on the road again..

in just a few hours, I will be on the road again.. Travelling to a very rural kampung...

I seriously doubt they will have internet connection there.

Next week, the launch of the tv drama I have been shooting - 5 JINGGA - will be launched. I am looking forward to that. first episode is to go on air on the 12th of August.

fashion queries can be emailed to sasha_a_b@yahoo.com (this is for readers who have left comments requesting email address for such queries)

I will do my best to answer them quickly.... :)

sick or dying is not dead....

It's 7am on a Sunday morning. I'm in my bathroom feeling really sick and throwing up when I receive a message on my phone.

"Hi. We are on our way" - it reads. it's from the production team of the tv drama informing me they are on their way to the shoot location.

"Ok. But I am not well, throwing up too. I will be there asap." - I reply

"Ok. but be there before 8am" - came a very quick sms reply after that.

in this industry, only if you are dead are you allowed not to turn up for shooting. sick or dying is not dead... every actress, model and host in the world will tell you the same thing. i read in a short biography of Claudia Schiffer that she has done numerous photo shoots while she is sick, even with food poisoning.

somehow I drag my body out of the bathroom, get dressed and drive to the location. When I arrive I am quickly given a seat to sit in and they start applying make up on me and doing my hair. I keep a rubbish bin next to me the whole time just in case I need to throw up again.

Somehow I get through the scene and then I have a break. I flop down onto the sofa in the school principal's office and fall asleep. As I was falling asleep, memories of being sick in school and lying on the school office sofa came back to me.

A while later when I wake up and realise there are a few more scenes without me in it to shoot, I message my acupunturist and ask if by any chance she has an appointment free for me to see her immediately. Thankfully she does.

I really don't like take chemical medication. I much prefer to take the more natural apporach to healing. Hence my love of natural therapies like acupunture, reflexology...etc...

When I arrive in my costume which is a school uniform, she starts laughing...."I was wondering who is that school girl in uniform on a Sunday coming into my place?!"

"Help...please...I feel terrible...." I say

"Lie down...aiyoh...problem with your job is that you still have to work even when physically you shouldn't be" she says.....

Once i'm done I head back to the shoot location. I shoot a few more scenes then suddenly my stomach starts cramping again and my body is trying to throw up again but because I've hardly had anything to eat cause I don't feel like it, so nothing comes up....

I realise there is one more scene to shoot. Considering how I feel, I make a reqest I have never done before. I ask if my last scene of the day can be shot on another day. There is a discussion among the production team and one calls me and says very simply, "we need to shoot that scene by today"

see what I mean...sick and dying is not dead....

By this point, I am desperate and upset. I call a close friend who happens to live near the shoot location. "I know you are leaving to go overseas tomorrow and are probably very busy packing and getting organised but I really need your help now" I say on the phone..

When I arrive at my friend's house I collapse on the sofa.

"You need to eat. And you cannot shoot like this. Give me the number of your production team and I will tell them how sick you are., I don't think they really realise." says my dear friend..

"You can't do that. It will make me look unprofessional" I reply...

"But you're sick!!!!"

"But not dead.... please, just give me some food and can you drive me to my next location..it won't take long to shoot. It's only one scene.."I beg. My friend just shakes her head and doesn't argue with me anymore.

An hour later, I am feeling a little better and we go to the next location on Subang. It takes less than an hour to shoot the scene....

When I finally got home that night at almost 10pm, never have a been so happy to have shooting over for the day...

sex and the city movie!

Thursday last week I went to a private screening of the movie I have been waiting to see, Sex and the City! It was part of an event of launching Daphne Iking as spokesperson for a health brand called Nuvafemme.

One of my close friends Margarita came too. She is wearing a grey dress, clear plastic necklace and colourful embroidery bag I bought while shooting 'beauty secrets from the east' in India last year. I wore a top by Catherine Malandrino, beret is from Primark in the UK, woven clutch is from Anya Hindmarch and jeans from Zara. I think Daphne's outfit is from Bebe.

So what did I think of the movie?

At the end of it, I found myself thinking not about fashion, but about friendship. What wonderful friends all 4 main characters are and how despite their fights and misunderstandings, they are steadfast in their loyalty to each other and would never intentionally hurt each other.

I think everyone in the movie acted very well and the development in each of the character's story was believable.

And as for the clothes, fashion and styling....what else can I say but I wish I could meet Patricia Fields, the genius behind Sex and the City's iconic fashion status...I would beg her to play dress up with me and at least try on whatever she tells me too. Some outfits were ridiculous and unbelievable but I actually wish more people would really dress up more in daily life. Walking around the supermarket would be so much more interesting.

And I want a walk in wardrobe like Carrie's new penthouse apartment!

I think many scenes were edited out and I don't know why, cause when I referred to the book based on the movie, there were at least 3 whole scenes missing and 2 others cut short. And they were not sex scenes either.... strange..

I wil definitely buy this on dvd and watch it again at home!

At the food festival..

I just found this picture taken of me at the Food Festival. The dress is from Milo's. I bought it in Bali while I was shooting "Beauty Secrets from the East" and the last time I wore this dress was at the Coach launch in Jakarta. This time I borrowed the earrings from my sister. I can't remember what shoes and bag I wore with it this time.

The print is printed onto 3 types of fabric...velvet, silk jersey and the sleeves are a see through fabric. I think this is what stops the print from being too overwhelming.

latest pics..

A picture I took from my seat window on the plane back to KL. I thought the winding river looked so beautiful framed by the plane window.








This is me with my cameraman Khairuzzaman aka Mr President. If it's not for him, I wouldn't come out on tv! We first started working together last year shooting Beauty Secrets from the East.

This is what showed on the small tv screens on the plane as we land. I wonder where the camera is located on the plane that is giving us these visuals live as we land.

The other 3 members of the crew. from left to right, Push who does lighting, Fadli who is the producer and director and last on the end is Aiemax, the photographer.

On the set of the tv drama with my 'teacher' acted by Tony Yusoff.

A scene being acted out by Tony with my other 'teacher' acted by Amy Mastura. I used to do some back up dancing for Amy Mastura too many, many years ago.

how i'm feeling..

this painting best describes how I'm feeling right now...

My flu has gone but I'm still definitely not well. Rushing to meeting now and then full day of shooting. as the sms read "be prepared to shoot until 1am".

as mr manager just wrote in his blog, this industry is 99% perspiration and 1 % inspiration. so true. Unless you're dead, you have to be at the shoot location.

home!

yay! back at home...

only unpacked a little cause now got to get some sleep before a full day of tv drama shooting.

can't wait til i see everything go on air on tv in the next few months.

will do my best to upload some pics tomorrow night!

at airport on my way home..

as i write this i am waiting to board plane to come home. am waiting to board plane to come home. i am going to miss the plane to come home. i am going to miss the food here. wonder what my little furry monsters have been up to.

another travelling tip, carry a big tote bag as handbag on board flight cause you will always buy last minute things at the airport. souvenirs, duty fre...etc...

when i get back, straight away start shooting tv drama again.....

update you again soon!

things i've learned while travelling...

here are some things I have learnt over the past 3 years while shooting documentaries...

1 - you do not need to know how to speak english properly at all! it's actually better if you speak broken english cause it will be easier for people to understand you....be good at communicating with sign language..

2 - cash is king! especially US dollars...

3 - always have small notes...

4 - bring some snacks with you from home that you are familiar with and enjoy eating to help you out when you're hungry and can't find food that you are comfortable eating..

5 - bring nice room spray to spray in your hotel room to make it feel more homely...

6 - girls, ladies, and women.... when you travel, it can cause havoc to your cycle. bring everything you need just in case you get it even if it's not due..you know what I mean... :)

7 - learn how to interpret signboards...

8 - if you get lost while walking around, don't panic. just ask for a landmark you can remember seeing and always, always remember the name of the hotel you are staying in....

9 - bring all the medication you could possibly need from home. if you suddenly get sick, you don't want to be trying to communicate in sign language asking for the right medication. something is sure to get lost in translation...

10 - bring comfortable walking shoes!

11 - stay in contact with family or a close friend while you are travelling just so that someone knows where you are and how to contact you in case of an emergency...

12 - even if something bad happens, try and see the humour in the situation and remember that it will be a great story to tell when you get back..

ouch!

the shoes caused such bad blisters that I had to put tissue over the area and just tape it down with masking tape..

"Aiyoh..sha...betul ke kau nak keluar jalan-jalan dengan kaki kau balut-balut macam barang rosak?" asks the cameraman and technician...

"habis tu i nak buat macam mana?! no choice lah..."

today my make up cracked...yes....cracked cause it was so thick and shooting took a long time, so tomorrow morning I have to re shoot a couple of shots we couldn't get today...

like a geisha

Kylie Minogue has done it...

Madonna has done it too..

I am inspired to do it too..

Thank you to all who sent get well wishes, I am feeling a little better but still not fabulously great. Shooting suddenly feels very tiring. Maybe it's cause of what I have to wear all day too and the shoes are painful and I keep feeling like they are going to fall off my feet.

To reader heaven-nevaeh, I think you should get the second bag in all black because white is so difficult to look after. You can never go wrong with black.

down with the flu..

on the way here, on the plane, I started to have a sore throat..

now today, I have a full blown case of the flu...

so annoying...during shooting today I had to keep hiding a tissue in my hand...

and try not to make it sound too obvious that I am not well....

Hopefully I am better tomorrow...

answering questions..

Since hari raya is just around the corner, have you got any baju raya made for this year? or if you're going for any ready-made baju raya, where do you normal hunt for some good ones? Does your family members dress in 'theme'? Thanks.

I haven't even thought about baju raya yet. As far as I can remember, my family never dresses in a 'theme' for raya. And sometimes I don't even get a specific baju raya. I just wear something I already have in my wardrobe. I don't go to any one particular place for baju kurungs, but around raya time, there are so many little shops stalls in shopping centres that sell some great pieces. I just usually look around there.



i really need ur suggestion on what theme colour should i choose for my wedding day...and please advice on the design for my baju nikah...i really need help from u

I personally prefer off white to pure white. And gold is always regarded as 'warna keagungan'. So my suggestion would be to go with an off white and light gold theme. Design for baju nikah, a very simple baju kurung, slightly fitted if you like, and the baju kurung doesn't need to be fancy. I think it's better to spend on your selendang/tudung. Get a really nice embroidered one.



sasha..just want to ask your opinion about 80's fashion b'cos i'm having dinner with theme 80's and i'm wearing tudung..do you have any suggestion on it?because people always seem to think about polka dots everytime they talk about retro fashion..

I hate polka dots! When I think of 80's fashion the first thing that comes to my mind is the two hit soap operas of that decade, 'Dynasty' and 'Dallas'. Everything was over the top. Big shoulder pads, huge rhinestones, sequins everywhere... A top with big shoulder pads, rhinestones or sequins then with a matching tudung and long skirt should be just find. To see what I mean, google images '80's dynasty fashion'. All the best!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In a few hours I will be on a plane going somewhere that I have so been looking forward to going to. I hope it is as beautiful as I imagine it to be....

back in the office!

I arrived back in my office five minutes ago. I am so glad to be back. The first thing I am going to do after this is go to the hairdresser. My hair is a complete disaster...

I have checked my comments and there are a few fashion related questions asking for advise.. I will get to it..

Will update you soon!!!

packed again...

my new suitcase has been packed...again... I've actually decided that I don't enjoy packing and unpacking..i always wonder what have I left behind and if I have everything I need.

Lord Derbyshire can sense I am going away again cause he recognises the suitcase...

My room looks like a tornado or typhoon had been through it. There is stuff everywhere and I don't ever have the time to tidy it all up properly.

Right at this moment, I feel like I could sleep for 3 days....

lots to do...

as i'm sitting here I have no idea what to write...

joberg has killed yet another bird. The evidence - feathers in the laundry. The eye witnesses - my brother and his friend.

Schizo has hurt her eye. Probably in a fight.

tomorrow shooting again for drama. press conference for drama is in 2 weeks.

packing again for trip this week..

and I have to find ways to cut a massive budget for episode 11.

I hate budget constraints. don't we all....

the 'sex and the city' movie - book

I found at Kinokuniya today the Sex and the City movie book. It's fantastic! It has full story and tons of picture of the girls in their costumes and a whole chapter dedicated to the fashion with details on each outfit..

This book is going to keep me occupied for a while.. :)

answering questions

1 - do you think the sale on net-a-porter is cheaper than our sale in Malaysia?

Honestly, I don't really know cause I haven't had a chance to really compare prices. But one thing is for sure, net-a-porter has a lot more choice of designers! Bear in mind though buying online is always just a little risky cause you might not like how it fits you when you get it. I still say trying it on in the shop and seeing and feeling how it fits on you is the safest thing to do.

Some other websites which I have not personally tried but very stylish friends of mine have are

www.matchesfashion.com
www.brownsfashion.com
www.mytheresa.com
www.luisaviaroma.com

I browse these sites a lot but I haven't bought anything from them yet so I am not too sure how it works.



2 - How do you manage your time? You do so much and always look good!

Thank you for the compliment. :) I have had several readers ask me similar questions and my most honest answer is that I have no idea how I manage my time. Basically I just try not to waste time doing things that have nothing to do with what I am doing and doing things I don't enjoy. And ask anyone who has had the misfortune of seeing me after a long flight or journey and they will tell you that I do not always look good! Aiemax and Jay, my two regular photographers have got more horrible pictures of me than good pictures! I just never publish the bad ones. :)