知己知彼百战百胜

didn't manage to sell the boots so i've retired them for my own use. been wanting to wear them but could never get it right with some bottoms or dresses. it's chilly today and these were the only pair of bottoms that didn't look too off with the boots.  

and the pants had to fail. the zip wasn't working smoothly as i got ready for work. then the zip finally malfunctioned when i was about to get out of the office toilet. thank God the zipper head was able to stay at the opening at the waist. and thankfully the top was long enuf in covering the gaping hole. now i gotta look for another pair of bottoms to go with these boots.

btw, i cut the other pair of boots. cut them too low, i think. but still passable. but didn't work cos i'd have to sew up the inner lining to the leather and then the inner soles also needed to be lined. gave up. also gave up trying to wear these again. it's just futile. 

strappy

some days back, i summoned the energy to do a stock-take of my shoes collection. i got lazy as i neared 80. it's probably under 90 if i did miss out a few pairs. not too bad, i dare say. but of course i could do better. i can't recall now the exact number of shoes i had at the last inventory check. 120 maybe.

i don't own many strappy shoes, for obvious reasons. i've had this pair for years and i never wore them past thrice, i believe. but they're so comfy i dunno why i just won't wear them often enuf. i think i just still like my shoes a little pointy - for obvious reasons, too. but for the sake of my feet, i should consider more such shoes.

anyway, the ankle strap is in fashion again? just add socks? or the trend never went away.

which reminds me, i've yet to wear that brand new pair bought ohmygoodness more than 2 YEARS back!! seriously i only have myself to blame if they don't last until i reach the road junction and then everyone can see this woman walking funny across the road.

no, the black pair didn't give way. the left sole did, now i wonder if i should replace the rubber. tsk.

one last try

piazza sempione via color collective

those days

wearing socks was intentional. reason: i was visiting the big boss' place; there'd be many other colleagues there, so i was shy about exposing my ugly feet. and since i haven't figured out how to wear such socks with skirts or dresses, i wore the jeggings, which're tight. i thought i'd lost weight (someone observed so and i could fit into my cheongsam comfortably). jeggings and socks weren't exactly advisable in today's heat.

wearing the hasbeens lookalike wasn't that intentional. it was between a pair of maroon 9wests and the naturalizers (or is it more like hasbeens resemble naturalizers?). i got in and out of a few outfits before  settling for this one. the tunic's never worn. so you see, there's no point in buying new clothes for CNYs. lol. anyway, the granny shoes looked better. truth be told, i'd prefer to wear the 9wests. reason: i didn't wish to look typical. i mean, everyone seemed to be doing vintage these days. i was honestly not keen on looking too common.

ever since i entered the blogging world, i'd gradually toned down the vintage vibe in the way i dressed.  and i wasn't already doing full-blown vintage in the first place. the naturalizers had been ignored for sometime now. and frankly, wearing socks with such shoes could be potentially embarrassing. i'm not talking about being teased for looking like a granny. you know how socks could be slippery? now go imagine the scenes of embarrassment.

but i know it's self-contradicting. think about it: some, or many of us, would like to declare that we don't like to be slaves to trends. so we invest in classic clothing items. so there're many of us who'd end up looking exactly like each other. and isn't classic = vintage?     

much more better

decided to go crazyyy with colours today. i've done it before but there's the purple jeans this time. dunno what got into me, ha ha.i had in my head to wear a mustard top but i couldn't think of the shoes to go with the outfit. plus, it's still nippy, so it's sockit time.

and if not for the sudden courage, i won't have found out that the left shoe's coming apart. damnnn. 

every little thing

gotta say i liked wiw here. the top almost never came home with me. i did eye it for a wee as i scanned the rack. then the guru picked it out and insisted i try it on. of course it had to be mine. did you know that save for the inner top and bag and socks, all other items i wore were bought during my shopping trips with her?

and i finally wore one of the many pairs of socks i bought from tokyo since feb this year. i needed something navy and i felt i couldn't wear these shoes plain with these pants.

nit-picks

am super in love with these looks by zara. some remind me of marc jacobs - not as girlie but just right. have i told you how much i like skirts? and how i wish i could rock the shorts like the model. dare i dare to try thigh-high socks with shorts? i kinda regret not getting the crazy vibrant long socks by vivienne westwood while i was in tokyo. they're expensive and they might end up with the same fate as the rest of those that came home with me. 

sometime last week i tried to wear socks with shoes. i couldn't get past myself. i should've worn the socks anyway, cos the shoes hurt in some places. i wore pants, though. so the socks won't have been too obvious.

by the time i gather enuf guts to wear them outside of the house, i'd be qualified anyway. grannies are socks.  

little miss moffatt

via bleubird

permutations

^do you like these looks? i think i still prefer it sockless although the styling here is correct according to my rigid fashion rules (i'd have preferred the shoes in another colour for the 2nd getup).

^i think i know where these shoes are from. i let Hsiao Ying in on this shop near my ma's where one might find some vintage shoes and bags. she told me later that she wiped off not a few pairs of shoes from their shelves. i bought a similar pair (in white) from the shop. can't remember how much they'd cost.

pictures from GDO

sockit

another failed attempt to wear the vivienne westwood socks. too much going on? exactly my intention. excuse the dark pictures. i think the socks are ok with these shoes but they don't go with this skirt. a longer sandra dee skirt should work better. whether a sandra dee skirt looks ok on me is another matter altogether. lol. 

my colourful shoes finally get to walk the streets. the bag's the shade of liver. coral flowers meet fuchsia and purple stripes. maroon. blue and green. you can say these inspired me. 

can do, style guru? please approve! lol.

i'm also wearing my vintage pendleton wool coat which is a near-exact match with the skirt. i like how the vermillion cardi looks like a men's vest underneath the coat.  

忽冷忽热

i've been sleeping in the living room cos there's no space for me on my bed. yes, you read right. not much space on the floor, too. more so after this morning, when i tried on two pairs of boots and a pair of vivienne westwood socks with these vintage shoes below (totally didn't work). gah. i think i might have to sell all those socks i got from tokyo if none of them go with none of my hundred pairs of shoes.

i have to take stock of my life if the state of my bedroom mirrors the mess in it. i obviously have too many things i don't even need if i have another hundred years to live. but here's the irony: i have nothing much going on in my life! what's wrong with me?!

home sweet home

hello, i'm back! how's everyone been? did i miss any groundbreaking news?

i've got nothing much to show and tell about my trip. well it's just so expected of me. to forget to pack in the most important thing when one goes travelling: the camera charger. i did pack it in but i somehow left it behind when i did a bit of re-packing before heading out. i also forgot the sunblock. anyway, it was so cold i don't think i'd have taken the trouble to snap pictures. time was also a limited resource. my friend has her cam with her but i didn't really wanna bother her. she's still in tokyo. i'd have liked to stay one more day but i couldn't get on any flight back until next tuesday.

my vintage western fringed boots arrived while i was away. they fit just right. there're lots of western boots in tokyo. i wasn't drawn to them much for a few reasons (at least i'd like to think so!)  it's really unusual for me not to buy numerous pairs of shoes when i travel. i guess i wasn't looking for yet another pair of high -cuffed boots that'd be neglected until colder weather. i also prefer handsome ankle boots that don't cost the bank. i saw a pair of margiela-like faded cowboy boots on a girl in the kinokuniya store on my last day. i'd have liked to buy that altho i'm not sure i know how to make them work here. i chanced upon a shop selling used vintage shoes when i was in Ueno. thinking back, i'm really impressed by my restraint, lol.

these're the only shoes i bought. i almost didn't. they're studded. they're white. there's a cute heart that i didn't notice until now (serious). they're on sale. i bought the oddest things during this trip, lol.

the socks are my best buys (i hope). you might recall that i've forever been looking for a certain type of socks. and i think i found them! now i only gotta be concerned about the type of shoes that'd be perfect with them... i really am avoiding acquiring more shoes. as you can see, i've been a good girl :P

photo credits 

i love these looks so much, amongst many others in the collection. i want to be so very girlie after all (nothing translucent for me, though).

ok, that's all for now. when i blog again, i suspect it'll be very choppy like this post. 

vertigo

alfred hitchcock's movie came to mind when i was writing this post. very apt, don't you think? lol. was doing a bit of blog walkin' and i came upon this post. there's hope for me yet! but do i want my ankles twisted even if i don't end up falling flat on my face? old bones heal slower. what price, vanity? and i found out only recently that you could get bunions from wearing high heels. yikes! i'm already wearing tight shoes. the only thing i do right is avoiding high heels. this sure sucks.

and i'm not sure if it's just my imagination that my back's hurting from the dizzying heights. i've only been taking self-timer shots, covering the distance to and from the dining table to that wall. should i tempt fate?

btw, one of the heels is a little crooked. it's not loose or anything. either the heels or me won't survive the cobbled walkway.

i'm back to buying stuff like arm or leg warmers or "sleevelets". almost got me some lacy socks and ankle fishnet ones. i'm still looking for socks like these:

i saw some white ones that look too much like they're strictly for kawaii school kids whom perverts would grow wood to. oops. i think these are very kinky as well :P

hae mee

thanks for your comforting words, ladies. i got a scratch on the left knee. other than that, i'm free of bruises. very thankful.

my dinner: home-cooked prawn noodles with liver. hae mee is not a korean name. it's how prawn noodles sound like in the hokkien dialect. the info on wiki seems a little wrong. the dish is not "fried".

my outfit:

my eyes are still not well enuf to wear contact lens so i wore the other pair of glasses (above). how bloody ironic. i once almost missed a step when i wore these so i thought i'd better get another pair of glasses that covered a larger surface area so that they might help me see better. how, like that?

i felt i looked 'common' in this outfit today. cos i rolled up the sleeves of this jacket (you know - the bf blazer trend). but it's the only way to make the cuffs stay at that length. i've said before that 3/4 sleeves flatter my frame better.

i really like these shoes i got from etsy. a tad big but oh well that's the least of the worries of a shoe junkie. i also like the liz claiborne bag that i sometimes carry as if it's a clutch. i got it from etsy as well, at a good price.


it was rather chilly in the morning, that's why the mustard turtleneck top. i'm still looking for socks. where might i find them? i'd prefer them longer and not too thick nor too tight. those ribbed ones that're worn with Burberry platforms would be perfect.