Living La Vida Fuchsia

This post is dedicated to my long lost sistah, Donita, aka Fuchsia Boy, ubber blogger and designer extraordinaire, aka the reigning Queen of Siem Reap of Khmerlandia.

I swear Donita is BIG, having shown his pieces at the Manila Fashion Week and having been featured in fashion magazines in Las Islas Filipinas.

The story of how we met and became friends is found in this entry that he posted on his blog last April. He is my YM buddy like on a daily basis, unless he's busy curating for this gallery in Siem Reap or designing clothes.

It's weird that I share my kinkiest secrets to a person that I have never met, much less see on the webcam. But truly, I consider him as a fabulous, fabulous friend.

Anyway, a long, long time ago he requested me to write a BKK shopping post for him and since then I've been working on this "story".

It was a long process indeed and I had to consult with the Council of Fashion Designers of America and the Chambre de commerce et d'industrie de Paris just so I get all the facts right, as well as get clearance from the Thai Ministry of Culture and the Export Development Board.

The topic is that delicate, and I went through such lengths of bureaucracy just for my dear Donita.

Without further fuss, I shall feature some of the best places to shop in BKK. It has to be noted that BKK is one big mall/market and there are countless, and I mean COUNTLESS, shopping areas around the city, it makes me dizzy just thinking of them. What I showcase here are the places that I'm more familiar with coz I go there once in a while.

Shall we start?...

(1) Chatuchak / Jatujak / JJ is definitely my first option for great shopping, especially if you don't have so much cash to burn. The diversity of stuff in JJ is astounding... from clothes, to furnitures, to books, to plants, and even freaking pets (the pet section scares the hell out of me).

I still find the place very daunting, simply because of its ginormous size and its maze-like layout. Before I hardly go there but Kiwi is crazy about the place and true enough, he has found a section of the market that sells really fashionable stuff (not made in China dear), and there are even some stalls by local designers.

(2) Siam Square is that bustling shopping area in front of Siam Paragon and MBK. I'm crazy over Siam Square, and it's probably my most favorite place to find really cool clothes, although the items here are not as cheap as JJ. Some designers are also based in Siam Square.

Every time I hang out there, I always, always snag something along the way, unplanned purchases of course. Aside from the mind-blowing array of items, I like walking around Siam Square only to ogle at the fashionable kids that swarm the area, especially on weekends.

Also, everyday, at around 9 pm, the sidewalk across Paragon comes alive when clothes sellers spread their wares for pedestrians. They have the cheapest clothes here and just recently I bought a pair of jeans (most probably second hand) for 400 baht.

(3) Central World is my second home. Oh, it's pronounced Centen Wowld by the Thais. Cute no?

It's definitely my favorite mall in BKK; however, no matter how often I go there I still get lost in it, which is a big insult to my sensational sense of direction. Hmp. Some of the shops I like visiting are Muji, 5CM, Flynow, Zara, Castro, and the sports stores.

Zen, the department store within the mall, has some of the hippest clothes I see around, with local and international designers sharing the place. They have amazing sales there as well, which should be around November and December.

I don't really shop at Central World (I could hardly remember buying anything from there). If I ever go there it's for dinner and movie with friends.

(4) Siam Discovery is Thai designers galore. I love, love, love, love Siam Discovery for that. It showcases the best of Thai design (or at least the more mainstream and affordable ones).

If I had enough money for shopping, I would definitely spend it all at Siam Discovery, only to support the fab local designers of this city.

Some of the more remarkable shops that come to mind are Playhound, Greyhound, and Flynow, in addition to a bevy of other hip shops (that I somehow forgot to take note of). The prices in this mall are Mahalia Jackson though, at least for my range.

(5) And lastly, how can I talk about shopping in BKK without mentioning Siam Paragon? Now who do I need to blow around here to give me enough baht for shopping at this luxurious mall?

Paragon gives me the best orgasm all the time... Dolce and Gabbana, Chloe, Hermes, Gucci, Kenzo, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Chanel, Valentino... Donita, this is where you belong.

One time I passed by Balenciaga when I saw one of their floral dresses for Spring/Summer 2008 and I literally froze right in front of the shop window while a squeal came out from my mouth. That always happens to me. You know, you just see these clothes worn my models on the runways and finally you see it for real, these amazing pieces of art!

Hmmmm... this is where the list ends for now. As I said above, there are more shopping areas in BKK, such as Pratunam, MBK, Emporium, Suan Lum Night Bazaar, and who knows where else.

It takes a soul with enough shopping fortitude to explore all these places, and Donita, if you come to BKK we'd explore these together. Keri? Keri!

And to close this post, lemme post some pictures of what I'm wearing right now, Fuchsiaboy style. Strike the pose!!!

The real diva...

... and the second rate trying hard copycat.