The Dictator | Why you won't find that Tory Burch frock Pippa Middleton wore

The Dictator: Proud? Hardly. The Adelaide Seahorse dress was in Tory Burch's resort 2013 collection (about HK$3,295 back then; www.toryburch.com). True fans will remember she wore it to the wedding of her friend Verity Evetts more than two years ago. The only part you've got right is that you have almost no hope of finding this seahorse-print dress of silk chiffon draped top, grosgrain waist and crochet overlay skirt. Forget it and focus on the brand. The Tory Burch pre-autumn 2015 collection is all about Sixties London and silk paisley. Or, if it's the seahorse print that tickled your fancy, Zara has a casual, sleeveless number in pastel greens and blues (HK$399; 70 Queen's Road Central). Taken with the top and skirt, all-in-one design? Snap up Valentino's white dress with pleated silk top and mirrored, crochet-like skirt (HK$83,500; Lane Crawford, IFC Mall, Central) or Kookai's lovely white rayon and pleated knit skirt dress (HK$2,480; Pacific Place, Admiralty). Just obsessed with Pippa? She also sported Carolina Herrera and Suzannah at Wimbledon, and has otherwise been seen in Emilia Wickstead, Hugo Boss, Tabitha Webb, Temperley and, of course, Alexander McQueen.

Sigh. Just another Western expat cliché, moving all the way to Asia only to live in a bubble approximation of "home". Given our talent for bursting bubbles, you came to the right place. Even if you've been stuck in the Bermuda Triangle of school runs, yummy mummy yoga and dinner parties, you should recognise Laneige (www.laneige.com.hk) from this column. Marketing itself as a moisturising expert using "water science" (aka purified mineral water), its name is derived from the French word for snow ("neige"). Sulwhasoo (www.sulwhasoo.com.hk), a luxury brand owned by the same company as Laneige, takes its inspiration from Korean herbal medicine and the ginseng associated with Gaeseong, the city where it was founded. Try its anti-ageing Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream (HK$1,500) or the Timetreasure Renovating Cream (HK$1,700). Feeling adventurous? Check out SkinFood (en.skinfood.com.hk) and sample its Snail, Egg White, Lentil or Black Pearl Caviar products (HK$15 to HK$595). Other brands to consider: Charm in Cell, The History of Whoo and The Face Shop.