a frequently asked question (and an answer)

I am honoured by requests to use images from TCP but unfortunately, I am unable to allow any of the photos taken so far to be used for commercial purposes. The issue here is that when I approached the people featured on TCP, I only asked for their permission to have their shots used in this non-profit project.

If you just have to use a particular image from the current collection, I will try to contact the person involved in the image and ask for his/her permission. In the scenario where the person is uncontactable or prefers not to have his/her picture used elsewhere, I think everyone should respect the decision to decline.

That said, in the future, I will ask people if they would mind having their photos appear in media other than this site and act accordingly. For now, I hope people are able to understand where I am coming from and apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Thank you.

SGST FLEE!, GasHaus, 230906

Kimmie (19), Ban (18) & Foohua (18)

"Guess where I bought this shirt? I got it from Arab Street! There was a closing down sale at this shop. Eh, not bad yea?"

"My hair is shaved at the sides and the top is meant to be messy. I used to take half an hour to fix my hair. Nowadays, I take five minutes. You just need to get used to doing your hair."

"Yup, I did talk like a pirate on 19th September... PARLEY!"

Michelle (15)

"I think people were smaller back then. She was an air stewardess and some of her clothes are so small! This watch was my great grandfather's, which was later given to my father."

Charlene (20)

"Jo, stop touching my butt!"

Joanne

"My sister has a nice ass."

Stacey (20)

"This dress is from Bangkok. A friend actually got it for me. I think it costs less than ten dollars? She buys them in bulk to sell."

Jeremy (17)

"I go for gigs and things like that so I got my friends to do my hair for me. These are actually hard dreads. I chose not to do the whole head because I doubt my school will allow me to get away with it."

EDIT: I do apologise if I have mixed up some details for this post. I was running all over the place and didn't have the chance to jot details down like I usually do. Do let me know if there are errors and I'll be glad to fix it.

Haji Lane, 200906

Portia (24)

"I'm actually part-timing for my friend. The crowd at Haji Lane? It's mostly the working crowd or people from overseas. I think Haji Lane is marketed as the next 'In' thing at the moment."

I was done with thrifting for the day when I saw Portia chilling out with her friends and thought the fluffed up collar was an unexpected twist to her outfit.

SeptFest @ Home Club, 160906

Des (18)

"We learnt of the event through Today's Event (a section in The Straits Times)... no, I did not sew this dress myself."

Martina (18)

"I had nothing else to wear so I came up with this outfit myself. The top is pinned to the corset with a safety pin... Des sewed the dress herself."

It's almost like one of those fairy tales where one character speaks the truth and the other, the untruth. You'll have to decide yourself.

***

Updates have been spotty for the past few weeks due to my tight schedule. However, this week has to be the first where I kept encountering well-dressed people who are terribly camera-shy as well.

People, there's no reason to be shy!

Flea & Easy @ Zouk & Winebar, 100906

Tamara Lynn (38+)

"I think style is dressing according to what you think suits you. When you do that, people will think the outfit suits you. Style and the character are linked. Some people have the character to carry off some styles and others don't. Singaporeans have yet to find a style of their own. They are always trying to dress up like the West, the Japanese or the Hong Kongers. When you do that, you forget who you are."

I am not quite sure how well it shows up in the photo, but the lady is actually wearing a one-piece.






Selena (23)

'My friend gave me this haircut. She's not a trained hairstylist. She just cut and cut and then told me, "Ok! That's it!" I don't do much to my hair. I just get out of bed and leave it like that.'

Joan (19)

"I decided to cut an asymmetrical bob because the usual bob is so common now. The top is from my mom. I guess with more and more people wearing vintage pieces, it does feel a little less special now."

Tricia (20)

"The thing with the vintage trend is that there are some shops that claim to be selling vintage pieces but they are really brand new pieces from Thailand or Taiwan. I guess you have to know your stuff and what exactly is 'vintage'."

Nikki (21)

"I'm the sister of the girl in the purple vintage dress! Yea, I know we don't look that similar now, but when we were kids, people kept mistaking us for twins."

It is interesting to note that Nikki studies in SMU and Tricia is in NUS Law which is now located at the campus that used to belong to SMU.





Yi Lian (23)

"The boots are from Topshop and the shorts are the same ones when you last shot me!"

Sofie & Aletheia






Hafiz (23)

"Why am I carrying this bag? It's a mystery. This is a mystery bag."

The man might not be kidding. When we asked if we could peek into his bag, all we saw was black, black and more black. It's a wonder how he manages to find his things in it.

Xu & Xu, Takashimaya, 090906

Xu Ying Ying (25)

"I got this dress from Thailand... maybe three months ago? Floral prints were quite common when I was there."

Xu Yun Yun (24)

"I got this top from Australia. It's actually a one-piece top."

I am as curious as you are if they are sisters. I only noticed they both have the same surname upon reaching home.

National Lion Dance Championship, Ngee Ann City, 090906

Turns out today was the finals of the 12th Ngee Ann City National Lion Dance Championship 2006. Which meant the place was flooded with people and neon colours. While not exactly street fashion, I couldn't help putting up a few shots.



There are actually two men in the first picture who happen to look like one. I believe the lion heads featured are actually those of the Northern Lions meant for children.




Dr. Oddele & Vincent

"I am actually a dentist. No lah, I don't usually wear like this to work. It can get messy. I am from Indonesia, I'm in Singapore to eat... no lah! I am really here to catch Forbidden City."

We bumped into the lady while searching for a spot to view the ongoing competition and were charmed by her outfit and her great sense of humour.

Far East, 090906

Wan En (21)

"I just wanted an outfit to match my shoes. I usually wear simple colours like black, white, beige and red. Boring colours."

Doris (17)

"No one stares at my shirt."

Wing (21)

"I forgot where I got this jacket from."

Well, I certainly stared at Doris' trompe l'oeil print shirt. The straps peeking out are a delightful touch, they almost seem to continue from the print.




Ya Jiao (18)

"I just bought this skirt from Far East last week ago!"

Singapore Biennale Opening Party, Padang, 010906

It was dark, the music was overwhelmingly loud and I had to wrestle with a borrowed camera that I was not accustomed to. Many thanks go out to the great people in this post who were kind enough to let me take their shots and wait while the damn flash loaded.

(Offnote, the music was loud but really good.)




Adeline & ?

"AHAHAHAHAHAHA... WHAT? WHAT?!"

I was trying to introduce myself and ask if I could take shots of Adeline and her friend. I doubt I was very clear on the first as she kept giving me impish grins and going, "WHAT?" It was hilarious and exasperating at the same time.




Yilin




Zhining




Li Zhen

"I wanted to do this (the shaving off of her hair) for years. However, many were against me doing it. For example, my mother and my ex. There were issues about how I would no longer be 'feminine' without my hair. But I am really glad I finally did it. I no longer have to worry about how I look, how my hair frames my face and things like that. I am beyond such things now."

Topshop Girl, NUS Deck, 290806

Jacqueline (19)

We found this girl all togged in black looking game to go for a rock concert, standing out among the common mundanities of the school cafeteria as she oozed spunk decked out in an understated rocker outfit. This girl enjoys being different and admits to procuring her entire outfit from Topshop, citing ‘used to work there’ as an excuse. Gotta love her skinny jeans and vest!

- J. & L.