Playing Paparazzi at BC Fashion Week

Hello readers, I am back! It's been a few days away from blogging as I took some time off to breathe in the mountain air at Whistler. I've got lots of catching up to do, so let's get started with last night, when I attended the BC Fashion Week opening show with Kelsey at The Anthology. The featured designer was Jacqueline Conoir, and the show was held at a sleek new club called Fortune Sound Club in dicey Chinatown (for my non-Vancouver friends, our Chinatown is rather drug-ridden and full of the homeless but is slowly changing into the latest It neighborhood). It had all the proper edge and chic one would expect at a fashion show.

The show was jam-packed, and I tried my best to play paparazzi. Being small is definitely a disadvantage when it comes to runway photography!

My favorite photo was unrelated to what was happening on the runway, but rather when supermodel and runway coach Stacey McKenzie posed for my camera in an impromptu moment (seen above). She's absolutely stunning in person and commands an amazing presence.

The show itself was alright, not really my style but I was happy to be there to soak in the atmosphere. Conoir's 2010 Spring collection featured mostly structured business wear, accented by some swingy tops and dresses. My favorite part of the collection was the long evening dresses, some in psychedelic prints and others in bridal creams and whites.








Up next, a recap of my Whistler trip and some outfit posts. Stay tuned!

London Fashion Week - Burberry Prorsum

The Burberry Spring 2010 show marked a triumphant return to London for the house after 8 years in Milan. I have never seen so many beautiful and feminine variations of the classic military trench. In the past, I had not considered ever buying the iconic Burberry trench, but these new versions are tugging at my heart (purse) strings.

In my youth, I did not relate much to the Burberry brand, and thought of it as mostly stodgey. Now, along with the legions of celebrity fans such Emma Watson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Liv Tyler, Victoria Beckham, and Mary-Kate Olsen (all seen at this closing show for London Fashion Week), I see the Burberry as young, sexy and seriously stylish.

The trenches came in all different materials and were cinched at the waist for a flattering figure. There was even a blue-silver sequined one. Puffy sleeves and twisted, ropey details were added to some of the coats for a modern take.

Designer Christopher Bailey gave us skirts and dresses with a lot of leg. Combined with drapey and ruched fabrics in soft nudes and pastels, a sexy yet classy femininity ruled his runway.

I also loved the platform heels and ruched clutch bags - perfect accessories for the modern city girl.

All pictures courtesy of Style.com.

Quick Hello

This past week has been a bit hectic so just a quick outfit post to show off my new brown studded boots. I love them! Last week I had lunch with Kelly from Option 8 and Teresa at Senses and Style where we chatted about boys and celebrity crushes, the Canucks (hockey is starting again and my crush is looking good with some new muscle mass according to my friend Alix at Canucks Hockey Blog), and geeky design stuff. Afterwards, we took some snaps by the train station.

This week, my mom and dad arrive from Hong Kong, and we're going to Whistler for the weekend to chill at one of my fave hotels, The Four Seasons. Mom and Dad will hit the golf course while hubby and I go mountain biking. Hope I come back in one piece!

I'm also super excited to hang out with Kelsey at The Anthology next week at BC Fashion Week. It's going to be fun but busy couple of weeks.

Wearing:
"Don't Call Me a Cowgirl Till You've Seen Me Ride" tee from Abercrombie&Fitch
Dark denim by Minedrd Jeanmaker from Vincent Park
Cream cropped jacket by Grace & Cello from Fine Finds
Brown leather studded boots, from Hong Kong

Nobody puts Baby in a corner

Even after watching Dirty Dancing for a gazillion times, I still love it. I was inspired to recreate Baby's style, an all-American sporty look that's ultra girly. Crop tops, white cropped pants, high-waisted denim, and bra tops with leggings - all looks that are relevant today.

Dancing or not, I love this pretty dress from Haute Hippie. And a pair of silver dancing shoes by Christian Louboutin would put me in the right step.


And what could be more All-American than American Apparel? Love their bodysuits; perfect for rehearsal.

The dancing leotards and crop tops in the movie reminded me of all the wonderful dance-inspired pieces Stella McCartney created for Adidas the past few seasons (below: Stella McCartney for Adidas striped yoga tank and ballet flats)

One of my favourite looks in the movie: a coral tank with high waisted jean shorts. Only I'd update Baby's Keds to a pair of Bensimon Tennis shoes.

Below: Bruuns Bazaar salmon tank, TopShop stone wash denim shorts, Bensimon tennis shoes, Stella McCartney for Adidas pink coverup



What movies have you watched that have inspired your style?

I'm off to a dinner and drinks with a girlfriend tonight so should have some outfit pics to post shortly. Have a great weekend!

J'adore La Flore Et La Faune

C'est moi! A gift from the witty and funny La flore et la faune. Thank you so much; it's one of the coolest gifts I've ever received and totally made my day.

I Heart Taylor Swift (and MTV style wrap-up)

Everyone's talking about how Kanye stole sweet Taylor Swift's thunder at the 2009 MTV VMAs. Not cool, but I'd like to focus how beautiful she looked in both her dresses, as well as how professional and classy she was in handling the situation. She looked stunning in both a drapey, one-shouldered beaded number and a fire-engine red cocktail dress during her subway inspired performance. Loved her red lipstick - gorgeous! We love you Taylor, and don't care what anyone says!!

Lady Gaga totally killed it with her crazy make-up and styling all night, first walking the red carpet in a Jean Paul Gaultier lacy black dress and a ball mask, complete with feathers. She then performed in white wedding gown-like number reminiscent of Madonna's wedding gown performance. Those over-the-knees white boots were incredible - only lady Gaga!

Some of my other fave looks of the night below:

Leighton Meester - adorable in her mini dress.

The ever stylish Alexa Chung in a cute, vintagey looking dress that's chic but not too try-hard.

And finally, Shakira and Pink showed up the same leather dress, and both looked great. I want these over-the-knee boots!

All images courtesey of mtv.com

Meat on a Stick

I promised you some food porn from the long weekend, so here it is. I took these snaps with my iPhone, not really expecting them to turn out, but some of them weren't too bad.

Zakkushi on Main Street is the third location of its kind in Vancouver. A robata restaurant (Japanese charcoal grill) well known for it's meat on a stick, it also dishes out a fair amount of yummy rolls and sushi. All this washes down very well with a cold Asahi. And located conveniently on Main and open late (til midnight), it was a perfect place for a Friday night.

We ordered a Kushi Set, which came with the above assortment of chicken, beef and pork kebabs as well as a skewer of very nicely grilled asparagus. In addition, we had a grilled corn on the cob (covered in butter and oh-so sweet), smoky shitake mushrooms, and a nori mayo tsukune (a chicken meatball around a stick - seen below). The nori mayo definitely took it to another level, and I can see how adding that stuff to a plain old weiner Japadog style can make even street-meat most addictive. What's nice about Zakkushi is the variety of kebabs they have, and of course, the lovely grilled flavour from the charcoal. All the meats were tender and juicy, and in perfect two bite sizes.

We had some rolls too, including a Triple Salmon roll and the below Unagi California roll.

We finished off with one of my favourite desserts, doryaki, which is two small pancakes stuffed with red bean paste. The pancake on its own was nothing special, but Zakkushi's version had matcha ice-cream inside, which made it to die for.

The sign outside Zakkushi is a glowing beacon in the dark for late-night hungry hipsters, and I'll be back for more delectable bites soon.

All You Need is Love

I totally admit it - I can be such a cheeseball sometimes. And that's why I love this wooden sign from Rockett St. George. Just seeing it just makes me happy - amazing what the written word can do for you, as the sassy Elizabeth Marie from It's Unbeweavable! commented to me today.

And postcards, a quaint, and somewhat dated concept, can also bring a smile to people (as well as myself - you already know I'm sappy). Deanne from Dream Sequins' organized a postcard project, and through that I connected with not just Elizabeth Marie but also Summer from B is for Brown. The idea is simple: you send one postcard to two people, and in return you will receive postcards from others. What a great way to bring people together! You can see the 50's inspired print I sent Summer here.

I haven't checked my mail yet this week, but I'm hoping I get my cards very soon.

About a Boy

It's been a lovely, lazy Labour Day long weekend in Canada and this outfit sums up my weekend. Very laid back and chilled. And ever since I cropped my hair off, I've been feeling tomboyish. So, I pulled out my polo shirt by Ralph Lauren made for boys (yes, it's size 12 or 14 boys shirt), some new but comfy-like-old jeans, and wellies.

Speaking of these wellies, I finally got them after I first blogged about these in December last year! They're by Ilse Jacobsen, and originally I wanted them in white. We're starting our rainy season with Fall nipping in the air, and I couldn't wait to pick these up (at 25% off, too).

I didn't do much this weekend other than a lot of eating and hanging around the house and garden. On Friday night, hubby and I had a late-night dinner date at a delish izakaya (food porn pics and review to follow soon).

On Saturday night, we had a BBQ dinner party and hubby made a delicious grilled rack of lamb with coriander seed; chili-spice rubbed spot prawns with japanese mayo on skewers; and coconut marinaded chicken wings. All paired with a bottle of Nota Bene from Black Hills and another bottle of Cab Sauv from Aussie. Dessert was Key Lime Pie, one of my faves.

On Sunday morning, we slowly climbed out of bed and it was off to dim sum with my gran and cousins. Followed by a trip to J.J Bean before coming home to watch 3 DVDs in a row and making a pancetta-brocolli-mushroom gruyere quiche.

I love my long weekends.

Wearing:
Boys polo by Ralph Lauren
Blue jeans by Minedrd Jeanmaker from Vincent Park
Wellies by Ilse Jacobsen from Fine Finds
Sunglasses by the POLICE borrowed from hubby