In defence of staying glamorous at home — why fashion influencer Camira Asrori still believes in dressing up even in a pandemic

As we enter the second half of circuit breaker, the inevitable question lies: are we ready for whatever's ahead after life slowly restarts again? At the start of staying home, I remembered being hit by notices all over my Instagram stories, curbing anxiety over the peer pressure to be productive. Some friends had turned into bakers, readers and artists. Others had turned to binge shows like 90 Day Fiancé for comfort. Either way, there seemed to be this unanimous allowance of self-indulgence or improvement — whichever was preferred. In the same vein of self-care, another important concern arose: What do we wear now?

Cue the work-from-home fit; more a classification of looks rather than a definition of how they look like, they ranged from airy pyjamas to suits for Zoom presentations, mostly captured in a humble mirror selfie. Influencers like friend of Buro. Camira Asrori seem to have an unfair advantage when it comes to being all dressed up and nowhere to go, so I reached out to her to ask how and why she's been dressing up, and her commitment to staying glam all throughout quarantine.

How has life been in quarantine?
I started off really anxious as I'm always on the go with back-to-back meetings, events and a 1,000 other things. I couldn't imagine myself being stuck at home doing nothing. I was also staying at my grandfather's place at that time, which was not very "aesthetic" to take pictures for Instagram. I also didn't have the proper equipment — ring light, studio light, phone stand, etc. — to shoot content, so I kind of freaked out initially.

Thankfully now everything's in place. I'm back at my own home, albeit alone, but at least I can create content. I actually forgot that I decorated my room the way I like it — it's very Bali-inspired — so I feel at peace. I'm back to exercising three times a week with a daily yoga and meditation routine. I create content and take off days whenever I feel like it, without any guilt.

I'm low-key enjoying it, but I do miss my friends, travelling and partying a lot.

Why have you been dressing up during quarantine?
I mostly dress up when I'm shooting content. I also record my life on social media, so I change a few outfits in a day. I'll hang and re-wear them on another day if I don't sweat in them, so no worries about my outfit changes being bad for the environment! When I do yoga, I'll put on a cute fit. When I have lunch, I'll dress to match my food; also because I do food reviews sometimes to help home-based businesses.

Dressing up makes me feel good about myself. Especially when I put on makeup after a few days of going bare-faced. It makes me go, "Girl!". It reminds me I've still "got it", so that I'm good even after circuit breaker ends.

How do you find the motivation to dress up every day?
I've been doing yoga and other exercises more, trying to eat better, eat less meat, and wearing a waist trainer for eight hours daily. I've seen results in the short period of time we've been in circuit breaker. It feels even more amazing to dress up when I feel good about myself. It's all about the self-love these days.

What has your favourite "look" been so far?
I can't decide, I love all of them! I feel like a chameleon now because I'm always changing up my look, depending on the content I'm making or the task I'm working on. It's great because I've realised that my style is very versatile and I can pull off quite a few looks.

What's the secret ingredient to your amazing Tik Tok videos?
Honestly, my videos aren't based on original ideas. I have mad respect for the creators who've started video trends.

As a fashion influencer primarily, I try to film Tik Tok videos with a fashion twist. It helps to create stories related to what we're all going through, but I like to spice them up with my personality! For example, the Tik Tok video where I showed off my outfit to my neighbours came about after the circuit breaker got extended, it made me miss partying even more.

I also try to keep things relatable, like with the #boredinthehouse challenge. Most of the fashion Singapore fashion KOLs on Tik Tok seem to live in big houses?! I decided to do a fashion version of that challenge, embracing the "HDB life".

Would you advise everyone to dress up during quarantine?
Please go ahead if you want to! It will give you an instant boost if you need to feel better. That said, there's also nothing wrong with staying in your pyjamas. The universe has "gifted" us a 2 months break from life. So embrace each day however you want. Do what you like!

What can people look forward to seeing from you during/after the quarantine?
I don't want to push out too many products because I don't want to promote mindless consumerism. It's the last thing we need right. A lot of what is happening now is because of our selfish behaviour towards mother earth. I'd rather advise we all take a break and enjoy the little things in life and the time we have on our hands right now.