Free-Shopping

Catchy title I have, don't I? Especially for those ladies' readers.*envy*envy*

Subject: Dress For Work
Date: 2nd March 2008
Venue: KLCC/Mid-Valley
Time: 9.30am

When I received the email from the organizer, I was taken aback that the Management actually decided on this since I did proposed about it a few months back. Kekeke... this sounds so cool...

I'm both excited and worried, why? Because if the Company decided to spend on getting staff attires, it meant business as well, right? So, lots of questions throw to the Organizer and of course, I was pretty much aware why I was selected among 50 over staffs from all levels.

Actually, I feel honor, because I'm selected to get free-working attires and who do not enjoy to be given free clothes?! Basically, the agenda goes this way... together with 5 other staffs which I'm the only senior Executive, we went to KLCC with the Organizer to meet up Jane; our "corporate-look" consultant. Met her before in every year-end dinner of my Company and she is a personal friend of my MD.

First, we had brunch and we settled down chit chatting about our dislikes & likes regards to fashion, frabics and personal grooming. Jane prefers us not to make-up and she thinks a touch of lip-gloss should do the trick. And if we do not know how to make-up, never attempt to try it unless we go for proper classes. Hahaha.. I find that so amusing. She mentioned that she is always crazy about shoes and when asked how many shoes she have, she replied with a chuckled, "I just thrown away 60 pairs of shoes" and I was asking her, "six and a zero?!?!" with my eyes opened-wide. And she nodded her head with a big grin.

Then, she started taking out all the magazine cuttings that she had collected from various magazines and spread it out on the table and show us and telling us how we should dress for work and important meetings/appointments. And she goes on to talk about the hand-bags and the shoes. Sadly, she also agreed that we should allow to shop for shoes/handbags if we did not use up the RM800 budget given to us to purchase 2 set of working-suits.

Actually, when she is telling and giving all kind of tips, I actually felt that, "hey, I do know how to dress up for meetings and appointments! It's just that the MD never see me in them because I do not have those meetings and appointments with him together!" sighed... so, I choose to think positive, instead of being upset about MD's constant comments about my dressing, I concentrate to be happy that he is paying it instead of me. Hehehe...

SO, I have NEVER in my life enjoy a shopping trip as much as today... And constantly reminding myself, its FREE... its FREE... its FREE... Of course, I let Jane picked out my first suit and then, she actually asked me if I like it and indeed I was because I had been adoring the design she picked out for me since quite a while back. Just that I never had dreamt that there is a day like today that I can afford to purchase one. Its a matching-fabric pants & jacket and I had to go hunt for a blouse to go with it. This is tough task...

Meantime, I started looking for my 2nd suit and I lay my eyes on Zara's designs and I selected 2 of it to try on. Still looking for a matching blouse to go with the pants & jacket, Jane came to comment on my 2nd suit when I tried on for the 2nd time. She also love it and I just had to get the Organizer to pay for it. The rest of my junior colleagues are still struggling on their 1st suit and I'm happily looking for a place to sit and rest while helping them to pick up some choices and continue to hunt for a blouse.

Finally! We got into MNG and my eyes saw this spaghetti-stripped leopard-skin prints and I asked Jane, "What do you think?" and she goes, "Wow! That's wild... but do you like it? You do wear spaghetti-stripped?" and I replied, "Its okie, I don't mind..." and in my mind, "well, since it's free, why not.." and then, I took it off from the rack and then, she browse around and she saw this earth-green blouse and she asked me if I like that too and I took it and try them. And then, she said, she love the leopard-skin prints so much more... than the earth-green. Hahaha... come to think of it, both of us actually have similar taste, yea?

At the end of the day, 3 of us got 2 suits each and the other 2 colleagues could only get 1 suit each. And we had to call it a day by dinner time because it's been tiring and I'm sure the rest has been cracking their head to think of what to pick because Jane kept shaking her head to their choices and preferences. To some point of time, both Jane and the rest are pretty frustrated as their opinions clashes. Before leaving and saying our goodbyes, Jane told the Organizer she will not proceed with the 2nd-batch of Managerial level because she is not up to it anymore... Pity her but I happened to had some quick chats and I find her a nice lady with excellent taste for the corporate-look which I couldn't agree more that my Company's staffs dressing is so much lacking of it. Except for some that really put me to admire their dressings at work but I can easily said, there is only one or two only.