New Year Celebration

Ridiculously late post but I don't care because I had too much fun celebrating New Year's with my friends. 

We first started with a Studio Ghibli marathon, lots of insane junk food which probably added 5kg to my petite frame (making look like an additional 10kg), played Cards Against Humanity, drank till we were simply rolling around the floor in laughter and attempting to finish the game before finally collapsing in my friend's spare room for the night. 

Loveliest people I could ever spend New Year's with, from right, Kanoe (who kindly offered her house to party at), Skrei, Jean, me and Judith.

How apt that our first card of the game was about New Year's too! Guess which card won this round?

Played with my friend's adorable Japanese Spitz named, Nyx. We put a necklace from Princess Mononoke on him, as he'll be my friend's "wolf" in her future shoot.

2014 pushed alot of my boundaries, I felt lost and scared and alone many times during the year and was made to deal with many painful decisions. I grew up and many life lessons were dealt to me whether I liked it or not but I felt like 2014 taught me more about life than any other year. 

I left difficult situations and people whether voluntarily or not but thanks to these events, as painful and troubling as they were, I eventually met many people whom I feel truly comfortable with. I can be myself, even sharing disgusting, weird parts of myself with them and they accept it, or even hit back with more weird, random, disgusting things and it feels amazing! I don't bother dressing up or putting on makeup or taking selfies as much as finally, I feel more comfortable in my own skin and being who I am and knowing that I won't be rejected over such trivial things. I hardly wear makeup and dress pretty casually now on most days unless required, as I no longer feel the intense need for a barrier between myself and the world or to fake a confident persona. I feel accepted and loved and more in touch with my self identity than ever before. 

There are many emotional scars that I still have to deal with and to build up my self confidence and self esteem, and even though I know there are still many challenges to be faced, but for once in my life, I feel like I can actually truly face the unknown future and say, "I am not afraid, come at me".

Funan Anime Matsuri 2014

Attended the small Funan Anime Matsuri event back in June, I think? I usually don't bother much with smaller cosplay events at malls due to my work schedule, but I made an exception for this event as one of my favourite cosplayers, Sakuya, was a guest for the event. 

Cosplayed as Annie Leonhart together with my friends, Janice and Beverly. Together, we were the Titan trio.

Met some friends at the event

Had an incredible stroke of luck and managed to find Sakuya while she was backstage watching the stage performances. I kind of called out to her and she immediately turned around and was super friendly!!! She whipped out her phone and took this picture of us before I even asked! 

More pictures once she escaped the barriers around the stage

Group photo with the other Shingeki cosplayers at the event.

Recreating the infamous Levi kicking scene

Bonus picture of her dusting the wall haha

It was such a pity that she had run out of cosplay cards (cosplay business cards) but I gave her mine and I'm just happy enough to have a chance to meet her and take a picture with her! It was also surprising that she was actually tiny in real life compared to how she's usually protrayed as such a masculine figure in her pictures. She's my height (I'm about 5 feet 1") and probably 2/3 of my size, which is sooo skinny!!! She couldn't really speak English but she made alot of hand gestures to communicate with us and my friends and I tried our best to speak to her in our terrible broken Japanese. Still, it was fun to be able to finally see her up close and personal in real life. 

Shingeki no Kyojin Hanji shoot

It's always fun assisting friends when they do their shoots. It's also kind of a "you-scratch my back, I scratch yours" kind of thing, as people are more willing to help you out too when you need some assistance. 

This shoot was quite awhile back but nevertheless, I had fun exploring a bunch of abandoned colonial houses during the shoot and Rescend was on the ball as usual while Jo looked spot-on perfect as Hanji. 

Setting up and I'm not quite sure what exactly I'm doing in this pic, being silly I guess haha

Posing for the cam!

What's a shoot without some omakes? 

Here's an actual decent pic from the shoot

I was also a hand/arm dummy for this series of story shots. My short stubby fingers have finally come to good use!

The team behind the scenes

Spent the evening sampling Hanjo and Levi alcholic drinks that my friend, Serene, specially ordered from Japan. I think Hanji tasted kinda fruity while Levi had more of a tea taste to it.

Compiled Update

Hey guys, sorry bout the lack of updates, just alot has been  going on for me mentally and emotionally. With me being unemployed and free at the moment, I took it as a much needed break/ holiday for the first week or so, but after that, doubts started plaguing me and my self worth and esteem has kinda plummeted especially when some negative things were said to me by my ex-boss. 

I've been trying to keep myself busy to stave off the negative thoughts so I've been catching up with friends and stuff. Here's a lightning post on what's been happening in my life lately:

Attended Mini's 21st birthday party. Here she is cosplaying as her favourite character Kotetsu (from the anime, Tiger & Bunny) and posing with her cake made in his comic likeness. I attended dressed as Crista Lenz/ Historia Reiss from the series Shingeki no Kyojin/ Attack on Titan but didn't really take a pic.

Also attended Skippy's birthday and had a blast drinking beer, getting stupid and playing truth or dare while almost everyone was half wasted. The silly antics we did were really fun.

Shirt: Emoda

Skirt: Bought in KL

Thigh high socks: Cosmode

Choker: Taobao

Went to the premiere of The Wind Rises and a few of us in the group decided to dress up as Studio Ghibli characters. I did another wardrobe/ ghetto cosplay of Kiki with a blue dress I dug out from my wardrobe this time.

Dress from Nichii

The movie was really nice, and really evoked alot of emotions. Definitely a fitting end to Hayao Miyazaki's amazing career.

Watched an Indie film with my mom called, Size Does Matters. It's quite a cute show.

Dress: Jouetie

Jewelled hairband: Osewaya

Stockings: Taobao

Accompanied Steph when she got another tattoo, this time of her other cat on the other thigh. Felt like dressing up abit that day though I did mostly window shopping on my own.

Dress: Topshop

Inner blue shirt with white polka dots: Uniqlo

Belt: Taobao

Beret: Accessorize

Round framed spectacles: Taobao

Badge: Katie

The final product! Now she has both her beloved cats' portraits on her.

A friend of mine wanted to explore cafes, so we went to a pie specialty cafe called, Windowsill in the Woods. It's really popular among the local hipster crowd but their pies are definitely worth it. Threw a jumble of clothes on and somehow they fitted together hahah.

Inner striped Turtleneck: Uniqlo

Shirt: Candy Stripper

Mullet skirt: Bought in KL

Red bowler hat: Can't remember

Round framed spectacles: Taobao

Shoes: The Salvation Army

Since I have time on my hands now, I decided to start on a healthier diet. So I've been whipping up alot of home-cooked meals whenever I can. I cook mostly salmon, white fish and chicken with lots of vegetables and very little carbohydrates.

So far, my stomach has become less bloated and I definitely feel more energised and my skin has become alot clearer now. Hopefully I can continue whipping up healthier meals when I get a new job.

I also took the opportunity to clear out and streamline my wardrobe, so my wardrobe is less cluttered now. I'm getting round to cleaning my room and updating it as I've had the same posters stuck on my room walls since I was a teenager. Man I feel so old knowing I'm in my twenties now and I still have posters on old anime stuck on my walls. I've been looking at Tumblr for inspiration but since I can't exactly change the layout of my room and my furniture, I'm left with just sprucing up my walls and neatening everything out. let's see how I can make the best of it.

Party, Concert, Shopping & Valentine's Day

February has been a busy month for me, so I haven't been able to update this blog much. Nearly every weekend was packed with stuff so I have compiled them into this quick post. Will have a more updated post soon.

Went window shopping with my mom and ended up walking away with a pair of Vivenne Westwood shoes that were on sale. Hmm....

Outfit:

Striped top: Can't remember

Skirt: Lowry's Farm

Scarf: The Body Shop

Satchel: Taobao

Boots: Payless

Attended Daisy's 21st birthday party. Spent the entire night clubbing then chilling in the cramped hotel hotel room while gossiping and waiting till morning to grab some amazing Tim Sum. Really fun night with some great guy friends.

Attempted to straighten my permed locks to see how long my hair had grown out. I liked the semi-wavy look that resulted.

Outfit: Top: Lip Service

Jeans: Uniqlo

Heels: Bought in KL

Necklace: Vivienne Westwood

Picture of the people at the party. Really fun night though I think I'm getting bit old for clubbing.

Attended the amazing Spirited Away - The Music of Joe Hisaishi concert. His music always stirs memories of childhood dreams, innocence and feelings of gentleness. The Singapore Symphony Orchestra did an excellent job of performing his music. 

Lots of friends attended the event, but most of us bought our tickets separately, so many of them were dotted all around the concert hall. Luckily I bought a bunch of tickets for some people, so we could sit altogether. Also brought my two little Jiji toys and Tessie brought her Calcifer toy.

I wore a somewhat jumbled together "cosplay" version of Kiki, or at least, how I think her wardrobe will look like when she's older. 

Tunic: Marks & Spencer (linen & cotton mix with a weaved design on the front and brass coloured buttons)

White Jeans: Uniqlo (a more modest, grown up version of her white shorts)

Satchel : Taobao (a structured version of her bag)

Red heels: Salvatore Ferragamo (I actually doubt she's the kind who will wear heels unless compelled to, but I don't have red ballet flats and my shorter, round toed heels need reheeling, so these pumps had to do)

Ribbon Hairband: Taobao (her signature ribbon hairband in better quality materials)

Celebrated Valentine's day with the Bf with a sweet date. We had lunch at this lovely, french inspired restaurant called Poulet before watching The Lego Movie. Cute and inspiring movie with some serious animation with the use of lego bricks.

Outfit: 

Black lace bustier: H&M

Tulle skirt: Forever21

Jacket: Jouetie

Beret: Acessorize

Socks: Cosmode

Pink studded garter: Creepyeha

Necklace: Osewaya

Some stuff happened recently in my life, so I'll be sorting them out for abit. I will definitely update as soonas I can while I sort these issues out. So apologies for the late post again, hope you guys understand.

Day at the Cat Cafe

Singapore's first and currently only cat cafe opened a few months back, but with all the hype and popularity, they were filled with reservations for like the next few months. LuckilyI managed to somehow squeeze in an appointment so I had a chance to have a look at the furry kitties.

Super cute Japanese style logo

Heading up the stairs of the shophouse building, there are paintings of the cafe cats all around

The paintings are supposedly depicting the various cats' personalities

When I arrived, most of the were contentedly snoozing away. Luckily, they did wake up later and were happily roaming around and playing with the patrons of the cafe.

 

This is Demi, whom I thought was a boy initially. She's quite mischievous and hissed at me once during my stay

She curled up like this to stop me from petting her head LOL.

Dewey was so comfortable in his carrot bed

Pretty Luna was the last to fall asleep that evening

Mr White (irony much) took over the carrot bed later and was very attracted to the string toys.

Baloo and Brown Monkey nuzzling each other

Little Miss Muffet is the star of the cafe, but she can be abit unfriendly

"Hmm, perhaps I stay still, I maybe able to blend into the counter and steal people's food" was probably what was in Kai Kai's mind as he kept stalking all the food that came out of the kitchen

Skittles slept most of the time I was there but whenever I stokred her, she would use her long tail to curl around my arm.

My favourite kitty was the shyest of the lot. Miley hid most of the night, only appearing after surveying the people and she stayed with me after I used the grooming brush on her. She followed me as I was leaving and stared at me through the glass doors. I really wanted to take her home.

 Wore a more comfortable outfit that evening as I knew I would be rolling around with the cats on the floor. However, considering I have sensitive skin and eczema, I decided to wear long sleeves to avoid any rash from occurring.

Mango Pussy bow top: Christmas gift from Steph

Polka dot shorts: Birthday gift from Steph

Belt: Taobao

No false lashes, just foundation, blush, gloss and mascara. Hair was just brushed.

Happy Chinese New Year!!

Hey guys! Wanna wish all of you a Happy Chinese New Year!! Or Happy Lunar New Year!! 

Found this lovely art on Tumblr celebrating the year of the Horse. Couldn't trace the original source though :( 

Unfortunately, my favourite uncle from my dad's side passed away the week before, so I was pretty upset and mildly depressed as his passing really took me by surprise and hit me extremely hard. I also felt letdown by some of my closest friends so it took a toll on me emotionally. With the passing of a family member so close to the Lunar New Year, traditionally I'm not allowed to participate the festivities, so I couldn't go house visiting and stuff as superstition dictated that I may bring bad luck to the houses I visit. Felt kinda bummed out by the whole thing so I've been going out quite a fair bit to stop myself from wallowing in misery, so get ready for the barrage of outfit shots!

Went out with my mom and sis on the first day of the new year to watch the movie, Her. Quite interesting and I love Scarlett Johanssen's voice.

Outfit: 

Lace Dress: Cotton On

Jacket: Jouetie

Bag: Nadia

Corsage (on bag): Katie

Platform sneakers: Taobao

Silver circle glasses: Taobao

Visited my uncle's place (bro of my passed on uncle so the superstition doesn't apply) and played with his cute dogs and met some aunts on my dad's side. They still gave me red packets despite the superstition saying I shouldn't ask for them as they used the loophole that they're giving it to me before I asked for them LOL.

Outfit:

Dress: Ehyphen Gallery X Amo

Necklace: Osewaya

Butterfly hair clip: Stall at Comic Fiesta 

Visited my maternal grandparents' graves and then explored a shopping mall with my parents in the evening. The beanie makes my hair look like those shaggy dos that emo kids adore.

Outfit:

My Little Pony Shirt: Stall at cosplay event

Polka dot shorts: Gift from Steph

Cardigan: Cotton On

Large Badge: Katie

Necklace: Taobao

Beanie: Maison Gilfy

Met the bf today for a date out. We explored a fairly new mall and then watched Robocop. The movie was alright, lots of action but I felt it could have been better. Ended the night with a Chili's ribs dinner while watching an ice hockey game happening at the ice rink right in front of the restaurant. I also wore red lips again after so long. I also tied my hair into tiny twin tails to kinda celebrate Twin Tails Day in Japan, though I'm a day late as the actual celebration day is on 2nd Feb because 02/02 looks like the side profile of a face with twin ponytails

Outfit:  

Leopard Beret: Accessorize

Shirt: Candy Stripper

Shorts: Unif

Dolfie joints Stockings: Bought from friend

Badges on Beret: Free gifts from taobao

Necklace: borrowed from Mom

I'm lucky that my workplace has given me a week off to celebrate the New Year so besides catching up with family, the bf and friends, I'm hoping to clean up my pig sty of a room and also progress bait more on my 3D Maneuver Gear. If I do complete it, perhaps I'll post a instruction post on how I made mine, though there are plenty of DIY instructions on making your own 3D gears already out there on the net. I'll see how it goes I guess... till next time! Have a happy horse year!