Indulgence

As you may have noticed, I've been slightly MIA recently. Although my blog is one of my favorite pastimes, for the past few weeks, and for the next month, I need to focus on one main goal- the GRE. For those of you unfamiliar with the American educational system, this is the standardized test for graduate schools. Ironically, although I haven't taken a math class for about five years, and I am a professional writer/editor/bookworm (well, the bookworm part might not be so professional), I am a gun at the math section and absolutely atrocious at vocab.

Apparently there are 3,500 words I should know as well as I know how to spell my own name (mom, if you are reading this do NOT laugh; for everyone else, I misspelled my name once, when I was young and have never lived it down... it was definitely a blonde moment) so I've been living in a sea of flash cards, as evidenced by the pictures. I also have the luxury of living above my uncle's unbelievably delicious, totally sinful restaurant, Home Run Bar & Grill, where all too often I get fed tasty treats like this cheese cake. 

Although I had just come from a pretty intense workout at the gym, clearly I had no issues wolfing down the entire piece. I'm chalking it up to brain food!

So, anyone have some good vocabulary words for me to learn?

Also, as promised on my Facebook fan page, I am going to do a giveaway of one of the gorgeous bracelets I bought in India (I got 4, really unnecessary) so make sure you follow!

Saturday Stroll

I spent Saturday morning at the park near my house with one of my closest friends in Bangkok playing around with photo shoot ideas. My friend is a professional dancer/ sometimes model/ fashionista, so we gathered up some 70s inspired wear and had fun with it. Although I spent most the day behind the camera, we got a few shots of my outfit before we had lunch and headed home.

{Zara top; Ray-ban Sunglasses; 

multicolored necklace, silver cuff and shoes from India; rings from Cambodia; shorts vintage; shell tooth necklace Stephanie Soderborg Designs}

Hauz Khas and Curry

I've spent the last two days in Dehli shopping like crazy, visiting some of the major sites, and stuffing myself with the most delicious Indian food I've ever tasted (which probably has something to do with the fact that this is my first time to India). My lovely friend turned out to be a fantastic photog, so we had lots of fun scampering around the Hauz Khas ruins. We had lots of energy because we bagged last night on our big night out and opted instead to stay home, drink a bottle of wine, and have some much needed girl talk. 


By the way, can you spot my "nose piercing"? It's a bindi, I bought tons because I don't quite have the nose for a piercing but I love playing around with it! 

Following our photo shoot, we wound our way through the village to a popular (yet remarkably hidden) restaurant called Gunpowder where we had sweet and sour pumpkin curry, curd, and something resembling chutney/apple sauce with flakey Indian bread (I am horrible with names).

All this is due to my gorgeous and wonderful friend, Meg. Isn't she lovely?

In the Name of Love

So I went to the Taj Mahal yesterday, and it definitely lived up to my expectations. I just loved hearing the story of the King building this in the name of love. I'm sure I got ripped off a few times, as I'm not familiar with the currency yet, but I had an excellent guide, bought a really cool traveling backgammon set (I'm obsessed with the game) and took pictures with about 1000 Indian people! One person would ask for me to be in their picture, and then a line would form. I think a lot of people would be bothered by this, but I'm used to it as I am the rare breed of blonde in Asia, so I just smiled away.

PS- Sorry I look less than spectacular, I had had three hours sleep, a 4:45am wake up call, and a 4 hour car ride.

Jetsetter

I'm leaving for a quick trip to India tomorrow to visit one of my best friends from university, meaning tonight I will tear my closet apart in an attempt to pack and appropriate and stylish wardrobe for the next few days. Think conservative, picture-worthy and able to handle the heat (quite literally, Delhi is just as hot as Bangkok without the luxury of being able to wear whatever you feel like unless you want to be stared at like a giant chocolate cake set in front of a starving man)! I've also got loads of work to complete before I go, but I plan on popping on the Jungle Book tonight for a little Disney inspiration and belting out, "look for the bare necessities, the simple bare necessities, forget about your worries and your strifes!" till I'm blue in the face. I am really looking forward to the excellent shopping, visiting the Taj Mahal, and eating loads of delicious food for the next few days. I've also coerced my friend into taking lots of photoshoots for me, as I'm not sure when I'll have access to another photographer (and amazing location).


As you can probably tell, I recently discovered the "create a set" option in Polyvore, and have been having so much fun with it. Here's a little inspiration I've put together for my trip:

Packing for India by stephsoderborg

3.1 Phillip Lim Shell-embellished cotton-voile kaftan, $250
Elizabeth and James Silk-charmeuse kimono-style blouse, $345
914 low-rise cigarette leg jeans, 165 GBP
Giuseppe Zanotti Crystal-detailed sandals, $950
Turquoise Stone Leather Sandals, $172
Turquoise Stick Necklace, $76
Shani's Large Yelllow Beaded Gold Hoop Earrings, $40
Logan's Wavy & Stright Gold Bangle Set, $34
Deepa Gurnani Antique Gold Bead and Brass Headband, 55 GBP
Taj Mahal

Sequin Scales

After months and months of listening to my little cousin describe the wonders and draw of Siam Ocean World, boasted to be Southeast Asia's biggest Aquarium, I decided to treat him to his favorite outing and take him for the day. It'd been a while since I'd been to an aquarium, and I had forgotten how beautiful (and weird) the underwater world could be. Colors and patterns I thought only existed on the clothes racks of the most audacious dressers exist in the natural world as well, and it was impossible not to be inspired. I've always had a thing for anything that sparkles, and all the shining scales made me want to pull out all the sequin I own and dance around like I was my own deep-sea wonder. 

I've been lusting after a sequin skirt for a while, and after my little day trip to below the deep blue, I am on a serious hunt for the perfect one. Here are some of my favorites so far:

{1. Antik Batik; 2. J. Crew; 3. F21; 4. Topshop; 5. Alexander Wang; 6. Alice + Olivia}

I have to admit, the Alexander Wang one is by far my favorite. One of my favorite things to do is take a unique and sort of eccentric piece, like a sequin skirt, and figure out how I would wear it for my everyday life. I'm not a big believer in saving clothes for a special occasion or categorizing something as too fancy/crazy for everyday wear, and I guarantee a sequin skirt like this would become one of my staples. Here's just an idea of how I would dress it up:

Sequin skirt from day to night by stephsoderborg

White York Bodysuit by Forrest & Bob, 36 GBP
Alexander Wang Draped Sequin Skirt, 315 GBP
BALMAIN Court shoes, 1.690 EUR
Jeffrey Campbell LITA, $160
Jeffrey Campbell LITA, $160
By Malene Birger Morcheba embellished leather clutch, $445
Studded Fringe Cross Body Bag, 20 GBP
Loree Rodkin Lacy Bondage Ring, 10,000 GBP
Alex and Ani Kamba Expandable Wire Bangle Set - Max and Chloe, $518
Zoe, $160
India Bangle Set, $70
{All clothing images via Polyvore}

Bye Bye Baby...

I'm gonna miss you so. 


Sorry for the lack of posts, but my photographer, and more importantly my boyfriend, left Thailand this week to move back home. Dating someone from another country seriously complicates life (visas being a major factor), and while he has been living here for the last 6 months, we are trying to work towards a long term future, which, for the moment, requires some separation so we can reunite in a few months.


But man, it's no fun!

{Me and my baby}

{The weather outside pretty accurately reflected my mood}

{But then we saw the most gorgeous rainbow after the storm,
and I realized ultimately we are doing this for the right reasons}

Designer Spotlight: Joseph Altuzarra

An up and coming designer who, in four collections, has taken the fashion world by storm, Joseph Altuzarra really hit the nail on the head with his FW10 collection. His work has matured and his style is truly coming into its own in this season's designs. While these images might already be old news in the blog-o-sphere, I just can't stop going back to his website and staring longingly at them. 


His recent interview with Anna Dello Russo for Interview Magazine (read it here) offered a great insight into how Altuzarra designs and where he finds his inspiration (namely, Tom Ford and Edward Scissor Hands).

"There’s a side to me that likes to make clothes for everyday. But I also think of fashion as an escape. It’s like a dream. It shouldn’t always be practical and about real life. Sometimes you have to do a piece that has a bit more of a wow—almost like, “I don’t know who’s going to wear that. It’s almost too much.” That’s a lot of what fashion is about. Even in an economy that isn’t strong and where it’s important to sell clothes, you have to make things that let people dream a little, you know?"- Joseph Altuzarra

{Favorites of FW10}

{Favorites of SS10}

{Favorites of FW09}

{Favorites of SS09}

{Images courtesy of http://josephaltuzarra.com/}