THEY say two is a company and three is a crowd, so what does that make four people? A perfectly even team!
In that case, I wonder if there is a more iconic local fashion quartet than fashion-creative elites Jane Lau, Brian See, Ashley Lau and Daphne Charice, or, as they playfully nicknamed themselves, JBAD.
The fab four do everything together, from dressing up as Power Rangers for Halloween and celebrating Mother’s Day every year, to attending the Coachella music festival and New York Fashion Week.
However, since the announcement of the movement control order (MCO) that is currently in place to flatten the curve of Covid-19 infections, they’ve resorted to long-distance intimacy via FaceTime or Zoom to communicate during the weeks of social distancing.
It does feel like a distant memory when the majority of us no longer need to drag ourselves to the office each morning, let alone dress up for work for that matter.
Entering the fourth week of MCO, we might have noticed how dishevelled we’ve become as we spend the days confined at home in total comfort, with no grand sartorial gestures to worry about ... at least, until we’re summoned for a work video conference.
Fortunately, the Instagram account @wfhfits, founded on March 13 for the purpose of sharing work-from-home-fits with cheeky and overtly expressive commentary by the admins, has presented us with an insight into the closets of urban creatives.
The four fashion influencers have shared with us how they optimise productivity while working from home, while giving us a look at their day-to-day ensembles.
All the same, these unprecedented times of self-quarantine have never been more fitting for some much-needed reflection to reevaluate and reasses our values. The global pandemic has truly put things into perspective.
Jane Lau
“I have a series of routines that I diligently follow to make sure I stay productive every day. First thing in the morning when I wake up, I put on my gym attire to make sure that I work out each day. Exercising and sweating just feels good, and it also keeps me energised throughout the day.
“It’s also really important to take a shower to fully refresh myself before making any conference calls or virtual meetings.
“Even working from home, I still wear something casual, but never pyjamas. And speaking of working, I’ve built different corners at home to work, so that I can isolate my mind from thinking that I am at home.”
Brian See
“The best thing about working from home is that you can always wear what you like to feel the most comfortable.
“Even with the MCO in place, it’s not entirely that big of a deal or a struggle for me, since for the most part, I’ve been getting most of my work done, including creating content and replying emails from home.
“However, I do understand that not everyone is in a situation [where they can] remain at home, as we hope for a better tomorrow, which is the best we can do at this point.
“Throughout this period, I guess I’ve gotten sufficient rest and I do try to be as productive as I possibly can by creating different video content and planning projects ahead of the MCO, as well as working out and eating healthy.
“With that being said, there are days where I [feel] lazy so I would just watch Netflix or have a chat with friends.”
Ashley Lau
“As an up-and-coming tattoo artist and a DJ, I spent most of my time practising flash tattoos and discovering new music on the internet to add to my playlist.
“Throughout this period of time, I’ve even laid down a few smaller goals that I’d like to accomplish to keep myself motivated, while remaining productive at all times. One of them is to create at least five tattoo designs a day to improve my drawing skills.
“Since we’re all working from home, I do put some effort in dressing up at home even with nowhere to go, it certainly gives me all the more reason to create content for my social channels.”
Daphne Charice
“Productivity is relatively low at home since I can’t make my way to the music studio to make music as usual. Though as far as campaign gigs and projects, they’ve all been cancelled and postponed due to the MCO; however, there are still work emails to tend to.
“Regardless, I still try to brainstorm ideas to create as much content as possible to keep my followers on Instagram entertained; and that is when I’ll put on a full face of makeup and dress up for it, otherwise, I’ll just be in my gym attire or loungewear all day. [There’s no denying that] I find some days are better than others where I feel more motivated to do work.
“I also try to work out every day to keep fit, and eat clean. It’s a great time for some reading, learning a new skill, spending more time with family, tidying the house and most importantly, self-reflection.”
