The little red dress // 05202012 (by Tracy Monsod)

While the LBD (little black dress) is a staple in every girl’s closet, I prefer to have a LRD instead, ‘cause that’s just how I roll.

Also, I obviously don’t follow trends and just go with how I normally dress. Not really much of a chameleon when it comes to dressing up. A lot of you know by now that red and black is my go-to (and favorite) combination when dressing up. There used to be underlying “emo” vibes when I donned the colors when I was younger, but now I think I’ve been able to inject a little more class into these red + black outfits.

Since I mentioned that wearing this dress by itself (paired with black tights) makes me feel like a ballerina, I figured to add a belt to break the monotony of the solid red and to make the outfit a little more “me”. Also to highlight my lack of womanly curves, as I am clearly very rectangular. Thankfully, the skirt portion of the dress flares out a bit, so I’m able to deceive people to a certain degree that I have hips, if only slightly.

I don’t post outfit photos a lot, but when I do, it’s usually to document the ones that I really like and intend to replicate in the future, ohohoho.

It’s on very few occasions that I actually buy clothing. Whenever I do, it’s usually if 1.) the piece has been something I’ve come across a while back and still love it after finding it again (at a lower price, most probably because it went on sale), 2.) it’s something I’ve convinced myself complements my character, and 3.) there’s nothing in my closet even remotely similar to it and would therefore be a good addition.

This burgundy dress was bought right before the store closed. I had little time to mull it over in my head if I really wanted it. It checked off all three above-mentioned “criteria”, so here I am with a new dress, partly thanks to Kiks who helped me pay for it. (:

This also came in black, which I had considered for a minute, but I figured I had enough black clothes in my closet to last me a lifetime (slight exaggeration there). While most girls consider the LBD (little black dress) a staple, I think I’ll fare just as well with this. After all, red has become my new black for the past few years, hoho!

I really needed more casual dresses in my closet. There are days when I just feel incredibly lazy to dress up, that I just want to throw on as few pieces as possible, and not fumble with buttons or zippers or sticking my legs through pants. This is the ultimate piece of clothing!

Another plus is that the possibilities are endless. I can see myself doing so many different things with this dress! So much potential, heeee.

You can tell how I giddy I am over this, and I obviously have very few dresses.

I feel like a ballerina in this thing.

And then the obligatory Hong Kong haul photo!

Striped gray & black long sleeved shirt (kids department), black ribbon clips, and black romper from H&M, white girly things from Cutie Little Fun, ever elusive red plaid skirt (FINALLY!) from Gothic Lolita & Punk, striped socks and extra long leggings from Uniqlo, big round Daria glasses from Gusto, Stitch clip, Mickey Mouse chopsticks, and Mickey Mouse spatula(!) from Disneyland.

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_{I was supposed to get a black & white striped long sleeved shirt from H&M, but I found this gray one in the kids department which was cheaper by around HK$40, woohoo!}

_{My cousin and I happened to notice this place called Cutie Little Fun, and found their stuff to actually be really, well, cute! While he looked for something for his girlfriend, I pulled out a couple of things to brighten up my closet a bit.}

_{I spent a really long time in Gothic Lolita & Punk, mostly because I couldn’t decide what to get! I was trying to think what would be more practical to get, since I wanted to buy something that I’m sure I’ll be able to wear a lot. I had a small budget, so I was set on getting just one thing. Since I’ve spent probably half of my life looking for a red plaid skirt, I decided to finally get myself one, hooha!}

_{Uniqlo was selling winter things already, so I stuck with the most practical thing to get, not to mention one of my favorite articles of clothing: socks!}

_{The glasses, I bought on a whim — my aunt asked me to buy some chocolate milk for my nephew one morning at 7-11, and I passed by this store called Gusto. I was looking at some really cute frames when I spotted these big round ones that reminded me of Daria. Instant buy! I’m planning on getting some real lenses done for these so I can wear them instead of my orange ones on occasion. I’m not really a fan of wearing contacts with fake glasses — it just feels really redundant to me, given that I really do need glasses/contacts to see clearly.}

_{The chopsticks are to add to my growing collection! I’ve had a few from when I used to tie my hair up in buns with chopsticks, then my friends started giving me more as presents since I was pretty much known as the weirdo with antennas back when I was a college freshman. I have round 5 pairs already, plus 4 singles! The Mickeys are a nice touch. :D As for that spatula? I’m pretty sure it’s a weird thing to buy as a souvenir, but I’ve always had this dream kitchen…yeah. Anyway, that, plus it’s just really cute. (:}

I hardly ever post on LookBook. I find myself a little bit paradoxical when I post things on there, mostly because a lot of what I post are like this. An entire website dedicated to fashion and style, and I put up photos of myself wearing probably the most basic outfit one could ever put together (I was this close to putting on my Chucks, but rainy weather immediately makes me put on my Docs).

I suppose that my style is (mostly) based on the principle of comfort over fashionable, I guess. Sure, I like to buy pretty shoes and rad clothes, but I often use them to throw together something like this. I often pair any top with my denim shorts, throw on some tights if I don’t feel like wearing socks, and pull on a pair of boots. If the weather’s cold, I put on jeans instead and wear my sneakers. Skirts and dresses are usually saved for slightly dressier occasions, hahaha.

Hi, internet.

Kiks came home from Cagayan de Oro today! His uncle and aunt had him take this home to give to me, I love it! (:

I really love the details on my pants. Kiks’s mom gave this to me as a souvenir from…well, some place (Davao I think? Forgot like anything). It’s actually made of patches of different kinds of cloth, mostly brown and slightly coarse though still very comfortable. Totally love these sewn-on details! Besides these wooden ones that look like flowers, there are some cut to look like stars and elephants! Cutest. There are also some shells sewn on. I use these as pajama pants mostly, though I wear them out from time to time. XD