Not Your Average Woman: Siti Khalijah Zainal

Today, we travel to Jurong to visit award-winning Singaporean thespian – Siti Khalijah Zainal, also popularly known as Siti K. I recall seeing Siti K for the first time in the 2006 play “Why Did the Cat Get So Fat?” by my pal, Zizi Azah (also the younger sister of a recent Not Your Average Woman interviewee, Aida Eliza). And it was for her role in The Necessary Stage‘s Model Citizen that she won the Life! Theatre Award for Best Actress. Incidentally, The Necessary Stage was also crucial in kickstarting Siti’s acting career when she joined their Theatre For Youth Ensemble programme.

From studying building drafting at ITE Bedok, to a full-time career as a theatre actress in (what most people think is cultureless) Singapore. This woman is definitely not average by a far measure. One can only dream to be in her shoes, but most definitely though, if you wish, you can have a small bit of her by adopting part of her fashion philosophy.

• What is your dress/shoe size? Shoe size : 9 / Dress Size : UK16

 

• Describe Your Style I like the whole pin-up girls, rockabilly look. Mix that with a little bit of Hello Kitty and cupcakes, and you have me! 🙂

 

• What do you normally wear to work or a work event/meeting? I’m a dresses kinda girl, so i’m alway seen in one. When i’m in a rush, i don’t want to have to think about ‘what top goes with what bottom’ etc etc, so i’ll just grab a dress. They’re so easy, breezy, and makes you feel beautiful. Like a Cover Girl. :p

 

• Where and how do you shop? I like to shop on weekdays and during ‘off peak’ hours when it’s less crowded. Sometimes when rehearsals end early and i’ve time to spare before my next meeting, i’ll just window shop and i ‘accidentally’ buy things. But i mostly shop online for clothes, because there’s only a few shops in Singapore that have nice, affordable clothes for plus-sized girls like myself. And also cos I love vintage, my options are even more limited in the shops. I like Etsy because they have so many sellers selling so many pretty second-hand vintage dresses in my size, and they’re quite affordable. I can be on the website for hours, just looking at (and buying) those gorgeous dresses.

 

• What are your favourite things to buy? Dresses. Shoes. Accessories like flower hairpins and brooches, headbands, bows. Cute tops and tees. 🙂

 

• What are your favourite brands or shops? Shops: Dorothy Perkins & Marks & Spencer (Plus-sized girls-friendly); Forever 21 & H&M (Nice tops); Uniqlo (Comfortable basics). Flea Markets. Online: ASOS & Etsy

 

• How do you dress on your blah-days? Capri pants with a tee, or a cute top. With a flower hairpin, or a hairband. And sandals. 🙂

 

• When you were 12, what did you imagine your life would be like at your current age? Nope. When i was 12, never would i have thought i’d end up being an actress. I imagined myself working in an office, and wearing a lot of grey-ish and dark coloured clothings. Glad i didn’t allow that imagination to become a reality. But i also imagined i was gonna be fat though, and that part, sadly, is still a reality. :p

 

Siti’s not only style savvy but budget conscious as well. With well over 50 vintage-style frocks, she spends between SGD 100-200 each time. A lot of bargain-hunting done via etsy helps grows her wardrobe but prevents her pockets from emptying unnecessarily. Don’t buy entire outfits from look books! Learn the art of cobbling together your own look like the fabulous Siti!

For more of Siti’s fabulousness, catch her at … Dan Tiga Dara Terbang Ke Bulan (…and Three Virgins Fly to the Moon), playing at Esplanade Theatre Studio from 9-11 May 2013. Tickets available at SISTIC