Lust-Haves: There is No Gore in Gorman.

It's that time of year, when the fashion world looks to the next season, and reminds us all to start scouting looks for Autumn/Winter 2012 (my golly, the need for shopping just never stops). One of my favourite, favourite, favourite (did I mention favourite?) Australian brands is Gorman, whose pieces are playful, retro-ly modern and down to earth. They have just released their A/W 2012 lookbook, and true to form, this collection plays homage to the 60s and 70s mod style, with lots of prints, cape-like coats, shift dresses cigarette pants and geometric shapes. Can winter hurry up already?!

Images via Gorman

Lust.

Spendthrift.

The biggest internal debate I have every time I try to grapple with my own sense of style is whether the price tag is worth it. Sure, a Balenciaga leather tote trumps all over some imitation Sportsgirl offering, and I would readily label myself as "brand conscious" (or even "brand snob"), but there are times when you come across an item so ridiculously cheap that you'd be silly to not get it. 

Case in point: I paid $4.50 for a pair of heels*. You read that right, four dollars and fifty Australian cents. To put this in perspective, a fruit smoothie in this land costs anywhere from $4 to $7. I could have bought 2 pairs of these shoes and still have change compared to getting a ready-made focaccia. 

Heels from Love Couture

They aren't bad, eh! If they had been priced in the three-digit region, I probably wouldn't have purchased them, but at this low low price, they are cute and comfortable. I have so many outfit options swirling in my head: pairing it with a black silk jumpsuit, sequined top and skinny jeans, black shorts and blouse, stockings and tight dress. The list goes on.

*Disclaimer: the heels were price $9 but the store had a buy-one-get-one-free deal, so essentially the shoes cost $4.50.

Burr, it's Cold in Here.

You'd have to be living under a rock, or climbing the Himalayas, if you didn't hear about Tanya Burr over the past week or so. Who is she? Well, according to the Daily Mail (yes, I'm incredibly well read), Miss Burr is a 22-year old Youtube sensation specialising in celebrity make-up tutorials, and is such a specialist that she amasses over 2 million Youtube hits per month. 

Want to look like Olivia Palermo? Here you go:

Miranda Kerr in all her Victoria's Secret Angel glory? Look no further:

Some people have complained that she's a one trick pony, that her looks essentially look the same - eyeliner, neutral shades, pink or coral cheeks, pink lips. For me, I say each to their own. Tanya's clearly found her niche and success with taking celebrity/editorial looks and interpreting them her own way, and hey, I certainly don't think I am more skilled than her. I must also give kudos to her willingness to show her bare face, and making quite simple to follow videos. To top it off, she's a fellow pale skinned lady, so I couldn't criticise her (too much) even if I wanted to.

What do you think? Is Tanya your cup of tea? 

Lust-Haves: Asian Influence.

恭賀新禧! Happy Chinese New Year! It's the year of the dragon (the best zodiac sign, in my humble opinion), so here's to an exciting and prosperous year!

Speaking of Chinese culture, I am off to Hong Kong in exactly 38 days (not that I'm counting or anything). I have a penchant for writing lists, so of course I am compiling a wish list for all the fashion and beauty brands that I want to pillage when I get there! I have not set a budget for myself, so this could get dangerous. Anyways, here are a few Hong Kong lust-haves that I'm hankering for:

Marni for H&M

Image via Fashionologie

When the Marni for H&M collaboration was announced hot off the heels of the success with the Versace for H&M collection, I nearly fell off my seat. As fabulous as the Versace outing was, Marni's design aesthetics hits closer to my heart. And when I heard it was to be released on March 8 globally, I wept in excitement knowing that I was going to be in Honkers on that date. So I will be ticking off "camping overnight for fashion" off my bucket list come early March. 

Skinfood Aloe Sun BB Cream

Image via Skinfood Singapore

I have heard such good things about this BB cream, especially for those with sensitive, dry, easily irritated skin like me. You can get them in Sydney at Asian cosmetic stores such as Blush Cosmetics in World Square (Town Hall), but it is seriously overpriced here. So I am going to stock up in HK -  they're sold on Sasa, I believe!

Forever 21

Image via Hong Kong Hustle

Forever 21, the Korean-owned US mega clothing chain, has finally arrived in Hong Kong! The flagship Causeway Bay store had its soft opening a few days ago, giving us a sneak peek of its grand opening sometime in the HK spring. I cannot tell you how excited I am about this, especially when their online store's shipping fees are astronomical! 

Hada Labo

Image via Hada Labo

I am really interested in trying out the Hada Labo range, and see for myself what all the fuss is about! I don't think I've read any negative reviews on their products, especially their Super Hyaluronic Acid, which helps improve the moisture retention of skin (music to my ears!). Hada Labo is also available in Sasa, so my wallet will be losing a lot of weight there. 

Needless to say, I will be packing a mostly empty suitcase for this trip. Dear lovely people, what other brands should I look out for in Honkers?

Lust.

Smokey without the Smoke.

What do you do when, by some miracle, you wake up much earlier than you need to on a workday? Have a long breakfast? Do a 20 min Zumba workout? Go to work early? Or you could be like me, and play with make-up. Play until you end up being a little late to work. Story of my life. 

I am still quite a baby when it comes to make-up expertise (both in products and techniques), and I have ridiculously pale skin, so I've never dared to use dark eyeshadow. When I stumbled across my small BYS 'Smokey Purples' eyeshadow palette, I decided to try my amateur hands with it. I wanted to achieve a "not-so-traditional" smokey eye, in that it needed to be subtle enough to be work appropriate. 

 

Please excuse my messy, just got out of bed, hair. 

 

As you can see above, the one pesky thing I find about BYS eyeshadows is that they're extremely loose. One light dip with an eyeshadow brush creates a powder bomb. Not fun! BYS eyeshadows are extremely cheap though, so if you're a newbie like me, it's good to use them for experimenting and practice without your wallet hating you! And you may not be able to see in the pictures, but the eyeshadows in this palette actually have a subtle shimmer. 

Anyways, I digress. To achieve my look, I applied the light purple shade (1) all over my lids, the purple brown shade (2) on the mid third of my lids, and the shimmery black shade (3) on the outer corner of my eyelids. I then used a small blending brush, and starting from the outer corners, blended the colours together, making sure to blend the darker shades along the creases of my eyes. 

Product Roll Call

Laura Mercier Foundation Primer

Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Liquid Foundation (in 5.5)

Stila Hydrating Finishing Powder (loose)

Muji Stick Concealer in light

BYS #6 'Smokey Purples' Eyeshadow Palette
Rimmel 'Colour Rush' Mono Eyeshadow (for lower lash line)
MAC Zoom Lash Mascara

MAC Wonder Woman MSF in 'Golden Lariat'

Chanel Aqualumiere Lipshine in 'Antigua' (#32)

Overall I think it was a no-fuss, dramatic yet subtle look! As I practice more and get more knowledge about what products work for me (and my poor sensitive skin), I really hope to up the ante on my techniques as well. Now to reallocate my clothes "budget" for more make up...

Pink Power.

When I did a pink manicure on Sunday afternoon, I didn't know that it would subconsciously inspire me to have a pink-filled week! 

Pink pink pink! featuring:

Hot pink flats from Love Couture

Pink ombre nails...

(Kit 'Full Throttle'

Rimmel 'Strawberry Fizz'

OPI 'Sparrow Me the Drama'

OPI 'Isn't that Precious?'

OPI 'Mod About You')

Pink watch from a 300 Yen store in Osaka, Japan

Splash of pink from a Kookai top

Pink delivery! from Glossybox

When I was younger, I was obsessed with mood rings, and really believed that what you felt was reflected in your colour choices. Judging from how perky I've been this week, it might not be such a stretch from the truth after all!

Lust-Haves: Neutral.

I feel pretty lucky to be working in an office where I am free to wear bright, bold, statement nails. That's not to say that I don't love pastel colours - in fact, I have been missing my pastel polishes so much that I decided to use 5 colours at once.

A mixture of OPI and China Glaze polishes. 

I subscribe to the philosophy "more is more", so it should go without saying that I want more pastel nail polishes! Surprisingly I don't own a single Zoya nail polish, even though I've heard such good things about the brand. Their True Spring 2012 Nail Polish Collection has just been released, and the pictures alone are enough for me to lust over them on a really worrying scale.

Image courtesy of Vampire Varnish

A perfect balance of neutrals, subtle shimmers and ocean-esque shades, this collection is a stunner. 

Lust.

Edit: Apologies, I had to add new pictures because my original picture decided to stop working.

Lust-Haves: Florals & Lace.

In a conscious attempt to curb my spending, this week's Lust-Haves focuses on something more abstract - images! The fashion world has been inundated with Spring 2012 campaign debuts in the past week, and has reaffirmed that fashion (when done correctly) is an art form. I am one of those strange people who buys fashion magazines FOR the ads (and everything in between), so these pictorial releases have made me a very happy camper. 

Valentino's showing is a strong contender for my favourite campaign, with its romantic, soft accents which is so characteristic of the brand. Fei Fei Sun, Bette Franke, Zuzanna Bijoch and Maud Welzen bring to life the etherealness of the collection, which pairs 1920s, Downton Abbey-esque silouettes with modern accents. 

Office Space.

Confession time: I love watching The Rachel Zoe Project. Yes it's "reality" television, yes she tries to coin catchphrases like Gretchen tries to make fetch happen, yes she pronounces her surname in an obnoxious way, but I am addicted - to her and the show. 

In my humble opinion, her most enviable possession is her office. Or rather, the contents of her office. No words are necessary. 

 Images via The Coveteur

Armadillo.

True to my extremely indecisive nature, it took me three weeks to take the plunge and use up my Frockaholics voucher (get the backstory in this post). It seems that not everybody moves at a tortoise pace like me, since it took a grand total of 2 days for my parcel to arrive. 

I ended up choosing the LIFEwithBIRD Raven Armadillo Wedge Sandals - while they're nowhere near a McQueen Armadillo heel equivalent, I can at least walk in them without flattening my face on the ground!

Have a good (and healthy) weekend xx.

Lust-Haves: Lip Quench.

I was having the most relaxing day today, lounging at home after a nice morning brunch at Houlihans with a friend, when it suddenly occurred to me that today was not only the second day of the new year, but a MONDAY at that. And Monday in this blogland means: Lust-Haves! Luckily, I had a post dusted off and ready to go, so 2012 is off to a good (albeit a bit scattered) start!

It'd be no surprise to any of you that I went on a impulse buying binge a few weeks ago - someone needs to ban me from Priceline - and went a bit crazy, grabbing lipsticks left, right and centre. One of the lipsticks I picked up was the Face of Australia (FOA) Lip Quench Moisturising Lipstick SPF30+ in Pink Champagne, and I'm head over heels for it.

As you can see in the pictures above, my lips are extremely dry and prone to chapping, and could really do with a nice lip scrub. This lipstick has been a godsend: not only is it a pretty-in-pink shade, but it is packed with shea butter and jojoba oil, to keep my lips happy. 

FOA themselves say it best:

Enriched with natural moisturisers and emollients including Jojoba Oil, Vitamin E & Shea Butter, this rich, creamy lipstick provides beautiful colour in a hydrating formula that protects your lips from harmful UV rays.

Nourishes and protects whilst delivering smooth, even colour that caresses the curves of your lips. Maintain soft and supple lips and protect them from the ageing effects of the sun for totally kissable lips.

I would need to retake an IQ test if I didn't fall in love with this product. And at a mere $AU9.45 a pop, I want more more more!

 Images via Face of Australia

Lust.