THE FRAMES HAVE IT ] A cute new angle to your dark-rimmed specs

A piece of eyewear from As In. Of shopping for merchandise, Shireen says, "I love going to new places and looking for local crafts and products. I got the jewelry from all over the country -- Negros, Cebu, Baguio, and Mindoro -- and the other goods from Thailand, Indonesia, and Japan. Since I can only bring back what fits in my suitcase, everything is limited in stock."

Most fashionably dressed young men in the city these days pair their slim outfits with black-rimmed glasses. Shireen Seno, who likes to shop for quirky things and slightly odd tchotchkes, suggests maybe its time to step out a little from that, ugh, frame of mind.

Let's begin with the glasses. Shireen's loot of black-rimmed eyewear, available from her online store As In and soon in her own shop of the same name in Mahabagin Street, offers new angles in your choice of specs. A filmmaker and mixed-media artist raised in Japan, Shireen, who sports an oddly-shaped bob, likes to wear a piece from her collection herself. "I got myself a pair a year ago when I was in Bangkok, shooting a documentary on Elvis impersonators and their kids. I'm a sucker for wood, so naturally that's what caught my eye."

A circular way of seeing things. Of the decision to open an online store, Shireen says, "It came naturally, before we were able to set up the actual shop. I like taking photos, and I have a basic background in making websites. Having a presence on Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr helps get the word around."

What catches her eye most often, when shopping for personal effects, is a certain "youthfulness and timelessness. Simple designs with quirks that set them apart. Particular colors, shapes and proportions. Fine materials and construction. Ridiculous attention to detail. I think it has a lot to do with growing up in Japan, where most things are done with the utmost care and precision." She's planning to expand the range of the eyewear she carries by adding pieces in bamboo and horn. In As In, she also has shirts and jackets.

These jackets at As In, according to Shireen, are "100% cotton and unlined, which make them light enough for our climate. I don't have any sewing and needlework skills. Sad! But I like to think I make up for it with an eye for good design and a feel for materials and craftsmanship."

And accessories, a sample of which is one that is made of different kinds of plastic and wire. "The other necklaces are made out of wood, reed, shell, and other natural materials. I also have some made out of recycled newspapers and magazines. Others are cast in clay and painted." Shireen has added a new accessory herself to her personal everyday wardrobe of indie filmmaker chic--a marquise-cut diamond solitaire ring given to her by the filmmaker John Torres in an engagement party (complete with kundiman singers serenading) two weeks ago. "Oh wait, he actually gave me a different ring to begin with, and then two more to choose from! The marquise was an afterthought for him, but for me it was the one. I almost wish he had chosen it, as if it were a test and he guessed correctly.. but that's just me being a spoiled hopeless romantic. He amazed me just by giving me a choice."

Which is exactly what Shireen is giving the curious stylistas she wants to attract via As In. (A choice we mean, not an engagement ring.)



Visit As In Shop here. Or soon at the store located at 59 Mahabagin Street just off Maginhawa in Teacher's Village, Quezon City.