On fragrances

Current obsession - collecting perfumes ; I love exploring how different notes evolve on the skin, how fragrances can shift with mood and style. I love the concept of perfume being an invisible signature, but most of all I love how they preserve moments and memories (at least for me). One inhale can bring back a specific time in life, be it good moments or bad memories. Im not one to keep photos or dwell on the past, but perfumes are different. Somehow, each bottle is a chapter of my life preserved forever. 

2016 - Victoria secret's (love is heavenly) and (bombshell) my first ever perfumes - smells like a summer garden with mandarin blossom, blackberries, peonies and a whole bunch of flowers. I remember using bombshell only for evening outings. These scents reminds me of my earlier Sydney days. Weekends were carefree, weekly brunches in bondi beach after morning walks, moving in and living alone with no friend group yet. Navigating the loneliness that seems to exist only in the early days of uni, when everything is new, everyone is a stranger and the school just feels so big and unfamiliar. To be honest, I cant stand the smell now. 

2017/18 - Marc Jacobs (Daisy Eu so Fresh) (Daisy), Dior ( Blooming Bouquet) (Miss dior cherie) - these few scents smells like the later years in sydney - cinemas with my sister, shopping at mecca, sleepovers at her apartment. It also reminds me of something special - the beginning of my relationship with my husb. Marc Jacobs were gifted by my sister as my birthday gifts and for two years it was my daily companion. From first dates to midnight malas and fancy anniversaries. I remember thinking life was so good! I came across Dior perfume at Myers and bought it on a whim just because it reminds me of the miss dior ad in paris directed by sofia copolla. I use it sooo sparingly. 

2019/20 - Annick Goutal ( Le Jasmin Goutal), Versace (Bright Crystal) - Honestly, not a lot to talk about these perfumes. Not my favourites, and did not really remind me of anything. This was the year I did not really pay attention to my fragrance collecting. It was the year I was busy with starting a new job, being involved a new business and re-navigating life back at home. Being proactive in work and starting something new, being out of my comfort zone. I do remember really liking the Versace one at one point - with notes of yuzu, pomegranate and musk, it feels different from the ones I usually use. Honestly at the top of my head 2019 feels like a blur.. just a lot of adapting, growing, planting seeds and lots of challenges in work. 

2021/23 - Hermes (Twilly), Giorgio Armani (Si) - Another year of random purchases, just because one is the 'it perfume' at the time, and the other was endorsed by Cate Blanchett. I also explored a lot of local brands but none really felt right. 

2024/25 - Dior (Jadore) (Rose Kabuki) , Jo Malone ( Wild Bluebell) (Sage and Sea salt) (Peony and Blush Suede), 

Replica (Flower Market) - The year I re-ignited my fragrance collection hobby and was more intentional in choosing perfumes. Intentional in everything (its a work in progress but im proud of where I am right now).  Also the year I got engaged, became a wife and started gravitating towards clean and fresh fragrances - although I still cant get away from floral notes. In a few years I will look back and know exactly what these scents represent. 

I still dont have a signature perfume, and that is exciting for me - it only means I still have a lot to explore. 

Or maybe I will continue this tradition, one perfume for each milestone ❤️

On softer days

Took a much needed escape ; just saltyy skin, the bluest skies above and the sound of waves. 

Sun, salt, silence on repeat. :)

1.  On 'Soundhealing and breathwork'

Something that Ive been meaning to try for a long time, and I finally did it! Ive always been fascinated by how sound and breath (something so simple and fundamental) can somehow have a huge impact on our state of mind. The practitioner mentioned that this practice is simply a gentle invitation to tune inward - to align, to recharge. In his own words, "healing does not need to be complicated. "

I read a lot about people being on altered state of consciousness during these sessions. But for me?  I just fell asleep almost immediately. It was an 8 AM session and I was already sleepy to begin with, and once the gong hits and the bowls started singing, my body took it as a cue to switch off. 

Later after the session, we calculated my personal chakra based on my date of birth. 

2. On letting the day flow 

The simple magic of waking up without a plan. Having meals only when hungry, no appointments, no to-do lists, swimming or reading or walking when I feel like it. Switching off social media and just be in the present moment. Not everyday can be like this, but sometimes the most productive thing you can do is to do nothing at all. 

3. On Re-reading favourite books

There is a certain comfort in returning to a book that you have read. I dont know how to explain it, but when a story is that well written, it grows with you. The book I gravitate to again and again is The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - not because of the plot, but because of how much depth it reveals every time I read it. Its just one of those stories that stays with me for a long time, kept me thinking and reflecting on a lot. I guess you just have to read it to know what I mean. 

In a lot of ways Evelyn Hugo reminds me a lot of Taylor Swift. And that in itself earns a place in my top 5 favourite book ( this is a high praise from me because I read a LOT).  

Reading your favourite book, sunbathing by the pool, with no other obligations?

Heaven. 

bali 25

Days when normal schedules takes a backseat, and life slows down 

Here is to making time for many, many more days like this

Dopamine menu

If anyone ask me what my best investment in life is, it comes down to this : My camera, my kindle, my health, my relationships, and my education. My recent re-read of Ikigai made me realize the art of intentional living and investing on doing what fulfils you. More than that it made me appreciate just how lucky I am to already know my passion.

 All of my friends know I have this love for photography and cinematography since elementary. I dont do it for money or recognition, it doesnt even really matter if it gets views or not - its simply one of the activities that make me lose track of time.. and I somehow feel like I have a purpose. I guess my love for documentation applies to this blog too. I dont really know why I blog, I just know I enjoy it and i feel it forces me to be grammatically smarter.

My kindle. Another investment that I always recommend to my friends. I know reading isnt everyone's go-to way to unwind.. but reading is so underrated . I fall into the trap of doom scrolling way too often and I like to replace it with reading - at least it is productive, and it slows you down. It helps me sleep and wind down at night. I learn without even trying. I get to escape life for a while. It makes me emotionally smarter. It makes me a more knowledgable human and its cheaper than therapy. 

Investing on health, relationships and education goes without saying. It is something that I am still working on (especially health-wise) but I am not rushing the process. After all, this is not a quick fix but a lifetime shift. 

My goal is to create this natural, sustainable flow of life, much like the essence of ikigai 

On a completely unrelated note here is a list of my current dopamine menu :

1. Going to bed early with a good series ready ( Current watch : We were liars)

2. Matcha 

3. Weekly Pilates session

4. Friends recommending me new thrillers for my kindle

5. Exciting montessori lesson plans for the month 

6. When your purchased vitamins finally arrived in the mail

7. Finding old phones from yearss ago and discovering you are not the same person anymore (in a good way)

8. Maison Margiela's Flower Market - LOVE anything with tuberose

9. Capturing a work concept that aligns with my photography style and personal brand 

Behind the veil

What the Wedding industry teaches about people .

I spent a good part of this morning swapping horror stories with a friend who is even deeper in the wedding industry. This is what triggered me to write this post, because I do have a lot of thoughts about this. On the surface, it may seem like a world of glittering gowns, tiaras, perfect flower installations and fairy tale moments - but we all know things are not always as they appear. Behind the scenes, it is a high stress environment that reveals the very core of human behavior. 

If your work coincides the wedding industry environment like me, you are exposed to all kinds of people. You get to see how differently people handle the same intense situations. It is a unique glimpse to humanity at its best and at its worst. Expectations run high, emotions are heightened. Some handle it with grace but there are others whose maintained facades begin to crack.  And this is what you learn : Stress doesnt create character - it reveals it. Its not easy to witness but it is a deeply humbling experience. Someone can appear so demure and polite until placed in a high stress environment.

As a bride myself last year who has gone through the whole wedding planning thing, I often wonder why some people pour so much effort into making everything perfect for guests - obsessing over napkin colours, seating charts, entrance songs .. honestly, what is the big deal in all of this? I dont mean putting meticulous care and detail into one of the most important day of your life. I meant crying over a small hiccup and blowing it out of proportions just because things dont go 100% the way you planned.

If things did go wrong, SO BE IT. it is what it is as long as you did your best in the planning. That is what I did.. from doing detailed research, dedicating a lot of time to go through moodboards and vendors, trusting the right organizer, putting effort into making sure the day is enjoyable for me and my husb. Then I sit back and let it all flow without expectations.

What good is a flawlessly executed ceremony if the couple themselves forgets to cultivate peace of mind, respect and unconditional love in the days that follow? The more energy we spend trying to impress others, the further we drift from inner calm and emotional connection that truly sustains a marriage. Why cant people just see this? 

After all, the best weddings are not the most extravagant, but they are the ones where love feels real, when joy is shared. 

When "I do" is not performative, but a sacred promise. 

Writing all of this down I know I might come across like a know it all or judgemental. But I dont care. These are my honest opinion on weddings and I am entitled to mine.  Not only weddings but life in general. Its frustrating  and a turn off for me to watch someone else nitpick or stress about such insignificant matter..I know everyone has their own way of dealing with things but I dont think I can be friends with people who make problems out of nothing. It is exhausting and I am thankful my friends are in the same wavelength and mentality like me. We understand some stress are simply just not worth the energy because life is already complex enough.

You choose your hard, you choose your struggles and challenges . I hope at the end of the day we pick the problems that are actually worth fighting for. Be smart enough to understand that the world does not revolve around us. 

Ending this post on a positive note because it has been exhausting to write, but Ive focused my photography work to revolve around maternity, newborn and beauty sessions.

 No more wedding industries for me, it has been a good character development process but I will just say hobbies are meant to be fulfilling, not work or a burden.

Slice of life 3

Bits from life recently 

slow saturdays

On slow saturdays ; 

no alarms, waking up for brunch, celebrating milestones, enjoying home-cooked good food, going for matcha after, going over life events together, settling down with a new read, doing grocery shopping for the week, family dinners, movie nights with husb, and turning off the lights early. 

Fresh Iced tea on a scorching hot day, at a secluded location hits different

Food also resonates differently

Had our lunch overlooking the garden 

To more slow saturdays ~