Belt as Headband

Here's what I made of the flowing cardigan that I purchased at Queen Victoria Market.



Worn with black turtleneck long sleeves and black skinny pants. The cardigan came with a belt of the same fabric and color which I tied around my head for a clean look :) What do you think?

Queen Victoria Market - Shopping, Food,and Souvenirs

A trip to Melbourne is not complete without visiting Queen Victoria (QV) Market. The extensive 17 hectare- market houses dry goods aside from the usual groceries like fish, bread, vegetables, fruits, and meat. The dry goods area is like a tiangge or flea market with lots of clothes, UGG boots, souvenirs, hats and caps, and so much more.




Clothes such as blouses, coats, and dresses go for as low as AUD 10.00 to AUD 100.00. Most of the items I saw were made from China but there are boutiques that sell Australian made garments for higher prices.

What's nice to buy in QV Market are coats, cardigans and jackets since the inventory moves fast especially this winter season. More styles are available to choose from.


I bought this wrap around cardigan/jacket for only AUD 35.00


UGG boots in many colors, shapes, and sizes

Tourists here search for the popular UGG boots. These boots are ultra comfortable with replaceable soles and soft sheep wool inside. UGG boots costs from AUD 25.00 to AUD 125.99



Aside from clothing and shoes, the market is the best place to buy your souvenirs from. Choose from key chains, pouches, bags, caps, boomerangs, mugs, and t-shirts. Most souvenir items go for 3 for AUD 100. Compared to department stores or mall prices, these are a lot cheaper.


And here is the historical doughnut van, it's been around for half a century now. They sell American Doughnuts but see how it looks different:



These doughnuts have jam filling inside. They are called Jam Donuts. 6 pieces for AUD 5.

Hair Piece/Brooch + Necklace

Because it's still sunny but freezing rainy cold in Melbourne, I can't get to the shopping malls and move around the city.

Look at how the hairpiece turned into a rose brooch which I attached to my string of pearls.


Try it too! Recession calls for a dash of creativity :)

Victorian Dress

Hello Gorgeous Wool Dress, gloves from Greenhills Shopping Center, HK boots, black skinny slacks, and Louis Vuitton speedy

Wore a Victorian inspired dress as an overcoat today. What a suitable outfit for a day trip to the museum. Now I feel like a part of history!

Royal Exhibition Building just in front of Melbourne Museum

Ukay Ukay in Australia? Oh Yes!

My sister Joni who's been living here forever in Melbourne, shared to me a little secret that will make a big difference on my trip. Ukay Ukays or thrift shops! Yes there are ukay ukays in Australia, particularly in Melbourne. They call it "recycled clothing". Here, you can find clothes for all occasions in Australian fashion. What a great little secret.



The shops have secondhand and even new designer clothes, shoes, toys, bags and even those lovely lady hats that are worn during the Melbourne Cup. Clothes including coats and shoes sell for less than AUD 10 or around Php 250.

Here is my haul for today:


A super sized loose butterfly cut blouse and a black coat


Boots for only AUD 9.00 or around Php 300

The recycled clothing store we went to helps charity, so all the shopping here is for a good cause. Allelujah. One has to be patient though as there are so many racks and piles of clothes to choose from, just like the usual ukays in Manila.

Day and Night in Melbourne

Traveling means a limited amount of clothes. Hence, a creative transition from day to night of a single outfit.



Day: Dress with a 3/4 undershirt, knee high socks with gladiator sandals and a Le Pliage Longchamp that's best for shopping.



Night: Same dress with a faux fur from Velvet (available at SM department stores), gloves, and boots. I'm using the usual Nine West Element bag here.

Did you know that there's an Ukay Ukay in Melbourne? will post about this later :D

Mid Season Sale in Melbourne - Myer

Our timing is just right! It's the middle of Summer and Autumn here in Melbourne and the great shopping mall called Myer is having a mid-season sale.

Last time I went here, Myer was so quiet with only a few people but not today. I guess people here love sales too, everybody does.



In Myer, there are plenty of stylish clothes and looking at the display windows with styled mannequins will give one an idea what's hot in fashion right now. What caught my attention are these wicked shoes.


Strappy booties and beside it, a sneak of studded wicked heals!


Boots, boots, boots

And lovely hats! This is made of rattan, I believe and costs very expensive. I wonder if one can find something like this in the Philippines. What's great about these hats are the style and modern architecture.



At Melbourne Central, I bought this hair piece for AUD 14.00 - my first purchase for this trip.

Boots and Gloves at 12'C

I've landed safe and sound, thank God. As promised, here's my best try to look nice after an 8-hour sleepless flight.

The slouchy tattered looking cardigan from HK is really awesome, I don't know what to do without it. I also bought these wrinkled boots in Mongkok. Now these pieces are in Melbourne and they fit just right for the weather.

Meanwhile, the best dessert so far from Philippine Airlines:

Blueberry Cheesecake in a Cup by Goldilocks. It's so good I checked if my mom and sister finished theirs so I can clean it up *__*

Boarding Bag for a Traveling Fashionista

Hi readers! :) I've just finished packing "light" and I'll be in another continent soon. I'll update StyleandRelax as soon as I land. In the meantime, don't you find packing a challenging chore?

Traveling is one of life's best moment, Kodak moment perhaps. Clothes, accessories, and shoes make travel more fun and comfortable. A girl could only wish that her closet can come aboard and fly too. Originally, I was bringing 3 bags full of clothes but my mother frowned at them and pulled out this vintage Samsonite bag:


Samsonite Odyssey Boarding Bag

At first, it seems like a laptop bag but like a Transformer, it became a super spacious and big boarding bag. Lesson: don't judge a folded bag especially when it's made of real soft flexible expandable leather.

Since it's vintage but fresh out of the box (ironic), the bag had whitish dust/mold something. And my mom saves it again by bringing out her coach leather bag cleaner and moisturizer.



If you have an old leather bag and want to restore it to its sparkling new state, then these two bottles are your bestfriends. All you need is a clean cloth to wipe the cleaner first, then the moisturizer which makes the leather soft to the touch and shiny.

2 bags full of clothes fit into this Samsonite boarding bag like magic, although my mom is still frowning at the quantity of my clothes.

Stick around for more updates as Style and Relax traverses the world! Bonnets, gloves, scarves, knee high socks, and boots are coming your way :) Adieu ~

Fashion and Beauty Bloggers Pizza & Tea Party!

First off, I would like to thank Greenwich for providing this extreme cheese pizza and tea party for StyleandRelax.net, then our friends at Tough Jeans, Ipanema, and Stratworks for sponsoring all the fabulous prizes. I couldn't have done it without you guys :) And also, QTV and Andi Manzano for covering our parteeh.




We only had one mission and that is for fashion and beauty bloggers to meet casually, most of us met each other for the first time. What better way to start off a conversation but with hefty slices of pizzas in different flavors right?



In between bites, I invented games like the share your Toughest Fashion and Beauty story. The best story wins a pair of Tough Jeans! Inon was the first to spill his story about getting nervous asking celebs and models for a pose but fashion bloggers were beaten by a beauty blogger - Earthwho said her toughest fashion experience is everytime she buys a pair of shoes since her feet are real small. I had Andi Manzano of Qtube judge the contest and she related most with Earth's Tough story.



Then we were all served our lasagna, the best lasagna ever from Greenwich just before I drew winners for the Ipanema raffle draw. Male fashion bloggers won this time - Dhon and Khaz went home with 2,000 worth of GCs each from Ipanema.



Their winnings were worth celebrating with our common favorite - Ganache served with English Breakfast Tea. While all of us were munching talking about international and big time fashion bloggers, Ana gave Rochelle a makeover. Both of them won kikay goodies from our friends at Stratworks.



And our day won't be complete without a fashion pose, yes? So we left our inhibitions at the table and strutted our stuff in front of the camera. The best pose won a gift bag and it's Edelweiss of budgetshoppinggalore :D Her hair flip was the best.




We all had a blast and time went really fast. It was a pleasure meeting and gathering Filipino fashion and beauty bloggers. With all the activities, contests, and TV shoot - we went home exhausted but this experience is a memorable one. Now all we have to do is wait for our wacky scenes on TV! x.x