My Memorable Moments in 2008

Top 12 list for my most memorable moments in 2008..

12. Global Financial Crisis.

11. 5 people were killed in a landslide in Bukit Antarabangsa .

10. The price of petroleum hits USD100 per barrel for the first time.

9. Shoe throwing incident at President Bush.

8. The General Election of Malaysia-never in 50 years in Malaysia that Barisan Nasional suffered such great losses in 5 states.

7. Barack Hussein Obama- The first African-American to be elected President of the US.

6. Abhisit Vejjajiva, current PM of Thailand- One of the world's youngest heads of government.

5. Bill Gates steps down from daily duties as the Chairman of Microsoft.

4. Mahathir Mohamad, former Malaysian PM announced his resignation from UMNO party.

3. David Cook won season 7 of American Idol by a record breaking of 97 million votes.

2. I got a new job!

1. My first attempt in Piala Seri Endon 2008 which saw my designs through to the semi final round!

This day in History a.k.a. my birthday 16th December

December 16 is the 350th day of the year (351st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 15 days remaining until the end of the year.. (complete history can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/16th_December )

1431 Henry VI of England is crowned King of France at Notre Dame in Paris.
1497 Vasco da Gama rounds the Cape of Good Hope, the point where Bartolomeu Dias had previously turned back to Portugal.
1707 Last recorded eruption of Mount Fuji in Japan.
1770 Ludwig Van Beethoven was born on Dec. 16, 1770 (baptized on Dec. 17, 1770)
1809 Napoleon Bonaparte and the Empress Josephine are divorced by an act of the French Senate.
1850 History of New Zealand: The Charlotte-Jane and the Randolph bring the first of the Canterbury Pilgrims to Lyttelton.
1857 Earthquake in Naples, Italy
1870 The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is lit for the first time.
1893 Antonn Dvok's Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95, "From The New World" was given its world premiere at Carnegie Hall.
1903 Majestic Theater, New York NY, becomes first in US to employ women ushers
1913 Charles Chaplin, one of the most famous actors in the silent-film era comes to work for the first time at Keystone Studios.
1916 Gregory Rasputin, a monk with considerable influence over the Russian court, is murdered by noblemen.
1920 A magnitude 8.5 earthquake rocks the Gansu province in China, killing an estimated 200,000.
1922 Florence E. Allen becomes the first woman justice of a state supreme court (Ohio).
1922 President of Poland Gabriel Narutowicz is assassinated by Eligiusz Niewiadomski at the Zachta Gallery in Warsaw.
1929 The first NHL game at Chicago Stadium (Black Hawks)
1937 Theodore Cole and Ralph Roe attempt to escape from the American federal prison on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay; neither is ever seen again.
1941 Sarawak occupied by the Japanese
1959 Snow falling in Lowarai Pass West Pakistan kills 48
1960 1960 New York air disaster: While approaching New York's Idlewild Airport, a United Airlines Douglas DC-8 collides with a TWA Lockheed Super Constellation in a blinding snowstorm over Staten Island, killing 134.
1965 Gemini 6 returns to Earth
1965 Pioneer 6 launched into solar orbit
1966 Beatles release "Everywhere it's Christmas" in the UK
1969 "War is Over! If You Want It, Happy Christmas from John & Yoko" posters begin appearing
1970 The first successful landing on Venus (USSR)
1973 O.J. Simpson of the Buffalo Bills becomes the first NFL player to rush for 2,000 yards in a season.
1976 George a goose that lived to 49 years 8 months
1980 Pres-elect Reagan announces Alexander Haig as secretary of state
1985 Paul Castellano Organized-crime chief shot dead by a NYC restaurant
1991 Independence of The Republic of Kazakhstan.
1992 IBM said it would make its first layoffs in fifty years. The company announced it would trim its staff by 25,000 employees and dispose of some of the assets of its mainframebusiness.
1992 Israel orders deportation of 415 Palestinians after escalating terrorist activity
1996 IBM announced on this day in 1996 it would stop selling computers that used that PowerPC chip and ran Windows NT. IBM, Motorola, and Apple had teamed up to challenge Intel Corporation's dominance in chips and Microsoft's near monopoly on operating systems
1998 Iraq disarmament crisis: Operation Desert Fox - The United States and United Kingdom bomb targets in Iraq.
2006 Leona Lewis wins the third series of British UK talent show The X Factor (TV series), winning a 1 million record deal, and releases her debut single A Moment Like This.
2007 Presidential Candidate Ron Paul breaks record for 1 day fundrasing, raising 6 million dollars, a record previously held by John Kerry, at 5.7 million dollars.


Births
1485 - Catherine of Aragon, Queen of England (d. 1536)
1584 - John Selden, English jurist and oriental scholar (d. 1654)
1614 - Eberhard III, Duke of Württemberg (d. 1674)
1714 - George Whitefield, English-born Methodist leader (d. 1770)
1716 - Louis-Jules Mancini-Mazarini, Duc de Nivernais, French diplomat and writer (d. 1798)
1717 - Elizabeth Carter, English writer (d. 1806)
1742 - Gebhard Fürst Blücher von Wahlstatt, German Field Marshal (d. 1819)
1770 - Ludwig van Beethoven, German composer (d. 1827)
1775 - Jane Austen, English writer (d. 1817)
1775 - François-Adrien Boïeldieu, French composer (d. 1834)
1776 - Johann Wilhelm Ritter, German physicist (d. 1810)
1787 - Mary Russell Mitford, English writer (d. 1855)
1790 - King Léopold I of Belgium (d. 1865)
1804 - Viktor Bunyakovsky, Russian mathematician (d. 1889)
1834 - Léon Walras, French economist (d. 1910)
1861 - Antonio de La Gandara, French painter (d. 1917)
1863 - George Santayana, Spanish philosopher and writer (d. 1952)
1865 - Olavo Bilac, Brazilian poet (d. 1918)
1866 (N.S.) - Wassily Kandinsky, Russian-born French abstract painter (d. 1944)
1867 - Amy Carmichael, missionary in Dohnavur, India (d. 1951)
1869 - Hristo Tatarchev, Bulgarian revolutionary (d. 1952)
1872 - Anton Ivanovich Denikin, Russian general (d. 1947)
1882 - Sir Jack Hobbs, English cricketer (d. 1963)
1882 - Zoltán Kodály, Hungarian composer (d. 1967)
1882 - Walther Meissner, German physicist (d. 1974)
1883 - Max Linder, French pioneer of silent film (d. 1925)
1888 - King Alexander I of Yugoslavia (d. 1934)
1888 - Alphonse Juin, marshall of France (d. 1967)
1899 - Sir Noel Coward, English playwright, actor and composer (d. 1973)
1900 - V. S. Pritchett, English author and critic (d. 1997)
1901 - Margaret Mead, American anthropologist (d. 1978)
1902 - Rafael Alberti, Spanish poet (d. 1999)
1905 - Piet Hein, Danish mathematician and inventor (d. 1996)
1906 - Barbara Kent, Canadian actress
1913 - George Ignatieff, Russian-born Canadian diplomat (d. 1989)
1915 - Turk Murphy, American trombonist (d. 1987)
1917 - Nabi Bux Khan Baloch, Sindhi scholar
1917 - Sir Arthur C. Clarke, English writer (d. 2008)
1918 - Pierre Delanoë, French songwriter and lyricist (d. 2006)
1922 - Cy Leslie, American music and video executive (d. 2008)
1926 - James McCracken, American tenor (d. 1988)
1927 - Randall Garrett, American writer (d. 1987)
1928 - Philip K. Dick, American writer (d. 1982)
1929 - Nicholas Courtney, English actor
1932 - Rodion Shchedrin, Soviet/Russian composer
1934 - Elgin Gay Baylor, NBA Hall of Famer
1936 - Morris Dees, founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center
1937 - Joyce Bulifant, American actress
1938 - Frank Deford, American sportswriter
1938 - Liv Ullmann, Norwegian actress
1941 - Lesley Stahl, American journalist
1942 - Donald Carcieri, American politician, governor of Rhode Island
1943 - Steven Bochco, American television producer and writer
1943 - Tony Hicks, English guitarist (The Hollies)
1945 - Patti Deutsch, American actress and Match Game panelist
1945 - Bobby George, English professional darts player
1945 - Yukio Hattori, Japanese Iron Chef commentator
1946 - Benny Andersson, Swedish musician, singer and songwriter (ABBA)
1946 - Trevor Pinnock, English conductor and harpsichordist
1947 - Ben Cross, English actor
1947 - Vincent Matthews, American sprinter
1948 - Christopher Biggins, English actor
1949 - Billy Gibbons, American guitarist (ZZ Top)
1950 - Claudia Cohen, American gossip columnist and socialite (d. 2007)
1950 - Roy Schuiten, Dutch cyclist (d. 2006)
1951 - Robben Ford, American guitarist
1952 - Joel Garner, Barbadian West Indies cricketer
1952 - Francesco Graziani, Italian footballer
1955 - Xander Berkeley, American actor
1955 - Prince Lorenz of Belgium, Archduke of Austria-Este
1960 - Pat Van Den Hauwe, Belgian footballer
1961 - Bill Hicks, American comedian (d. 1994)
1961 - Jon Tenney, American actor
1962 - Maruschka Detmers, Dutch actress
1962 - William "The Refrigerator" Perry, American football player
1963 - Benjamin Bratt, American actor
1963 - Jeff Carson, American singer
1963 - James Mangold, American film director and screenwriter
1964 - Heike Drechsler, East German-born sprinter
1964 - Georgie Parker, Australian actress
1964 - Billy Ripken, American baseball player
1965 - Chris Jones, American baseball player
1965 - Melanie Sloan, American attorney
1965 - Nancy Valen, American actress
1966 - Clifford Robinson, American basketball player
1966 - Dennis Wise, English footballer
1967 - Donovan Bailey, Jamaican-born Canadian sprinter
1967 - Miranda Otto, Australian actress
1971 - Michael McCary, American singer (Boyz II Men)
1971 - Paul van Dyk, German DJ
1972 - Angela Bloomfield, New Zealand actress
1972 - Charles Gipson, American baseball player
1972 - Željko Kalac, Australian soccer player
1973 - Themba Mnguni, South African footballer
1973 - Scott Storch, Canadian-American hip-hop producer
1974 - Frida Hallgren, Swedish actress
1975 - Valentin Bădoi, Romanian footballer
1975 - Nawo Kawakita, Japanese drummer (Maximum the Hormone)
1975 - Benjamin Kowalewicz, Canadian musician (Billy Talent)
1975 - Jonathan Scarfe, Canadian actor
1977 - Éric Bélanger, Canadian ice hockey player
1977 - Sylvain Distin, French footballer
1978 - Gunter Van Handenhoven, Belgian footballer
1978 - Kaine, American rapper (Ying Yang Twins)
1979 - Mihai Trăistariu, Romanian singer
1979 - Jessie Ward, American professional wrestler
1979 - Trevor Immelman, South African golfer
1979 - Flo Rida, American rapper
1980- I was born..:)
1981 - Anna Sedokova, Ukrainian singer
1981 - Took Leng How, Malaysian criminal (d. 2006)
1981 - Gareth Williams, Scottish footballer
1982 - Garnon Davies, Welsh actor
1982 - Antrel Rolle, National Football League defensive back
1983 - Kelenna Azubuike, English basketball player
1983 - Danielle Lloyd, English model
1985 - Keita Tachibana, member of Japanese boy band w-inds.
1987 - Hallee Hirsh, American actress
1988 - Anna Popplewell, English actress
1992 - Marios Theodorou, Cypriot teenager


Holidays and observances

Bahrain - National Day
Bangladesh - Victory Day
India - Vijay Diwas (Victory Day)
Kazakhstan - Independence Day
South Africa - Day of Reconciliation
Afrikaners (South Africa) - Day of the Vow
Mexico - First day of Las Posadas
Philippines - First day of Misa de Gallo
St. Adelaide

Edmund Leighton...The Medieval Fantasy

Edmund Leighton...while he painted some modern scenes, he is best known for his romantic, medieval paintings. These usually focus on young knights in armor, and young maidens with long, flowing hair and beautifully textured dresses. He did extremely well at capturing the nuances of fabric and hair.

Some of Edmund Leighton's arts which have adored me..keeping most of the hidden secrets through his paintings...

Stitching the Standard

Lady in a Garden

The King and the Beggar Maid

Collages of Edmund Leighton's artwork

"The artist selects as a rule themes which offer an excuse for old-world costume, and an easily read anecdote. To place Mr E Blair Leighton's work in a class to which it makes no pretence to belong, or to contrast it with the masterpieces of the past, or even of the present, would be to do it an injustice. It is the pictorial equivalent of light literature, of belles letters, of graceful novels and vers de societe, of much that is charming of its kind, if by its very nature ephemeral." Gleeson White, 1897.

This is a very insightful observation about the work of Edmund Blair Leighton, which has always hit me as being like stylishly crafted light music.

Saudi Arabia's First All-Girl Rock Band- The AccoLade

This band's daring story has not only enthused me; but also to appreciate the great art from Edmund Leighton..The AccoLade.

Jidda Journal - As Taboos Ease, Saudi Girl Group Dares to Rock

By ROBERT F. WORTH


JIDDA, Saudi Arabia — They cannot perform in public. They cannot pose for album cover photographs. Even their jam sessions are secret, for fear of offending the religious authorities in this ultraconservative kingdom.

But the members of Saudi Arabia’s first all-girl rock band, the Accolade, are clearly not afraid of taboos.
The band’s first single, “Pinocchio,” has become an underground hit here, with hundreds of young Saudis downloading the song from the group’s MySpace page. Now, the pioneering foursome, all of them college students, want to start playing regular gigs — inside private compounds, of course — and recording an album.

“In Saudi, yes, it’s a challenge,” said the group’s lead singer, Lamia, who has piercings on her left eyebrow and beneath her bottom lip. (Like other band members, she gave only her first name.) “Maybe we’re crazy. But we wanted to do something different.” In a country where women are not allowed to drive and rarely appear in public without their faces covered, the band is very different. The prospect of female rockers clutching guitars and belting out angry lyrics about a failed relationship — the theme of “Pinocchio” — would once have been unimaginable here.

The Accolade's album cover

But this country’s harsh code of public morals has slowly thawed, especially in Jidda, by far the kingdom’s most cosmopolitan city. A decade ago the cane-wielding religious police terrorized women who were not dressed according to their standards. Young men with long hair were sometimes bundled off to police stations to have their heads shaved, or worse.
Today, there is a growing rock scene with dozens of bands, some of them even selling tickets to their performances. Hip-hop is also popular. The religious police — strictly speaking, the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice — have largely retreated from the streets of Jidda and are somewhat less aggressive even in the kingdom’s desert heartland.

The change has been especially noticeable since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, when the Saudis confronted the effects of extremism both outside and inside the kingdom. More than 60 percent of Saudi Arabia’s population is under 25, and many of the young are pressing for greater freedoms.

“The upcoming generation is different from the one before,” said Dina, the Accolade’s 21-year-old guitarist and founder. “Everything is changing. Maybe in 10 years it’s going to be O.K. to have a band with live performances.”

Dina said she first dreamed of starting a band three years ago. In September, she and her sister Dareen, 19, who plays bass, teamed up with Lamia and Amjad, the keyboardist. They were already iconoclasts: Dina and Dareen wear their hair teased into thick manes and have pierced eyebrows. During an interview at a Starbucks here, they wore black abayas — the flowing gown that is standard attire for women — but the gowns were open, showing their jeans and T-shirts, and their hair and faces were uncovered. Women are more apt to go uncovered in Jidda than in most other parts of the country, though it is still uncommon.
“People always stare at us,” Dareen said, giggling. She and her sister are also avid ice skaters, another unusual habit in Saudi Arabia’s desert.

The band gets together to practice every weekend at the sisters’ house, where their younger brother sometimes fills in on drums.

The Accolade

In early November, Dina, who studies art at King Abdulaziz University, began writing a song based on one of her favorite paintings, “The Accolade,” by the English pre-Raphaelite painter Edmund Blair Leighton. The painting depicts a long-haired noblewoman knighting a young warrior with a sword.
“I liked the painting because it shows a woman who is satisfied with a man,” Dina said.
She had thought of writing a song based on “Last Supper” by Leonardo da Vinci but decided that doing so would be taking controversy too far. In Saudi Arabia, churches are not allowed, and Muslims who convert to Christianity can be executed.

Dina held out her cellphone to show a video of the band practicing at home. It looked like a garage-band jam session anywhere in the world, with the sisters hunching over their instruments, their brother blasting away at the drums and Lamia clutching a microphone.
“We’re looking for a drummer,” Lamia said. “Five guys have offered, but we really want the band to be all female.”

Although they know they are doing something unusual, in person the band members seem more playful than provocative. Unlike some of the wealthier Saudi youth who have lived abroad and tasted Western life, they are middle class and have never left their country. “What we’re doing — it’s not something wrong, it’s art, and we’re doing it in a good way,” Dina said. “We respect our traditions.”

All the members are quick to add that they disapprove of smoking, drinking and drugs.
“You destroy yourself with that,” Lamia said.

Yet rock and roll itself is suspect in Saudi Arabia in part because of its association with decadent lifestyles. Most of the bands here play heavy metal, which has only added to the stigma because of the way some Western heavy metal bands use images linked to satanism or witchcraft. In Saudi Arabia, people are sometimes imprisoned and even executed on charges of practicing witchcraft.

The first rock bands appeared here about 20 years ago, according to Hassan Hatrash, 34, a journalist and bass player who was one of the pioneers, and their numbers gradually grew. Then in 1995, the police raided a performance in the basement of a restaurant in Jidda, hauling about 300 young men off to jail, including Mr. Hatrash. They were released a few days later without being charged. There is no actual law against playing rock music or performing publicly.
“After that, the scene kind of died,” he said.

Mr. Hatrash, who has graying shoulder-length hair, recalled how the religious police used to harass young men who advertised their interest in rock and roll. He once had his head was shaved by the police.

In recent years, with the religious police on the defensive, bands have begun to play concerts, and a few have recorded albums. Occasionally young men bring their guitars and play outside the cafes on Tahlia Street in Jidda, where young people tend to congregate in the evenings. Although the music is mostly familiar to heavy metal fans anywhere — thrashing guitars and howling vocals — some of the lyrics reflect the special challenges of life and love in this puritanical country.

“And I Don’t Know Why,” a song by Mr. Hatrash’s band, Most of Us, has these lyrics:

Why is it always so hard to get to you
When it’s something we both want to do
Every time we have to create an alibi
So that we can meet and love or at least try...

As the Saudi rock scene grew, Dina gathered the courage to start her own band. It plans to move slowly, she said, with “jams for ladies only” at first. The band members’ parents support them, though they have asked them to keep things low-key. Eventually, Dina said, they hope to play real concerts, perhaps in Dubai.

“It’s important for them to see what we’re capable of,” she said.

Who owns batik?

Arguments between countries nowadays are not only over substance on boundaries, islands, etc.

One of the most influential matter for any citizen of any countries would be the debate over artistic heritage. I am peeling off this sensitive issue as Malaysia and Indonesia are still having controversies when it comes to one of the greatest art- Batik.

Honestly, until now I really have no idea on which country is actually owns the origin of Batik. Mainly, neighbours Malaysia and Indonesia have claimed that batik was originally came from this country. We acknowledged that both countries have always worn batik as their official attire and both have active batik industries mainly in batik lukis and batik sarung.

Well, it may become as sibling rivalry over a piece of fabric. Perhaps if any solution could not be done, this debate will continue forever and confusion arisen not only between foreign tourists but also towards the next generation.

But hey, if any good must come out of this issue, that not any piece of cloth is worth fighting over; we are speaking up on Batik!

Memoir of Piala Seri Endon 2008

As those lovers in fashion and batik industry acknowledged; the result for 12 finalist of the Piala Seri Endon Grand Final 2008 has been announced yesterday evening.

during the coloring process

Quite (very) frustrating for me as my name was not on the list, nevertheless there were a lot of corollaries given by Piala Seri Endon for my first attempt in the semi final.

I have learnt a lot in these extremely challenging 3 months period where I found the greatest sacrifaction and hard work came out from my inner body and soul. During these moment where I found new friends (and foes too), positive and negative senses of courages, loyalty, sincerity, supportive, honesty, faith, trustworthy, happiness, sadness,hatred..and so on.

while waiting for the color to dry

I would prefer to relate the lost of the US Presidential election candidate John Mc Cain to Barack Obama where McCain quoted after the final result came out-"I wake up at 2am and cry". Well, it is very hard to accept what has fated but do not absorb the negative feelings into our minds till you cannot move on at all.

I cannot deny--I had enjoyed though during these tremendous phase-lots of friends, fans :),best opportunities rolling over,enhancement of my fashion and batik knowledge, and also on how to manage my time very well where I was juggling with 3 jobs (Piala Seri Endon, my online shop and office tasks) at the same time!!

my design - formal womenswear

It was not that bad I guess..nevertheless, Piala Seri endon has waken up my inner fashion passion that was buried inside for quite a long time --I've made it to the semi final even I have left the fashion scene for more than five years since I've graduated in 2003.

my design -formal menswear

Thanks to my entire family and to my truthful friends who have never giving up on supporting me to be passionate on what I adore to do. Definitely I will not be on the semi final stage wihout your endless support.

a model fitting for menswear

Whatever happened to me was overwhelming, Piala Seri Endon has proved that I'm still eligible to stand on the fashion stage once again and its spirit somewhat has whispered to me that " U cannot stop here, move on !!!" and so I did.

I'm The Lucky One

I cannot pin down the most beautiful or best song I have heard because I love so many songs for so many reasons.

Recently, I heard this song and I have to say I just loved it ever since it passed my ears; which no doubt I recognised the beautiful voice by Anuar Zain.

It really touched me, (even currently I am not emotionally attached to anyone) and yes, I am touched by its lyrics too..

It is almost magical..And I wanted to know the true lyrics... :)


I'm The Lucky One by Anuar Zain

Ku persembahkan satu citaku
Setulus hati hanyalah untukmu
Dan ku lakukan semampu aku
'Tuk menyayangimu
Hingga kau merasa jadi pujaanku

Chorus:

Meski bercinta kadang tak indah
Tapi 'tuk buktikan kau yang terindah
Dan ku pastikan
I'm the lucky one
Nikmati cinta
Lebih dari segalanya

Jiwaku dulu yang tak tersentuh
Kini terasa sejak bersamamu
Berikan hangat hingga ku tak mampu
'Tuk jauh darimu
Kerna kau yang bisa buatku bahagia

Bridge:

Caramu membuatku tak berdaya
Mata hatiku pun ikut terjaga
Kau ubah hidupku ini
Jadi sempurna



"In music, beauty is in the ears of the beholder"

Nature Healing

Can contact with nature relieve stress and anxiety, and help us to heal? As for me, it appears that it can, even when I am in the loosest way. For instance, passive contact with nature, like when I look at the sunset, ocean, waterfalls, beaches and lakes.

Plitvice Lakes National Park

Mirror Lake, Yosemite Valley

Sunset at Pigeon Point, Tobago, Caribbean

The Blue Lagoon, Fiji

Redang Island, Terengganu

So, with all the efforts to alleviate stress; from gym and yoga to anti-stress pills, maybe the key is as simple as a garden. In fact, from my own experience even a little bit of nature seems to make a big impact.

Hidden path at Plitvice Lakes National Park

Therefore, I would take every chance to go to nature places so that I could minimize, or at least buffer the stresses of my everyday life.

Now that's what I call nature healing.

Finally..Harrods at KLCC!

Harrods is officially opened on 21st February 2009..see my updates here..http://stylishgoddess.blogspot.com/2009/02/updates-finally-harrods-klcc-is.html

Yay! Harrods will be open soon at Suria KLCC. This will be the second retail outlet in Malaysia after KLIA.

It is located at the corner lot next to Godiva but the lot is very small.

I believe that this new outlet will be more into a flagship retail and food/beverages outlet. The franchise holder is Amtek International which operates Harrods brand products in Malaysia..

The beautiful Harrods Knightsbridge at night..



Beyond doubt, I have always mesmerized by Harrods' lavishness and its palatial fortress. Luckily it's coming nearer to me now.. :)

What do you want to say?

I disgust when it comes to job interviews—not only because of the nerves, but mainly on the dress code.

When it comes to fashion in general, I am a bit of a style renegade. As a type that always diversify when it comes to dress choosing; sometimes overdress or too simple, definitely not bluntly following the trend.

However, business is business, and if you're looking to land an office job, dress codes can be serious business. While many work places are becoming much more relaxed about dress codes, for a lot of companies, professional appearance is of utmost importance.

The way you present yourself on the day of your interview may speak volumes to your potential employer.

The common dress code that people must follow during interview is very conservative.

The traditional look for women includes a skirt that hits just above the knee, slacks and perhaps pantsuits, simple jewelry, a little makeup and polished flats or moderate heels.

For a guy is basically a button-down shirt. Polished black shoes .A blue, black or gray jacket .Slacks that complement the jacket. So boring though, unless when you see George Clooney or Brad Pitt wearing them!

Although you're interviewing in a creative field, you should still dress appropriately.

You have got the skills? So, who cares if your tongue is pierced and you have got tattoos down both arms? Will an employer be turned off by the tattoos? One nationally known employer insists on clean-shaven employees, but is that the rule for most employers?

If you succeed in your interview, you will have plenty of opportunities to wear outrageous fashions.

Dress as you want to be seen: Serious, professional, upward-bound and ready to meet clients.

When In Doubt – It is better to be overdressed than underdressed. You don't want your new employer to think you don't take the job seriously.



Trendy is fine, as long as you keep your style subtle. Clothes make a strong statement about us. What do you want to say?

Fashion Icons

Most people out there may have their own icon regardless area of expertise.

Mine (specifically for fashion) are Jackie O (Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis) and Audrey Hepburn (Audrey Kathleen Ruston).

These two legendary women have similarity not only in their fashion senses, but also in their thrilled life--from their trouble marriages to their death caused by cancer.

What people do see on them that they are still maintaing their sense of classy styles without distracted by their horrific experiences.





Perhaps known as the wife of the late president John F. Kennedy, Jackie endured one of the most tumultuous lives ever lived in the public eye. As a mother, a wife, a fashion icon, and of course a first lady, she will go down in history as one of the most popular and beloved figures of the 20th century.



Jackie is well-known for her famous pill box hat style. The ladylike essence of Jackie O's look is a quality that has returned to today's fashion world. It is a look that creates a very feminine, confident, classy mystique.




There was something in her smile, in her eyes, in her timeless and natural elegance. Audrey Hepburn - beloved actress, icon of style, devoted mother, humanitarian and spokesperson for the children of the world.




Audrey Hepburn's "Breakfast at Tiffany's" became an iconic character for decades.
She wore classy clothing in the film designed by her and Givenchy, which became the most classiest wear to match her role as a socialite.




Even though both of them have lost in their battle with cancer, their styles remain forever.

The truth is that at the time they were quite forward looking and trend setting.
They have made 20th century's greatest fashion icons, they did more for the fashion and flagging fashion industry than either industry could ever thank them.


Fashion moves at a frightening pace. The rest of the world just loved following trends they set. Some observers felt safer wedded to their hippy looks of yesteryear. Others were setting a contrary trend of punk and other subcultures.

Most of us were pleased that Jackie and Audrey constantly moved us forward. Jackie and Audrey really were outstanding fashion icons of their days.


I would rather say that we hardly find any of our locals to kick start the trend setting gear.
We may get style inspirations from celebrities or public figures just for certain times or occasions; still everyone has someone to turn to for fashion inspiration, but have we ever come across to put any local one's fashion styles to deserve the level of a fashion icon ?

What's your worth?

We seem to underestimate our own self or let someone underestimate us, as we realise or not, it reflects our own overall evaluation or appraisal of our own worth.

Let's put it this way - for example you have come with this statement; "I believe I am a good designer, and feel proud of that!" Easy to say, but hard admit the truth?

Whether it is a job, a relationship or a pair of shoes that we cannot afford (but hey, I think I deserve it!)--we have to know our worth.

Putting a price on your life! We seem to know our worth(sometimes!) in our careers and our friendships, but why do we sometimes forget our worth when it comes to relationships?

It seems that there will be people in our lives that we will fall for who will not completely see our worth, and in their self cherishing ways, will bruise our hearts....

Well as it is easy to say, we are likely to downgrade our self-worth to get attention,to get heard, to have praises or love, to get support, to gain others' approval, to challenge on physical attractiveness, to outdoing others in competition or academic, etc.

Know your worth, don't ever forget how unique you are; and if anyone makes you doubt your value or compromise yourself or your integrity, know that you do deserve more than that..

Wish on our own Van Gogh

As I was browsing through I came across at this one of the greatest artists of all time in the 18th century, Vincent Van Gogh.

I did some research on him for my art assignment during my first year of degree in 1999. So sad to hear on his tragic life , most of his best-known works were produced in the final two years of his life, during which time he cut off part of his left ear following a breakdown in his friendship with another well known artist, Paul Gauguin. After this he suffered recurrent bouts of mental illness which led to his suicide at a way too young age of 37.

Each of his masterpiece was based on his own experiences, places that he went, and everything that made his sadness and happiness.

Some of his paintings that touched me a lot including Bridge across the Seine at Asnieres, Still Life: Vase with Twelve Sunflowers , the famous Starry Night and hundreds more.The values for his paintings were estimated millions each.





It makes me wonder..while we are appreciating other foreign artists' artworks, would we be able to have the same appreciation to our home artists? Would we have the sense not only to value the arts, but at least not to forget their existence?

Wish on our own Van Gogh someday...

My Batik Class ( 28/6/08)

Although batik art can look very intricate, the tools used to make batik clothes are still very simple.

To begin work the batik we have to hold the canting in the hot wax for a little while to heat it up.

Fill it appropriately, takes it out the wax, wipes the excess from the outside of the copper bowl and usually blows on the tip of the spout to remove any excess wax. Then, everything must happen quickly and precisely when applying the wax to the cloth. Any hesitation may result in a blob of wax and spoil the work (like what I did!).

The main elements of the design are usually penciled onto the fabric, but many of the details are added freehand.






Once applied the wax cools down rapidly. After a minute or so we must dip the canting in the wax and begin again.

The process takes a great deal of patience and concentration.

It is worth while when you see the fantastic results!!