Having only a few more years to live before we turn into full-fledged lawyers and our wardrobes infected by a disease that limits vision to a monochrome palette (at least wigs are no longer in vogue), we law students put on our best each time we step onto our charming Bukit Timah Campus. Certainly, a splash of colour or an interesting pattern go a long way in keeping those winks below forty during lectures. Nothing inspires more than sitting in tutorial across a classmate in a dress (or shirt) with just the right fit.
But everyone has their off days – your hair refuses to get in place, you decide to head to school in shorts and slippers hung over from a whole night/morning of preparing for your favourite tutor’s tutorial, and just as you leave the house, it starts to pour and you wish you could wear those rugged boots that keep your feet nice and dry.
We speak to a few inspired individuals who never seem to take a day off in the style department and teased out some tips.
Jaime Lye, Law 1
Vest from Frontier ($20), Tank top from Dorothy Perkins ($19), Pants and Belt from Zara ($40), Marc Fisher Shoes from Macy’s (less than $50).
How long do you take to get ready before coming to school?
If I don’t decide the night before what I want to wear then its about 1 hour.
If not, then it’s about 45 minutes.
Where do you get your fashion inspiration from?
I used to read a lot of magazines but now I frequent fashion blogs like seaofshoes and thestylerookie. Bloggers Tavi and Jane are really inspirational. I’m also a style.com whore – I will look at the collections from the fashion shows and save those that I really like.
What goes into choosing an outfit?
Intuition, I guess! And bit of creativity. Sometimes I get so sick of my clothes since I think I’ve worn all of them already, but there are some days I manage to find combinations of my clothes that will make them look like I’ve never worn them before.
Where do you usually shop? Any recommendations?
I actually haven’t shopped in A REALLY LONG TIME but I like The Editor’s Market, which is at Cineleisure (top floor). They have really cool clothes and you get them at cheaper prices if you buy more pieces! So you can actually combine with your friends or even random strangers just to get the discounts.
I love flea markets because the clothes there are usually more interesting and they look less mainstream, and moreover they are really cheap! (even though some are second hand). But I do shop at the usual retail outlets also too, like forever21, Topshop, Zara, River Island. I love H&M when I’m in Hong Kong!! I haven’t got the time to go to the Singapore one yet.
Do you use any skin care/cosmetic products? Which is your favorite?
I use Clarins for facial wash. It’s pretty good I guess. Their eye makeup remover is amazing! For makeup products, I use MAC, Urban Decay, Benefit and Toofaced.
My favourite blusher is one I’m using from the MAC Venomous Villians collection. Urban Decay is good for their primers; I swear by their eyeshadow primer, its really damn good. Benefit products are always so well packaged, my favourite is their Perfect 10 bronzer and concealer. For girls who want long lashes, use the Shu Umemura eyelash curler, it really works wonders.
How many pairs of shoes do you own?
Omg I can’t believe this question made me go to my shoe cupboard to count shoes. I own 22 pairs, excluding slippers and sport shoes.
Do you wear the same outfit twice?
I really try hard not to!! But I definitely have. No one has THAT many clothes to afford not to repeat their outfits. But so far in law school, I can safely say that I have not.
How do you dress so well even with netball trainings after school?
Usually if I have trainings, I tend to dress bit more slack because I feel lazy.But I guess I have fun dressing up, so I will make the effort to dress well even with trainings after school.
Dress or two piece?
Depends on occasion! Dress for formal occasion, two piece for everything else.
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Wesley Chan, Law 1
Light-blue, checkered Shirt from J. Crew ($30), Blue Pullover from Uniqlo ($50), IWC Pilot Watch (borrowed from Dad), Black-leather Doctor Bag from Goldlion (was a gift), Khaki Trousers from H&M Shanghai ($30) and Denim Shoes from H&M Hongkong ($80).
How long do you take to get ready before coming to school?
I usually wake up later than expected, because of the subconscious snooze syndrome, so roughly 15-20 minutes everyday, including a shower.
What goes into choosing an outfit?
1. Comfort
2. Plain/simple – not flamboyant or anything like that
3. Easy to iron
Where do you get your fashion inspiration from?
My older sister. She’s always really critical of what I’m wearing. Oh, and Mark Ronson; that man’s damn sharp.
Why did you pick these shoes?
I thought the texture was unusual. Plus, I didn’t think that H&M would come to Singapore for some time, so it was an impulse buy. It only grew on me after awhile though.
How do you keep your hair in place throughout the day? What’s the secret?
The secret is in how damp the hair is before application of the wax. It can’t be too wet (it won’t stay) or too dry (then it won’t stand). It must hit a sweet spot.
Checkered or striped?
Plaid.
What do you usually have in your bag?
Laptop, umbrella, small mac, highlighters, sunglasses, wax, and a pullover.
If you could be one other person, who would it be?
It’d be a tough choice between Jason Statham and Goh Yihan.
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Amanda Lee, Law 1
Black top from Cotton On ($20), skirt from Cotton On ($25), shoes from “some shop in Parkway” ($50), bag from Israel ($30 USD), earrings from Accessorize ($10).
How long do you take to get ready before coming to school?
About 10 minutes? I try to decide what to wear the night before so I won’t be like staring blankly at my clothes the next morning.
Where do you get your fashion inspiration from?
Magazines, tumblr. And I like to walk around the shops mentally mixing and matching items from the racks to make outfits heh!
Where do you usually shop? Any recommendations?
Mostly forever 21 now that I think about it! And new look for shoes. But I like to stare at the things in the shops in cineleisure, does that count?
If you could be one other person, who would it be?
This is a really shallow answer… But I’m gonna go with Miranda Kerr! Haha!
How many pairs of shoes do you own?
Um I don’t know! Less than 10 I think!
Why did you choose this bag? What do you usually have in your bag?
I’m trying to carry smaller bags to limit the number of things I carry around. Wallet, makeup stuff, hairclips. Oh and a copy of McBride (duh).
Share some tips on how to dress taller.
Haha wear heels?! And it really depends on your own body I guess! Like I’ve a long body and short legs so I try to wear long skirts, high-waisted stuff to make my legs look longer, haha I don’t know if that actually works though. Why don’t you guys share some tips on how to grow taller!
Have you worn the same outfit twice?
Of course! More than twice please! But I try not to repeat outfits in front of the same people so that I can appear as if I have a lot of clothes!
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Isaac Chua, Law 2
T-shirt from Threadless ($15), slippers from Royal Sporting House ($30), Bermuda shorts source and price unknown, van from dad and paid with love.
Sandals or slippers?
Slippers. If you want to look bo chup, go all the way. Don’t be a wuss about it.
What is your ultimate accessory?
I believe that a pretty/handsome face is the best fashion accessory. So I guess for me, the best fashion accessory must be my… van!
Why is your car yellow?
I sometimes ask myself that question as well. I guess it’s because my parents wanted to get a van so ugly, no one in the right mind would want to steal it. I love my van though.
Does your car help you get chicks?
Tonnes! As you can tell, my rugged van is truly a babe magnet. Nothing girly about it (even though it was actually bought for my sister)
What is with the couch, blanket and Mr Clumsy at the back?
The couch is for me to lie in when I get kicked out of home. I use the blanket to wrap myself because it can get cold in the van at night and I talk to Mr Clumsy when I feel alone.
How long do you take to get ready before coming to school?
I go through my daily routine of cleansing my face with my facial scrub, applying BB cream and curling my eyelashes. So I usually take around 45 minutes.
How would you describe your style?
Bo Chup (yes! contrary to popular belief, it is a planned look just like the out of bed hairstyle)
What’s your favorite perfume? Do you use any?
I don’t really use perfumes as I find that i smell really good all the time. However, I have used Silvershadow by Davidoff before. It was really good. I liked it.
Where do you get your fashion inspiration from?
The most fashionable guy in school – Kenneth Kong
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So there you have it! Law Annual’s inaugural style check on the fashionable and stylish in school, featuring 4 sartorial statements (or misstatement perhaps?) to draw inspiration from. But do you feel unjustified that YOU haven’t been featured? Did you flagrantly object to any of our featured individuals? Were we negligent in failing to maintain a high standard of care? Can you effortlessly carry your copy of Big Mc, laptop and teh ping and still look gorgeous? If you answered yes to any of these questions then stay tuned because one day, you might be spotted by our spontaneous reporters as you’re doing that thing you do.
Interviews were carried out via email and answers with edited for brevity and coherence.
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Article contributed by: Adriel Chioh (Law 1) and Desmond Chng (Law 1)
Photography by: Clarence Tan (Law 1)