Oscar picks: Dresses dreams are made of

Oscar fashion this year was all about glamorous understated colors with luxe and delicate detailing. Almost everyone was aiming for a classy, 'I'm a hollywood star' look, some bordering on overly ostentatious (jlo literally wore a 'dripping in diamonds' dress). I still think everyone was gorgeous though!

Here are my 3 favorites:

1) Gwyneth Paltrow in Zac Posen



I love this salmon color on her and the details on the bodice is amazing. Wearing her soft straight hair down complemented the color and the material. She was undoubtly drop dead gorgeous!

2) Portia de Rossi also in Zac Posen



Simply beautiful. The rich navy color sets off her complexion perfectly and the cut is unique with the panel details. I want this dress.

3) Penelope Cruz in Versace



Penelope's gown is my dream wedding dress if it were white. Definitely a sweet-looking showstopper number. The nude color keeps it from being over-the-top and I actually adore those wispy detailing in the skirt. Def not for everyone's taste but this is number one for me. :)

Outfit last night: The emerald green dress

Went to a dinner party last night with bf's family as it was his grandparents' anniversary. I wore one of my fave dresses which I got from topshop sometime ago:

Printed emerald satin dress from topshop, dark brown suede peeptoe pumps from bakers, and horsebit bag from gucci. Also not in picture: 7-days bangles with multi-colored stones from la elegancia and filigree studs.

Oh and Kate Bosworth has one too!

My fave grammy dresses

It's quite late to talk about grammy fashion, i knoooow. But I really wanted to add these dress images in my site as a quick reference for future purposes, hehe! :) You know, like my hard drive could get 'sick' *knocks on wood* and then I'd have to reformat everything. (Yup, I'm really super scared of those kind of scenarios! *shrugs*) Well, enough senseless rationalizing. It's a blog anyway, not a formal online fashion mag of some sort, so I could write anything that tickles me fancy schmancy no matter how old news it is, right? haha.

Anyway, I said this to my friend and I'll say it again. I don't know who won this or that grammy award and I don't know who went with who during that night. But what I do know is what all the lovely gals wore, so you can ask me anything about that! heehee. That's the only thing I care about at events like this anyway. hehe!

Here were my top picks. :)



I love Christina R's very detailed vintage dress which she reportedly just plucked out of her fully-stocked closet (I hear she's a self-confessed shopping addict!). It's just so different and unique like her... a bit dark but also refreshing, mature yet youthful too. And those gorgeous panels are tdf! Carrie's platinum badgley mischka dress, on the other hand, looks so elegant and ethereal. Perfect for such a sweet girl like her! And last but certainly not the least is my favorite which is Hilary's dolce and gabbana mini dress. It's fun and sexy with a bit of glamrock vibe which I'm loving at the moment. I think she's sort of coming into her own sense of style. :)

Outfit: Dinner with bf's fam

Had a full-course japanese dinner with bf's family last night. It was his dad's birthday so the food was extra good. There was tender kobe beef, crispy tempura, steaming hot kamameshi rice, as well as fresh salmon and tuna sashimi in unlimited servings! Dessert was my favorite strawberry shortcake too. Thank goodness I opted to wear a loose-fitting dress! I just added a thick yellow belt to put a little bit of shape.

Blue dress with black floral print from topshop, Thick patent-trimmed yellow belt for forever, black leather pumps from bakers. Also not in picture: Black leather framed clutch from coach.

And to think I almost wore a waist-cinched dress... I swear I would have died! hahahaha.

My quirky pretty newest dress!

I just received new stuff from my mom which had a lot of beautiful things. *giggle* Too bad though that some aren't actually for me but are gifts for other people so I can't make a "package post" like before when I took a pic of the loot right after opening it. hehehe! Still I was more than happy after opening the box because it had one very special item for me and that is... *drum roll please* my newest dress! (duh) hahaha!

I'm a bit exhausted from doing some paperwork so I won't be able to take pics whilst trying it on. I took a pic of it in the hanger though:



Its a turtleneck black and red printed jersey dress that fits perfectly! I know this hanged pic doesn't do it justice so here's another shot of the dress from forever21.com:

The itty bitty tie-up vest and hat are a little too much for me so I'll be wearing the dress plain thank you. haha. I'm loving that faux onyx ring though. :)

I really can't wait to wear it once the holiday parties begin! :) Thanks mom! love you! *mwah*

Nov. 10 was a jam-packed day: My aunt's wedding + dinner + serendra + cuisine + outfit

Yesterday turned out to be a super funny day for me and I ended up completely buzzed when I got home. I actually almost fell asleep in the living room couch with my whole outfit on sans the shoes. hahaha! It would have been so embarassing to the maids if I hadn't woken up at 4 am to go upstairs. *snicker* (This is what medschool does to people! hehehe.)

Anyway, let me give you a quick rundown of events... I started the day with my audrey hepburn + imelda blog entry, ate lunch and then proceeded to wrap some christmas presents. (yes, I started quite early this year as I've learned from the stress last year! *shakes head*) I then talked to my mom for about an hour before realizing that it was already time to get ready for my aunt's wedding! I then scampered about, fixed the wrappings, ribbons and whatnot and called my bf to ask whether he was on his way already (shockingly he was!). Of course this did not help and just made me panic all the more. I then took a 5-minute shower and grabbed the first dress I deemed wearable. And then, as I was about to put my make-up on, my gorgeous friends t and mv gave me a three-way call from california so I ended up with like only 10 minutes of make-up time! hahaha. (i really miss you t and mv!)

Anyway, let's fast-forward to the wedding... The bride (my aunt) chose a bright pink and lime green theme which was okay but reminded me too much of those juicy couture velour track suits from a couple of years ago. (I know, I'm soo weird. haha!) Nevertheless I think it was a fun color combination, more like a psychedelic version of the green and red in preparation for christmas! (yihee, someone's feeling christmas-y already *wink*)

As per request of my dear mother, here is a picture of myself with my dad and brothers at the wedding. (hey, she is giving me an ipod nano so no face-cropping on this post as she has asked. hehehe!)



The wedding was (thankfully) a simple semi-formal event as the reception was held in a quaint private function cantonese resto and not in a very formal setting such as a hotel ballroom. Hmm.. not much happened really, but it was just sooo funny in the end as noone wanted to catch the bridal bouquet when my aunt threw it. hahaha!

After that bf and I then headed on to forbes for his family dinner. The food this time was a combination of grilled pork, prawns thermidor, sun-dried tomato pasta, with appetizers: cheese, grapes and crackers. The dessert was actually my favorite part as they served two of my favorites cakes in the world: mango torte and classic chocolate cake. I'm sorry though as I really wasn't able to take much pics except for some quick shots of the food tables beside me. hahaha!

Here they are:


This is actually part of the food table which I took without flash. hehe!

My fave table was right behind me! haha

Here are close-up pics of the mango torte and chocolate cake, leave a comment if you need numbers.*wink*

After dinner, bf and I decided to check out the newest gimmick place to open in manila: The Serendra at the Fort. (A stone's throw away from forbes, hehe!)



The place was pretty upscale and serene (for a saturday night) and had a very clean, modern artsy look.

Bf hates it when I take surprise pics, but he was just so handsome while checking out the place. heehee!

I noticed that a lot of places are still closed but around 10 establishments were already open. Well, it really didn't matter as the only place I was interested in is Cupcakes by Sonja. The people running it were so nice too and was more than happy that I was shooting away during our visit.


Here's a pic of the glass counter where the cupcakes are displayed. It was already 12 mn at this time so they were all almost gone!

And here's a picture of the chefs area, they actually loved being photographed. hahaha!


A close shot of the cupcake making station. Look at all those candy-colored sugar! *yum* (I had so much fun taking pics!)

Bf bought me one piece of berries 'n cream cupcake which I really liked.

The packaging was so pretty that I had to show you.*wink* It was worth the P75 ($1.50) price.

I almost forgot to take a photo of the front so I took this quick shot as we were leaving the place. It's kind of crappy though. hahaha!



After Serendra, bf's sister trish invited us to follow them at the Cuisine at Embassy (also at the Fort) since their mom gave them free gc's worth 2k. Of course we could never turn down free drinks so off we went right away. hahaha! The place was packed with people and we ordered a bottle of champagne for the group. Trish and I though, both got grape escape which is a sort of grape-flavoured margarita (i think). We also ordered salmon sashimi as pica-pica. It was so good!


Here's trish and her bf miko. Don't they make such a cute couple? (As you can see in the background, most people were standing and the place was full)

After about 2 hours of talking, laughing, drinking and people's outfit watching, the margarita started getting to my head and I actually don't remember much of what happened afterwards! I just remember walking towards my room at 4 am, carrying my lovely pair of black platform pumps in my right hand. hahaha. I'm such a dork.

Anyway, here's my outfit pic for the night (I dragged mr. hottie along with me if you don't mind, hahaha!)

Bf is wearing slacks and white collared long sleeves both from linea italia. I was in a topshop tri-color grape-printed jersey dress, bakers black plat pumps and a gold leather clutch from my mom.

Hope you enjoyed your saturday as well girls! mwah!

I love Behnaz Sarafpour

I think the first time I started paying attention to Behnaz Sarafpour was when one of my fave actresses, Selma Blair, wore this gray sabrina-cut dress by the designer to a movie premiere.



The reaction in my head went like this: "ooooh, this dress is gorgeous!!! It was made by beeh-noz saraf...? sara.. saraf.. sara-pouz?" hahaha! I couldn't figure out how to pronounce it. Turns out it's simply read as ben-oz sah-rafpoor. (Yes, I can sometimes be a stuttering loon) I guess having a fancy name can either make a person remember you distinctly or help them forget you alot faster. In my case it was easy. Selma + pretty dress + fancy name = *ding ding ding ding!* long term memory name storage!

In case you have not heard, Behnaz Sarafpour is an Iranian-born girl who grew up in Europe and graduated with flying colors at the Parsons School of Design. She launched her own line in 2001 with strong support from a number of fashion's most influential names such as Vogue's Anna Wintour and Barneys' VP Merchandising Julie Gilhart (to name a few) and is becoming quite known for her refreshing take on classic feminine pieces.

Behnaz w/ one of her models in Town & Country Feb 2006

Here are some of her past pieces that I adore:


An ad in Cosmopolitan May 2006 issue

You all remember ashley's pretty dress from the previous post?

Whilst I would kill to own her whole spring 2007 runway collection (uh-huh, every woven thread of those darn clothes), I am quite content with the fact that she is target's latest darling to design for their GO International collection! This makes it a bit easier for us poor girls who have yet to afford hoarding runway dresses on a whim. hehehe! (I guess you already know that this post is leading somewhere about a certain someone buying something for her naughty little heart's desire. right? haha.)

Here is the opening image for the GO International flash ad at the target site:



The first time I had a look-see at the behnaz collection for target, I couldn't help but fall in love with the items. It was indeed very 'behnaz'! The whites, blacks, grays, bows, brocade, lace, and other pretty little details were very classy and timeless... the characteristics of high-end couture. I just really love her concept and I love the fact that she made an effort to make this collection identify with her more expensive line. So far this is my fave GO International collection.

Some looks from the target collection, Kristin Bell was actually photographed sporting the tafetta dress with grossgrain waist to an event!

I also couldn't help but compare some of the behnaz for target ensembles with the ones from her recent spring 2007 runway collection. Take these for example.





Don't you think they 'feel' a bit similar? (The price difference is quite dramatic though! *wink*)

However, the one dress from the runway that literally made my jaw drop was this gorgeous reinvented flapper-style silver dress which did not have a cheaper target counterpart. *pout*



There was something very magical and pixie-like about it and the muted silver color was very pretty. There really wasn't anything like this at all from her target collection (it would turn out to be too fancy!) but she had incorporated this silvery brocade material in her collection that I find attractive just the same.


According to my DM, the brocade material is even prettier in person because it is more of a rich dull gray with shiny silvery thread incorporated in the cloth. (I am definitely going to get the bag and one matching piece. either the skirt or the top! decisions decisions.. hehehe)

I also really adore the accessories in the collection. (I wonder why they are so few in number...) I really found the charm stuff cute! very chic and very new york, plus its made of 100% brass too which rarely discolors. I also liked the lace duffle.





At first I wondered how big the charms were, and then I found this picture by a seller in ebay.com:



Look, the charms are quite big! They will really make a statement for sure. I love it!

Here are more pics of the collection. :)







All I can say is, uptown chic has never been this cheap and effortless. All the pieces are very easy to wear while frolicking about in the city. Thank you behnaz and target! ;) I am definitely going to order a few pieces from this line. Will just update this after I have done so! *wink*