rio de sol winter lookbook 2012

Bikinis in the winter?! I know, that's what I thought when my friend/designer asked me to model the swimwear and jewelry line for Rio de Sol. The brand specializes in high-quality Brazilian swimwear and the collection includes a wide variety of styles and colors. Despite the cold weather, I was really excited to collaborate with her and fellow model, Marie, for the photo shoot. We (also including the make up artist and photographer) took a mini road trip to Yamanashi prefecture (west of Tokyo), all the way into the beautiful mountains. Beautiful, but freezing. It was almost 10 degrees Celsius and it started raining during the middle of our outdoor shoot. But the images turned out beautifully, so it was worth it in the end. Plus, we had Pancake the bunny participate in the shoot with us!

You can buy these sexy bikinis at katty.asia, which is the only store in Japan!

You can also view a video from the photo shoot here :)

Stay warm everyone <3

Love,

Samantha Mariko

Instagram outfits

(Outfit 1 sweater: Gap; hat: Loaves; leggings: Topshop; shoes: Zara; necklace: Forever 21)

(Outfit 2 sweater: Topshop; skirt: Zara; boots: Dolce Vita for Target)

(Outfit 3 sweater: Topshop; pants: Le Ciel Bleu; boots: Dolce Vita for Target; necklace: H&M)

(Outfit 4 shirt and hat: Le Ciel Bleu; skirt: Zara; sneakers: Converse; jacket: Vintage Levi's; jewelry: Forever 21)

Some recent outfit photos from Instagram. I linked the items I purchased recently - everything else I already had in my closet or I couldn't find it online. Which outfit do you like best? Enjoy <3

Love,

Samantha Mariko

when tomorrow comes

(dress: H&M; hat: Uniqlo; heels & coat: ZARA; bracelet: gift)

Photos by Lisa (paintwithstars.blogspot.com)

I'm so excited to share the photos from my shoot with Lisa, a photographer, writer and musician from Northern California. We shot at Rikyu Park in Shiodome, Tokyo. I had no idea this place existed - truly an amazing and gorgeous location. The weather was perfect, so perfect that I wasn't freezing in this H&M dress and barely-there heels. Even though we were still in the city, I felt at peace with the quiet & greenery surrounding me. I think the fact that Lisa & I are both from California made the collaboration so much more enjoyable, too. Rarely do I do photo shoots where the photographer captures a variety of expressions and emotions. So thank you Lisa :)

Please check out Lisa's blog (above) & don't forget to hype my look on Lookbook!

Thank you loves <3

Love,

Samantha Mariko

opposites attract

(sweater & skirt: g.u.; booties: Madewell)

Photos by Kidperez Photography - All Rights Reserved

Makeup by Niki Medina

Here are a few more shots from the photo shoot in Toyosu. I never thought leather could be coordinated with something so fluffy, but it somehow worked. For this second look, the makeup artist and I were deciding how to arrange my hair, but we ended up leaving it alone. Meanwhile, the sun was setting, so the photographer had to quickly snap these few shots. Ended up turning out nicely, though. I don't think I've ever had photos taken in natural light with such a clean, bright background. Love it. 

Have a great Friday everyone!

Love,

Samantha Mariko

happy halloween

There isn't too much you can do when Halloween falls on a Wednesday, but I met up with a friend in Shinjuku for some drinks after work and we luckily came across this Halloween-inspired brick toast at Pasela. I have a huge sweet tooth so I couldn't pass this up. What did you all do for Halloween this year? This was my first time celebrating the holiday in Japan and I had a great time ;)

Happy trick-or-treating!

Love,

Samantha Mariko