fall 2012 - england | photo diary.

Here it is; the comprehensive photographic recollection of my marvelous week in Kent + London! For those of you who don't keep up with me on Twitter, I spent a week in early November soaking up the nippy weather, sunny skies (YES you read that correctly - there was magnificent weather!) and beautiful fall scenery of England. Although the purpose of the trip wasn't exactly for leisure (I spent the first half of the trip studying and sitting various exams, eek!), I ended up doing a lot of shopping, sightseeing and touristy photo-taking in England's stunning capital city. Following my rambles (which should end soon) is a photo-diary which will hopefully take you on a visual journey through my various experiences over the past week, including one or two repetitive outfits (Singapore Airlines' weight allowance unfortunately didn't accommodate my entire wardrobe so apologies for the lack of diversity in the apparel department!), tourist-y shots, and countless snaps of the crispy fall leaves/bare trees - I seriously can't help myself when it comes to fall, I have such a weakness for the burnt hues of the perishing foliage, the fragile, naked branches and the fresh-red-cheeks weather that goes along with it. It's such a beautiful representation of nature's most intricate cycle; the dying, falling, absence and subsequent regrowth of leaves, and the leisurely decline in temperature followed by the eagerness of warm sun, gently nudging the snow out until next year. Judging by the snowstorms that have hit my cousins in Connecticut, my description was probably a little (or a lot) romanticized, but when you live in a tropical city without the luxuries of dynamic weather, all you've got is your imagination to fuel you (e.g. turning my air-con down to 10˚C on Christmas Eve in order to bundle up in several woolly articles of clothing and pretend I'm in Europe). Enjoy!

quiz | what's your fall style?

1. My favorite season is:

a) Winter

b) Fall

c) Summer

2. I would describe my style as:

a) Feminine - I love layering!

b) Geometric - I like playing with shapes and tailoring.

c) Celebrity inspired - I keep my outfits edgy and on-trend.

3. ______ matters most to me.

a) Being comfortable and warm

b) Looking classy and professional

c) Standing out

4. My favorite accessories are:

a) A wool-blend hat or soft scarves

b) A couple of versatile geometric, statement accessories

c) Every single bracelet/necklace/ring I own

5. My favorite color palette has to be:

a) neutral lights, such as cream, white, grey and tan.

b) muted hues, such as brick red, navy blue and forest green.

c) fluorescents and brights, with lots of neon and ombre.

6. My go-to piece in my wardrobe:

a) My woolly cardigan

b) My tailored blazer

c) My ripped jeans

If you chose mostly a's:

Silky soft layers in creamy hues are reminiscent of winter's powdery beds of snow and are perfect for those more inclined to pursue a "comfortable-chic" look. Muted tones like the ones pictured above don't leave much room for error, and can be easily layered to suit the temperature or your mood. A favorite of mine has got to be that aztec-printed woolly - the shapelessness of it would go so well with a pair of equally flattering skinny jeans!

If you chose mostly b's:

 Step up the edginess with architectural heels, fitted blazers, tailored shorts and studded loafers. While you're going crazy with dimension, shape and form, make sure you keep a good balance by skipping out on colors that are too extreme. Ditch the vermillion and opt for a brick red, and who needs electric blue jeans when you've got an effortless pair of acid-washed ones? Next time you're out for some retail therapy, opt for the accessories rack instead and pick up some statement bracelets/geometric necklaces!

If you chose mostly c's:

Your wardrobe is best defined as a disorderly explosion of color and eclectic finds, regardless of whether you picked them up from Fendi or a flea market. Sometimes the most unexpected color combinations wind up being the best, and you're definitely not afraid to take that risk! Get your hands on as many printed pieces as you can, stir things up with a colorful ombre top, and finish with white-hot Docs for a winning ensemble. 

alexander mcqueen | AW2012

I’ve always loved looking at fashion “movies” on YouTube, my favourite being Rodarte’s “The Curve of Forgotten Things” featuring Elle Fanning. We often see fashion depicted in the form of video clips of runway shows, writteninterviews with designers and photographsof their latest collection, but the dynamic medium of movie-making is one that is both wildly effective and vastly underused. Movies are a delicious infusion of the three most common forms of “digital fashion” that I listed above; it combines elements of animated visual stimulus with various audio supplements, and can be embellished with a multitude of special effects to create an artistic explosion which illustrates a concept more effectively than any individual method. Movies add new dimensions to fashion: context being one of them. Instead of browsing through a series of runway pictures, seeing an animated display of fashion sort of places it in context within the greater scheme of things.

I recently came across AlexanderMcQueen’s A/W 2012 campaign movie, and at first I didn’t know what to think of it. Fashionista.com described it as a “trippy fashion rave,” which sounds pretty accurate to me. Directed by David Sims and featuring Suvi Koponen, this psychedelic thrill-ride of electric hues and stop-motion style filming is certainly dizzying, to say the least. It’s unlike any other campaign Alexander McQueen has ever produced, and for a while I was tied between thinking:

1.     “Woah, look at this groundbreaking campaign! McQueen has never been so daring and extraordinary before – this is so awesome!”

2.     “I love the ideas behind this, and it’s definitely an authentic concept, but the video doesn’t really hit the spot.”

3.     “This is crap.”

I’ve attached some screen-grabs of the video, and the link to it is here, so I’ll let you judge this campaign video for yourself.

If you’re curious to know, I finally settled on an opinion regarding this video: It was utterly crap. I hate to say this because I’ll forever hold McQueen close to my heart as one of the best designers of all time, but that video really did suck. Admittedly, I haven’t had the chance to leaf through the collection itself, but as for the video, it was just disappointing – nothing more than a repeated clip of Suvi putting on and taking off a pair of metal goggles against a background of a fluorescent kaleidoscope. Kudos to Team McQueen for being adventurous and trying something new, but that video was laughably monotonous and terribly off-topic. But I still love you, Team McQueen – we all have bad days collections!

follow seven inch stilettos on facebook/twitter/bloglovin'

fall: denim & nude.

Fall has always struck me as being the most beautiful time of year. So many new colors seem to squeeze their way onto Nature's paint palette, from the subtle reddish glow of the leaves to the intensity of the sky, streaked heavily with luminous, fiery hues. It's also a great time of year because the weather isn't too unforgiving yet, so you can still flaunt your Fall wardrobe pieces without worrying about bulging thermal layers, goosebumps, and those unsightly earmuff/balaclava things.


To me, Fall is also the most polished month of the year in terms of style; it's the time when preppy trenches and chocolate-colored boots make their long awaited debut after hibernating for a year. Although I do love the rawness of the loose tribal cardies and moccasins you see in many Fall collections, I think a more put-together look such as the ones above in "Denim and Nude" tend to work better. I adore the combination of Denim and Nude because of how seamless it looks. The deep, prussian-blue shade of denim against the rich consistency of camel-colored leather. Your favorite acid-wash, faded cut-offs teamed with that beige boyfriend knit. Sound good? Yeah, thought so. And as Stella McCartney said, "there is something so sensual about nude with denim." It's classy, chic, and won't leave you freezing your ass off on a cold day either. 


Oh yeah and guys, like my Facebook page here and I'll love you forever. I'm serious.

Follow Seven Inch Stilettos on Twitter/Facebook/Bloglovin