It’s not every year I get to turn 25 on March 25, so I forced myself to be un-lazy this year and celebrate my birthday with an orgy of food. The first hour of my 25th year was spent eating the red velvet cupcakes Anne made while we watched A Serbian Film upon my insistence (a decision I started to regret 30 minutes later). If you think you’re such a hotshot for being able to sit through a horror movie, you clearly haven’t seen A Serbian Film yet. The rest of the weekend was dedicated to less gruesome activities – a birthday lunch buffet at the Manila Hotel with my parents and boyfriend, followed by a small party with my friends at Lancaster Hotel. Below are the photos of my birthday outfits, which coincidentally happen to fulfill my sartorial resolution to wear more skirts.
Top: Betsey Johnson (remixed here)
Skirt: Museum Clothing
Peeptoes: Love Walks In (remixed here)
Hat: Accessorize
Necklace: The Ramp
Last year, I fell in love with a purple cloche hat at Accessorize in Robinson’s Ermita but couldn’t bring myself to pay P2,000 for it. Well I finally bought one at a very reasonable price, at the most unlikely of places. It turns out that there’s an Accessorize store at the Robinson’s mall in Dumaguete, and they were still getting rid of last season’s inventory. The cloche hat was the second to the last one available, and it was on sale for P600. Six hundred bucks! It was kind of a pain in the ass to lug the hat all over Negros, especially during the flight back to Manila, but some bulky things are worth buying when you travel.
On Saturday, I veered away from my usual romantic, vintage-inspired outfits to experiment with a more “grown-up” look. The Origami Skirt from Museum Clothing isn’t my usual style, especially since I wouldn’t pay over P1,000 for a skirt, but there was something about the pleated detail that compelled me to buy it. The moment I received it in the mail, I knew that I made a good investment; the construction is flawless, the fabric felt durable, and the fit is simply stunning. I was worried that the high waist would make me look fat and dumpy, but the thick waistband is actually quite slimming and the skirt is short enough to lengthen my legs a little. Museum is a seriously underrated online store (so underrated that I discovered it through a guy friend who’s engaged to the designer’s sister) and I highly recommend Tsina Clemente’s work over certain overpriced Multiply-based designers. Although the clothes aren’t bargains in the strictest sense, the quality of the design and construction is worth what I paid for and I can see myself wearing my skirts again and again. Oh, and did I mention that Museum Clothing accepts Paypal?
Dress (worn as top): SUPRÉ
Skirt: Museum Clothing
Pumps: Figlia
Necklaces: Anagon and eBay
A filled cupcake tower is a glorious sight to behold! (It is also the last thing I took a photo of before the room started spinning.) I am so lucky to have awesome friends who also happen to kick major ass in the kitchen. Thank you Anne for the delicious food (there were hardly any leftovers) and to Jomel for the gooey cupcakes (none survived past 2 am). You should seriously check out Jomel’s cakes at Chase Cakes, I kind of wish I thought of the Chanel bag first.
happy birthday lauren. i love your shoes and you looking oh sooo fine.
i wish you happiness, love and more more shoes.
Thanks! And yes, every year I wish for more shoes. :D
Belated happy birthday! You share the same birthday with my lola. :) I like both of your outfits, but I am lovin’ the skirt in the second outfit. :)
Ooh thanks! Belated happy birthday to your lola too. :D
Your first outfit is much, much love. <3 So chic and so in tune with Spring! <3 <3 <3 The second skirt is gorgeous but I personally think, on me, it'll emphasize my hips. Lol.
Thanks Domz! :D I do prefer the first outfit but the second one was a fun experiment that I’ll definitely do again. I’m seriously crazy about the skirt!
The second outfit is a winner! The printed top and the origami skirt are too cool! How I wish I were 25 again! Belated Happy Birthday!
Thanks Lana! :) Being 25 is confusing. I actually wish I could fast-forward and go straight to being 30!
Happy 25th! I love how you styled purples! very inspiring! and your origami skirt is awfully cute for words :)
It is! I’m so freaking glad I got it. :D
Belated happy birthday! I love how you styled the skirt with a colorful top, I don’t think I could pull that off because I’d think that a skirt like that is just too busy already. :)
Thanks! IMO there’s no such thing as a skirt that’s too busy. :D
Hi lauren beated happy birthday!i love reading your blog by the way!=D
Thanks! I’m glad you like reading my stuff. :)
*belated
Wow! we have the same birthday… only 5 years apart! :) Happy 25th Lauren! May you have many more wonderful bdays to come.
Haha, that’s so cool! Happy birthday to you too. :D
You got the cloche! Good job. It looks great on you.
I’m so glad I found it on sale! The original price tag was way too expensive.
Happy birthday, Lauren!
I love the gray skirt on you.
have a blast! :)
Thanks! :) I love how it looks too, I can’t wait to wear it again.
hi lauren! been lurking here for quite some time. just wanted to tell you that i love the way you put your outfits together…. they’re just right for your age. :) i wish i was as adventurous like you, style-wise, when i was your age (i’m turning 30 by the way).
belated happy birthday… here’s to perfect health, more love, happiness, and shoes to match your always fab outfits!
Aww thanks for the lovely greeting! :)
Happy Birthday Lauren! I love the cloche! Hats look marvelous on you!
Thank you! :D
I love the peeptoes! I have a weakness for ribbons and pink.
A girl can never have enough shoes. Or bags. Or makeup…
Much as I wanted to wear hats more often, I simply can’t do that these days because I spend most of my time in the hospital. Sigh.
A girl can never have enough shoes – true!! I can live with maybe one or two bags actually, but I find it hard to just stick to a few basic pairs of shoes. Maybe you can wear hats when you don’t have hospital duty? :)
Happy birthday, Lauren! I love the first outfit! Those shoes are divine. :)
Thanks Jean! Those are one of my favorite shoes. :D They’re not comfy at all though, so I don’t wear them too often.
I am currently trying to fight my cloche hat obsession because they make my hair look strangely Princess Peach-like, but this post has given me the extra shove to give them another go.
Wish me luck!
Go for it! Maybe some product can keep your hair under control when you wear a cloche. :)
I love love love that cloche hat, OMG. I wish i can find it still in any Accessorize outlet.
belated happy birthday Lauren! I like your outfits in this post! It’s so cute! I like the purple hat too! so stylish!