"Chicken Soup For The Soul" - The New Paper New Face Contestant Who Lost 45kg!

Have you ever have to struggle with weight issues or find that you have limited motivation to lose weight? If your answer is "YES", I believe you are like many people out there (myself included!) who find it really challenging to shed some extra pounds. Blame it on the affordable and delicious food we can find almost everywhere in Singapore! So how about some "Chicken Soup For The Soul" story to motivate yourself to lose weight?

Recently, I read about the story of Kylie Yuen, the first runner-up and winner of Ms Levi's for The New Paper New Face Competition 2012. Despite having done so well in the contest, I would assume that Kylie is a very "average" girl in every aspects until she decided to lose 45kg! According to what I read, Kylie used to weigh 100kg and it took her 2 years of determination and perseverance to reach her current weight of 55kg. Impressive yah?

There is even a before and after picture:

Picture credited to yourhealth.com.sg

According to a report on The New Paper official website, Kylie's typical meal consists of healthier options such as stir-fried vegetables, pork rib soup / veggie soup and steamed fish. Although she does indulge in sashimi buffets once in a while, she adheres to a strict diet which is high in fibre and protein in general. Of course, it does really help that Kylie enjoys her food and does exercises like jogging and taking the stairs.

I thought Kylie is a true inspiration to many girls and women out there who are trying really hard to lose extra weight and was so impressed by her achievement that I decided to approach her to model for my company's new collection. Really happy that she agreed to do so! I hope that her looks in Lace And Button's apparels will serve as a motivation for all women to achieve a similar feat. 

To end off, here are some pictures of Kylie for Lace And Button's photoshoot. Enjoy!

 

Tribal Prints in Fashion - My Experience

I was twelve years old when I visited Yunan, China for the first time. Apart from the picturesque scenes, what stuck in my memory the most is the beautiful head gear and costume of the "White" tribe of Dali, Yunan Province:

Bai woman wearing a colourful traditional Bai costume. Image from westheimphoto.com

I remember feeling really excited about having the opportunity to wear the Bai costume in one of the tourist attractions (can't remember the actual place but I have an impression that it might be the Kunming World Butterflies Garden). As a teenager, I am already very passionate about fashion, even when it comes to traditional costumes. I love the vibrant colors and exquisite embroidery on these costumes as they are really attractive in my opinion. In fact, I think these decorative embellishments really made the costumes come "alive"!

Recently, I became familiar with African prints as it is the ongoing and raging trend in fashion now. Unlike Chinese tribal prints or embellishments which focuses more on a woman's femininity and beauty (as reflected by the use of extensive floral decorations), African prints are more quirky, bold, and even unorthodox. It is really amazing how designers managed to use this genre of prints in casual everyday wear, as the "loud" nature of African prints are found more commonly in party or beach wear. Kudos to the designers behind this inspiration!

To end off, let me introduce some of the African print everyday apparels that my online store is currently carrying:

 Gorgeous aren't they? Hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I do :)

 

Support Breast Cancer Awareness - Pink Collection And Tote Bag

Breast cancer awareness has always been an issue close to my heart as I had a close aunt who passed away due to this life-threatening disease when she was just in her 40s. I was only fifteen then and did not know too much about breast cancer. Ten years later, I joined Breast Cancer Foundation (BCF) as a staff and was able to learn more on this topic. In fact, I was given the valuable opportunity to speak to members of the public on breast cancer and therefore, able to help spread awareness.

Now that I am a business owner, I felt that it is imperative to be able to contribute to society in some way and be a positive influential force whenever possible. As such, I was really happy to be able to invite Moonberry, a well-known lifestyle and beauty blogger, to be the guest model of Lace And Buttons' "Pink Collection". The concept behind this collection is derived from my wish to encourage more women to wear pink during Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October. It consists of seven sets of pink apparels and part of the proceeds from the October sales of this collection as well as other designs available at my online store will be donated to the Singapore Cancer Society.

Some designs from the Pink Collection:

 
I really enjoyed this photoshoot with the gorgeous Moonberry, as she is very friendly and easy to work with. Significantly, Moonberry is also someone really passionate about breast cancer awareness, as can be seen from her blog articles regarding this topic. From my conversations with her, I can tell that Moonberry shares my belief that breast cancer awareness is important for everyone, regardless of age. Although women who are forty years old and above are more likely to be inflicted with breast cancer, everyone should be concerned about awareness in this disease as we all have women we love, be it our mothers, sisters or friends.

Apart from the Pink Collection, I have also arranged for the manufacturing of limited edition golden retriever breast cancer awareness tote bags to be given away to customers who make purchases from my online store.

Great as a shopping bag and really cute doggy yah?

To end off, here is a link to instructions on how to perform a Breast Self-Examination from the BCF's website:

http://www.bcf.org.sg/awarenessEducation/breastSelfExamination.html

Do find out more as these simple procedures can potentially saves lives!

  

Lace And Buttons, the Clothes Online Store, has launched the 5th Mini-Collection

Lace And Buttons, the Clothes Online Store, has launched the 5th Mini-Collection.

If you are looking for apparels suitable for both work and play, you may find the designs in our mini-collection V suitable :). Have fun shopping

Inspiration of the week: Dressing up to become another person?

Saw this video recently and feel what Hofit Golan says is true. More often than not we dress up in beautiful clothes to escape "reality" and for that few hours become someone we want to be.

It's takes the pressure off our daily routines and let's us enjoy life itself.

Hofit Golan for Kmag - Photoshoot in Poland