THE PURSUIT OF PRICELESS PLEASURES
“When I was younger, I wanted to wear Comme des Garçons every day, and because I couldn’t afford it, I would only buy one piece every time,” shares Cecile Zamora. The internet personality, businessperson, and DJ is sitting on her Kevin Cobunpue Chiquita Stool, surrounded by artwork and interesting, well designedfurniture, like a set of Eames chairs that surround a custom-made table from Triboa Bay Living.
Nowadays, Cecile can afford the Japanese brand designed by Rei Kawakubo, but her tastes and sensibilities have changed. “I’ll wear it with basics from Uniqlo,” she says. “Wearing what you want and not conforming is a luxury. I think many people concern themselves with dressing a certain way to imply wealth, but I was never like that. I wear what I want.” Someone who has observed fashion from an early age, her point of view was developed from the very beginning. “I’ve never been into dressing up in obvious labels.”
A life of Birkins is not for Cecile, but her favorite extravagance is travel. “On social media, you’ll see that certain people travel every month, but I travel less because I want a certain flight or a certain hotel.
I’m high maintenance,” she admits sheepishly. “It’s not something I am proud of, but, for me that’s luxury. I’d rather have less and spend more than have more and spend less.” When booking hotels for travel, her main priority is the bathroom. “It’s not enough when they say, ‘it’s clean,’ ” she says, laughing. “It has to look beautiful because I’ll step in there and you want to feel nice when you see yourself in the mirror.”
Cecile once followed her dad’s advice about not holding on to money so much, but life has its ebbs and flows, and Cecile is no different. “Reality starts to sink in about what you can actually afford,” she says. “I want to be able to live within my means. There are some things I want to experience but I have to save up for.” Right now, that means a stay at Aman Tokyo. “Someday, I’d like to stay there,” she says.
Her greatest luxury nowadays is having time to do what she wants. She got into DJ-ing, something she enjoys, and which perplexes her friends. “In my age group, people ask me how I can stay up so late, but that’s because I like sleeping in the morning,” she says. “I’m so masungit in the morning, so it’s a great luxury, being self-employed and waking up when I want.”
Nowadays, people have managed to monetize themselves online. Cecile started with a background in journalism before she began her blog Chuvaness 18 years ago. She clearly remembers milestones, like when she hit a certain number of views and being told for the first time in public that a reader was a fan. Those days are a time she considers a blessing because she was able to stay home and maximize her time with her kids. However, over time, the shifting tides in the blogosphere led her to realize it was time to take a step back. “There’s a new batch of influencers that are younger and more willing to put themselves out there, in a way that I don’t want to,” she says. “That would be joining the bandwagon, and I don’t like being on the bandwagon—that’s conforming. Nowadays, I can say no to things I’m not comfortable with, even if I’m turning down money.”
Cecile is all about self-love. She shares that her lifestyle now was not necessarily what she had planned for, but is all the more appreciative for it.
“I’m at a transition stage in my life. I go shopping, hang out with my friends, DJ. It’s nice,” she says. “It’s not something a lot of people can do because they’re working.” She remains staunchly against eating vegetables. “This is always surprising to people,” she says, laughing. Another thing that surprises people about her is her remarkably tall son. “He’s seventeen now,” she says proudly. She is a big fan of Marie Kondo and is now cleaning her house, batch by batch. “It’s so fulfilling,” says Cecile. “You can’t do it in one day. “And then when you see that corner that suddenly brightens up, it feels good.”
CECILE ZAMORA