Saya crop top - Feist Heist
Tea pants - 芥末
Pascal boots - Dr Martens
Jade bangles - hand me downs
Topshop lipstick in Infrared
Tea pants - 芥末
Pascal boots - Dr Martens
Jade bangles - hand me downs
Topshop lipstick in Infrared
I grew up in an environment where most of my classmates loathed the idea of learning Chinese language. I remember from primary through secondary school, our textbooks were often filled with moral stories, patriotic passages and mythical tales, with all its good intentions to spark interest among budding minds. Growing up in a Chinese speaking family, I was naturally exposed to classics like 西游记, 红楼梦 and 白毛女 etc. In addition it was also a norm for my family to watch TV series like 白骨精 or 封神榜 over dinner, depending on whichever Channel 8 was screening. I never truly understood the complexity of relationships or rivalries between characters, but vaguely remember the details which my mother tried to explain to me as a child. Slowly but surely, I grew to be more intrigued towards those stories and their underlying lessons on moral and conduct. So despite the general attitude of my classmates had against Chinese lessons, I somehow found my interest and enjoyed my time in school.
One of the characters who marked an impression was 哪吒 (Ne Zha), a God who remained a child yet was rebellious and powerful to defeat many demons who came his way. It's not very often that a child is a prominent character in mythical tales! He often appeared with fire wheels underneath his feet and his signature 肚兜 (stomacher). Makes me wonder what are the possibilities that halter tops could have originated from Ne Zha lol!
So anyway, the idea of dressing up as modern day Ne Zha really sparked off from a halter crop top by homegrown label Feist Heist which launched earlier this month. I fell in love instantly because it was a perfect mix of everything I loved, and of course it also had an uncanny resemblance to Ne Zha's stomacher. It sounds silly but I couldn't help myself thinking whenever I have this top on (hope I didn't spoil halters for you), and I'm convinced that it will not be worn to full potential unless I associated it with a mythical character whom I've always been so fascinated by. At the same time, I also had these tea pants by a Beijing designer label 芥末. Upon closer inspection, you'll find a bunch of ancient Chinese women chilling out in a tea garden. I think these two designer pieces matched incredibly well, even more in the right context. To subtly express Ne Zha's fire wheels, I brought in a pair of passed down jade bangles. Close enough.
I haven't been this inspired for a shoot for the longest time. Sure it's fun to document my daily outfits, but it's not everyday I get to experiment outrageously and away from the norm. And for this, I'm so grateful for my friend Jing who actually takes my crazy ideas seriously. We managed to squeeze in two outfits within a sheer amount of time, so watch out for the next!
Oh and if you're wondering what's written on the rocks, it roughly translates as "the sea knows no boundaries, but it's never too late to head back to shore". More specifically, in a religious context, it suggests that it's never too late to repent.
Photos by Yun Jing.
