I’ve noticed during the course of my … er, stay here in the Philippines is that a lot of the spreads, layouts and ads now are referencing at least one of these things:
1) Upper-class preppy schoolkid - no doubt thanks to Gossip Girls, a show I’m actually not keen on. (Wow, I must be the only kitty I know who doesn’t enjoy watching that show, but it must be because I studied in a private school. >w< While I miss being in a more XX-laden school, I do NOT miss the cattiness that came with it.)
2) Gyaru - yes I am seeing this a LOT more now. The make-up is such that everyone looks tanned or au naturel, even if you see soon enough that they use bronzers and tanners and nude shades of lip, eye and cheek products. The hairdos are also more varied in terms of colours, cuts and styles. And of course the clothes are right at home with the local weather. Still not a lot of manba going on yet though, but we’ll see in a few.
3) Ulzzang - this has actually been around a bit longer thanks to the proliferation of so many Korean drama series on TV (and around the neighbourhood ;P). It looks to have also paved the way for gyaru’s entry into the country, thanks to the similarities between himegyaru and ulzzang style. Would I be right in saying that the only difference between the two is that ulzzang prefer to stay pale?
4) Crazy street style - not just Japanese in nature, this is anything and everything that most of the fashionable people back in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s would never be caught dead wearing. Some mix pyjamas and outerwear, while others parade their innerwear outdoors. There are a daring few whose style is simply indescribable and undefineable.
5) Geek chic - Not quite preppy, but definitely tech-driven, this marriage of tech and style makes me all sorts of happy. It’s nice to be able to carry a smart and stylish look literally, instead of being dowdy with clunky computers and cellular phones (now thankfully and more appropriately renamed mobile phones). ♥

Of course, toned-down European haute couture is not going to go away anytime soon, and neither will the super-casual styles that are on a lot of American fashion magazines. All I’m saying is that a lot of Filipinas and even Filipinos are a bit more adventurous in dressing up - and honestly, I’m very happy about this, because, hey, at least the modern fashion staple known as jeans now come in many other different (and mostly bright) colours! ;P

Also, to Filipina fans of female Japanese talents, buy this month’s (March 2009) issue of MEGA. There’s a spread inside for Coffret D’ Or by Kanebo, featuirng Kou Shibashiki, Miki Nakatani, and Keiko Kitagawa. ;P (And it’s got passable Engrish too! :P) I really wish the local office of Kanebo would bring in the ads for the Kate line, as Mika Nakashima is their model. >w<

So thanks to Sugar and Honeycute who kept badgering me, I finally joined PoupeeGirl!

For those on Poupee, please add me! ;D

Merry Christmas everyone!

OMFG. Beijing definitely delivers. \*0*/

Kudos to Zhang Yimou and Zhang Jigang for a job well done! Li Ning’s lighting of the ENTIRE Bird’s Nest and the Olympic cauldron was a splendid finishing move! ♥

Although, LOL at Solar Entertainment. Really, next time, PLEASE time your commercial breaks so that at least the Philippines wold’ve been seen. As it was only the tail end of its contingent’s entrance was shown. XP

Finally, does anyone know which of the 2008 Olympic songs was playing during the opening ceremony?

It was epic. Epic I say. \^0^/

Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry for neglecting this blog. >.< It’s just that in between work, I’ve been resting. Crimefighting is always serious business after all. If it helps any, Honeycute and Sugar are pissed at me for not lounging around much with them anymore.

Also, in the few pockets of free time I have, I’ve been addicted to this fairly new application called Polyvore. According to its creator, 2ndfashion, it’s “a free, web-based tool for creating collages and scrapbooks,” and “also a vibrant community of creative and stylish people.” What kind of collages and scrapbooks exactly, you may ask? Well, it has everything to do with style and creativity - hence, most sets, as collages and scrapbooks are called in Polyvore, are fashion-oriented.

Basically, what you do is you choose a photo that’s hosted online that catches your fancy, then use Polyvore’s bookmarklet or Clipper to capture the photo for Polyvore usage. Once captured, you can name it, then proceed to include it into your set, where you do virtual scrapbooking, or basically just cut, paste, clone, and mix-match images as you please. Obviously I’m no good with instructions, so I’m very glad the owner of Polyvore created a short demo presentation in the Help section of the site.

I think what’s really great about it is that you can just get any image online as you please and then mix and match them. The instructions and controls are a bit difficult for first-timers, but just be patient and check out the Help section if you’re lost. ;3

Here’s a set I came up with. It’s actually very similar to what I’m wearing right now. d^v~b What do y’all think?

For those who were annoyed at the lack of the lesbian couple Haruka+Michiru/Uranus+Neptune in the Pretty Guardian Sailormoon series, enter Last Friends (ラスト・フレンズ). (PinayYuri would fangasm I’m sure, but I dunno about the other Sailormoon fans…)

Information from DramaWiki follows:

Details

* Title: ラスト・フレンズ
* Title (English): Last Friends
* Format: Renzoku
* Genre: Friendship, human drama
* Episodes: 11
* Broadcast network: Fuji TV
* Broadcast period: 2008-Apr-10 to present
* Air time: Thursday 22:00
* Theme song: Prisoner of Love by Utada Hikaru

Synopsis

Last Friends tackles issues that afflict the current generation. Michiru’s mother has brought a man back to their home and she is bullied at her workplace where she works as a beauty parlour assistant. She starts cohabiting with her boyfriend, a good young man who works at the Child Welfare Division and the only person who can give her emotional support, but ends up the victim of domestic violence and becomes fearful of love. The boyishly charming Ruka was a classmate of Michiru’s in junior high school. She has performed brilliantly as a motocross racer and aims to win the national championship, but as the story progresses, a deep worry that she can neither confide in her parents or close friends grows evident. Takeru is a hair and makeup artist acquainted with Ruka. He is a good confidant to females due to his kindness and perceptiveness, and finds himself attracted to Ruka but has a phobia of sex as a result of a past trauma. The three of them become house mates and through their associations with others, gain the capacity to be positive about life. –jade_frost

Cast

* Nagasawa Masami as Aida Michiru
* Ueno Juri as Kishimoto Ruka
* Eita as Mizushima Takeru
* Nishikido Ryo as Oikawa Sosuke
* Mizukawa Asami as Takigawa Eri
* Yamazaki Shigenori as Ogura Tomohiko
* Nishihara Aki as Hiratsuka Reina
* Ranka Rea (蘭香レア) as Sanda Sayuri
* Hirano Sayaka (平野早香) as Okabe Mayumi
* Baisho Mitsuko as Aida Chinatsu
* Nagashima Mitsuki as Kishimoto Shogo
* Shibuya Takeru as Higuchi Naoya
* Kitami Toshiyuki (北見敏之) as Endo Kenichiro
* Tanaka Tetsushi as Hayashida Kazumi
* Asaka Mayumi as Kishimoto Yoko
* Hirata Mitsuru as Kishimoto Shuji

Originally blogged by my friend here: Link

EDIT: STOP THE PRESSES! According to ~stalkerinstinct of Livejournal and Multiply, alas, the girls have very little in common with Haruka and Michiru. T________T However, I will not go cry off into a corner, I will continue to hold out precious, precious hope that Michiru finally realises Ruka is 100000000000000x better than her current boyfriend AND the male lead put together! >o

Joyeux Noel et Bonne Annee, hommes et filles! \^0^/

How is everyone’s Christmas and New Year’s holiday going? I unfortunately don’t celebrate Kwanzaa or Hanukkah myself, but I hope that the people that do have a good one.

Anyway, I’ve just heard that Nana Kitade, who is best described as a sort-of spokesperson for the lolita/aristocrat fashion and lifestyle, has collaborated with Japanese clothing line Baby the Stars Shine Bright for a clothing line starring… well, moi! ;3

Not convinced? Please check this out. (Online journal entry courtesy of Nana Kitade’s official website, hosted by her label Sony Music Japan. Thanks to etoiledejade of the Livejournal community EGL for providing this link in this post.) It’s even been featured in the BtSSB entry at Wikipedia!

I love, LOVE, LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE all the styles encompassed by lolita and aristocrat fashion, although there’s no way I can wear them in the area I currently live in because it turns too many heads. I do elegance, beauty and sweetness, but I do try not to call too much attention to myself since it gets incredibly tacky that way. XD; Which is sad and ironic because as a wee kitten, I didn’t like lace and poof one bit, but then that must be because Mum dressed myself and Honeycute in dresses made with tulle and cheap lace, which are definitely not kitten-friendly. XD;

To be very honest though, I thought I was more of a himegyaru (”hime gal” or “princess gal”) style icon, myself. I mean, with the fabulously posh way I look, I’m not sure I fit into the sweet lolita mindset that is so closely associated with BtSSB. Not that I mind, but I’ve always thought I was a bit more grown-up. Ah well, can’t be too choosy. X3

In any case, here are some shots of Nana Kitade in the outfits, courtesy of BtSSB and the EGL community over at LJ: 1, 2. And here’s the actual line itself, where there’s plenty more to ogle at: Charmmy Kitty@BtSSB.

Alright, time to get drunk with sherry! Happy Holidays! d^.~b

EDIT (07/01/2008): GotochiKitty has an excellent feature on the Nana Kitade x BtSSB x Charmmy Kitty project here.

Being the lady that I am, I don’t go out drinking too much. (It’s not healthy to be so attached to alcoholic beverages, not to mention that it isn’t fun to nurse a hangover in the morning… =_=) However, when all the other cool cats invite me to drink, how can I possibly resist? See, I have a weakness for ladies’ drinks, which are basically concoctions made of at most two (2) “hard” alcoholic drinks (meaning, have a glass straight up of that beverage and you can bet your sorry behind that you’ll be really plastered in no time), heavily diluted by at least one (1)  carbonated soda and at least two other ingredients for flavour. I particularly love vodka and sake, because both of them clean the palate and are very cool to the tongue, while being pleasantly warm to the throat. Other alcoholic beverages I love are liqeurs, like Bailey’s Irish Coffee, Kahlua, and Tequila Rose. Ahhhh, I must admit I love my alcohol, but like I said earlier I only drink during social functions with at least two other companions. v^.^v

Anyways, I’ve been wanting to go out for a long time, but it’s sad because these days my friends are too busy for me; I wish I had a boyfriend like Dear Daniel to take me out drinking, or possibly mix me a few like this Hello Kitty Cocktail Recipe from a certain Miss Zoe of Indiana, and this Krunk Kitty Recipe (made of MUCH stronger stuff O_o) too!

I’m going to go find me a few more, and then round up some ladies (and possibly a few gents!) for this. X3 Would anyone like to go drinking with me? What are YOUR favourite drinks? v^.~v Pray tell!

* Many thanks to Erica of A Hello Kitty Life for inspiring this post (through this post), and DrinksMixer for the recipes, among the seven other kitty-themed recipes that they have. d^.~b