My Special Dress!

I was really excited about this dress because it is a collaboration between Keith Png and I. I showed him a picture of what I like, he chose the fabrics, the colours and made it come to life. Thank you so much Keith for the beautiful dress!

Why So Serious? (+ Fashion Asia Pics)

I’m always touched when my juniors from WKWSCI (Wee Kim Wee School of Communication & Information) write to me. Whether it is to ask for advice, or to leave a comment or to share what their thoughts are, I find myself reminiscing about those school days. I’m envious of them, for stressing over the readings, grappling with deadlines and struggling to make it on time for morning lectures because I actually quite enjoy being in an academic environment where the grueling curriculum serve a purpose for you, without you having to set one for yourself, even if you aren’t very clear what it is.

One of them left a comment on a previous entry, regarding how her ex-boyfriend suggested that she should have take a more practical module instead of “Acting” but she was glad she took no heed because acting was the only fun she had the entire semester. While I was formulating my response to her, I wondered if that is the reason why people here sometimes take everything too seriously? Have they stopped having fun? Part of my response to her was “…I don’t understand why people equate fun to being frivolous and [fun] is often frowned upon and associated with being lazy, impractical or time-wasting.” because I genuinely think having fun is part of living, and that it does makes work or study a lot more enjoyable than it is.

Is there a prejudice against people who actually have fun working or studying? Is it wrong to want to have fun? Are they mutually exclusive?

One of the reasons given is that people can get carried away when they’re having fun, so much so that it distracts them from the tasks required to be completed which inevitably results in a  lack of productivity and efficiency. But we are not talking about children here, we are talking about young adults and adults who have developed an awareness since. Surely they can be trusted to know their responsibilities and fulfill them?

I’m not saying it’s not important to be productive or efficient or professional, but they need not always be at the expense of having fun. One of the differences between human beings and machines is that we have emotions and our interaction with one another is organic, as opposed to being programmed. Yet how often have we met people who seem to be talking and reacting like there is a course to follow?

While I don’t have scientific evidence to prove, I do feel that human beings are naturally drawn to happy, positive emotions because it’s a lot easier to experience them, ceteris paribus. Of course I might be wrong. It’s just that I’ve seen for myself, that in cases where the overall experience is positive and enjoyable, there is less focus on the unpleasantness and difficulty of the task, less complaints, and a greater willingness to engage in it.

I’ve heard and it saddens me to know that there are employees who have been told by their employers to adhere to certain rules and work conduct which indirectly promotes behaviour that is devoid of human emotion. We are all unique individuals with different personalities and one of the reasons why humans, instead of robots, are in most jobs is because the world is made up by people. Products, ideas, campaigns, movements are all driven by human beings. Because each of us bring to the table a part of us, which is different from someone else.

We all want to work hard, but we can definitely work harder, if we can also have some fun at the same time.  They are not mutually exclusive, unless we humans make them to be.

Enough said, here are more fun pictures from my Fashion Asia Bangkok trip to share. Have fun everyone!

I have no idea why that pose came about!

Clarence, the unsuspecting victim stole the scene from us!

I thought these earrings were really cute. Muak muak.

I like the look and feel of this top!

Pretending to mannequins...

...still pretending to be mannequins...

...Keith looks totally the part!

Did u know the "book" I'm holding is actually the box that comes with the accessories at Stretsis? So pretty!

OMG, what/who is that?

Alvin (MediaCorp make-up artiste) and I

Oh...Clarence...

A happy face from each of us.

These are fake flowers but they look so pretty!

Welcome to Bangkok, Thailand, The Land of Smiles.

《亚洲时尚风》曼谷 Fashion Asia Bangkok

两个星期前，我到曼谷拍摄一集的《亚洲时尚风》。记得来临的星期二（Oct 6), 晚上 8点， U 频道。想看更多的照片和了解多些时尚贴示可以留意明天出版的 i周刊哦！

About 2 weeks ago, I jetted off to Bangkok to shoot an episode of Fashion Asia. You can catch it on Channel U, this coming Tuesday October 6, at 8pm! For more pictures and fashion tips, check out this upcoming issue of i-WEEKLY, out tomorrow!

We were put up at Siam City Hotel. The room was beautiful! It may be rather small and cramped, but it is clean and has a homely decor. From where I'm standing, there's a sofa and a work space, so I would say it's got everything to make it convenient for the guest. I would give it 5 stars although I'm not sure of its actual ranking.

Every morning we would gather here before we set out. Feels European!

This was taken outside the Oceanarium at Siam Paragon. Princess Ariel from Disney?

There was a local fashion designer showcase going on at Siam Paragon and we gate-crashed it, with permission of course.

We had dinner at this restaurant owned by the lady on the menu. Here with me, Clarence Lee. He's a great traveling companion! The last time I traveled with him was many years ago, when I did a Sydney supplement shoot with 8DAYS. We had so much fun!

Morning glory. Highly recommended by Clarence!

Crabmeat and salted fish fried rice. I was so hungry that day I ordered another medium plate to go around. 😉

Cameraman Tong, Soundman Yap, Make-up Artiste Alvin and Cameraman's Assistant Lau (left to right)

The regular face of FASHION ASIA, Keith Png! This is my first time on a trip with him and I certainly hope it's not the last. He's got a very easy-going personality and a naturally charming disposition. We had a lot of good laughs and high-energy moments. I like him so much that I hijacked the seat from his partner on our return flight and kept him talking the whole journey back~ Oops, sorry Keith! Haha!

Because it was a long weekend holiday (Hari Raya), a lot of Singaporeans were also in Bangkok. We were filming at one of the boutiques in Siam Center when this group of fellow Singaporeans saw us and apporached us for a picture. How can we say no when they're all so cute!

Speaking of bumping into people, V ran into me while I was at Siam Paragon and asked if I was from Singapore. I later found out that she's from Cambodia and she actually recognised me from Little Nyonya, which she said was a huge hit back home. Wow!

I've never tried this before. Keith bought this for everyone at Chatuchak Market and said it's grass jelly with brown sugar. It's quite yummy, and perfect for a hot day but it would have been even better if the ice was crushed much finer.

They look so pretty, almost like those Japanese mock-up food for dollhouses. Actually I don't quite know what they are because I didn't try it. I think it's yam or some sweet paste inside? Anyone who knows what this is, please comment ok? Thanks!

Here's everyone at a lifestyle shop on the last day of shoot after the last hosts' links were done. We ended at 8.45 pm and quickly proceeded from Central World to have a nice seafood dinner before this famous restaurant (I don't know the name, sorry) closed for the night. I didn't have any pictures of that cos' everyone was so hungry, we just want to eat and relax. You know some of the crew members from the previous pictures, so here we also have the producer Huiting and scriptwriter Lili flanking Alvin (make-up artiste), and the Thai guide Tom next to Keith.

We were up at 4.45am so we could reach the airport in time for the first flight out. Here we are basking in the flattering morning sun, still somewhat sleepy.

More pictures after the programme airs on Tuesday, Oct 6, 8pm on Channel U… 🙂