A quick look back at our archives revealed that, with the exception of last year, this time each year I have an obsession with umbrellas. It must be the rain. Ironically though, as much as I harp on about cute umbrellas all the time, and despite having a very cute tiny umbrella from Accessorize, I always end up reaching for my sturdy mauve colored foldable umbrella from Walgreens (or when I am at home, whatever I can get my hands on that doesn’t have a Mickey Mouse head on it). My cute Accessorize umbrella is just too delicate and cute for practical use. That is probably why I gave up writing about umbrellas last year.

Lately though, after viewing these gorgeously artsy polariods taken by my friend E with her red umbrella, I’m back to obsessing over umbrellas again. Don’t you just love them? The red umbrella just “pops” in every picture and makes the picture instantly more interesting. It is the perfect accessory to an otherwise dreary rainy day. I especially LOVE the first picture of the red umbrella against the marble (at least I think its marble) building. The brightness instantly draws attention to the person, who would otherwise be lost in the photo. An artist could not have better composed this picture. (And now I sound like I’m writing an art history paper….).
Since I am always on the pursuit of the perfect picture, these pictures got me back to thinking about umbrellas again. Maybe my previous theory about umbrellas and how we should all get cute small ones was a bit off. Instead, we should get BOLD ones. Like that red umbrella and this colorful stripey one (left) from Accessorize (though again, careful with issues of fragility. You know you’re not going to use it if you fear the wind will blow it inside out every other minute). Something bright and bold.

Another thing I am thinking about is long umbrellas. I’ve always been a practical foldable umbrella kind of girl. But somehow, somewhere, it got into my head that long umbrellas were cool. I have an image of myself walking down a quaint European street on a cloudy day swinging my long umbrella around on my arm looking cool and sophisticated. Naturally in my imagination, I have conveniently swept away the image of myself struggling with my all my things and finally spilling tea all over myself because one of my hand was too occupied holding an umbrella. I don’t know why I think long umbrellas are cool. Perhaps it is the long, thin and elongated quality of the long umbrella, which I hope will reflect upon me and make me look long, thin and elongated as well, by just carrying it around with me? Sorry, art history coming in again.

This black/white long umbrella (right) from Top Shop fits my image perfectly. The simple horizontal stripes and the contrasting black/white color creates a sharp and bold vision that will work just as well as the red umbrella in terms of eye-popping-ness. Plus, there is the added advantage of being black/white and so will literally match all your outfits! Wow, now I REALLY REALLY want this umbrella!
And then there is the long clear umbrellas. I think this idea was sparked by a movie I saw, where in this scene the camera just follows a girl around in a busy city, and she’s just holding this completely refreshing clear umbrella, while everyone else were holding black or some other equally somber looking umbrellas. I’ve been thinking about them ever since, especially this summer when I saw them selling in a local supermarket. Somehow though it just didn’t seem right- and you want to make sure that it is right, because a clear umbrella go wrong can just look cheap. I finally realized why the other day. It was the shape. It was just too bland and normal.

These bubble umbrellas (above) on the other hand, from UO, are just right. I love the deep shape and the simple stripe of color outlining it. The shape is just so … Mary Poppin-esque (I think). So cute! Plus, this will also match all your outfits! And if you still want a bold “pop,” the pink/red version is perfect.

Now I think the question is, do I really need another umbrella? And if/when I convince myself that I do need another one, which one??

Image Source: Top Shop, Accessorize and Urban Outfitters

For some odd reasons, no one seems to understand that my definition of ‘effortless’ is genuinely effortless and possibly lazy. I’ve decided that if I was going for the effortless look, I might as well actually put in little time, as opposed to spending lots of time to look effortless.

It’s weird because my high school friends, who know me well but don’t go to the same universtiy, can’t imagine me going to lectures in a boring tee, jeans and sneakers. But to myself and to people who I see at school, (and even my mum who visited me for only five days last term,) I probably look like I live in these two American Apparel shirts. Ever since I bought them last fall, I just can’t stop wearing them! All I ever do now is rotate between the two.

OK, so admittedly, I first bought the grey shirt because I was looking for a boring and easy-to-wear shirt for school, and after seeing Mary Kate in them and realising that the shirts were actually affordable, I thought that I simply must get them. This ‘look’ was exactly what I was looking for, something loose and comfortable, and something that would suit bootcut and straight-leg jeans. The poor friend who I dragged into the store (and she doesn’t like American Apparel because the clothes are just boring,) was not amused when I made her sit through my agonising over what colours and sizes to get. And after wearing the grey one for a few times, I was so in love with it that I went to get another one in Cranberry (colour), which looks great with pale skin.

Another thing I love about it is that the sleeves hang a lot below the armpit -kind of like batwing tops, so I can wear it for many times before they need to be washed, (whereas with normal tops, I have to wash them probably after wearing them two times.) A warning though: I don’t know if it’s because I wear the grey top more or they’re just not as good quality, but the grey, tri-blend top has already got little fuzzy bits on it, and it’s not like I’ve washed it often. Oddly enough, the cranberry one is still nice and soft. I know I shouldn’t, but I’m so tempted to get another one! Maybe one in a lighter colour, like this mauve one. So tempting…

Who else here only lives in a few shirts? Or do you prefer to really doll up everyday (like Marissa and Summer did in The OC)? I suspect most people are probably somewhere in between right?

Image Credits: http://www.americanapparel.net/