Taya Starling

When I first moved to Singapore shortly after graduating from Loyola Marymount University, I had never been there for more than 3 days.  I jumped into a new life after only ever visiting and honestly had no idea what to expect.  At first glance Singapore is all clean streets and shopping malls. On second glance Singapore is clean streets, shopping malls, & awesome museums.  After enough surface level exploration, I was able to dig deeper into Singapore and her hidden corners.

Singapore it turns out has plenty to offer- especially if you’re a foodie or FatGirlAtHeart.  Since moving away from Singapore over 3 years ago, I only really get to return once or twice a year- and you better believe I try my best to make up for lost time when I do!  My return trips are usually pretty packed with work though and this past trip was no exception.  Utt & I flew in on October 11th and went from the airport straight to the Marina Bay Sands Hotel (one of my top 3 favorites in Singapore!) to check in and get ready for that night’s event; We had 10 full days of Fashion Week 2013 (FW2013) presented by the Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands & organized by FIDE Fashion Weeks ahead of us with designers from all over the world coming in to Singapore to present their latest collections.

  Utt & I started night one in ISSUE, a Thai brand known for their fun use of color.  See the green iridescent color on Utt’s sleeves and the front of my dress? Utt’s sleeves are decorated with beetle wings which are also mixed in with feathers on my dress- and YES! that’s the natural color of the beetles and feathers.

 Night one for us was actually night 3 of FW2013 and took place in the Crystal Ballroom.  The night started with a fun and vibrant presentation by MCM (who just that night opened their first flagship store in Singapore at the Marina Bay Sands Hotel)- check out those awesome florals on leather! I was swooning…

And of course I can’t thank my MAC Singapore family enough for prettying me up for night one.

My next 2 days were a blur of fashion, shopping, and food… Where to start? How about at PRADA where I got to try on a few gorgeous pieces to borrow for the upcoming Asian Couture Federation Gala Dinner.   Talk about Heaven… Trying on all those outfits made me pretty hungry so we walked up to Jones the Grocer on the 4th floor of the Mandarin Gallery- if you haven’t been, you NEED to go! Yummy simple foods plus a little gourmet grocery shop for some take home goodies too.  We split a salad, sandwich, fries, and soup plus they have my favorite ginger ale: Fresh Ginger ale by Bruce Cost. 

After we refueled up we hit the shops for a little retail therapy (consolation really for not buying anything at PRADA ha) – the Mandarin Gallery has some of my favorite shops on top of a few of my favorite eateries (i.e. Jones the Grocer, Ippudo, & Wild Honey) from M.A.D. to WoodWould to the aptly named shop, What Women Want, where i fell in love with all kinds of sparkly things like these fun headbands. 

After any shopping comes more food food food… here are a couple of snacks I indulged in those first few days… The following can all be found in Takashimaya on the ground floor near the supermarket:    First up to beat the heat, Pat & Stick’s homemade ice cream with popsicles and ice cream sandwiches- oh so yummy, try the Strawberry chocolate chip or the espresso lace sandwich   Named after the German confectioner who introduced the oh so delectable baumkuchen cakes to Japan, this brand has a little stall where the cakes are handmade fresh before your very eyes. I always wondered how these cakes were made and definitely stood there enthralled for a good amount of time before purchasing some- i suggest you do the same.  Each cake is made in a rotating almost rotisserie looking oven where the baker spoons new scoops of batter over the already existing baked layer making it bigger and bigger. Is it too much to want one of those crazy ovens in my own kitchen?  Another little treat stand i love is Mini One where mini Japanese pastries are freshly baked- the strawberry white chocolate mochi bites are my favorite along with their mini croissants, but another hit are the green tea adzuki bean mochi bites as seen in the making above.  Perfectly chewy little bites with just enough sweetness- mmhmmm oh so good when they’re fresh and warm.  The other two places I snagged treats from (and didn’t bother photographing because I was too busy salivating) were Garrett’s, who recently set up several locations all over Singapore, and the much lusted after Laduree (which is also located in Takashimaya Mall). Have I mentioned how much I love the Marina Bay Sands Hotel? The infinity pool on the roof is stunning whether day or night.  That amazing view of Singapore can’t be beat.

The next day Utt & I were back at it again with FW2013, but this night had something special in store- the Inaugural Annual Asian Couture Federation Meeting and Gala Dinner.

Utt, the very talented TV Personality Ms. Jeannie Mai, & I getting our make up and hair down pre-show

Absolutely loved the clean romantic look my make up artist and I came up with to match my PRADA dress for the night- look at that winged eyeliner! UGH. I wish I could do that on my own.

Anyway, back to the important work related stuff…

Coming from a creative arts background that can be extremely competitive I believe having some sort of peer support is so important to the future of any industry whether film, art, design, or fashion.  For designers in Europe or America, there are multiple organizations that have been created to aid fellow designers- the CFDA, the camera nazionale della mods italians, the BFC, la federation francaise de la couture, du pret-a-porter des couturiers et des createurs de mode… Here in Asia, we have a few organizations but we’ve never had one unifying federation- until now.

Enter the Asian Couture Federation.  The ACF is headed by legendary Kenzo Takada (Honorary President), Dr. Frank Cintamani (Founding President), & Emily Wang and is comprised of the following members:

Governors

• Ms. Kim Sung Joo
• Mr. Kenny Kim
• Mr. Song Zio
• Ms. Towako Kimijima
• Dr. Satoshi Onuma
• Ms. Yuki Sakaguchi
• Mr. Daniel Boey
• Dr. Georgia Lee
• Mr. Tinakorn Asvarak
• Mr. Kullawit Laosuksri
• Mr. Cerrut Taveechaiwattana

Designers

• Sebastian Gunawan
• Frederick Lee
• Yumi Katsura
• Lie Sang Bong
• Vatit Itthi
• Michael Cinco
• Yoshiki Hishinuma
• Keita Maruyama
• Guo Pei
• Junko Koshino

These magnificent people are from all over Asia and are highly regarded as some of the tops in their industry.  It was truly an honor to not just be in their presence but to also introduce each member to the press on this momentous occasion.  Asian Couture is truly a pinnacle of fashion rivaling the very best in the world.  The ACF is a breakthrough in unifying the incredible talents that can be found all over Asia and I look forward to seeing their growth and development as they continue to give back to the fashion industry and provide a platform to promote and support Asian designers.

 Utt & I with esteemed members of the ACF: Satoshi Onuma, Daniel Boey, & Frederick Lee

The ACF Inaugural Gala Dinner took place in the beautiful crystal ballroom again (ps. each chandelier hanging from the rafters is a unique Swarovski crystal chandelier that I spent hours contemplating how to steal to take home… they were STUNNING) with an amazing dinner thanks to Master Chef Hide Yamamoto and a series of inspirational speeches by several distinguished guests including ACF founding President and Chairman of FIDE Fashion Weeks, Dr. Frank Cintamani

Guests were also privy to a breathtaking show by Miyoko Shida who wowed everyone with her delicate balancing act revolving around a single white feather- video to come!

During dessert (which was adorable by the way! Creamy vanilla bean ice cream under strawberry shaved ice topped with pop rocks, yum!)

But I digress, during dessert guests were privileged  to a presentation by the amazing Stephane Rolland who is a full member of the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture.  What I loved most about his passionate presentation wasn’t just the gorgeous gowns strutting the ballroom floor, but the incredibly powerful performance on the center stage by Raphael Amargo who poured his heart into an improv flamenco dance to underscore the parade of Haute Couture going by.  Truly stunning.

Such a powerful night with so many noteworthy moments- personally one of my favorites was meeting Japanese legendary designer Yumi Katsura who at the ripe young age of 85 is still churning out season after season of extravagant couture.

And of course meeting the man behind that’s night presentation, Mr. Stephane Rolland himself.

I was also so thrilled to have found myself in the middle of all these amazing Thai creatives whose positions range from event organizer extraordinaire to Vogue Thailand editor to Thai couture designers- so many amazing men in one place with yours truly in the middle (I was secretly starstruck shhhh)

It was also a privilege to meet one of my new favorite Asian designers, Michael Cinco from the Philippines- I can’t wait to share my post on him with you all! *Stay tuned for posts on each designer who presented at FW2013!

And my night winded down oh so wonderfully with the arrival of a few good friends from Bangkok- the always beautiful Sarah Ball and Barbara Woosley (:

Oh and did I mention I got to temporarily snag this killer diamond ring?? Not mine (yet! haha) but hey diamonds are a girl’s best friend right? Let’s just say after wearing something that big and sparkly and beautiful and REAL, I’m happy to “settle” for something smaller haha… no, but really though.

The next morning the girls and I hit the pool to make sure we enjoyed every drop of sunshine since it had been scarce since my arrival in Singapore.  And besides, what better place to enjoy the sunshine than the roof of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel??

Seriously though.  If I ever move back to Singapore I’m asking Mr. George Tanasijevich how much rent is. I  mean just check out the view from this private jacuzzi…

  Not to mention the view from the other side of the deck

Well that about wraps up week one in Singapore- stay tuned for my recap in part two with plenty more food, fashion, food, fashion, and a little naughty action backstage (;