Let me describe what my favourite fashion brands do: Exciting things to please the eyes. Dresses I see in my Cinderella dreams and clothing that stirs deep desires of beauty and possession. I seem to be part of the target group of Gucci, Moschino, and Prada and an army of clever people working for them must have defined the perfect strategy to make me wanna have their designs like nothing else money can buy. Very often I imagine the money I earn not as money, but as a row of expensive luxury bags standing in a row.
There is always something on the rail at Moschino that excites me, no surprise. But not that often it happens that I discover an unknown brand and fall for it head over heels, check their page nearly every day and wanna dive into the beautiful world I just discovered. When I found Mukzin, it was just like this: Love at first sight (and no, I’m not paid for this post and didn’t get my dress for free).
This Chinese brand is a fresh and surprising union of Chinese history with a modern sense of edgy luxury. If Gucci wasn’t Italian, it would be called Mukzin, I am sure this brand will soon be known by more fashion people! While my second order already arrived, I show you my Hello Kitty dress from them here. I didn’t dare to order more than one piece since I was not sure if Chinese fitting would work on me, but now I know I’m a size small from Zurich to Hongkong and back.
Besides the obvious Kitty-cuteness of my dress, I think I can be proud: I was wearing Mukzin before their London popup and before Susie Bubble was wearing it. Doesn’t this make me a cool blogger cat? 😉
Wait till you see my other Mukzin darlings…
If Gucci wasn’t Italian, it would be called Mukzin, I am sure this brand will soon be known by more fashion people!
My Outfit Dress: Mukzin, Bag: Furla, Shoes: Asos, Earrings: Swarovski, Belt: Vintage, Sunnies: Le Specs (old), Beret: H&M, Pins: Various
Every time my parents call, one of their first questions is “And, how is the weather?”. Usually, this makes me look out of the window and check because let’s face it: I’m not noticing the weather a lot unless my feet get wet or I have to organize a foto shooting and worry about light conditions. I’ll never understand why talking about the weather seems to be number one small talk opener in millions of chats. Can we please talk about something else? I couldn’t be more bored.
But one thing occurred to me: If people say the weather is good, the opinions about what good weather is are very different. Obviously, people refer to sunny weather as good weather very often. But if you ask me when I plan a shooting, the best weather is dry and a little bit cloudy for smooth shadows. Ask a farmer on a dry summer he might imagine a rainy day as the best thing in the world. So who is right about what good weather actually means?
When I work on my computer, I completely forget about the outside world and focus my mind on concepts, pictures, and ideas. My horizon melts to the screen and the labyrinth of my thoughts. The screen becomes an instant window to everywhere in the world, unlike the window of my room. What does the weather matter anyway if you can be in sunny Australia or have a look at Capetown by night in just one click without lifting a foot? Isn’t there every weather somewhere at the exact same time? So what point is it to occupy the mind with questions about the weather then if you want to do small talk?
So my plea: Please stop to talk about the weather and move on to more exciting topics. Let’s get creative in how to make bridges and start chats, there are millions of ways, and if you end up enjoying yourself you might actually forget about the weather just like me!
My Outfit Skirt: Tufafii from Hanimanns, Shirt: Vintage, Shoes: Sandro, Backpack: Bally bought at Fashionfish, Beret and Necklace: From markets, Socks: Becksöndergaard, Earrings: Dakota Rae Dust, Sunnies: Old House of Holland
Pictures: Marco Borromeo. This post contains sponsored products.
Not only in the calendar we opened a new chapter, but as well it’s my blog’s birthday. In January 2012 the first post went online and what started as a blog about headwear grew up, went its own way and took me on a crazy ride I couldn’t have expected.
If I think back of the last year of my blogging life, what I feel strongest is gratitude: I am so happy Sara is in Love with… exists. When I started this blog I had no idea how much it would mean in my life and I can’t imagine being without this creative, colourful online world. Sometimes I’m not sure if I am the creator of Sara is in Love with… or if the blog defines who I am. Maybe it’s both ways, maybe it doesn’t matter, but what matters is the overwhelming love I feel for what I can do and don’t regret all the time, energy and dedication I put in this project.
I am a very lucky girl for all the cool events and things blogging brought into my life and that being a blogger gave me a stronger voice to be heard that I can use not just for myself, but to promote brands I love and even do good. I hope I can be an even stronger voice in the next year and make a statement for topics that mean a lot to me such as production conditions, sustainability, empowering women and the unity of all humankind. And hey: It’s cool I haven’t bought a tube of toothpaste or hand cream in the last few years.
Thank you for following my journey, for all your comments, emails and likes, this is what makes a blogger keep going more than anything else! A big thank you goes to my photographer Marco Borromeo, without him, this world wouldn’t exist and I am astonished again and again by how he manages to capture the best in me. We share a mutual love for aesthetics, details and I couldn’t be more grateful he is just as crazy as me to spend hours in the freezing cold, working on the perfect picture. I love to work with different photographers because they show sides of me I sometimes didn’t see before, but then I’m always glad to come back and shoot with Marco since he takes pictures of exactly the Sara I have in mind.
As well I am thankful for the brands and agencies who feel the excitement I put in my work and want me to be their face. Working together is never just a job, but a little love story, especially since my blog name is a promise to only showcase things I am genuinely in love with.
My highlights of the year
Something I’ve been dreaming of for a long while has come true: I am part of Self.Styled, the project of British photographer Anthony Lycett. Self.Styled is THE encyclopedia of individual style and celebrates the diverse understanding of style. Let’s keep the fingers crossed there will be a second book about this project soon and I might be part of it…
This year I continued my engagement for the Swiss non-profit organization Mama Tierra. It fills me with joy to support their cause to empower indigenous women. I worked for them as a model, but also helped to sell the wonderful ethnic craftmanship at different markets in Zurich.
If there is one thing I love it’s being a muse for artists. Every time I get drawn my heart makes a jump because art means a lot to me. It fills me with pride that I inspire artists from all over the world to pick up their brushes or pens and create their very own version of me.
When I was asked by H&M to be part of their very selected influencer team to promote the Moschino collection I felt like I reached my personal paradise. No brand means as much to me as Moschino and wearing the pieces when nobody else had them was just wow. Dear Mr. Scott, one day we will meet, I’m coming for you.
I also had the chance to be a pioneer and worked as one of the world’s first instasitters for the ibis hotel family. Besides the pleasure to take over somebody’s profile and let them enjoy their holidays meanwhile, it was exciting to do my very first radio interviews with radio stations from Switzerland, Germany and (omg) even BBC.
Fashion is what I love, but I don’t want people to suffer for what I wear and I care about what my shopping choices cause. Therefore I didn’t have to think twice when the Fashion Revolution asked me to join them as an ambassador and ask brands who made my clothes and be critical about my own behaviour as a shopper. It’s only the beginning, let the revolution continue!
Sometimes you meet people you feel deeply connected at first sight. Famous Indonesian blogger Diana Rikasari is one of those people and I am proud to call her my style soul sister. Since she moved from Jakarta to Switzerland we are able to see each other and spend time as friends sharing our lives and fashion desires. Together we do our best to bring colour to this country. I love you to the moon and back my girl!
Last but not least I want to include the happiest place I discovered this year: The Sweet Art Museum in Lisbon. I’ve never felt so home in a place before, all surrounded by pink, candy, and cuteness. Wish I could go there every week, take a bubble bath, walk through ice cream land and have a jump into the marshmallow pool.
Some movies linger in your mind, like the faint hint of a perfume you catch in a room long after its wearer is gone. The Neon Demon is one of these movies, and I think it inspired me for this look indirectly: The psychedelic intensity of the colours, the electronic score with the bumping party vibes and the stylish aesthetics are what I had in mind when I styled this outfit.
Yes, I’m still impressed by the story of how innocence can be consumed by harsh neon lights who break the dark night like a shrill scream. “Beauty isn’t everything, it’s the only thing,” a sentence that didn’t leave me. Shockingly, in the movie only blood and guts were hiding beneath the beautiful facade leaving the observer shocked and disillusionized.
How is it in real life? What can we expect behind a cheeky smile, the doors of a pretty house or a charming girl wearing a beautiful outfit? Never be fooled by the surface, because very often it doesn’t reveal what lays beyond.
It seems like I display my glowing heart openly right on my chest, but is it just an illusion caused by your eyes fooling you? Do you believe what your eyes show you or do you sometimes see clear only when you close them and rather listen to your mind?
Maybe we find out together in 2019, so happy New Year everybody! Let’s start it with hammering party beats, neon lights and a lot of curiosity.
“Beauty isn’t everything, it’s the only thing,”
The Neon Demon
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