Bellezza  Couture

A rather interesting mix: chiffon and faux leather shirt (SG$49)

Finally some color!!! Bright blazers to light up any dull work wardrobe (SG$69)

The clothes and shoes in Bellezza Couture are local or Korean-sourced and the prices range from SG$29 to SG$79 which seems quite reasonable especially if you compare it with same quality but more mass-produced pieces from the likes of Forever21 and New Look. So at least it’s good value.

I did like a few items in the shop but very little stood out in terms of originality and uniqueness.

The one exception – and it is a big exception – was a pair of spiked loafers which I will go back for once I’ve figured out what to wear them with (or convinced myself that I’m not gonna hurt anyone with!)

Clearly my favorites: Spiked Loafers in grey or black (SG$59)  

Leopard-print oxfords (SG$39)

Honestly, I donno who would wear these but kudos to them if
they manage to pull them off! (SG$49)

My verdict: Bellezza Couture caters for the average everyday girl on a budget, who is looking for clothes which are understated, stylish but not a style statement; and shoes which are not made for the faint hearted. I don’t see the logic in that but well they might just make the right balance!

Belleza Couture is located on 29 Haji Lane, Singapore. Tel: +65 6299 4298 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting            +65 6299 4298      end_of_the_skype_highlighting

The WEARHouse

I have always been a fan of fancy dress parties (and who isn't?), so it is not surprising that my first discovery in Singapore is a fancy dress shop!

Well but this isn't your average latex/nylon/wigs type of place! They sell/hire the REAL stuff here.

The shop assistants refused to talk to me about the shop saying that it is government-owned or something but on my way out I still managed to snap these two shots and grab a mini brochure which had all the information I needed to know. On a second thought, I was wondering why I didn't just go in as a regular (undercover) customer but it turned out you need to reserve for any trials/visits as well. Seriously this is serious stuff!!

According to its brochure, apparently the shop owns 'over 5000 pieces of of costumes, headgears, accessories and props', and their services include in-house costume portrait sessions which sounds fun if you've always dreamed of being in a Geisha outfit even for few minutes.

Here's the link to the shop's website if you're interested to know more or you're planning your next (serious) fancy dress party especially that Halloween is just around the corner. 

http://www.thewearhouse.org.sg/

BTW if you found out about this place from my blog, I'm expecting an invite... OK just some snaps of you in one of those gorgeous costumes then :-)

Enjoy!

Saba7 El Kher Singapura! (Good morning Singapore!)

Bonjour Singapore!

Ok just to clarify, no I’m not French. But, I am Lebanese. So if you don’t already know, in our dialect we also use ‘Bonjour’ to greet each other in the morning (We are Frenchies at heart). And don’t ask why! But to be fair we have also added our own twist to it and owned it, so for example we say ‘Bonjourik’ or ‘Bonjourak’, which literally means ‘your Good Morning’ addresing a female in the first and a male subject in the second. Or if someone greets us with ‘Bonjour’ our answer would be ‘Bonjouren’ meaning ‘TWO Bonjours’. Talk about Lebanese generosity!

Anyways I promise you this is not going to be a blog about linguistics or anything of that sort. Bonjour Singapore is my first (and very belated) attempt to blog about things I’m passionate about like fashion and shopping, focusing mainly on Singapore and Asian-based labels, designers, boutiques and anything I discover along the way.

Having just settled in the city few weeks ago, still looking for a job, this seemed to be the perfect opportunity to start my blog for sharing tips, learning more and discovering things about my new home city Singapore.

Just as a disclaimer before we start, I am in no way trying to reinvent the wheel here so don’t expect Anna Wintour attitude from me :-) It will be more on the lighter side even cynical sometimes as I cannot help myself.

But don’t get me wrong, even though I don’t take fashion (or myself) too seriously, I can get obsessive sometimes over an irresistible pair of pumps or err… a certain Prada banana monkey print dress. Regarding the later, since seeing it on the runway last year, I literally kept googling ‘banana-monkey-Prada-dress’ almost on weekly basis until one sample came up on ebay from a trusted seller, so I snatched it right away and now I have the dress I went bananas for right here in my closet waiting for the right occasion to make its debut.

I simply enjoy fashion and all beautiful (and bold!) things regardless of the label or price tag. It is like art to me but I get to wear it as well. I also love bargain hunting and online shopping and I am quite good at it. The proof: I snatched my gorgeous vintage Valentino wedding dress for less than quarter its original price last year, and I own a closet full of designer clothes and shoes mostly bought for less than half their original price! And NO I never buy fakes!!!

I’m looking forward to this e-journey to discover the best of Singapore fashion and shopping and share my best tips and discoveries with you.  And I do hope you get to enjoy this as much as I will and share your opinions and tips with me and I get to share mine.

Singapore here I come!!!