La Coccinelle

Last time I told you about our Ukay Field Work where we had to interpret another group’s mood board and buy our garments at the ukay place.

So last Wednesday we had a mini fashion show in class. All the groups had to show the rest of the class the outfits they came up with.

We just went outside and used the mini driveway there as our catwalk. I borrowed Mai’s photos. :)

This is Mai, wearing the outfit we put together on our look board, Right to Spring. :)

Buena in a “working mom” outfit. I’m not sure what the outfit is called, but that’s the effect they were going for.

This is Kendi, my groupmate, wearing the Croquis Monsters’ interpretation of Vintage Preppy — the look created by the Neko Babies.

Trish, wearing a Japanese fashion inspired outfit. :) The look fits her so well, she didn’t seem any different from her everyday self! Except for the Japanese-ish makeup. Haha

Trish’s shoes are soooo cute! I want them! Can’t believe she got them at ukay too!

That’s Mai, Kendi, Buena and Trish after the walk. :)

We then went inside and judged each other’s look, including makeup, according to interpretation, use of design elements and principles, etc.

We got high marks on interpretation, but the group who made the outfit wasn’t too satisfied. They thought our look was too fun, and they supposedly wanted a serious and mature look. But we defended that the mood board was a little vague, and looked more fun than serious. Ma’am thought so too, actually.

Here’s Ma’am giving Pam our group’s prizes for being the first to finish, AND spending the least amount for our outfit! Yay Croquis Monsters!

Miss Kitty would like to thank her sponsor, ChocNut! HAHAHA Ma’am was so cute.

As I said in my previous post about the Looklet assignment:

Ma’am Kitty asked us to create either a Looklet or Polyvore account.

Looklet lets you create “looks” on actual models. It’s like having an online doll, with a huge closet! Polyvore on the other hand lets you create something like the lovechild of a mood board and an outfit. Since I prefer clothes on the body, where I think they should be, I made a Looklet. :)

You can check it out here. :) I actually only have 2 looks so far, because that’s what we had to do :))

I made these two outfits for my partner, Paloma. I asked her what kind of look she wanted and she said she wanted a sexy and feminine one with an Avril Lavigne vibe.

The first look I created for Paloma is called Complicated and it has the following design elements:

Repitition: Of the color blue on her blazer, socks, stockings and cuff. And of sparkly/glittery texture on her inner corset, jewels on her tank top, earring and cuffs. I used blue for its relaxed and calming effect juxtaposed against the fun and energetic feel of sparkles and glitter.

Parallelism: of the jewels on her tank top.

Asymmetrical/informal balance: Single earring and hair to the side for a more relaxed look and feel.

Texture: Mostly leather, cotton and sparkly glitter. They all come together to create a relaxed yet edgy look.

Color harmony: Neutral and a color. I used mostly just black, nude and blue.

My client Paloma’s feedback:

I asked Anje to create an outfit for me with an Avril Lavigne feel: cool, sexy chic, and incorporate it to my style of femininity, and class. For the first look, she used a leather skirt which was perfect for the style I wanted. Leather always gives that cool and edgy look. I love the way the color blue and nude go together, there’s this feel of class considering that the dull shade of blue creates a feel of sophistication when combined with the color nude. The inner corset is just perfect the way that it goes under the blouse, not to give much of a provocative look but still looks sexy. The whole outfit is a good example of balance between Avril’s rocker chic style and my style of femininity and class. It is a challenge to create a look of two totally different styles but Anje was able to balance everything from the energetic feel of sparkles and glitter and the edgy but relaxed feel of the fabric. COOL AND SEXY just the way I like it, perfect for nightouts.

For my client’s second look, My Happy Ending, I used the following:

Color harmony: Monochromatic/ Neutral and a color. I used mostly black. And just a small splash of color in pink. I chose the blazer in a very pale pink to keep it neutral. The mostly monochromatic look elongates the body and specifically her legs.

Texture: There are a lot of varying textures on this look like tulle, tweed, leather and the stockings, which keep the look interesting even in its neutral color.

Parallelism: on the polka dots on her stockings.

Line: The lines of the voluminous tulle dress neutralize the straight lines of her blazer, belt and the fringe on her bag.

Volume: on the black dress makes the chest and waist areas look fuller as opposed to the small waist accentuated by the belt.

Paloma’s thoughts:

For the second look, she used this sophisticated black dress that would make my chest look fuller, and that’s one of the things I would like to consider when choosing tops or dresses since one of my clothing goals is to make my chest look fuller. The length of the dress is perfect to make the legs look longer. The pink belt makes it look sexier to squeeze in the waist and emphasize the curves of the body. It’s amazing how the look she put together did not show much of skin but still looks sexy. The polka dot pattern on the stockings makes the outfit look more interesting at the same time further elongates the legs. I love gossip girl and the blazer that she used reminds me a lot of Blair’s style: sophisticated and feminine.  Anje’s style of sophistication, dressy casual, and femininity are really seen in this outfit, which makes me appreciate it more because I see her clothing aesthetic blend with the look I wanted- successfully rendered through the combination of textures and colors.

I gave this post its title because both Pal and I love Blair’s style in Gossip Girl and I wanted the look to be a combination of our styles and aesthetics. I’m really happy Pal liked the looks I put together for her. :)

Last Friday we had our Ukay Fieldwork for CT11. I’ve been looking forward to that day for weeks!

Our group was given a look put together by another group. We then had to find garments that would suit its theme: vintage preppy. I love the look we got! :)

All the groups were also given a certain design element that must be incorporated in at least one garment. The Croquis Monsters got alternation. Easy enough, I thought.

But then we started looking. It’s not easy shopping for specific items! And it’s even harder in ukay, because the clothes aren’t sorted at all. We had to scan each and every rack before we came up with our look.

But of course, being the awesome group that we are, we found the best outfit ever! It’s sooo cute, I promise you. :) And to top it off, we finished first! I think we got a bonus or something. :) Yay Croquis Monsters!

I can’t show you our group’s final look though :) I’ll blog about it after our “mini fashion show” on Wednesday, along with the other groups’ looks :)

Anyway after we were done, Ma’am Kitty said we could go shop for ourselves! Hahaha but actually we were already doing that. By that time, Pam already had 6 items. 

I only bought 2 items but I’m really happy with them! They’re still a bit expensive though, considering they’re ukay. I always have Pam’s 10-20 peso items in mind kasi. Kainis! Haha

Here’s my first item. 

An Php80 vintage dress! It’s so Forever21. :) I’m having the skirt cut up until a little above the knee because it’s too long and it’ll be stuffy especially with its long sleeves.

When Mom went to my boarding house in UP before dropping my sister off (who was going to take the ACET the following day) at my Kuya’s condo in Katip, I told her I bought stuff for myself and asked her to take them home to wash hihi. And then she scolded me! She was actually reaaally mad! She went on about how it was dirty, blabla, and how I might get all sorts of icky diseases or something. She said it must be why I was getting rashes and things. But I told her it was my first time (Ooops.) so she stopped. But I could see she was still a bit mad. Haha 

A close up shot of the details on the dress. :) I’m so balbon! hahaha.

And then the following morning my Mom texted me just to say that she had a dress in that exact cut and style when she was a teen but that hers was prettier. Hahaha.

And then the next item. Are you ready? Hihihi

It’s a Php120 ladybug dress! Ish.

It’s actually a skirt. Hahaha I love the hemline on this one. I’m thinking of wearing a tulle skirt underneath it! If only I owned one. :/ Gaaaah, I need to find one ASAP! Hahaha

I loooooooove the ladybug pattern. Hihihi. The black satin ribbon is actually from another dress of mine. I wanted to wear it with a wide black belt but I think I left it behind in UP.

I can’t wait to wear this ladybug-ish outfit! Hihihi

And as I was writing this post, I saw the cuuuuuuutest pair of earrings by Betsey Johnson!

They’re just $20! Too bad they’re completely sold out at Rue Lala. :(((((((((((((( That’s what they said, completely sold out! :( I am so heartbroken! </3

Anyway back to the ukay post. Hehe

I think it’s obvious that ukay shopping’s starting to grow on me. The items are so unique, there’s an almost zero chance you’ll find another one. And they’re incredibly cheap too. All you need is a lot of patience and time, and you’ll surely get awesome pieces too. I guess it’s a good thing I’m reaaally patient when it comes to shopping! Hahaha I can’t wait for my next ukay escapade!

So what do you think? Will you give ukay a shot or do you love it already? :) I think I do!

That’s it! :) Bonne nuit tout le monde!

Yesterday, I delivered a mini talk on work ethics during the JUANted general assembly.

Ralph was supposed to do it, but he had an exam. I dunno how I ended up being the one to deliver it. I am not really the best person to talk about this, because I know there are rules I fail to follow at times. But maybe that’s just it, because I’m still learning too. And because I learned most of what I know through experience.

I actually googled to prepare this presentation. It was a bit difficult because I think the kind of working environment in UP, and specifically in Eng’g is very unique.

At dahil maarte ako, and mostly because I need a blog post, here’s what I came up with using a bit of research and mostly personal experience. :)

The slide pretty much speaks for itself. I want to shed a little more light on the last two points though.

I think it’s very helpful when you work with people whose company you enjoy. It helps that you look forward to weekly meetings and do-days and whatever because you get the job done, and enjoy at the same time. Work becomes easier. Stress and pressure lighten somehow. Your project becomes even more successful because you do not only work together for a single goal, you do it willingly and wholeheartedly. :)

Avoid blame shifting - this is very important for me. When you screw up, you have to own that mistake. But at the same, when someone screws up, you can’t let them take the blame alone because everyone is to blame. Everyone could have done something to prevent that mistake, but didn’t. You are a team. Whatever mistake someone in your team makes is yours too. And so everyone should work together towards a solution.

Manage your time well because your time isn’t really your own when you work in a team. Your work affects other people’s work. Your timeline affects other people’s timelines. They affect the whole team and its efforts. Don’t be the person who ruins everything because you failed to manage your time well.

The world be a much better place if only everyone respected other people more. :) Respect your heads or bosses, no matter what their age, sex, religion, beliefs and whatever are. Also, respect the team or your head’s decision even if you don’t agree. When that decision turns out to be a wrong move, you don’t go around telling people, “I told them we shouldn’t, but did they listen?” You should go down with your ship and your captain. And still help save the boat if still possible. :)

Respect other people’s time. Don’t be late. Ahem. :) And never miss meetings or events for invalid or lame reasons. Other people are busy too. Hindi lang ikaw may acads. Hindi lang ikaw pagod. That’s why you should manage your time well. :)

Be honest enough, but not too much that you hurt other people’s feelings. Be constructive, not destructive.

Be transparent with your progress because again, your work affects other people’s work! If adjustments need to be made, you need to tell your colleagues. When you’re behind on your timeline, you need to be honest. When you fail to do something, you need to speak up.

CONFLICTS OR PROBLEMS. INTERNAL ISSUES. I think this might just be the hardest to live up to :) hahaha. You must always face personal issues and problems head on. Talk directly to your problem, not anyone else. Do not rant about or mention your issues — not even as a joke, or a side comment — with your head, your colleagues or your members to anyone else but the person concerned.  It is very unprofessional, not to mention a poor show of character on your part, to dish dirt on your teammate, however true it might be. It does nothing to help the team, the project, or the persons involved. 

Lastly, some basic do’s and don’ts. Restraint in times of stress prevents you from saying anything you’ll regret later on. Do your share of work and more. It’s always better to give more than what is expected from you. Extra effort is always appreciated and won’t go unnoticed. You might even be rewarded.

Don’t share confidential information. Just like with the honesty and integrity slide, internal things should stay internal. Period. No excuses.

Don’t disappear on your team. I made a typographical error on that one. I wrote “Don’t leave your team hanging,” first. haha. So there. You committed to the team. You committed to your position, and accepted the responsibilities that come with it. Panagutan mo. Even just one disappearing act and people won’t ever trust you with any type of work ever again.

Never, ever promise anything you can’t, and won’t deliver. Don’t give people a false sense of security and then take it away from them at the worst time. Don’t tell them not to worry when they should. Sasayangin mo lang oras nating lahat. Wag ka magpresenta kung di mo naman papanagutan.

It’s okay to panic — just don’t make it obvious. :) Know your task, and make sure you’ve accomplished it, bago ka mangialam sa ibang bagay. Actually this applies to the preparation as well. Do your job first before you meddle help other people.

And finally my last slide. Haha

TRUST. Trust your head, trust your colleagues, trust your members. And in return, do not betray the trust that the people who put you in your position gave you. :)

P.S.

There was something I forgot to mention because I forgot to put it on my slides. ALWAYS REPLY. to anything —text, email, FB message, IM, etc. Reply even if just to acknowledge that you received the message. And when you reply, make sure it’s not at the last possible minute. Nakakabastos kasi. Especially when it’s urgent. It’s especially annoying to get the “Ay, hindi pala ko makakapunta,” text at the exact , sometimes even already past the moment when you’re expecting them. 

If you think about it, these apply not only in a working environment. You can apply these anywhere, everyday with your friends, with your academics, strangers everything.

And if ever you’re stuck in an ethical dilemma, weigh your options. Think about what would be best for everyone involved. Just shut up, and think first. :)

There you go. I hope you learned at least a few things from this. :)