Thursday, April 23, 2015

Alla Moda Review: MV Styles of Comeback Groups Part One

Hello once again, my Alla-babies! Whew, it's been a month since I last graced your lives with poise and elegance. LOL, kidding.

I really missed writing about my babies and now that my blog has been seeing some Korean love, I'm really inspired to revive the Alla Moda spirit.

To my Korean readers, 안녀하새오, 친구!~~ (I spent time typing it using the Hangul online keyboard! ^^)

So, back to business at hand...

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March and April proved to be the springtime for the idol groups to make their respective comebacks. And hell yeah, it was a FIERCE ONE. Fierce battles between a global trend boy group and a sunbae (senior) group with a very controversial member proves to be very competitive. Another sunbae girl group made a splash with their comeback, intimidating the other girl groups and showing their fierceness on cam. I think I used the word fierce too much.

Let's start with miss A. After a year and five months, they recently made a comeback with the song "Only You" (다른 남자 말고 너). The music was very catchy, and it evokes a good feeling. Actually, I always play this song whenever I'm having walks on my way to the jeepney terminal. Very idyllic, sweet as jelly. But I'm not here to evaluate the music, as I'm no music guru. So I focused on the fashion. Here we go!

For their album 'Colors', miss A dressed up as stylish girls being spied upon by some creepy (yet hot and handsome) guy in front of their apartment. The dominant color is pink, more specifically Barbie pink made popular by the Moschino fashion show. I think the color showed their inner femininity and some playfulness was seen, thanks to the cuts of the dresses and the accessories thrown in.

I love Suzy's dress: A strapless, backless minidress with a peeping belly button feature and above the thigh skirt. Completing the look with ankle high boots, she really looked like a Korean Barbie doll.

I also like Fei's look here: a two-piece dress with a slightly high neck, long sleeves, cropped top and matching skirt with a slit. The material of the dress is playful yet stylish, and the accessories were the right mix of sass and fun.

Going out of their apartment for a night hanging out with friends, they changed their styles to a chic, street fashion kind of thing. Again, Suzy and Fei rocked their looks. Suzy wore a cropped long-sleeved button down with plaid patterns, a lacy tube top underneath, paired with denim short shorts and some straps attached on her hips. I don't get the straps, but it's okay. I guess it's to add the toughness to balance the femme features.

Fei wore a sleeveless pinstripe cropped top with oversized stitches design, as well as a matching pinstripe short skirt with oversized stitches as well. Shabby chic, and her styling is on point.

Min and Jia wore similar styles here, and they complemented each other's fashion styles.

The last part of the MV showed the girls wearing blue (I think it's a royal blue shade, whatever) and they looked as great as the pink ensembles a few minutes ago. Jia and Fei wore pants here, which looked chic nevertheless. Suzy kept the pleated skirt game on, and the girls were on their cropped top mode. Sexy, but not too slutty. I love Suzy's strappy shoes here.

miss A's "Only You" MV looked like a behind the scenes video for a fashion shoot. The styles were coordinating, no one was left out, their natural charms radiated even more and it was really a joy to watch.

Ratings: 4.879/5

UP NEXT: EXO'S "Call Me Baby" MV Style Review
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Thanks very much, Alla-babies! Spread the love! ^^

xoxo,
Kristoff

[BREAKING] Tao's Father vs SM Entertainment: My Two Cents

(Note: This has been posted on my Facebook account first, and I'm just going to repost this. Basically not plagiarism, because it's mine. I permitted myself to do this, ㅋㅋㅋ)

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I'll just post this once, and I'll just speak once. Please let me express my sentiments, because this is very hard for us. Please understand.

I wasn't able to share the sadness among you guys when two members have left the group. But now, I'm able to experience the impending loss of another one. This is very sad to hear. When I first heard the murmurs of him leaving the group, I was half-anxious and half-hoping that this wouldn't be true. I held on to his English IG post, saying that he'll never leave us. The murmurs had been silenced, only to be replaced by a hubbub stronger than before. What made me more nervous is that the primary voice behind this hubbub is someone very dear to him: his father.

As a fan, of course I feel sad. Seeing them perform on stage with only nine members left (with the possibility of performing as eight due to Yixing's China activities) really breaks my heart. I have known him to be persistent, persevering and professional. He'd rather do the flip than disappoint his fans waiting to be amazed in his every move.

However, his father had a point: whose parent would like their children to continue earning money and gaining fame but they have to suffer from injuries their whole lives? Seeing the issue both on the fans' and his father's point of view, I guess acceptance is the much needed cure for our hearts right now.

I'd like to see him perform more, to give out more speeches, to release more albums with the group, but it will just pain me to see him do that in crutches, hobbling here and there during their promotions.

To sum this up, whatever happens to him, I'm just going to be a supporter and not a shameless basher. This is not intentional, this is not staged or scripted. Be it in China as a solo performer, or in Korea as a member of EXO, I'll still support our baby panda, Huang Zi Tao.

I know he'll never read this, or anyone else from SM Entertainment, but I have the right to voice my opinions on this issue, as a fundamental right in a democracy. But Zi Tao, I'd like to repeat this a million times: I'LL BE HERE FOR YOU.

For the non K-pop fans, if you don't have anything else good to say in this matter, please hold your peace forever. You will just injure our hearts more. This suffering is more than enough, please don't add more insult to the injury. Thank you. And for those who think that I'm merely overreacting to his actions, please put yourselves in my shoes.

If you don't have anything else comforting to say, please shut up. This is a hard time for us, so please be sympathetic, and not apathetic. Thank you very much.

We're always here for you. I'll be always here for you. Whatever happens.

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

녀무 녀무 미언헤, 여려븐 ~~

Hello Alla babies! I'm really, really sorry about my inactivity for the past few weeks. I promised to be available and up to date with the latest in K-fashion and K-pop, but my workload and the lack of inspiration to write seems to be very potent ingredients for my laziness. Oh, I'm really really sorry. :((

However, thank you very much for the thousand views and counting! I'm really happy that finally, my blog has been viewed a thousand times. I promise to do my best. ^^

Will update you shortly with my next two posts: a review of the MV styles and fashion of the comeback groups this March-April, and the celebrities who rocked the floral style this spring/summer/whatever weather you have in your place. ^^

See you, Alla-babies! 녀무 녀무 미언헤, 여려븐 ~~

xoxo,

Kristoff

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

The 1st La Via Alla Moda K-Fashion Awards! PART SIX

Top K-Fashion Brands of 2014

(in no particular order)

MCM Bags

MCM Bags managed to combine classic sophistication of premium-grade leather and the modern, youthful vibe of Korean street fashion. Its collaboration with the famous modelling reality show America's Next Top Model proved that the genuine charm of MCM Bags had swept the whole world in a daze. This only proved the marketability of the bags, not only in Korea but also in places around the world.

LAPALETTE Bags

Lapalette bags captured the air of elegance mixed with youthful creativity of the modern Korean woman. The bags bring out the elegance and sophistication of the owner, even if she's not dressed to the nines. The gorgeous sister duo of Jessica (SNSD) and Krystal (f(x)) made this stunning brand even more glamorous and worth every penny. They truly captured the cosmopolitan essence of Korean women and modern fashion.

Lie Sang Bong

Lie Sang Bong is one example of successfully mixing the classics and the modern tastes of fashion in the current times. His designs speak a lot of his expertise in the fashion industry, so it was no doubt that the famed supermodel Tyra Banks commissioned him to dress her contestants in his collection, as well as the famous girl group 2NE1 while performing for America's Next Top Model. Its latest ambassadors EXO members Kai and Chanyeol further set the bar higher, therefore making the brand one of the most versatile ones in the Korean fashion industry, making it accessible to both men and women.

Steve J & Yoni P

These two highly creative designers were the ones to thank for the more common yet chic and stylish clothes for the final three of Korea's Next Top Model: Guys and Girls. Their designs are easily marketable towards the younger members of the Korean population, and not only they are fashionable, but also possessed the qualities of the urban chic Korean youth. Truly amazing.

H&M

Known for its fashionably gorgeous yet comfortably wearable ensembles, the Swedish clothing brand has managed to capture the hearts of every Korean consumer with the alluring charm of European modern fashion at a fraction of the cost. The company's impressive clientele includes most of the known stars in KPop, and IU wearing their floral ensemble as a red carpet dress for the Melon Music Awards just upped the stakes a notch. Wearable, great for street fashion yet stylishly elegant for the red carpet.

*****

Well, that's pretty it for now! I hope everyone's happy and satisfied. Congratulations to all the winners and may we all continue to celebrate the ever-growing, ever-expanding and always timelessly elegant Korean fashion! Cheers! ^^

xoxo,

Kristoff

Photos courtesy of the owners. Comments are well-appreciated. Spread the love!

The 1st La Via Alla Moda K-Fashion Awards! PART FIVE

LVAM Faces of K-Fashion for 2014

(in no particular order)

Minah, Girls' Day

Jessica Jung, Girls' Generation

Dara, 2NE1

Chen, EXO

Im Yoona, Girls' Generation

NEXT: Top K-Fashion Brands of 2014!

The 1st La Via Alla Moda K-Fashion Awards! PART FOUR

Top Ten KPop Fashion Models of 2014

(in no particular order)

Luhan (EXO)

Chen (EXO)

Eunji (APink)

Ryeowook (Super Junior)

Krystal (f(x))

Kai (EXO)

Bae Suzy (miss A)

Sungjong (Infinite)

Tao (EXO)

Dara (2NE1)

NEXT: LVAM Faces of K-Fashion for 2014!

The 1st La Via Alla Moda K-Fashion Awards! PART THREE

Top Five Best Styled MVs

(NOTE: I'm not familiar with the styling teams behind these winners, so if you happen to know them, please let me know so that I could acknowledge them here. Thanks! ^^)