Bottled Sky

Dresses are for lazy people. I should know — I have a closet full of them. With dresses I don’t have to think too hard about putting together an outfit. I just roll out of bed (after hitting snooze approximately 23 times), throw on a dress, and I’m ready for the office.

During a recent closet cleanup I realized that because of my love affair with the snooze button, a lot of my clothes are going to waste. Right then and there I decided to give my wardrobe a much needed workout. That means planning at least five outfits during the weekend, so I can keep my usual morning routine without ending up in the same dresses week in and week out.

It’s been going quite well so far. Just for kicks, here are the outfits I wore last week — not a single snooze-button dress in sight. (Also, holy awkward poses, Batman!)

Vintage Monday. These clothes basically came from other people’s closets.

• Ruffled floral-print top – made from a vintage dress that I had altered into a top and a skirt
• Purple skirt – hand-me-down from my mom who wore it in the early 90s
• Rust leather belt – vintage Esprit from my mom’s attic
• Cosmic latte (yes, it’s an official color!) peep-toe slingbacks – Vincci
• Purple chiffon flower hair clip – Montip

Continue reading Wardrobe Workout: Week 1 »

If I worked at a leave-your-imagination-at-the-door corporation and excitedly told colleagues that I had just seen a dinosaur-shaped puddle on the way to the loo, the normal reaction would have been to say, “What the hell are you smoking? Go back to your cubicle and finish writing that 37-page report that no one will bother to read.”

Luckily I work at a quirky company with people who can appreciate a little silliness here and there. Case in point: when I dragged my coworker, Gabe, to see the said puddle, he snapped a photo, edited it to create the diagram below, then sent an email announcing the momentous dinosaur sighting to the rest of the office.

Nikki and Gabe, brand consultants by day, wicked awesome archeologists by night.

Continue reading Dinosaur Sighting »

Our office has a small courtyard filled with large potted plants, some taller than I (and one we named Gilbert, just because). Sometimes when I get sick of staring at my computer, I step out for a few minutes of sunshine.

In other news, my online portfolio is a finalist at Unique CSS. If it ranks highest at the end of the month, I will get $25. Cue shamelessness. If you have a bit of time, drop by and give my site a 7 rating!

I am in a bit of a bind at work. We’re developing a new matchmaking website for one of our clients, and I’m in charge of coming up with the domain name. According to my boss, the name has to convey the “magic of falling of love.”

I tell you, it is as if the universe is punishing me for all those times I ridiculed people who celebrate monthiversaries. May I remind you that my idea of a romantic Valentine illustration is a rusty robot who fashioned a heart out of an old refrigerator door? Somehow I feel that RefrigeratorHeart.com would be completely lost on my boss.

When I asked a friend for suggestions, the best thing she could come up with was ICanHasMatch.com (inspired, of course, by the ever entertaining ICanHasCheezburger.com) Thanks, FRIEND.

Aside from naming the website, I also have to suggest features and apps that would be appealing to our target audience. For someone who has never even had a Facebook or MySpace profile, that’s a bit of a challenge.

Cue my desperate call for help. I need you to indulge me by describing your ideal matchmaking or online dating website. It doesn’t matter whether you have ever used those kinds of sites before or not. All suggestions and opinions are welcome! You can use the questions below as a guide.

• What features would you like a matchmaking or online dating website to have?
• What would turn you off from joining or continuing to use a particular matchmaking or online dating website?
• What features of your preferred social networking site do you like best or use most often?
• What type of look and feel would you prefer?

Please share your thoughts. You can’t see the expression on my face right now, but my pleading eyes would make Shrek’s Puss in Boots proud.

Thanks so much in advance!

Last Monday I turned 24. It was my first birthday in Singapore, my first birthday at work, my first birthday away from home, and most importantly, my first birthday with two cakes (although I only got to eat one of them).

The first cake came from my coworkers, who threw me a surprise lunch at the office. I went to work expecting nothing, so I was caught completely off guard when they all started singing “Happy Birthday” at noon. Aside from cake we had pizza and a yummy salad that Haydee, one of my coworkers, made herself. They also gave me a large card that they had all signed.

While I can definitely report that my first cake tasted delicious, I can only say that my second cake looked delicious, because I was merely able to enjoy it—and the rest of the birthday dinner my family had prepared for me—over Skype. I chatted with them after I got home from work and “blew” out my birthday candles via web cam. Even our dog Biscuit joined the chat. Check out this picture and tell me she doesn’t look smart:

I swear that dog is a genius! She had her front paws on the keyboard, and somehow she managed to shut down the computer in the middle of the chat by pressing ctrl-alt-del TWICE. Next thing you know she’ll have her own blog, “Biscuit, PhD: The Secret Life of a Canine Genius,” where she’ll write about the digestive repercussions of snacking on dirt and share the best yoga techniques to make gnawing at that hard-to-reach itchy spot at the base of the tail a breeze.