Monday, June 13, 2016

Empowering woman of the Year 2016- Iskra

According to my personal self- built database, the most empowering woman of Year 2015 goes to....
*Drum roll*

None other than- ASHLEY GRAHAM!

A photo posted by A S H L E Y G R A H A M (@theashleygraham) on

She is the reason behind how many women suffer from low self-esteem, have reformed and learn to love themselves even more. She is a big girl. And so, big girls don't cry.

For this random blog post of mine, I have decided to choose my most favourite woman who meets the criteria like Miss Universe - Beauty with a purpose and feature her as THE EMPOWERING WOMAN OF THE YEAR 2016. According to me, of course!
The winner issssssssss
*search the entire Shirley Charlin's database*
...our beloved Miss Iskra! The photo below was what inspired me to write this blog post. 

✨ I had almost forgotten what I used to look like when I was battling with my body and my own thoughts of self loathing. One of my dearest gfs @iammelwells sent this pic to me today of us both when we were trying to break into the modelling industry. 👭I never knew that she was struggling with the same thoughts as me and neither did she know I was. 👩‍❤️‍👩The two young women in this photo both thought they were fat and too big. would pick themselves apart and then workout like mad at the gym or restrict what they ate because they had body dysmorphia. Some of you may look at the old me on the left and think I was slimmer and therefore healthier. No health is NOT a size it is a state of wellbeing. I did not have healthy thoughts or love myself. It took years to get to this point and there are still days were I let the dark thoughts creep in. Only yesterday I went to try some jeans on, the server said they would definitely fit (I mean they are the biggest size a 29) I couldn't get them further than my knees. 😪For a split second I was about to crumble because it can be anything that triggers those demons to come back. All those years I couldn't fit into clothes or was told I was too big to ever make it as a model. But mostly the boundaries I had put on myself that my happiness would be determined by a number on the scales or that number in my jeans. Which is so F****d up because the truth is YOU get to decide your self worth no one or nothing else. You have to turn around to yourself and take control and say I am good enough, and I will be happy today and I know that I am beautiful because I am me. So please know that you are not alone, you may think you are the only one who hates what they see in the mirror but trust me a LOT of us have felt or still do feel that way. But you deserve to love yourself, it may take time but start today and never give up. ❤️ #iskralawrence #everyBODYisbeautiful thank you @iammelwells for creating your book the #TheGoddessRevolution sharing your journey and helping to heal our relationships with ourselves and food you are incredible 💕🙌🦄✨💫
A photo posted by 🌙iskra✨ (@iamiskra) on

I was surprised when I first saw this photo of hers in my Instagram feed. She was not a plus size model in the beginning. So was I! Except the fact that I am not a model to begin with. Hahaha! She is still stunning even until now.

From her very first viral photo in her nude coloured lingerie with bags of chips surrounding her,

to that featured photo. Tell me, why will there be anyone who disagrees with me that she IS the most empowering woman of 2016!

To be honest, she is also the woman who inspires me to love myself and I have been constantly eating regularly and at least go for a walk after dinner and exercise more. Although, results are not shown in my current appearance.

Nevertheless, I feel happier than ever! I begin to look at myself in the mirror more. I love to look at myself while I dress up for work. (HEY EVERYONE! I have extended my internship! I am given more opportunities and one more step towards becoming a female programmer.)

Thinking back, I wonder why do I even waste my time and energy on people's comments about my appearance when they too look like a potato. There were times I even starved myself and lie to my friends that I was saving money. How much do I want to save? I do not know. I spent money on clothes that are trending and I do not like the those trending clothes and style looks on me. I like the french girl kind of look. If I ever want to wear something exotic, that will be Japanese Lolita outfits. Conservative, lady- like and lovely.

Right now, I spend my time doing what I love, wearing what I love and feel comfortable in. And you should too!


We should not live by what people ask us to. We live for ourselves. We live, love, pray.


Quote of the post:
I'm not a model, I'm an artist. In one of my videos, I'm doing this shot of me with no make-up on where I've just woken up, and I don't think a lot of people would be comfortable enough to do that. But that's the way I look. This is who I am. Let's enjoy it. Let's just live life to the full while we're all here." -Jessie J
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/live_life.html






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Saturday, April 9, 2016

OOTD #45: Blue Flew Spring

Blue Flew Spring ♥

The most important thing I must have for the start of this year would be anything BLUE (well, except the Monday Blues, or the other blues that’s just a no no); blue buttoned top, blouses, skirts, the ones that make you look chic and is a sure head-turner! (Ladies with a plus-one, hold on tight to your partners) I actually do not have a lot of blue outfits or accessories. Still, blue is my favourite color!

As many of you fashionistas would have known, BLUE IS THE COLOR FOR THIS SPRING!

The most wanted thing for me right now would be a BLUE EYELINER. I was actually thinking of teasing everyone by saying blue eyebrows. Then again, it will no longer be April Fool's Day when I publish this post. Too bad for me.
What is the must-have, currently, will be:
  1. Eyebrows - I actually use Urban Decay Basic One Eyeshadow palette as my eyebrow kit. As featured in many of my posts on the past few collaborations. Furthermore, eyebrows are the most most most important part of your face, it actually sort of reshape your entire face. Making you prettier than you already are. #EveryoneIsBeautiful
  1. Contour - One palette fits everything. I use the same eyeshadow palette as a contour kit too.
  1. Pinkish colored Lipsticks - Kissable lips ready for your prince charming. Muack! ♥ I will always apply a thick layer of lip balm on my sexy lips before thinking if I want to apply any lip colours everyday, everytime and anytime. Muuuuuuack! ♥ I would usually apply baby pink color on my lips. I recommend to you lip glosses from Lancome! I love them even though they are expensive. Recently, I am obsessed with  drugstores lip colors. Mainly because they are cheap and then I can buy a lot of different shades to try on and see which one suits me the best. For the lip colors that doesn't suit me, I can just use them like a cheek stain! Creamy texture makeup always last a lot longer on me.
  1. Smock dress - Possibly the most suitable length I could find that match my height perfectly will be a short length dress. Right now, I am super duper obsessed with peter pan dresses. The casual but yet formal looking dress. The collar and the button ups on the dress. Making the stern looking professional look to a whole new level of fashionably professional. Otherwise, for casual;
  1. Crop tops!!!! -Right now I have couple of crop tops that I had been wearing repeatedly. They are so comfy and they definitely match more than half of my wardrobe. I know most of you will match them with a pair of jeans. You can still wear them by rolling the ends of the jeans up when the weather is warmer.
  1. Aviator Sunglasses - These Barry Mirror Aviator Sunglasses, instantly draw the attention of people around you as you walk down the street of Soho. Everyone will be looking at you from head to toe. Take every where as your runway. Head up and walk like Gigi.


  1. Comfy shoes - I can't walk in heels so I choose flat covered shoes. Shoes that comes in basic colors and simple details like a few striking gold colored strips. Otherwise a pair of brown sandals that matches the beautiful trees.

Oh wait I had missed out point 8. Caps! It can be used as a back pack accessory! Who still clip their cap on their back pack?! *Left hand up, right hand up. Now surrenderrrr!*
Nevertheless, I can't wait to receive my next pay from my internship so that I could head over to my favourite Sephora and try out other wallet- friendly makeup.  And yes, I will remember to find my blue eyeliner. I was thinking of trying the makeup from Innisfree. What do you think?
For this Spring, I am just going to focus on my already pretty face and fabulous personality. I believe that everyone can pull off any outfits or styles as long as they have confidence when they wear them.


I never had a chance to buy anything that really suits me until I reached 17. Everything I used to own are brown colored. You know the meaning of "brown colored" from the movie, “Confessions of a Shopaholic”? Yes, and those over-sized tomboy clothes that you were told to wear even if you are starting secondary school. They last FOREVER. Oh gosh… Time flies. I have already turned 21.
I still remember ever since I started buying clothes myself. The first thing in my mind was dresses! Unfortunately, the clothes I wanted are all replaced by trends. Still I wanted to get clothes. I bought tank tops and I feel that it looks great on me. Ever since I met friends who studied fashion, they taught me about what type of fabrics are worth paying for when you buy your clothes. I started to play around with colors and found my style.


I hope you had found your Spring vibe! Happy Spring!
Quote of the post:
"The best colour in the whole world is the one that looks good on you."
With loves,
Shirley Charlin
"The season. The street. The thrill of the shop." #GetSpring
Credits of the pictures to Spring. Outfits are coordinated by me.

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Thursday, January 28, 2016

OOTD #44: School for Superbowl

I hear the sound of excitement. *Uh huh Uh huh*

So the season of football is back! The first game will be PANTHERS VS BRONCOS, which will be held in Levi's Stadium on February 8!

The weather is cold (it is super rainy here in Singapore), some of us are still having classes. Including me, my academic year is ending in this coming March and then the new academic year will start early in the new month. Despite being so busy, I can still dress up appropriately for school and head out. 

For OOTD #44 - School for Superbowl, I will show you how to support your favorite team while trying to get your head in the books. 

When the academic semester is coming to an end, I will have a lot of presentations to do. As an student studying engineering, I am required to present my final output of my products. I have to wear formally. I want to dress according to the requirements that was given by my lecturers, but I do want to look chic at the same time. Hard? Not if you know what exactly to do!

Here is my outfit for my recent presentation:
Cardigan from JRunway / White Formal Blouse from G2000 / Cobalt Blue Formal Shorts was a hand me down

Have this student meet the outfit requirements for this presentation?

Formal wear ✔
Covered shoes ✔
Smartly dressed ✔
Fashionably dressed ✔
Total outfit grading: A+

And before you start asking... Nope! I have not forgotten about our school bags! What to bring to school when you have a game to watch after school! How to keep your bag as light as possible (I know you want to thank me, so welcome!)

 What's in my school-game bag?

1. Student Card
The golden ticket better than a credit card, this card entitles you to many students's discounts that we can use while we are still studying. Being a student has its perks too!

2. Money
Because of my royal entitlement thanks to my student's benefit, I have extra money to spend! *Ka-ching!*

3. Note Book/ Writing papers and homework
I do have some paper homework to submit even though I am a programming student. It is a must to submit your homework on time otherwise marks will be deducted and your teachers do not need your marks.

4. Laptop and charger (Optional unless you really need to)
I own a HP envy dv6 and it weighs a ton. All of my classes requires me to bring my personal laptop. If I have to go out, I will just bring a portable hard disk with all of my assignments that I need to submit on that day and also store everything else like soft copies of lecture notes and also tutorials in to my laptop. Charger is a must to bring, use your school's electricity to charge your laptop before you leave the school so it can help you save electricity at home.

5. Smart devices (Phone is a must)
In case you do not need to bring your laptop on that day, bring your smart devices. Make sure you have the soft copies of the lecture notes and tutorials inside your smart devices so that you can keep up in class. My current most favorite cloud storage is Google Drive. 

Google Drive enables you to read your documents offline, and also edit your documents using smart devices and they will sync and update everywhere. 

Now you are well-dressed for school and also after-school game match.

Below are some pictures my friend took for me after we were done recording a video for a maths project. Was thinking of sharing them in a new post, but nahhhhh they are too pretty not to share right now!

Just in case, if you're looking for tickets to the game check out TickPick. They're a no-fee ticket marketplace that offers the cheapest tickets and a cool buying experience! There are no surprise fees, so the price you see is the price you pay. There's also a grading system for ticket prices to make sure you're getting a good deal. If you don't like the price people are selling their tickets for you can name your own, so sellers can come to you and make offers! So next time you're looking for NFL tickets - or tickets to any other sporting event or concert - try TickPick!

 The TickPick App brings you the best experience when purchasing tickets on the go! It is available in both IOS and Android. Learn more

Yes! Outfit and game ticket are both checked! Now put your head in the game and books!
Quote of the post
Timothy F. Cahill"
With loves,
Shirley Charlin

P/S: Can you guess which team did I get the inspiration for this OOTD from? Watch for answer here.

This blog post is in collaboration with TickPick. 
Photos are photographed by Gervaise Ang, taken using IPhone 5 and Sahidha Nasreen, using Nikon d5300.
Photos are enhanced using Adobe Photoshop CC 2015.
Credits of the pictures that I screenshot from are given. Outfits are coordinated by me.
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