{Summer Diary} Italia

picture by Mu'izz Khalid

As a hopeless romantic hailing from Brunei, I am fairly certain that I have an affection for the summer heat. And when tossing coins in hope for love to return back are genetically coded in my DNAs I couldn't have asked for a better way to end my summer in Rome where the days are long; made for languid outdoor pursuits.

Rome is one of the busiest cities I've ever been to and although it is horribly overrun with noisy tourists and tacky souvenir stalls, the city still retains all of its Italian charm with cafes offering alfresco dining in every block and vespas running the streets. 

Me and my friends were lucky enough to have been accommodated in a cute house that looks like it is made for a movie set. I would definitely recommend House Trip for those who are looking for a comfortable stay for the holidays.

Prior to this little trip, I've acquired little knowledge of what to do in Italy. Although I know for one thing that a trip to Italy is not complete without tasting real gelato.

The Spanish Steps

St. Peter's Cathedral

Hope everyone had a great summer!

xx,

{LAPIN}

In my opinion, one of life greatest pleasures is having little things to look forward to; and in this instance it was having this beautifully handcrafted poem that I have ordered a month ago to be in the safe hands of my man. 

Lang Leav is a talented soul from Australia who tames the alphabets into creating such beauties like the poem above. For those of you who are interested in sending one to a friend, she handcrafts all of the poems to make them extra special and beautiful.

So much love on a Monday,

Eid outfits

First of I would like to say Eid Mubarak to my fellow Muslim bloggers and readers. It's the time of the month where we struggle to zip up our dresses and where we contemplate whether or not to bring every make up we own everywhere with us. And from what I've gathered from my instagram feed it looks like everyone is enjoying more than a good dose of kueh mors and beef rendang. So for this post I would like to share with you all what I've been wearing for the past few days of Eid:

For the 2nd day of Eid I finally pulled off my old prom blouse out of storage and paired it with a year old batik skirt. Since dark colours and Brunei's weather are hardly a good pairing, I've tossed a mustard shawl with blue lace details that works as the rose amongst the thorns for this outfit. 

I've been wearing this white Tous monogrammed bag on constant rotation with everything since the first day of Eid. Just like a certain Chanel flap bag, but for less than one fifth the price. 

I'm definitely packing away all the bold printed baju kurungs and swapping my burgundy lipstick for a light glow and pink cheeks, adding a pop of colour and pretending to be the girl in Sophia Coppola's perfume commercial.

Hope everyone is happy to be celebrating Eid once more with their loved ones because I am :-)

Style Profile {Carrie Bradshaw}

It's no secret that one of the reasons I have started this blog with my sister 4 years ago is due to being exposed to Sex and the City (RIP) and after watching a series of episodes almost religiously, I became a self proclaimed brigade of the many Carrie Bradshaw wannabes. When our favourite protagonist wore the beautiful Versace couture in Paris and having the notoriously emotionally unavailable, Mr Big telling her she was "the one" we knew that NYC is less about Manolo Blahniks and Manhattan than we hoped for when the series ended. 

9 years after that has passed, I've got a new batch of Carrie Bradshaw ensembles to pore over, The Carrie Diaries. And like many of us who grew up watching SATC and scoff at her destructive ways to approach her love life, we just can't seem to let her go no matter how irritating her character is. So in light of bringing up the subject of Carrie and my sartorial nosiness, I thought it seemed almost appropriate to take a peek at her behind-the-scenes closet before there was sex, courtesy of The Coveteur.

Put your shoes on and Carrie on,

First ootd video!

Quick hello! Just want to share with you guys what I wore for our weekly family dinner at Kaizen Waterfront last week. I've paired Kaka Amal's Zara leopard blazer with my blue Ralph Lauren button-down shirt and my good old boyfriend jeans from Topshop. Which reminds me that I might do a post on ways to pull off the boyfriend jeans.. hopefully.. one day!

On another note, I'm so excited to announce that we've made our first outfit video (well in this case 2 outfits in one)! So do check it out :) 

Stills from the video:

much love,

Style profile {Nadyne}

For a bona fide fashionista mother who is more accustomed to singing Manolo Blahnik's praises than singing lullabies comes along a daughter who looks like she will grow up into becoming the fictitious Rebecca Bloomwood. And this mother that I'm referring to is none other but my aunty, Babu Har who is a Stuart Weitzman brigade with one arm toting a designer bag and the other toting her precious daughter, Nadyne. 

Only a year and a month old, Nadyne is already a proud owner of 5 handbags and a LV Speedy bag. Yes, I know what you guys are thinking but she has not used it obviously. (And I might have borrowed it once or twice.) Her wardrobe veers towards Upper East preppy, favouring navy cropped blazers, tulle dresses and adorable ballet flats. 

Quirky is another side of Nadyne, favouring this gorgeous Bubble Girls by Sebastian Gunawan batik blazer which she would pair it off with her sleveless orange cut-out dress and her glittery flats to make her feet look like tiny presents.

This one is for you Nadyne. Missing you little gem.. We will see you in a week!

Love, 

(kaka)

GET READY WITH ME {WORK}

It seems to be a universal truth amongst women that we love having a peek inside other women's wardrobe, beauty cabinets and handbags. It is nothing short of nosiness, I just love seeing what others use, how they would organise their things and what it is they tote around with them each day. So in the spirit of sartorial nosiness, here are a few things that I've been using under heavy rotation, things you can find tucked inside my tote bag along with my ootd for work today:

On my face:

Face Shop BB cream

L'Occitane Angelica toner

Benefit Porefessional Primer

Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel

Body Shop Extra Virgin Minerals Foundation

Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick

Bobbi Brown Nespresso eyeshadow for the brows

 For work it seems more fitting to use an oversized tote bags like my Furla but for today I've chosen my Steve Madden  since I have less things to carry.

Not pictured but always present are my coin purse, Longchamp make up bag that I use as my pencil case, L'occitane toiletries bag to store my Revlon concealer for touch ups, oil blotter and my trusty MAC lipstick (but of course there are always 2 other lipsticks in there any time, because a girl never knows when a red lip may suddenly be required).

Of course it is essentially unnecessary to be dressing up for long hours office work pursuits but I always get a smug of satisfaction out of prancing around the photocopy room in lipstick and my sky-high wedges. I find no fault in dressing up for work. As long as it doesn't take you eons to get ready! 

xx,