White + Rose

Last Sunday, I attended the Sydney Tea Festival. The Tea Festival is an annual event that allow tea enthusiasts to indulge in a day of tea-tasting with established brands and shops down to the indie online stores, browse through ceramics and homeware or participate in some tea ceremonies and other workshops. I first heard of it last year but I had just missed it and was sorely disappointed. Luckily, I hadn't missed this year's and I made it a date with my friends. I saw a gathering of Lolitas there too, to which my friend asked me why I didn't show up in my gear. I've kind of moved on -- I still have my attachments to certain Lolita aesthetics but I'm not wearing my clothes anymore. I got there about lunchtime, so it was very busy. When I left, it was probably busier because it was a struggle to even get to the counters. I had to restrain myself, so I kept myself to a budget. The prices of the teas were definitely pricier than what most people would pay for. Nev...

Red My Lips is an organisation that runs a campaign every April to raise awareness about sexual violence. This year, I decided to take up on that challenge and wear red lipstick for the month. I invited one of my friends to join me because she loves red lipstick and could contribute to a cause. It also would push me to use some of the red lipsticks I own and finish off my Chanel. I only had three lipsticks that I would consider "red": I have yet to complete this challenge as the month is not over but so far, it has been a difficult endeavour. Everyday Lipstick: Chanel Rouge Coco Shine in Monte Carlo (62) Easy to put on when you just want a little bit of colour. This is not a true red, more like a strawberry-pink/red. I wore this most of the time. Day Out / Happy Medium Lipstick: Illamasqua Maneater Great colour if you like something suitable for day time. It's a classic cherry red. Formula's a little dry but that is what I expect from a complet...

Last week, I attended my friend's 21st. It was a large group of mostly her family members and only a few of us friends turned up. We were allowed to borrow and wear saris, which I thought was a treat. Her mother opened up her vast wardrobe of saris to allow us to find one to wear for the day. Cloth of many hues, little details like metallic sequins or beading -- it was all wonderful to look at. We all got to appreciate the beauty of the sari. I think the experience opened me up to more things than I expected. It brought up how unsatisfied I am, being so disconnected with my own culture. In the recent years, I've gained some interest in Chinese culture and with the help of the worldwide web and Youtube (in particular), I am able to get in touch with it. The only thing I am most dissatisfied with is that I cannot speak my language very well or read. It will be something I have to work on. It also made me realise how much fun it is to wear statement jewellery. I definitely ...

I attended the End of Year Ball held by the medical science society I am a member of. It was somewhat of a large gathering of students in various years of their program, majority of them in their 3rd year. We shared a meal and dessert before dancing to some music and drinking. So naturally at the end of the night, I looked like a miserable mess but I had a lot of fun. Most people don't even notice the perfume but for me, the scent is the most important aspect of the outfit. I chose Guerlain Shalimar because it was just one of those scents perfect for a formal occasion. It smells a little bit old fashioned for a modern gathering like this but I loved it. As for my clothes: I'm the first on the right. Clothes and accessories: Necklace: ASOS Bracelets: Baublebar Phased Out bangles and braided bracelet was a birthday gift Top: Kmart Skirt: Op Shop (Mr K) Shoes: Miss Shop Clutch - Marco Gianni Since the clutch had limited space, I had to carefully choos...

For my birthday, I celebrated it like any other birthday -- with a dinner in the company of a few friends. Followed by a lunch the following day for those who were unable to attend the dinner. My outfit for the day was: Dress: Paper Scissors Shoes: Doc Martens Bag: Coach (mother's) The festive season is finally here and I usually enjoy seeing the decorations of the Swarovski tree. It's very tall. Spans over 3 levels I thought I'd share the gifts I had received here. I'm ever so grateful for the things I was given. All of them had a lot of thought put into it, be it from the choice of wrapping paper, the time it took to make it, the words written on a card or even the gift itself took time to find. Anti-clockwise from top left corner: vintage bracelet, Lush 'Let the Good Times Roll', birthday card, Batwoman Elegy, grater from Pylones, handmade bracelet, Truman Capote 'In Cold Blood'. I also received a belated present afte...

Most people are familiar with IMATS if they follow beauty gurus from Youtube or other beauty bloggers because many of them attend this event. It's a trade show/ expo for makeup artists where vendors will offer their products, sometimes at a discount, and there's shows and competitions. I wouldn't consider myself a makeup enthusiast but I'm keen on picking up a few tips and I really wanted to get a few things. I bought a general admission ticket for Saturday and it costed me AUD$40 (including the booking fee). I figured that most of the popular items would be sold out on the first day, so I chose to go on a Saturday (if you want to haggle prices, Sunday's probably better but I haven't mastered the art of negotiation). The plan was to go alone because I'd be able to get around faster and a lot of that time would be waiting in queues. The venue was the Royal Hall of Industries in Moore Park, which isn't very far from the CBD but it makes going to the sh...

I purchased a ticket back in July for the final Australian Anberlin tour. This was before the release of their final album. I have been a fan of Anberlin for a while (back in high school, just before Cities had been released) and with further encouragement from my sister, I decided to buy a ticket. After all, they're probably not going perform together again. Along with Anberlin, The Getaway Plan and Breakaway were performing. While I've listened to The Getaway Plan before, I had never heard of Breakaway and they were actually pretty good. A lot of people were probably just there for Anberlin and for me, getting to see The Getaway Plan was a bonus (because I really like them too). My ticket It was held at the UNSW Roundhouse last week. Luckily I know my way around campus so I got in pretty early and left pretty quick. Before the performances, I managed to grab a T-shirt. It's probably the most expensive T-shirt I've ever bought but it's goddamn worth it for ...

Essie has been around for a few months if I could recall the first time I stumbled upon them being sold in Priceline. I loved Essie for their neutral range. Just before Fashion Week, Essie has opened a pop-up in the Pitt St Mall, offering complimentary mini-mani (just girls putting the nail polish of your choice onto your nails), a take-home nail polish (that too is complimentary) and a $10 off voucher when you buy 2 Essie nail polishes at Priceline. For the mini-mani, you get to choose anything from their collection sold in Priceline. I initially had my eye on Midnight Cami (what I wanted to buy). I eventually went with pastels - something I don't normally wear and picked Tart Deco for all my fingers except for my ring finger, which was reserved for Mint Candy Apple. It's a nice way to try some Essie nail polishes for free before buying them. I can tell you that I won't be buying Tart Deco. The first coat was way too streaky and any streaky nail polish frustrates m...

If someone were to ask me what I've been doing during my winter break, I'd say that I didn't do much. I've been lounging around, being as lazy as I possibly could before I return back to school. I had dinner with some friends... and bought tickets to an anime convention. SMASH! is the Sydney Manga and Anime Show for short and I've been wanting to go for years but I kept putting it off (I've had excuses from family events to school work). However, the convention does offer a little bit of fashion like Japanese street fashion and Steampunk. Unfortunately, I missed the Steampunk panel but I did make it for most of the Harajuku fashion panel held by Electric Alice. During that event, they had four volunteers to put on a Lolita coordinate. Two people to dress up the other two, that is. The guy in the pink won. Doesn't he look pretty? Before the "mannequins" dress up They've already put on their blouse. Clearly you can see who the v...