Archive for January 2015

Navy jumper here / Backpack here / Copper bomber here / Dark grey jacket here / Cropped trousers here

Some of my best bits (that I don't already own) from Acne's new year sale, which ends on Monday 2nd Feb so if there's anything on your wishlist, now is the time to max out your credit cards (hallelujah to pay day).

From left to right: Light camel set here (available separately) / Tartan blazer here / Torqurise tartan set jacket here trousers here

Topman is offering a 20% off suits this week, expires this Friday and no code required. So here are my best-finds out of the vast offering, vegan-friendly as always.

I feel like now is a great time to click home some new suits regardless of which hemisphere you live on (although the tartan trend is probably more autumn-fitting) and these three pieces can be really quite versatile in my opinion. Button up with slacks for a smart-casual get-up or rock the over-the-shoulders look (get one size up the blazer) mixed with urban/sporty bottoms, which is of course my favourite way to wear a blazer.

I admit I'm getting all excited for autumn weather already now.

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Cheap Monday's AW 2015 show is starting in less than 4 hours. For those of us who can't be there in person, CM's streaming the entire show online at their website here

Also they are currently offering a 20% off discount on their new pre-spring collection to newsletter subscribers. Hit the shopping bag hard.

Cheap Monday currently does not ship outside Europe.

Update: CM has now uploaded the whole footage onto their homepage. Check it out now! (link above) 

The play runs for 2 weeks till its closing night on the 7th Feb

Production shot

A couple of days ago Acne has released the AW2015 lookbook for its men's collection. Hues of mustard, olive green, maroon and navy dominate the looks. Here I've chosen four of my favourites and click more for the rest of the lookbook.

I've always found myself disagreeing with those mainstream hollywood-exclusive awards. But in this case I do find my own opinions aligning with the oscar and the globe, and many others. Julianne Moore delivered yet another fantastic performance but the whole film is quite plain and not matching up to that level.

It was quite emotional, I know I teared up for a couple of times and the girl who sat next to me was weeping at the end of the credit roll. But a good film requires more than the ability to make your eyes water. The film focuses very much on Moore's character and how she struggles through losing her memories bit by bit. However, the very 'catchphrase', emphasised in the trailer and also in the movie, 'struggling to be a part of things'. A part of what things? As the camera focuses primarily on Moore I had pretty much no idea what other characters were doing. Yes we did see that her eldest daughter got a twin, which took up about, 1 min of the entire film? And then what else? We know that her husband, played by Alex Baldwin, was planning to move but it also lacks much in-depth look into the conflict of interest of these two characters at the end of the event especially. And Kristen Stewart's character, how about her career and everything?

By the end of the film I couldn't help but feel that the heroine was only a part of her own struggling, which by itself is fine but somehow due to the skew balance amongst the characters her family members just appear to be very, very flat.

It sort of reminded me of a Japanese film that came out last year called 'Our Family', starring my fav Satoshi Tsumabuki. Both centred on the mum of the family who's gradually losing her memories, only different causes but still very similar symtoms at the beginning. The difference is that 'Our Family' did indeed emphasised the 'family' concept and paid a large amount of screen time on other fam member's actions. How they react, how their lives are affected and how they struggle to overcome. At the end you get a much more heartfelt movie that really explores the true impact of such illness.

Of course 'Our Family' is probably going too far away from what the director of 'Still Alice' wanted to achieve as they obviously have different centres and purposes and thus they can't be directly compared against each other. But in my personal humble opinion, 'Still Alice' sacrificed itself to maximise the halo around Julianne Moore's already impeccable performance.

Last thing I would like to add is that I did find some of the cinematography quite appropriate and helped to amplify the protagonist's emotional shifts throughout the film.

Overall rating: 6.5/10



Still Alice will be officially released in Australia this Thursday 29 Jan.


Our Family (ぼくたちの家族) was shown during Japan Film Festival 2014.

top left to bottom right: J.Lindberg jacket here / River Island hi-top trainer here / Notion 1.3 t-shirt here / River Island skinny blazer here / Cheap Monday bomber here / Notion 1.3 faux leather biker here

My picks from the insane NLYMAN sale (very colourful and fun as always. ). The sale ends next Monday on 26th Jan and a lot of the stuffs are already running out of sizes so grab them quick before they are gone.

Also don't forget to take extra 15% off sale items by using the code '15XTRA' at checkout.

Next Ep: Moving In

Men jaaaaaaa äntligen!

Finally it's time for my favourite part of the story. Can't wait for next week's episode.

Have you been watching NHK x Polygon x Ghibli's Sanzoku No Musume Ronja? Let me know your thoughts in the comment.

Are you enjoying this cruelty-free january?

To all of you who are trying out veganism this January, how you doing so far? It's past half of the month I hope you don't find it too difficult?

I hope all of you are aware of the amazing resources on Veganuary's website here. For my fellow Sydney and Melbourne folks, have you visited the Cruelty Free Shop yet (they also ship nationwide)? Newtown and Fitzroy are great places to visit but sometimes you can find vegan-friendly kitchens in more 'mainstream' areas (hurray to Lord of the Fries). And a lot of the times you can also ask the chef to remove animal products in your pasta, ask nicely though.

If you would like to meet more plant-powered people or just want to have a good time, come to Sydney Vegan Festival on 22 Mar in Marrickville. For more info and tickets click here

I would love to hear your thoughts if you're doing Veganuary or just generally intersted in veganism. Or questions, I'd try my best to answer.

First of all, I have to say this to all inexperienced hikers, this film is not a guidebook. It is based on a true story but that doesn't mean that you will survive as well. Always train before a long hike and Know Your Limit. It's a good thing to be determined but you need to know when to stop and have the courage to give up (especially when you're hiking in group, the last thing your friend would want is seeing you dying in front of them trust me).

And don't ever litter.


Ok back to the film. It was a stunning flick. Not just the landscape or Reese Witherspoon, but the emotions flooding through the screen. As a hiker myself (a hiker that's too broke to do as many hikes as they want to), I could relate to the heroine so well. I mean, my mum's still alive, I've never tried heroin and I don't sleep with every guy that offers. But all those things that she felt on the track, I've experienced them many times before as well, and that makes the movie a bit special to me.

Also I appreciate the feminism and subtle anti-hunting message in the film. Portraying a hunter as sexual offender and a fox as intelligent animal. It could be just me looking for excuses to like this film more but that's just my honest thought.

Reese Witherspoon delivered such a transformative performance in this film. Haven't seen Walk The Line yet so to me Witherspoon was still that Legally Blonde girl (and Rachel's sister to a lesser extent), until I saw this film. The rage, loss, confusion and that sorrow. It was so convincing and made it really easy for me to enjoy the story. Deserves ten rounds of applause. I am going to see Still Alice next week so let's see whose performance I like better.

And I was surprised to see Laura Dern (you can tell that I never do much research before a movie), great kind of surprise. I've had a girl-crush on her ever since Jurassic Park and it's great to see her back. Thanks to Witherspoon and Dern the key mother-daughter relationship was so heartfelt and sincere.

Last thing I want to add, I did know the director's the one that did Dallas Buyers Club but I had no idea he also directed C.R.A.Z.Y, which had such an important role in my teen years and I strongly recommend to all of you who don't hate Drama.

8/10, very biased maybe but it's my rating

Wild is coming to Australian cinemas next Thursday 22nd Jan.

I'm adding PCT to my hiking bucket-list now.

Photo Credit: Artur Stanisz

Photo Credit: Susanna Wikman, Parks Canada

Going to see Wild tonight and it's giving me a huge hiking crave already. Auyuittuq (meaning 'the land that never melts' in local lauguage) National Park lies on Baffin Island and is famous for its mountainous landscape. Many of the peaks on Baffin Island are named after Norse mytho characters and places which I find really fitting with these godly creations. Mt. Thor (seen in first and second photo) looks more like a deity than Chris Hemsworth does if you ask me.

Definitely not a place for winter hikes but I think I can handle a summer adventure through the glaciers and epic peaks, after a good few months' proper training.

Are you a hiker as well? Let me know about your dream adventures.

Snapback from Topman here / Joggers from Admirable here / Oversized shirt from H&M Ladies here / Hoodie from Criminal Damage here / Trainers from ASOS here

A couple of new-ins from Topman and some other finds. Can't wait till the summer's over and I can start layering again.

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A report from BBC on Lonesome George, the Pinta Island tortoise that died 2 years ago.

I find the interview with local fishermen at the beginning of the clip quite interesting. Illegal fishing has been a huge problem around the world to local ecosystems and biodiversity and I'm all for establishing protected marine reserves and robust laws preventing poaching and overfishing. And personally I despise poachers and illegal fishermen. However this did highlight the conflict between locals who used to rely on such activities and conservationists. How can we smoothly introduce conservationist ideas and laws into local communities with minimum impact on their economy? Ecotourism is usually the way to go but in this case it's also brought negative impact on local ecosystems (maybe not so eco after all).

Share your insights.

For some background information you can check out IGTOA (International Galapagos Tour Operators Association)'s page here

Acne released its pre-fall (or pre-autumn as I like to call it) collection yesterday in Paris and here are five of my faves from the lookbook

photo courtesy of Phillip Trengove, Martin Perry and londoncollections.co.uk

London Collection: Mens AW15 finished yesterday and here is a round-up of some of my favourite shows.

Craig Green here
Monochrome. Need I say more? It's got some interesting concepts and I am digging the monochrome 'tassle' look hard. Very organic and clean looks.

Nasir Mazhar here
Loving the colours and textures of the garments. Functionality x Style.
Although I do prefer skinny joggers rather than baggy trackpants.

KTZ here
Prints prints prints. It's got the modern urban street look and some English twist (I believe it's the bowler hat). Such a mesmerising show and it would've been my absolute favourite if not for what looks like real fur. I will have to check back if any items from the new line contains animal products especially fur and exotic animal materials. But besides that, so inspiring.



The Topman Design show that everybody and their exes are talking about. Full-on 70s comeback it was. Heaps of fauxfur (Acardia doesn't use real fur or pelt) which I'm not a fan of. But the cape, the tartan blazers and the fuzzy jumper with a red star look quite intriguing.

YMC here
Navy. Joggers. Sleek. Smart x Sporty. What's not to love.

Also like the all the longline tops in the Astrid Andersen show minus all the fur (I think this is the only thing I hate about every year's AW fashion)

For more shows go to British Fashion Council's youtube channel here

Let me know your thoughts on this LCM. What's your favourite show?

I've selected some of the albums I've been listening to heaps since their release last year and I feel like some of them may not be very well known, especially the non-English ones so here's some recommendations in case you're having the after-new-year-need-some-new-sounds crave like I do.

I also included a brief genre guide for each album. I'm not a label believer and most of the times I can't even tell the difference between the a hundred million different metal genres but I reckon they can probably save you some time, in case you hate a specific genre.

Architect - Souldrainer
genre: melodeath


Citadel - Ne Obliviscaris
genre: extreme metal, Progressive metal


Earthwalker - In Hearts Wake
genre: metalcore


The Flesh Prevails - Fallujah
genre: progressive metal, deathcore


The Gloaming - The Gloaming
genre: contemporary Irish


I Never Learn - Lykke Li
genre: indie pop, alternative


Promulgation of the Fall - Dead Congregation
genre: death metal


Ruebke - Islands of Light
genre: ambient


Tigerdrottningen - Kent
genre: alternative rock, pop rock


Also special mention to COLOURS by Ayumi Hamasaki. Have to say I was a bit underwhelmed by the whole album at first but it is a very nice album and Terminal is THEE bomb. Have listened to it at least twice a day ever since it's released, doubtlessly my most-played track of the year. Great for morning commutes.

You can get the track on iTunes here. And although the original mix is not on Spotify there are some remixes available thanks to some Mr Armin van Buuren, who wrote and produced the song himself.


genre? of course trance.

Shirt Here / Shorts Here

Two new items from Acne's SS15 line added to stock now. Clean summer outfit.

I'm not usaully a chino person but this pair is quite oversized and goes down to knees, together with the colourful stripes on the shirt they can deliver a minimalistic look with some more interests. Pair with  light-coloured trainers (think chuncky soles)

C.R.A.Z.Y (2005) is right now on SBS On Demand. Would just like to give my Aussie readers a heads-up (reckon SBS is only accessible to Australian ip addresses?). Saw this film first in my high school english class (I know, what) and it somehow just managed to stay in my mind for such a long time.

keywords: LGBT, family, Quebec, 60s, 70s, 80s, Christianity

It's only available for a limited time Here

For all of you who are unfamiliar with the service, SBS On Demand provides a huge collection of movies and TV programs for you to watch online for a limited amount of time for FREE. I'm thinking of putting up more recommendations here every now and then.

Went to the Open Night gala of Birdman at Sydney on Wednesday night (complimentary drink baby) and had such a great time (even minus the alcohol effect). I was to post a review that night but the Paris bloodbath happened and completely ruined my mood.

The movie was a dark comedy per official description and I actually did laugh, which was quite unusual for me in the American film scene. I love the quirkiness and weirdness and I felt like the director did a good job at finding the balance between comedic elements and more serious discussion of how the protagonist deals with the loss of fame and sense of importance. I do think it would've done a better job in terms of philosophical content of the film if it was a drama, which I would probably prefer, but out of all the dark comedies I've seen this one is one of the few that managed to maintain a certain level of depth whilst being funny enough.

Acting wise, the casting is just brilliant. The main cast delivered such convincing performance, especially Michael Keaton, those awkward, lost, confused, anxious faces definitely deserves a round of applause (was a bit disappointed at the fact that I was the only one who clapped my hands after the credit roll, Dendy usually has more appreciating audience)

However, structure wise it's not really my cup of tea. Personally I just really don't like films that can be clearn-cut into first and second parts (or more parts). What happened before and after the climax was just so different in terms of styles and mood, which is expected so I can understand, and some of the main characters were even mentioned after the climax it's just a bit too odd I suppose. I do quite like the ending though but maybe they could've given the ending a few extra minutes to tie in the whole film a little bit better.

To sum it up, it is absolutely worth your money and your time if you like dark comedy or drama, highly recommend. 7.5/10

Birdman is publicly released this Thursday 15 Jan in Australia.

disclaimer: drawing is my own and has nothing to do with anyone associated with PEANUTS

#IMAGINE by UNICEF featuring the original John Lennon and also heaps of other artists. A beautiful interpretation of a heart-moving classic.

Sogi's Story, here

This one is a graphic novel developed by UNSW's Australian Human Rights Centre (AHRCentre) aiming at promoting LGBTI rights in 16 African countries. Based on research and I can really see how it can get people thinking. More info and the full graphic novel is at the link above.

Show them some support and spread the word xo

1. here / 2. here / 3. here / 4. here / 5. here / 6. here / 7. here / 8. here / 9. here / 10. here

Have picked out a few bits from ASOS and Topman's extended boxing day/new year sales. Starting the 2015 with refreshing your wardrobe?

Also don't forget that students can get 10% at Topman on top of the sale discount (UNiDAYS or Student Beans iD account needed)

Mordor

Mount Ruapehu, taken during last year's roadtrip in New Zealand. Magical land and can't wait to go back one day.

Not gonna lie, there have been better years. I did accomplish or at least started many things that I'm proud of, but shit still happens. Not just to me, to people that are dear to me, to people that I respect, to people that I don't know, to societies that shouldn't tolerate nazism or sexism, to the millions of animals out there that deserved much better lives, to the environment that continues to be exploited.

People keep telling me to be positive, but unfortunately that doesn't run in my blood.

But that's okay, just because I'm not optimistic doesn't mean that I've given up hope. I hope 2015 will be a better year for all of us. I hope there will be some positive outcomes from COP21 at Paris. I hope more people will realise that hatred or violence is not a solution.  I hope there will be less people hunting for fun. I hope more animals will regain their freedom. I hope whaling will stop. I hope China will abolish its animal testing policy. I hope people around the world can be treated equally regardless of their race or sex or gender or sexual orientation or romantic orientation. I hope less animals will be abandoned by their human families. I hope less animals will be killed for the sake of fashion or novelty. I hope...

Hello 2015. Happy New Year to you all. Gott Nytt År, あけおめ