Fabulista Regrets: The Moonbeach that wasn't.

After waiting half a year for the highly anticipated Moonbeach sandals from the LV S/S '08 collection, the pair finally arrived. It exists (as Louis puts it) in three colours - honey, electric blue and cream.

The one that I really need should have been the cream pair. At SGD885, it's really a steal! It's available in my size (6!) for LV sandals! ALAS!! It was not meant to be... the colour... it's just wrong (sobs) it doesn't suit my skin tone!!

AURGH!!

Fabulista: Found a New Good Thing

I am not trying to be Martha Stewart. But this new product from Kiehl's is really a great thing!

If like me, you have fussy combination skin that requires moisture and radiance without the slick, this Abyssine+ with SPF15 is really a godsend.

After trying out the sample lotion, I am loving the effect it has on my skin. It provides ample moisture without stickiness and radiance without shine.

Apparently, it has a "survival molecule which thrives under the extreme conditions in hydrothermal ocean vents, [which] helps soothe and protect skin. Combined with Corallina Extract, sourced from a mineral-rich red alga with self-defensive properties". Well, whatever, I am liking what it does for my skin and my skin is loving me for it (and it shows)!

Fabulista Adores: Davidoff’s Adventure for Men

Am totally in love with the new scent from Davidoff. Forget the complicated breakdown of citrus top notes that effervesces into a woody heart before settling into a musky base. This scent reminds one of a comfortable aged-leather chair, effused with the lingering tone of saffron tobacco.

Intoxication in an amber liquid.

I can’t help but be reminded of my first EDT love – Safari by Ralph Lauren. It’s equally masculine and comfortable at the same time. The leather and linen quality equally mesmerizing.

I am in love with the whole Ewan McGregor endorsing the “scent of adventure in the air” thing, but when the commercial frame showed him handling a bottle of the scent, I can’t help but wonder,

“isn’t biking a lone sport?”;

“aren’t you biking alone on this journey?;

“so who on earth is going to smell you when you are on the road?”

Curious, really… dousing oneself with expensive sprays for nature that already has its own perfumes and aromas. The whole concept of the ad is just… weird.

Still, am loving the scent… and Ewan (but of course).

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Watch the original commercial...

...and the amusing spoof...

Fabulista Comments: Being Human

A TRUE HUMAN understands

There’s no FAITH without HOPE

There’s no JUSTICE without COMPASSION

There’s no HUMANITY without FAIRNESS

And ALL THINGS, even in the least is also DIVINE

Fabulista Suggests: The Complacency at the Atelier.

I have always been a fan of renegades. They are unconventional, they think out of the box – the fabulous, creative people of the non-conformist circle. One such person is beautician turned fashion buyer, Michael Tonello. The author of “Bringing Home the Birkin”, an exposè on his experience as a fashion buyer, he has publicly denounced the faux-popularity of the pseudo-beaureaucracy behind the Hermès Birkin.

More than that, I am glad to know that there is at least one other person out there who shares some of the views I have about the Birkin and even possibly about Hermès. The birkin is not a handbag. It was modified from the then Kelly handbag to a weekender after a comment from the subsequent eponymous owner to the Hermès boss.

As Michael says, the bag is therefore “the [Birkin] is rather heavy, even empty”. It’s size as an intended weekender also renders it bigger and thus impractical and even cumbersome as a daily bag.

In any case, the House of Hermès is not exactly the place to go for high fashion. Perhaps it is the atelier’s founding history as a saddle maker. They are certainly deft as quality leather makers but when it comes to creativity and beauty, it just isn’t quite there. Take their bags (again) for example. Everything has the same fastening clasp; think Birkin detail on EVERY carrier, even the men’s bags. Yes, there’s a fine line between signature and boring.

For Hermès, it’s just boring.

Fabulista laments - Relations, Closures and Sanders.doc

I had a coffee session with my friends today. We gathered to catch up on old times and it was amazing how we can always meet up after a protracted period and never seem to have lost any time in between. I guess that explains the proximity of our relationships. Our group is made up of the kind of people that invest in rapport and connection.

It seems that this mutual gift of ours, so quintessential to our group’s dynamic is also the pitfall of our individual lives. As we sipped our cappuccinos and our lattes, there was this to share:

“I thought I saw Paul Sanders today. I thought I saw him along Orchard Road. Then I saw him again in HMV. I thought it was him. We walk pass each other, but I couldn’t see any sign that he recognized me. But he looked just like Paul. I tried to observe discreetly to verify if it was really him…”

There was a pause and a faraway gaze onto the mug of coffee…

“I was sure; from the way he walked – that subtle bounce in his careful steps, the way he shifted the weight of his bag… right down to the choice of his current girlfriend – those sweet, young, Asian things…”

There was a brief silence was the table exchanged side-glances.

“We passed by each other a few times more in the store. If he was pretending not to know me, his done a great unnecessary job…”

I sat at the table, quietly empathizing. We are not sure if Paul Sanders really appeared along Orchard Road today. What we do know is that it was clear Paul Sanders is greatly and sadly missed by one in our group, no matter the extent of denial. I also understood the frustration; I am privy to the Paul’s final goodbye (rather the lack thereof) and the consequent absence of a closure.

People in our group build deep and invest much into relationships. Every tiny gesture is significant, considered and appreciated. I guess Paul Sanders, in his final departure denied a proper closure. Thus, I suspect in many gatherings to come and over countless mugs of Arabica, we can expect various apparitions of Paul Sanders to pop in and out, now and then.

Fabulista Says: Hysteria is Scary...

Is this a nice bag?

I am not too sure, but I think it looks decidedly scary. The proportions, contrasted and amplified by the tiny handle, are colossal. The lack of distinct segments or separation of the surface exaggerates its seemingly large size.

In a word, it’s just plain ‘scary’ to behold. The python skin does not help with the fear factor either. Nevertheless, the bag has made it to the list of this season’s latest IT bags… I guess when it comes to Gucci Envy, both rationality and aesthetics are thrown out of the window…

Fabulista Suggests: Be Careful What You Boast About.

Working in an environment of elitist-wannabes, it doesn’t come as a surprise that their relatives (usually of the female variety) are already flouting all social norms and flaunting affluence – albeit in a crude and often repulsive ways.

While there are the exceptional few, who chooses to demonstrate their financial prowess with subtlety (dressing quietly but tastefully) or intelligence (why bother with monograms when you can have unblemished exotic skins), they are few and far between; if any.

Back to the garden-variety nouveau riche; read big hair, pasty makeup, distastefully loud and monogrammed CLOTHING and bag with HUGE logos conspicuously emblazoned across the main body. They would do ANYTHING to display and ostensibly showoff their wealth; ala PCK Pte Ltd… you get the picture.

Very often though, in their haste to brag and boast, they shoot too fast off their mouths without thinking about connotations. Blame it on a lack of savoir-faire and common bourgeois breeding.

Case in point. Grandmother at said institute was blowing her trumpet about how she fished herself a ‘golden carp’ of a husband and ended up never having to lift a finger to do anything thereafter (hmm, what about the initial to final stages of childbearing?). Anyway, she boasted to a bunch of equally catty/bitchy socialite and stay-home mums, who have the ability to read between atomic gaps.

The grandmother boasted that she had never had to do anything after her marriage and promptly added, “I don’t even have to go marketing (i.e. grocery shopping) ever; my husband’s secretary handles all of that for me…”

The catty/bitchy socialite and stay-home mums shared a look with one another before they started sharing secret smiles, while others outright giggled at the implications of the statement.

I don’t think the implications require any exposition…

Fabulista Voices: My Friend Decides to Leave.

As the decision to leave was made, Sue remembers the first greeting - since you are new, you can’t possibly perform better than the others. Right?

Is there any other way to respond to this question without sounding boastful or defensive? There might be. But Sue is not that smart, yet…

So Sue decided to leave the place that neither recognizes nor rewards efforts. All they tell you is:

• So and so is singing your praises.
• Keep it up!
• Good job.
• You are right.

But bottom-line is, when you actually do something out of your jurisdiction, they tell you that it’s what you should have done all along.

Sue got sick and tired of the SNAFU and finally decided to leave. A new place might not be heaven on earth, but anything is better than what is happening now. In any case, the new place might actually be closer to home than the current one now – it eats into the bank account just based on traveling fares alone.

Sue is leaving. Sue knows when one is too good for a place. Sue is smart like that. Don’t tell Sue about a good job performance – save the translation into other more tangible means. Positions? Promotions? Monetary? These are media and languages that Sue is very familiar with.

Sue speaks and feels just like anyone else.