Washington DC

Figuring that one should really see the capital of the United States at least once in their life, I stopped by Washington DC the other weekend. And I've got two words for DC, big and tiring! We spent the first day walking around the mall (the area where all the monuments were). Everything didn't LOOK that far on the map and in reality, you can actually see the next monument from one. But when you actually WALK the distance, it is much much farther. Factoring in the blazing sunlight (not that we're not grateful that it wasn't pouring rain), lack of efficient public transport and the lack of trees on the way, it felt like we were trying to reach a mirage in a desert. Besides the distant though, once we reached these mirages, they were actually quite pretty and picturesque. I love how everything is perfectly planned and symmetrical. It makes such a pretty picture. Above is a view of the Washington Monument (left) from the World War II Memorial (right). I think this is one of the best views of the Washington Monument, because its close enough to see and it is perfectly framed by the American flags and the fountain. And the World War II Memorial is absolutely gorgeous.
Another very good view of the Washington Monument is from the top of the Lincoln Memorial (above). Now we know why that strip of water is called the reflecting pool. Absolutely stunning and well....monumental.
The Lincoln Memorial (above) itself is not so bad either. Designed after a Greek temple, it was quite gorgeous.
Unfortunately for my legs, all these monuments looked ever more breathtaking lighted up at night. So that night, we retraced our steps that afternoon and went back to see the monuments. But I think the scene was totally worth it! At the other end of the mall there is Congress (left) and off to the side the Jefferson Memorial (right). So we didn't quite reach these monuments, but in our defense, we went too late to get tickets for Congress (they give out tickets every morning for visiting slots) and the Jefferson Memorial was all the way across those waters!! Besides, I think we managed to better appreciate its beauty from afar anyway- the overall effect of the architect is more visible this way!

Before you wonder, no we did not go to the White House nor the Library of Congress. Apparently you had to get permission and book one month in advance to enter the White House. And we didn't realize that the Library of Congress was closed on Sundays until Saturday night!
We did however visited a few museums. First the Museum of Natural History. I thought the elephant in the middle was from that movie, "A Night in a Museum," but apparently not. The most interesting thing in the museum for me though was not the special butterfly exhibit, but the Hope Diamond. At 45.52 karats, it is one of the world's most famous diamonds, known for its clarity, rare deep blue color and history. I was truly enraptured.
Then we hit the National Gallery of Art. The collection didn't quite compare to the Lourvre, but it was still a lot of fun. We especially loved the west garden. If I had time, I'd sit there and read and book and enjoy the ambiance.
We also loved their outdoor exhibit. It was a lovely artistic garden. It made for a really nice stroll. There was also a fountain in the middle, which I read turns into an ice skating rink in the winter. How cool! For dinner, we went to Cafe du Parc, which is an absolutely darling little French bistro next to the Williard Hotel, which according to the guidebook, is a historical landmark. It certainly was very pretty and quaint! We loved the atmosphere. The service was excellent- our waiter, Olivier, was awesome. And the food, by a celebrity chef apparently, was also great. Try the lamb and the fries!
During our tour of the mall and the old downtown, we did notice that besides tourists, Washington DC was really quiet. There were barely any people and we didn't even see any Walgreens or CVS! Where are the people? Turns out civilization was over in Georgetown on the weekends (It is also where the Ritz and the Four Seasons is- go figure). It is absolutely THE cutest and quaintest town ever. The shops were darling and actually interesting (Intermix, H&M, Zara and basically any shop you'd want to shop in, its there). And the college campus was just gorgeous (left)!
They also have this street called Canal Street, which is absolutely charming. They had an actual canal and the houses lining the canal were so quaint. There was even an old man on the boat (left), that completed fitted the picture.
Off the side, they also have a nice little waterfront, where some restaurants are. We stopped by there for lunch. The food was not exactly top notch, but it was decent and the atmosphere was excellent- especially with the perfect weather. Sigh... I just LOVE LOVE LOVE Georgetown. Wish I'd applied there for college.......

Over all I thought Washington DC was definitely a place I should visit at least once and I'm glad i did. A few tips though:

a) Try to land at the Regan Airport. It is MUCH closer and a LOT cheaper than Dulles.
b) Cabs here oddly work in zones and not meters. Going only 2 miles can easily come out to be $12.
c) Plan ahead and book tickets to see all the places (going up Washington Monument, into Congress and the White House)
d) Don't go when it is the height of summer or midst of winter. You'll never survive the walk needed. And bring sneakers. Try to go during Cherry Blossom season (April), I heard its pretty lined along the Jefferson Memorial.

Happy Mother's Day

It is that time of the year again where we all distress over what to get our mothers for mother's day. So to share my thoughts: In the past, we've covered flowers, so this year I figured, why not a cake? At least it is edible! You can be super personal and make her a cake or if you are not at home, you can send her a cake. They have super convenient shops where you can order a cake online and have it delivered these days- just make sure you know where your mom will be on the day.....A good idea, if I may say so myself, is night wear. Unless you REALLY REALLY know your mom, you will never find an item of clothing that she'd really like and would wear in public. So the next best thing is night wear. They are generally less picky about pajamas and robes since they are worn in the confines of home. You can even get them super cute matchey matchey ones (above: Victoria's Secret)! Or you can get her cute cushiony slippers (though Chinese superstition prevents me from giving anyone anything related to shoes...shame!) to walk around in or a set of luxury towels- hey, its practical, a home cannot ever have too many towels! (left: Victoria's Secret, right: Ralph Lauren).More items for home. You can consider glass vases and bowls, like this very elegant Nambe Piroett bowl (left). Or there are essence like this Anthousa Blossom Ambiance Trio (right). I know, it doesn't sound very useful. But surprisingly, my mom actually uses it!!
For something more personal, you may try getting them facial treatments. Not the daily ones since they probably already have a routine, but those intensive ones used once a week. My grandmother really really LOVES this intensive treatment one from Darphin (left) and if she loves it, it must be REALLY good. Or you can try the Estee Lauder intensive lifting mask above as well (right). I don't have any personal accounts about this product, but they are usually good with their rejuvenating products. And when all else fails, I always turn to Shutterfly- it is personalize but very easy and convenient. I quite like the canvas photo idea.

Happy Mother's Day!

Image Source: Torrance Bakery, Shutterfly, Victoria's Secret, Ralph Lauren and Saks

In Vogue Book Giveaway

Vogue.TV is going to have the first ever Viewer’s Choice Awards for the annual Costume Institute Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art this year. Starting today until May 16th, you can vote on your favourite red carpet fashion online here. Voters can also enter a sweepstakes that includes: two round trip tickets on JetBlue Airlines, a $2,500 shopping spree at J. Mendel, a pair of red carpet stilettos, red carpet clutch, red carpet hair and styling at a top NYC salon and a free two night stay at The Lowell Luxury Hotel in New York City. *salivate*

After our extensive coverage this week of the Met Fashions this year, I'm sure you all have a good idea who your favourites are! In celebration, we will also be giving away five copies of In Vogue: The Illustrated History of the World's Most Famous Fashion Magazine- a must-have for any fashion/Vogue lover. All you have to do is tell us what you like the best about Vogue (the magazine) and why in a paragraph. Do you like a particular photo editorial? A feature article? Anything. Send your answer and your mailing address to iamfashion AT gmail.com by May 16th midnight EST. And don't forget to subject your email with "Vogue Giveaway"- otherwise, we'd probably delete it!

The best three answers may be published in I am Fashion and we will notify the 5 winners through email by May 19th.

MET Costume Institute Gala 2008: The Mortals

Now that we've looked at the "superheroes", I thought we can take a look at what the mere mortals were wearing that night.
One of my favourites (besides Christina Ricci and Camilla Belle) was Bee Shaffer's Nina Ricci dress. It was very fairy tale like and whimsical. It looked like she was floating on a cloud. And I thought her messy bun was a nice touch. It kept the whole outfit from looking too put together and sophisticated. It was a good balance.A super hero we missed yesterday. I thought Amber Valletta looked absolutely fabulous in Atelier Versace. The sleeves and the little cape at the back totally fit the theme too. I also liked the dresses on Lauren duPont (left), from Valentino, Margherita Missoni (center), from Missoni- where else?, and Candy Pratts (right), from Givenchy Couture. They were fun, youthful and cute. I loved how Lauren paired her ruffled pink dress with such a tailored black jacket- it was genius. And Margherita and Candy's dresses were just refreshing but still very flattering and cute! Somehow my attention was caught by the champagne colored dresses on the red carpet. It has a certain elegant yet feminine quality to it that makes Kristin Davis (left) in Michael Kors and Scarlett Johansson (right) in Dolce & Gabanna look poised and sophisticated. Then there are the Gossip Girls, Michelle Trachtenberg (left) in vintage and Blake Lively (right) with Penn Badgley, both in Ralph Lauren. Michelle's gold dress is a bit of a hit and miss, but I think it suits her. She looks like an evil Egyptian temptress- just like her character! Blake's outfit just looked kind of standard and boring.
Also spotted some of my old TV favourites on the red carpet, Mischa Barton (left) in Missoni and Sarah Michelle Gellar (right) in Bottega Veneta. Mischa usually looks good in everything, but I really don't think this dress suits her. Something odd about the neckline... too weirdly low I think. Sarah Michelle dress was nothing special, but I just love her timelessly elegant look.
Speaking about timelessness, Michelle Managhan (left) in J Mendel and Emmy Rossum (right) in Phi were definitely not. This may sound harsh and maybe a bit farfetched, but does anyone else think that these two dresses and their cutting a bit dated?
I don't understand how or WHY Donna Karan (left), a fabulous designer, would dress herself in a drapey bag of a dress. And in such a clashing color too. I especially didn't need to see any glimpse of her sagging chest. Then there was Amanda Brooks (right) who dressed herself boxy dressed from Marni. To give her credit, I thought her squared shoes were a good match to the dress.
Colourwise though, Donna Karen's dress could not have been more clashing than Joy Bryant (left) in Emilio Pucci and Allison Sarafim (right) in Alexander McQueen. I thought both a bit too much. I understand that Joy's dress is just pure Pucci, but there really is no excuse for Allison in her rainbow colored wrap. It looked more like a sari or something she picked up on holiday in Phuket or something meant for the BEACH, than something coming from Alexander McQueen for the red carpet....
No one can fault Lake Bell for not trying to fit into the theme in this Balmain dress. Its super tight and has sparkly red lightning bolts all over it. It's just......not very aesthetically pleasing. I thought the whole over the top layer thing was over with last season's YSL, but seeing Alexandra Kotur (left: from Vogue!) wearing this Carolina Herrera, it is obviously still here. Shame. She looks like an multi-layered cake. And I love Burberry, I really do. But all this feather on Cat Deely (right) is just too much. Maybe it is just my aversion to all things feather period, but she looks like an overstuffed black bird.
There is too much and then there is too little. I don't care that Thandie Newton (left) is wearing Chanel. It looks like she's wearing lingerie- which should be kept inside the bedroom! As for Gisele Bundchen (right), her Versace Atelier dress is actually very elegant, I just thought the bodice part could use a bit more cloth.

Image Source: Style.com

MET Costume Institute Gala 2008: Superheroes

Ahh, the most important annual fashion party, the Costime Institute Gala was held last night, chaired by Anna Wintour, Julia Roberts and George Clooney. I big huh? on the two celebrity chairpeople, since I can't remember them being particularly linked with fashion. They didn't even dress up to the theme! And even though I can't decide whether to think Anna looked like a Chanel-clad space alien, I feel like we shoudl all appreciate that she's obviously super responsible and dressed up for the theme.

The theme was Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy. Most people looked nice -afterall, celebrities and models are pretty people in general, and they have their pick of expensive dresses. But it's such a waste and bore when people don't actually dress up to the theme. What's the point and fun when you don't? Anyway, here are my favourite dresses from last night.

My absolute favourite dress from the night was Christina Ricci's dress. I LOVE the red corset at the center (-very Wonder Woman,) and the pink chiffon-like material covering and flowing around her is just so pretty. The dress is kind of costume-y, but it's still such a normal gorgeous dress. Ricci just looks so cute and pretty!

My other favourite dress is Kate Bosworth's vintage Chanel couture dress. I love the colourful, sequinned print on the dress. And I like the cut -it's unique and not like all the other huge puffy dresses around. Plus the shoes! Her outfit isn't very obviously superheroes-themed, but hey, she obviously tried! The dress, the shoes and her makeup -everything is so colourful and metallic! In some odd way, the equally shiny Karl Lagerfeld's black and white outfit complements on dress!

Not a fan of Mary Kate's dress, but Ashley's dress is so nice and simple, yet those cut-outs make the dress sort-of into the theme. I wish Ashley added some colour somewhere but she just looks so pretty!

That acqua colour looks gorgeous on Camilla Belle. I think the should strap is what makes the dress sort of superhero-ish.

I usually love everything Diane Kruger wears on the red carpet. Her outfit last night was really fun and young-looking. I can't say I love the dress, but the whole outfit is cute.

Katie Holmes really bothered with dressing up for the superheroes theme. The dress is a bit Disney-ish -it's long, A-lined, sequinned and red. And those blue shoes -a bit Wonder Woman (except the costume isn't tight and short) isn't it? Her makeup looks a bit scary in this photo, but it looks better closeup.

That's it. Like I said, many people looked pretty, but I liked these because they went with the theme and looked gorgeous. Which were your favourite and least favourite dresses?

Image Credits: www.thefashionspot.com, www.style.com

Window Shopping at UK Urban Outfitters Online

Recently, I've been seeing a few dresses and stuff I want from the UK Urban Outfitters site. But seriously, why are the things there so expensive? I'm not saying they cost as much as Prada, but I can't get around to justifying the clothes for what UO is charging.

Take this Kimchi & Blue double layer tank top for instance, my sister got it last week in the States on sale for 15usd. And guess what? It's on sale in the UK too! Only, it's now down to 15pounds. Seriously. OK, so I understand rent and wages are much higher in the UK, but still! I just need to rant.

Here are the clothes I'm interested in:

I like that this Lux dress is simple, bright, young and seems good for day or night. And the braided neckline is a nice detail too. But I'm not sure about dishing out 45pounds (=85usd) for a jersey dress.

A fun, summer day dress by Free People. I'm imagining walking around in malls in this dress and sandals. I've got a dress that's got a similar cut and it's old so it needs to be replaced. But this dress, (which I can't even decide if I like the grey or pink version better,) costs 50pounds! Although the more I stare at the dress now, the more I'm not sure about the prints.

I love this dress by Religion. The top bit is made of elasticy cotton material, and I'm guessing the skirt bit is made of chiffon-like material. The dress has definite potential for fun nights out. It's 65pounds but the material and cutting looks pretty decent. Now I just have to find it in a shop to try it out. And I'm also really liking the feather necklace. (I think the model's got two on her in the photo.) So many things I want!

And then there are the graphic t-shirts. I know graphic tees are so 2005 but they seem like something I lack in my wardrobe. I especially love the grey Bon-Jour tee. But as usual, these tees are pricey -28pounds each! Seriously, aren't normal graphic tees like these like 28usd on the US site?

Since I seem to have no decision-making ability o shopping these days, what do you think? Which should I buy and which should I just leave?

PS. I wasn't bother to calculate the USD equivilant for all the prices above since I assume everyone has some idea about the current exchange rates.

Image Credits: www.urbanoutfitters.co.uk, www.urbanoutfitters.com

SS08: Colorblocks

Remember the AKA Dress I was obsessing over this winter? Well it seems that it is coming back to haunt me, because now I am seeing colorblocks everywhere! They are looking better and better too. Colorblocks are especially refreshing when compared to the floral and print patterns one usually sees in a spring/summer wardrobe. They are bright, sharp and bold.
The first brand that comes to mind when one thinks of colorblocks this season is Marc by Marc Jacobs. There are loads in that collection. Most memorable is probably that colorblock dress with the row of gold buttons coming down the front off center, but I showed that dress yesterday (fourth picture on the left). So here, I'm going to show this more geometric one (left) also from the Marc by Marc Jacobs collection. Orange is not my favourite color, but it works here. For something a bit more femininely styled, I like this dress from FCUK (right).
More boldly and sharply, there are these dresses from Cynthia Steffe (left) and DKNY (right). They are the definition of colorblock dresses (since you can actually SEE the color blocks really clearly as opposed to the dresses before which are more complex).
More subtly, there are these ones from J Crew (left) and FCUK (right). I love how the design of both is simple and sophisticated yet fun because of the color blocks! I love the color combo of these two (left: Mint Jodi Arnold, right: Mr. Abbott). Who knew yellow and grey would go so well together? Also the knot on the Mr. Abbott dress is cute!
Something more casual, there are these two options from Alisha Levine (left) and FCUK (right). My friend actually has the FCUK dress in black/yellow. The contrast of black/yellow is much sharper.
And if you are just looking to play around a little with colorblocks, you can try getting these fun but super versatile colorblock tees from Vince (left) and Ella Moss (right)- just to brighten up your wardrobe!

Image Source: Shopbop, Saks, J Crew, Nordstrom and FCUK