Had a chat with my bro yesterday, where I found myself trying hard to explain why exactly I shop.

Well, I guess i ended up with a myriad of reasons that bored him.

In general, I like to think of indulgence in life as an "I only have one life, so I should live it the best that I can" kinda thing. I've once been told by someone, that when she was younger, there were tons of dresses that she loved and most of which were dresses that could fit her. However, she couldn't afford them, so she couldn't have them. Now that she's older and fatter, she can afford them but she can no longer fit into them. While I would try my best to live life so that I can enjoy what I want to enjoy while I can do so, that isn't exactly the reason why I like to shop and purchase the same dress in multiple colours.

I couldn't find a way to explain it to my brother nor to myself - that perhaps I shop because I simply enjoy collecting things. A collection of party dresses, rompers, bangles, bird-themed accessories.. who cares if i own the same thing in different colours? What's most important to me is that they are pretty.. and over time, and almost unconsciously, they've become a part of this clothing collection that I absolutely adore. Is wanting to collect clothes the reason why I shop and purchase stuff that I never ever wear?

It also doesn't help that I think I've been through various phases. The preppy phase came first I guess - where scarf and other one-of-a-kind belts that I own adorned my 3/4 length jeans, which were worn along with a favourite baby peach baby tank top (I could never ever find another top in the same shade but it's one that Ailay and I would probably always remember) and white tee shirts - ooh i love them so, but out of 10 tees I own, there's only about 2 that fit perfectly well and out of those 2 only 1 is white -.-). Then there's the pleated and ruffley abercrombie and hollister mini skirts, with grosgrain ribbon sashes and rhinestone pins, or large buttons on a woolen skirt. Preppy Preppy.. OH! and then there were denim overalls.

Not long after, somewhere along the way I probably started wearing dresses. Maybe not STARTED, because I used to wear them a lot when i was a kid. But they made a comeback only in my late teens, so that is a milestone right? haha. Anyway, as I went into dresses, crazes evolving around various themes came and the renmants of those are perhaps stuck into some bits of my dressing today. As such, themes such as vintage are no longer a stranger.. but as for others, such as the formal office look, I'm afraid they've been neglected. For those, it was more of a touch and go thing - high waist skirts, with suspenders, that do not necessarily bring on that totally formal I'm-a-high-flying-career-woman look. I guess, dressing up to me was all about Play. I'm not an office girl, nor do I see myself as one, so playful experimentation with the look was as far as I was willing to go. There was also a craze about dresses and bags with bows.. but this sentence practically sums up what a craze about bows is all about - dresses and bags with bows. :X OH. and accessories too (plastic jappy rings with large bows on 'em - brought those in for myself from taiwan and now the entire world is selling them. boo.)

I've been talkin' so much about clothes that talk about accessories has almost slipped my mind. Hmm.. where should I start? How about my unexplainable connection with rose earrings? I love those in plastic, felt, etc. (but no softies!), even though I hardly ever wear earrings (they get in the way when I'm trying to talk on the phone). Today, I'm still in love with those rose earrings of mine that sit in my pink box of accessories, and I'm glad I bought them in red, white, hot pink, black, and.. if there's anymore I can't remember what colours they are.


My pink box of accessories (lid not pictured). It is pretty deep as there's an additional compartment below the one you see, but its completely filled with necklaces etc. I've had to find a separate box to keep my bracelets ever since then. Loads of the accessories in it are hiding as they were not arranged to be showcased, but instead, this picture was taken to show to Ailay the compartmentalised tray that was given with this box.

At some point in time I was into strawberries and cherries as well (as accessories, and not so much on clothing), and now, I've gone into desserts and pastries with whipped cream, etc. Well anyway, I'm guessing that around the time of strawberries and cherries I started becoming open to the colour of Gold. :X That initial openness has transformed into a liking, and most obviously, a LOVE for it. I love gold so much now that with this absolutely strong preference for it, I am finding it extremely difficult to accept silver :X woops!


A love for Gold and Sweet Treats.

Hmm.. if i were to go on and on in this post, I probably would never end. There's the craze about volkswagen beetle car bags (in metallic red, red, white, silver, gold, metallic orange, yellow, black - and i still don't have mint green and shimmery-pearl pink!), and another craze on Japanese bra sets that started after I purchased my first leopard print bra with pink lace and trim which cost a BOMB! (before that was the time of sports bras and plain basic cups with halter straps?!?!?!) and another one of Maxi Dresses (before Singaporeans started wearing them as often as the angmohs in Boston did) and yet another craze about Juicy Couture.. OH this seriously just goes on! :X:X

What I do stop at though, is the emokid look. I'm afraid i'm still sitting on the fence on that one. Half of me wants to step forward, but the other half feels that the look in my mind is associated too strongly with the emokid. An emokid is a act-punk, black eyeliner-spammed teen whose look I don't buy as one that is genuine. It just looks like they're trying to come out as bold and "cool" in jet black and different from everyone else, but that's what makes them all the same. In my opinion, this is reflected by the balmain studded sandals that they wear, which replaced the gladiator look.. and the heavily fringed and studded tunics and bags that everyone everywhere is sporting now. OH and latex leggings.. etc. etc.!. It's Either that I just can't stop the association of those stuff with emokids, or i'm getting plain old. Is it just me or am i really straying off into the "safe zone"? Having said that, safe is a word that is just so utterly subjective.

So, dress to please oneself - clothes are like second skin. Well of course, unless dressing for the sake of others can make you feel truly comfortable and happy - which I doubt, since you wouldn't then be in your own skin.

While 90% of these crazes have ceased to exist, or that they may have faded into some unknown parts of my room, some of 'em have moved into some part of my brain that decides what I fancy or don't fancy in clothes. This just proves to me that a craze is obviously but a phase.. but without them, what would I be? Would I be stuck in preppy clothes that I used to wear 5 years ago? Not that it's a bad thing since Ailay seems to remember that part of me for all the right reasons LOL and I still love white tees. but being stuck possibly means that some part of my brain is not growing in openness of trying out new things and when a craze comes along (this does not refer to a craze for trends because trends aren't always right for everyone), i get hyped up and happy and i am filled with excitement and glee and it makes me have a sense of anticipation for all the newnewnew stuff im going to try on and basically, it's a part of what makes me feel more alive. SHOPPING for new stuff that suit me and that I don't already have just gives me that feeling and I don't know why.

So as I'm STILL learning to accept purple, it seems I have found the first item in my entire life that is fully dressed up in lace - a purplish-blue corset dress from TOPSHOP. It is a miracle that I actually have taken a liking to this lacey, purpley, fishscaley, padless yet boned frock. Many thanks to Ailay who sponsored part of the cost as a birthday present :D



Now that I've had pads sewn in, I should have a boost! heehee.

Oh. and padded dresses are love. Once you discover them, they'll never be termed as a craze, nor would they turn into a phase - they're just a convenience in your wardrobe that you'd find yourself always wanting to have for life.