Solve The Shopping Dilemma

Bag the best buys with a simple mental checklist
By Mavis Ang
Photos by www.polyvore.com

AMONGST the dangerously tempting prices during major sales, it’s easy to end up over spending on items you thought were simply too cheap to not buy. A good habit to maintain during sales, or any shopping trip for that matter, is to run the item through a mental checklist – it might just save your wallet.

Read more on solve the shopping dilemma.

How To Dress For A Shopping Day Out

Look great, feel comfortable, and shop with ease
By Mavis Ang
Photos by www.polyvore.com

SHOPPING in Singapore is very much like a sport. One needs to be mentally prepared mentally (for the kiasu aunties, irritable yuppies, and incredible customer service), and have the right gears and outfit to participate. Your shopping trip can easily turn into troublesome and frustrating with the wrong attire, so here’s some useful tips and ideas for the best hassle-free and fashionable outfits.

Read more on how to dress for a shopping day out.

Zouk’s Fashionable Flea & Easy

Caution: The cheap buys featured below may cause extreme jealousy
by Mavis Ang

Zouk’s quarterly flea market “Flea & Easy” took a different spin last Sunday with a fashion elite edition (along with Singapore Fashion Festival ‘08), where all the stall vendors belonged to the fashion industry. Amongst which are stalls owned by Cleo, Harper’s Bazaar, Channel 8 actor Chen Han Wei, modelactress Jade Seah, and radio DJs Shan Wee and Rosalyn Lee.

Within an hour, Zouk was packed with usually glamourous fashionistas jostling and squeezing their way through the crowd. A small queue gradually formed at the entrance as people stopped to look at stalls, holding up traffic behind them. After straining our necks and grumbling, my companion and I managed to step into the flea market, only to be stunned by the sight before us.

Read more about Zouk's Fashionable Flea & Easy.

Top 10 Womenswear Trends

Some things from last season are still popular and can be recycled for this season.
By Megan Hazel
Source: www.fibre2fashion.com

YOU probably can't recall who said it, but whoever first uttered that fashion comes full circle every 30 years or so was not too far off. This season on the runway is reminiscent of the flowing ‘70s in both fabric and style.

1. Long skirts are in. We are seeing much more of the long skirt and much less of the micro mini. Materials like silk and chiffon, which tend to flow and gather, are much more popular for Spring 2008 than fabrics like cotton or denim which tend to hold shape and stay stiffer in appearance. The word for the season is feminine, feminine, feminine! The exception to this seems to be in outerwear, where rubber is oddly back in style. Indoors, though, thin little belts, hats, and scarves are also popular and a throwback to the 70s as well as being womanly.

2. Metallic bags and clutches. Don't despair, though — some things from last season are still popular and can be recycled for this season. Accessories like metallic bags and clutches, as well as sequins and some of the longer pencil skirts can still be worn with confidence.

Read the rest of the Top 10 Womenswear Trends.

Wardrobe Must-Have for Guys

Ever wished that there was one definitive list of clothes that you should have in your wardrobe for all occasions? Ever wondered how to put together a wardrobe that just works? How does that other guy always look so good? How did he manage to always look so put together, when he earns about the same as you? What kind of umbrellas should a man use?

If fashion has always been a big puzzle for you, fret no more. You are now in the possession of a very powerful list that will teach you how to assemble the pieces required for all occasions. After setting up this wardrobe, you should never have to worry about what to wear, and even how to match your clothes.

Read. Print. Tick off your list. Dress well, and be confident. Anywhere, anytime.

Formal / Semi Formals

• Four (4) long sleeved shirts in blue, black, white or with small prints
• Two (2) short-sleeved shirts in summery colours like white, green or pale blue. You can also choose a shirt with some prints but avoid anything too loud unless you are a well-sculptured male model posing for a beach wear ad
• A pair of chinos pants in khaki colour
• A pair of black pants with a flat front. Try to avoid pants that have a pleated front as a flat-front pant can give you a more cleaner and sharper look
• A pair of black and/or blue pants
• One (1) well-cut suit, if you can afford bespoke, all the better. Be sure to tailor two (2) pairs of pants with it because they tend to wear out faster. If you prefer, have one made half and inch wider around the waist for those days when you begin to grow a beer belly. If you are having a tuxedo made, make sure you have a bow tie, tuxedo shirt and cummerbund as well
• Four (4) neckties, have at least one black based, one blue based, one with a fun print or something you like and one with a flashier color or style for nights (and nights when for some reason you want to act gay or blend in with the crowd.)
• Two (2) belts - have at least one black belt and one brown belt. You will notice that I advocate separating brown and black. Black is a cold colour while brown is a warm colour and unless you look like a model, it is very difficult to pull off wearing the two colours together
• One (1) light coloured jacket in either cream, pale blue or light brown
• One (1) leather satchel for your business documents
• One (1) set of silver cufflinks to accompany your formal shirts
• One (1) good watch in stainless steel. Avoid gold
• A pair of dress shoes in good polished leather in a colour that matches your main suit. Try to choose those with a square or round toe. Avoid dress shoes with pointed toes. You are not a cowboy
• Allowable jewellery on weekdays – wear only a maximum of two at a time out of these five items: ring, bracelet, earring, chain and/or tattoo
  

Casual

• One (1) pair of extremely well-cut blue jeans that is not torn anywhere, have chains or any words attached/scribbled/stitched to it. Little frays at the hems are acceptable
• Two (2) polo shirts. One plain one and one that is striped
• Sportswear for the sports that you play - you need one set that makes you look good for each sport you play. Try to avoid wearing your sportswear all the time especially when you are not planning to play that day
• Soccer jersey for the team that you support
• Board shorts
• Three (3) short sleeved shirts. Choose shirts that are roomy but not too big. You are not 50Cent. Try to get at least one shirt that is made of quick-dry fabric
• One (1) long sleeved sweatshirt in grey, black or blue. Should be relatively simple, either in round neck or V-neck
• If you have nice arms, get a sleeveless tee shirt for the beach. If not, stick to short sleeved tee shirts
• Cool sunglasses
• One (1) waist pouch or messenger bag to keep your hands free (your preference)
• Swimming trunks in black, blue or brown. Avoid wearing swimming trunks in red, yellow, white, purple or pink. Never, unless you are a model on a fashion show and being paid to parade in them
• One (1) pair of sneakers, try and get those with shoelaces and not those with Velcro
• One (1) pair of leather sandals and/or Birkenstocks
• One (1) pair of comfortable flip flops
• White trainers or city walking shoes. They are very fashionable now, and will remain in fashion for some time, so any guy who wants to be fashion forward can consider getting them
• Allowable jewellery for weekends or nights – Wear only a maximum of three out of these 5 items: ring, bracelet, earring, chain or tattoo
  

All Weather / Travel Wear

• Sports jacket or windbreaker and accompanying pants
• A well-cut winter coat in black
• Autumn coat or leather jacket
• Dark coloured turtleneck
• Heavy scarf
• A nice pair of gloves
• Two (2) pieces of luggage – one large and one cabin-sized
• One (1) backpack
• Travel documents folder
• Shoe bag
• Travel toiletries kit preferably with a hook that you can hang – for some reason this feature is more masculine than for women
• One (1) overnight bag
• One (1) cap
• Dark and light coloured socks. Remember to wear dark coloured socks with your dark shoes and light coloured socks with your light shoes. For moccasins, no socks
• Always have a spare set of clean underwear in only two (2) allowable styles: briefs or boxers. Sarongs and G-strings do not count.
  

Other Small Items of Need

• One (1) good pen
• A condom case
• A PDA or any gadget that you fancy that you can bring around
• A professional-looking cardholder
• A nice key chain
• A flat and clean wallet. If your wallet is fat and peeling, you obviously need to buy a new one. Better still if you look gorgeous and can carry off a money clip, everyone finds it sexy
• And maybe even a nice big long umbrella. Avoid using a foldable umbrella. If you currently have one, throw away now.
  

Wardrobe Must Have For Women

The All Weather All Love Wardrobe

Ever felt that you have nothing to wear? Feel that you have all the fashion trends and not enough of classics?

We all know that we really only utilize about 20% of our fashion wardrobes. Now, the idea is to reduce the lousy duplicates and replace them with good pieces that love you just as much as you love them.

Do not feel frightened of having less clothes - clearing out your wardrobe is actually very therapeutic! And with lesser clothes to clutter up your wardrobe, and with the knowledge that everything looks good on you, you'll never lack an outfit for any occasion again.

Look forward to building a wardrobe that is filled only with pieces that you love, and that will take you everywhere!

WARDROBE MUST HAVE ITEMS!

A. Casual/Semi-Casual

TOPS

• A tube top
• A tunic – a great piece you can wear as a minidress or as a blouse.
• A halter neck top
• An off-shoulder top
• A crisp white sleeveless button-down cotton top
• A true red sleeveless top - you could pick a nice buttery yellow if you are tanned. Some color would add pop to any outfit.
• Fitted denim jacket or casual jacket
• Hooded jacket and pants for traveling and cool hip-hop weekends.

BOTTOMS

• A pair of well-cut jeans – forget about those ripped-everywhere jeans and those
  ultra fashionable ones that only last a season. Invest in a pair of well-cut and form-flattering piece and it’ll never go out of style.
• Skirts, from flirty ones to denim ones – short skirts are fine as long as you remember that the idea is to look sassy and not spanky!
• Capri pants – avoid getting those white ones that fit so tight you worry about your G-string showing!
• Nice fitting casual pants
• Dark denim shorts
• Dressy shorts
• Casual board shorts – try to choose those that are longer falling just above the knees in a quick dry fabric

FOOTWEAR

• Flat thong sandals
• Ultra comfy slippers
• Flat shoes

ACCESSORIES

• Sunglasses
• Fun earrings
• Casual tote bag for when you go swimming, should come with a zip
• Small casual bag
• Wristlet or small lunch bag
• Wide brown leather belt – surprisingly, sometimes brown is more versatile than black!

OTHERS

• White summer dress
• Patterned summer dress
• Sportswear for the sports you play - one great flattering set (e.g. tennis, gym, golf, yoga)
• Flattering bikini
• Sarong
• Plain Pashmina shawl
• Printed Pashmina shawl

B. All Weather

• Wool coat
• Lighter Autumn coat
• Leather jacket
• Cashmere sweater
• Turtleneck
• Wool pants
• Leggings
• Black boots
• Ankle walking boots
• Gloves
• Heavy scarf

C. Travel Needs

• Large sturdy hard case luggage bag
• Medium sturdy hard case luggage bag
• Hand carry bag suitable for a two-night stay
• Rugged backpack
• Foldable carry bag to bring with luggage
• Shoe bag
• Toiletries bag
• Makeup bag
• Luggage tags
• Passport holder
• Travel document folder
• Beautiful notebook – where you can write down your thoughts and don’t let them fly away!
• Small, light, foldable umbrella

D. Small Items of Need

• Good luck charm – everyone needs something that makes them feel good!
• Baseball cap, wide-brim hat, beret
• Excellent lingerie in black, white, nude, colorful and invisible
• Quirky brooch
• Gorgeous hair clips
• Cotton pajamas
• Cotton kimono, fluffy bathrobe, big towel

There you go! With that, you have everything you need for almost all occasions! Just mix and match!

Occasionally, purchase one or two trendy pieces to complement the existing clothes you have and dazzle the world with a confident new you!