Bonjour Beirut: Sarah’s Bag combines cool with a cause

Every fashion brand longs to have at least three things. A coveted line that achieves cult status quickly, celebrity endorsement and a back story that gives people a reason to talk about the brand.

So when you hit all three effortlessly, you know you’re doing something right.

And that’s where Sarah’s Bag comes in. This is an accessories label that is little known outside of the Middle East, but something of a phenomena inside it.

I personally love them, and whenever I go out in Singapore sporting a Sarah’s Bag I get asked about it. So while they might be anonymous over in Asia, it’s going to become my mission to change that.

Gorgeous hand-made creations from Sarah's Bag...

My Vintage Jewel Box: Artisanal jewellery, hand-made with love

One of the best things about artisanal jewellery is not only the individuality of the pieces but also the fact that you are keeping traditions alive. Ready-made, mass produced pieces can be pretty of course but they don’t have that charm. That special something which only a hand-made piece can bring to the table.

And it’s not just old aunties and uncles who are keeping this tradition alive. We’re lucky that there are still people like Carrie K flying the flag for a dying artform.

Another young buck (or deer) striving to prove Singapore does produce things is Ryn, a young artisan who hand-makes each piece of jewellery from scratch using traditional techniques and tools.

Breaking away from the conventional styles, Ryn’s works under her label ‘My Vintage Jewel Box’ have an organic-vintage touch - hewn from raw quality materials like silver, gold and natural gemstones, and heavily influenced by nature and vintage styles. 

Ryn, working on a set of rings at her humble studio space.

Weekend Want: 6 top picks from Future Fashion Now

If you’ve ever shopped online then you probably know how much of a bittersweet experience it can be.

Unlike the real thing, there is no instant pleasure when you click the button or the thrill of browsing and luxuriating in the touch of a beautiful fabric.

But when your purchases are on the way, nothing beats the anticipation of waiting for that box to arrive and opening that package to see and feel it for the first time. It has that Christmassy feeling all over.

And even though e-commerce sites selling Asian designers are springing up faster than pop-up shops these days, most of them are still operating under more or less the same concept. However the newest kid in town tries to make it as interactive an experience as possible, allowing you to watch catwalk shows live and pre-order the pieces you like straight after they showed on the runway.

Future Fashion Now is making it possible to pre-order pieces from
emerging designers like MAE PANG's latest collection

Bonjour Beirut: Azzi and Osta and the battle against bling!

If the national dress in Singapore is hotpants and t-shirt, Beirut’s is a ball gown!

It’s a nation where one popular saying is ‘borrow money to dress up’, seeing someone dressed up to the nines just to cross the road to the grocery shop is not an uncommon sight. In some places you have to see it to believe your eyes!

It’s no surprise that there are dozens of designers specializing in evening wear and glamorous dresses. From  Elie Saab, to Rabih Kayrouz and Georges Chakra.

While some designers go seriously OTT and bling it like there is no tomorrow, others, namely the new generation, have stuck to a much more modern and stylish approach to glamour – understated elegance.

The perfect example of such designers and probably the forerunners for such style are Georges Azzi and Assaad Osta, whose label Azzi & Osta is gaining popularity and changing people’s views on what is glamorous in Beirut.

A breath-taking bridal creation from Azzi and Osta

Quirky and edgy Singapore label? AMEN to that!

It takes a lot of courage for new labels in Singapore to throw out the populist rulebook and decide to go their own way from the off.

Well, one such label is AMEN, traditionally accessories label that has branched out and released their  first clothing line, Femme with the debut  collection called Transmission.

Clinton Leicester and Nicole Wong, the couple behind AMEN, are not your average Singaporean label, and only one of them comes from fashion design background.

One look at their bold personal look followed by a glance at their quirky designs is enough to tell you that they basically design stuff they would actually wear.

Suited for Success: unusual and quirky, I'm loving this look which sadly
I could never pull off!