Welcome To the Jungle

As of lately, I’ve found myself meeting lots of new people in Australia and adventuring places I'd usually skip. This has truly opened my mind to new and exciting activities in which my camera and friend Khai, is always there to document. After hanging with some friends and playing Xbox, Khai had planned to take me to some deserted car parks downtown for downhill skateboarding, and I must a note that a 9 level car park with an elevator taking us all the way to the top made it all worth it when we came back down.

The eerie feeling of a desolate car park can really place upon you, and open your chain of thoughts with a surreal feel. As I skated down the dim lit empty car park with the wind effortlessly waving all my attire and hair, the mood was instantly set. A combination of mismatched fluro lights with a scent of grit, made for amazing lighting that neither of us had really utilized in the past.

Thrifted camo jacket, Topman skinny carrots, Boxfresh hightop kicks, Yeezy Taugh Me Tee Unkown


Khai Van Kampen

Thoughts Abroad

Beige has never really been a colour I've commonly worn. Really, up until last year I wouldn't have been caught wearing this entire outfit. It's not that I wouldn't have liked the outfit before, I just wouldn't have made the effort when I was living in Australia. I believe many guys relate to this simply because clothes are so darn expensive in Australia. Since living in the Philippines I've been blessed to have the opportunity to indulge in different tastes in style simply because the clothes are more affordable. 

This Jack London button-down I picked up really tops it off. And when you simply include an additional colour like my Topman rucksack, the maroon colour gives the outfit a great finishing touch. But hey I'm no style guru, I'll let you be the judge.

Having a few hours to kill, my friends and I spent the time wandering around New Farm. It was lucky to even have the opportunity to bask in the sunny skies with all this rain constantly coming and going. But I really like this shot of Frip and I pictured above, aside from a nice photo, it's not often we have the time to hang out.

Taken inside the book room of my mates house. A house of which was once originally a private hospital in the early 70's, had then been converted into an 8 bedroom mysterious fort overseeing the beautiful city of Brisbane.

Desert suede Sebago shoes, Topman trousers, Arvust plain tee, Jack London button-down and Seiko vintage leather strap watch.

Photos by Khai Van Kampen

Casual Country

Well lately my blog has turned into quite the travel blog since arriving to Australia. Haha apologies if I make a big deal that I'm in Australia, its been a long time since I've been here last. Last night I stayed overnight in a small town known as Parkes in New South Wales. A renowned town famous for the movie The Dish. It's about a massive radio telescope that helped NASA communicate with Neil Armstrong during the 1969 Apollo 11. 

Aside from that, the weather is cold early in the mornings reaching a temperature of 7 degrees celsius and below. I absolutely love the scenery where I am even though it's quite deserted. The feeling of being up early in the morning with no one on the road is an amazing feeling of freedom. As the scenery changes heading south, the landscape becomes more lush, seeing the grass turning greener and the trees having more life. It's only a few hours now till I reach the city of Melbourne so hopefully I'll have time to catch up with Jasmine Curtis!

What I'm wearing: Brown fedora hat from Active, grey Arvust tee, oversize Levis button down, brown Topman pants, Aldo sneakers and ORIS Seamaster Automatic watch.

Unsurpassed Elements

What I'm wearing: Tommy Hilfiger button down (Ukay, thrifted), Industrie grey tee, ASOS green pants, socks  accessories from SM Accessories, Topman backpack and Chuck Canvas Boxfresh Shoes

Another rainy day in the Philippines is another opportunity for grungy street photography. I left the house wanting to wear my favorite colors and this is what I manage to put together: simple but more importantly, identical color tones. I see many people wear all shades of various colors but the tones are completely opposite and a lot of the times it doesn't look right. I guess its not a big deal when it comes to everyday outfits but when I see the people get it right, the clothes look awesome. 

After receiving positive feedback on my thrifted army jacket, I knew I had to refashion the brown leather elbow patched Tommy Hilfiger button down. Let me remind you that it only cost me 200pesos, plus another 100pesos for the laboring of the patches. So affordable and yet so effective - just make sure the tailor places the patch properly, unlike mine!

Mix & Match

Outfit: Pants purchased from H&M, Topman hat and sando, Country Road (click!) sports bag, watch by Axis Watches and Aldo shoes (on sale).

For a guy style blogger to be able to put together different outfits within 10 mins a day, I'm quite proud of what I've achieved through my blog. Haha I think girls have it easy, having so many different options of clothing brands and designs to choose from, when compared to guys, mens fashion is somewhat limited in the Philippines. Either way, this gives me the opportunity to mix and match different clothes and learn to make use of every piece of clothing in my wardrobe. From what I've realized when putting together an outfit; start off with owning a variety of pants made up of different colors such as blue, red, beige, green, orange and yellow. When having that done, you'll have realize how many more options you will have when mixing around different pieces.

Another Day, Another Dollar

Today's been a very busy day for me and also very rushed. This morning I had a shoot that started at 7am, hence why my blog post is up later than usual. The photos were taken by our shooting location in Eastwood. Haha unfortunately my quality of sleep last night wasn't the greatest, even though I had nearly finished a bottle of red to myself. Well, my plan to fall asleep early was a success, but up until now i'm all drained out.

When dressing for a shoot or a casting, I usually like to dress down and keep things casual/smart casual. But I do try to look presentable just incase I come across meeting new clients. Today, my whole outfit was purchased from Topman haha. It wasn't intentional but just by looking at the clothes, you can somewhat tell they're from the same brand. I think its something to do with the materials that shares a common interest.

This new bag I purchased from Topman cost me around 2,500p. It's quite durable and has the capacity to fit both my Macbook and camera.

Under the Weather

Shortly after these photos were taken, my camera lens broke. I'm so bothered, but I guess this is one of the consequences when shooting yourself within gusty winds. Who would have thought it would be so windy in Manila? Well the weather has been pretty poor lately and it would be nice to see some sunlight so I can start taking photos again - grey skies never motivate me to go out, just lucky I've been busy with work! 

Hope everyone is making the best out of their day today! Take care and happy Independence Day :)

Outfit

Plain V-neck from GAP, Skinny Carrot pants from Topman, button up shirt by Penshoppe and military boots from People Are People.

Comments

The military boots from People Are People set me back 2,500p. They're really comfy and easy to take on-off. I believe their still available so if you're looking to buy a pair of military boots of your own I suggest you purchase from there to get ya bang for your buck!

Lucid Layering

Outfit: Burgundy sando and blue skinny carrot pants from Topman, white button up by FCUK, belt and bracelets from SM Accessories and burgundy shoes from Shoelab (Topman)

Comments: Apologies guys for not being able to update my blog, I've been away from the internet for the longest time! As for Manila being so hot these days, I chose to go with my Topman sando layered with the FCUK button up, just so i'm prepared for extreme temperature. Weather these days have been so intense, even when I'm taking photos I can still manage to build up a sweat. At least when that time come, my shirt can easily be removed. Simple.