The Da Vinci Code

As one of the few non-chick lit books I love, naturally I was very excited about the movie. So as soon as it came out, I immediately went to watch it. Contrary to movie critics, as a ordinary movie go-er, I thought the movie was good and definitely doesn't deserve the average C+ rating it has on yahoo movies.

The movie was exciting and intriguing, full of suspense and mystery (even though I already knew what happens)- just like the book. It didn't feel like we'd been sitting there for over 2 hours at all! My most memorable scene was when they were at Sir Teabing's place and just when they were absorbing Sir Teabing's revelations, Silas suddenly pops out from nowhere. My friend and I literally jumped out of our seats! There were funny bits too. The questions Sir Teabing asked them before allowing them entrance was hilarious. Although I understand how the movie might be slightly confusing for people who hasn't read the book. My friend who hasn't read the book yet had that problem and I had to very quietly provide short explanations. But in the end she thought it was a pretty good movie too.

Fashion wise, even though Sophie wore the same thing for the whole movie, I thought her dress shirt under a black cardigan thing was very cute. And kudos to her, for solving the mystery of the holy grail while running away from the French police, in pointy black heels.

Overall I really liked the movie, although its not exactly something so amazing that one would want to watch again in the cinema. I think it deserved at least a B rating.

The OC Season 3 Finale

Like yesterday's ANTM post, don't continue to read if you haven't watched or don't want to know about The OC's Season 3 Finale.

Three years ago, I first noticed the ads of The OC in a San Francisco mall. Usually, I wouldn’t have noticed such ads, but the blonde girl (Mischa Barton) in the ad was so stunning I couldn’t help notice the similar ad next to it (of Benjamin McKenzie.) The next thing I know, the teens of the US (and the world) were obsessed with Marissa and the lavish world of OC.

Not like Marissa dying was such a huge secret –Mischa Barton already confirmed the rumours on Wednesday’s Assess Hollywood with the statement, “It’s true, it’s true. My character dies.” She also adds:

“I think the show is moving in a new direction. This was a great opportunity for everyone. I was just really excited about giving everybody a good finale. You know, they needed a big season finale at the end of this year and we've had three great years and my character has been through so, so much and there's really nothing more left for her to do. So I hope this fulfills everything that the fans want and everything that the people wanted for our characters."

What Misha said has a point. Marissa has been through a lot of crazy and somewhat dumb relationships and plotlines:

First there was Luke, the preppy jock turned gay dude.

Then there was the mega psycho, Oliver.

Then there was Marissa’s lesbian phase with Alex.

And if you thought Marissa has learnt her lesson not to mix with obsessive guys (Oliver,) she manages to get semi-involved with crazy, emotional surfer Johnny.

Lastly, there was the totally messed up loser, Volchok, who ends up killing Marissa.

And of course, the only relationship that made sense, Marissa and Ryan. I thought they were such a great couple and still think it was unconvincing when they decided to break up sometime in the middle of Season 3.

I think the saddest thing is that there will no longer be the Core Four. Poor Summer -what is she going to do without her best friend?

Still, I can’t believe they just killed Marissa off. I know Mischa wanted out, but couldn’t they just have let Marissa sail around the world with her dad next season?

Next season, Kaitlin will supposedly rule Harbor. I don’t get why the producers want to hang onto high school instead of letting the young cast move onto college, but Kaitlin should be interesting.

To me, the fashion in The OC was always more fabulous than the plot. So my only question is, who is going ot replace Mischa as the model of cool, trendy fashion on TV? I miss Coop already!

America's Next Top Model: Spoiler!

Yes, the finale of America's Next Top Model Cycle 6 just aired yesterday and I am about to embark on what I thought of the results. So don't scroll down any further if you don't want to know!

Ok, so don't say I didn't warn you! The results of this cycle were not quite as controversial as the last cycle's: the top two were well deserved. They both took great pictures and are generally pretty professional and model like.

However, I must admit as to being just a little bit surprised that Danielle-the girl with the gap- won. To begin with, I am not a big fan of her gap, even though its slightly closed now. Signature or not, it is just not very attractive. Most importantly though, I can't stand her accent. It is not very eloquent and hard to understand! Otherwise Danielle makes a pretty good ANTM. She twisted her ankle and got dehydrated, yet she still turned up and delivered great photos. I especially love this one of her on the elephant. It just seems to come so naturally to her! Her covergirl photo was also amazing (even though her commercial wasn't too great) and her final catwalk was awesome- it was confident and powerful. I hope she really does hire people to help her with her speech, then she'd be perfect.

Joanie, on the other hand, had more of the complete package. She takes gorgeous photos (especially this one on the elephant), she can speak, her teeth are straight and I feel that she has really come a long way in this competition. She really didn't have much of a presence at the beginning, appearing shy and unconfident in the judging room even though she did take consistently good photos. But towards the end, she really was starting to look like a model (although she ultimately did not have quite as big a presence as Danielle). In the end, I think she lost because of her runway walk. She looked like she was just casually strolling through the mall. Plus she was always looking DOWN- both on and off the runway. She definitely needs to work on her presence a bit more.

And then there was Jade. I don't even know where to begin. She is obnoxious and says the most absurd things to sound intellectual except they're all wrong. I really don't think elephants are in the dinosaur family. She says she's humble and all but then she just goes and acts differently. Plus her covergirl photoshoot was awful. She looked really creepy.

Overall this was an uneventful season. Sara's copying was not cool. I didn't know what she was doing there and I wish she'd stop yapping about being discovered in a mall. Gina was a shame to the asian race. Brooke should never have gotten as far as she did. Nnenna needs to dump her bf. And the rest didn't make that much of an impression on me to remember.

Oh and the dentist on the show is to be commended. I don't know how he managed to straighten Joanie's teeth and close Danielle's gap in just a few days, but the results were amazing! People should just apply to ANTM for the fabulous haircut and dentistry. ;)

Types of Skirts

After reading the comments from some readers in Barneys Girl's Bubble Skirt post, I realised that some people were confused about skirt types. Since dresses and skirts are oh-so-fashionable this season, we, the fashion-literate should know the skirt types:

The Tulip -Recognise the upside-down tulip shape. This is a hard to wear shape. Only wear if you're somewhat tall or skinny.

The Bubble -Puffy with a hem about the same width as the waistband. Cute but only if you're as thin as a mannequin.

The Mini -No explnation needed since we all must have one in our closet somewhere. Can be cute and fun, but if worn 'wrong' (such as matched with a trashy top,) then you'll look slutty.

The Pencil -High waist, hugs hips and goes below the knees. Only wear this if you're tall! Oh, and for the chic look, match the Pencil with this season's huge 'it' belts.

The A-line -The name says it all. My favourite type of skirt and a staple in my closet because it's just so flattering and girly.

A final tip: All skirt types (maybe except for pencil skirts) should be worn above the knees this season. Put on a pair of pumps or flats and you're all to go!

SS06 Fashion Trend: Empire Waist Tops

Even though I know and write about all these SS06 trends, let's face it, I'm a student and really don't have the time nor money to actually wear these trends everyday. Thanks to Fendi, one of the trends this season is wearing belts over your top/ jacket: But honestly, it's so hard to wear belts without it crinkling your top, and who really has time to put on a belt when you need to be in class in five minutes? So the way to do this trend is to wear casual emprire waist tops. They're easy to wear and most importantly, flattering to most body types.

I bought this Marc by Marc Jacob top a month ago and having been loving it since then. It's so pretty and terrific for livening up an outfit. I usually wear a yellowy beige blazer over it and match with black pants.

Another very similar top by Marc by Marc Jacob (except it's sleeveless.) Marc really knows how to use details and what girls love.

By Ella Moss. This top is even more simple than the Marc tops. The only thing is you would probably need a long body for this top to work.

By LOVE by Ya-Ya. Available in other colors too and available at shopbop.com. This is slightly low-cut for a casual day but it's just so nicely cut and you could def wear it again next summer.

Another similar top from shopbop.com by Velvet.

This jungle print top is by Banana Republic. I don't like the prints but that's just personal taste.

Cotton top by Urban Outfitters. This is more doll-like than empire waist, but it gives a similar figure-flattering effect (and it's probably the cheapest option!)

Rubber Sandals

This season there seems to be a revival of the rubber sandals (actually, were they ever alive?).

Mostly thanks to Marc by Marc Jacobs and these rubber flats and gladiator sandals. Flats and gladiator sandals are fine, but plastic?? Please! They look like toy shoes (although I think even barbie has nicer shoes than these). Granted at $95 they are the cheapest Marc by MJ shoes one can find at full price, its so not worth it.

To make it worst, the high street stores, like Urban Outfitters above, have started making them at even lower prices. What a coup this "trend" must be for the fashion industry, to be able to sell rubber shoes that probably costs less than 50C to make at $95 (for m by mj) and $16 (for UO).

Please. Keep the rubber sandals to the beach!

Happy Mother's Day!

Its Mother's Day! While I love my mom and thinks she deserves the world for being such a great mom, I always slightly dread getting presents for my mom. Mostly because its super hard to find her something she'd like with my limited budget. And really, (at least for me anyway) any money I spend on Mother's Day is just her money anyway. Nevertheless, here are some ideas of what to get your mom.

If price was not an issue, then the Birkin bag will be the first on my list. For those who have been with us since last year, I know, the Herme's Birkin bag was first on the list last year as well. But, while all other "it" bags come and go, the Birkin will stay with us forever. It will always be on the top of the most wanted/coveted list for women.

If you are still on the waiting list for the Birkin, good temporary substitutes would be the timeless Chanel handbags. Or maybe even the Fendi Spy bag, I can totally see my mom using it.

Then of course, diamonds are a girl's best friend. And that includes girl's of all ages. Better yet, throw in a mother-of-pearl (both from Tiffany's).

Taking it a notch down a little, you could also get your mom a designer coin purse. They're like the cheapest of designer accessories AND they're still very very useful!

Personally this year I got my mom a neck scarf this year from Fendi. And its not necessarily as expensive as the two shown above from Pucci and Burberry. If you go bargain hunting, you can find some pretty good deals. Along with the Fendi scarf, I also spotted some very pretty silk Bottega Venneta scarf for only $69.99!

Another good idea is photoframes. My mom loves them. We have photoframes on every inch of surface in our house (just ask Harrods Girl!). And the great thing is, photoframes comes in a wide range of prices! From this Pave Stape frame $595 (left) and this jeweled braided frame $250, to your own lovingly handmade one, which costs $0 but is worth so much more.

Another very useful thing my mom loves are travelling cosmetic bags. I know, you can get them for free as gifts from cosmetic counters, but really, these ones from Kate Spade and Lulu Guiness are so much cuter!

Another item from last year's list that will never change is Lamer skincare. They're just the best. A more within budget skincare item that your mom may be interested in is this L'Occitane handcream trio. They are one of the best handcreams around AND it'll fit perfectly into their purse!

Last but not least is kitchenware! Thats what they use to cook all your favourite food afterall. More extravagantly, you can get them this stainless steel set. Or you can get them this super cute dress up cookie cutter set. I personally LOVE the cookie cutter set. Its just too bad my mom doesn't bake cookies. Both of these items are from William Sonoma. They also had many already gift-wrapped for mother's day items around the store when I was there this weekend. Definitely something to check out if you still haven't gotten anything for Mother's day.

So Happy Mother's Day too mother's everywhere. And to our mom's, we love you!