i’ve been obsessing over getting a new tattoo. i have a small one on the lower right back. yes, cecile calls it a tramp stamp. LOL. i got it when i was 19. i was in my “pa-cool”/”pa-angas” phase – i had a tongue ring and i had a tattoo. don’t hate me, it was the 90s. hahahaha. come to think of it, i could not imagine going through final round finance/banking interviews with it, but hey, i got offers. eventually, i took them out a month before college graduation thinking i’d have to be an adult and really – who ever saw a banker/finance person with a tongue ring?

so yah, the tattoo. i have chinese characters meaning peace. not that i regret it, it was a silly thing that i didn’t really give much thought. now at 30, i’d like to cover it with something more “meaningful” and i’ve been thinking about it for some time until the other day when cecile shared with me such a beautiful quote from coco chanel.

“to be irreplaceable, you have to be different” really touched me. although boring compared to some people, i’ve always thought i was a little bit unusual – a little bit eccentric, a little bit over-the-top, a little bit loud, a little bit high-maintenance. and what better way to represent coco chanel and her own little quirkiness and passion for life, all of which i can totally relate to, but of a beautiful camellia flower.

chanel fans all over the world know that the brand’s official flower and symbol is the camellia. incidentally, camellia flowers also mean desire, passion and refinement. i want it exactly like the one pictured above, black with white lining. with a pearl in the middle.