Singapore — With Lee Suet Fern and Ho Ching being daughters-in-law of the late Lee Kuan Yew and Madam Kwa Geok Choo, netizens seem to find it irresistible to compare the two.
The latest episode sees a handbag featured in a Facebook post, in which the younger Lee scion describes his wife Lee Suet Fern’s “latest piece of craftsmanship”. It seemed inevitable that netizens would compare this handbag to the one carried by Madam Ho.
In the caption accompanying the photo, Mr Lee Hsien-Yang writes: “My wife besides learning to make dresses, has also been improving her bag making skills”.
His wife, Mrs Lee Suet Fern, has also shown off her handmade quilts, as well as masks, bowties and quilted handbags.
Just like Mrs Lee, Madam Ho has also been in the spotlight for her bags. The first one that caught the attention of social media was a simple blue-and-white dinosaur motif pouch. Madam Ho was seen with that pouch at the arrival ceremony at the White House South Lawn. Priced at just $11, the pouch was designed by a student at Pathlight School, which specialises in teaching children on the autism spectrum.
While some praised Madam Ho was praised for the simplicity of her bag choice, she also drew criticism online over her choice of outfit, with netizens quick to jump on how Madam Ho’s outfit was no match for the “bright yellow floral dress” worn by the then US First Lady Micheale Obama.
Among the critics was aesthetics doctor and Save our Street Dogs founder, Dr Siew Tuck Wah, who commented:
“Its a historic occasion for Singapore Prime minister Lee and wife Ho Ching to be invited to the White House. But while first lady Michelle Obama made headlines with a Naeem Khan bright yellow floral dress, Ho Ching really could have chose something, well, more cheery.”
He added: “We need to get a stylist for her please.”
Mr Lee Hsien-Yang’s post on his wife’s handicraft skills inspired several negative remarks on Madam Ho, who is the wife of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
In March 2020, photos of Mrs Lee’s handbag were shared by a local Facebook page dedicated to quilting called 2Quilters.
Guess
Guess the younger woman has totally bagged it. That prompted her fellow quilter to caption the photo thus: “Local quilter, Lee Suet Fern, sent us pictures of her beautiful projects made with ByAnnie products. This is her taupe and green version of the Bowl Me Over bag using ByAnnie’s Soft and Stable foam stabilizer and Lightweight Mesh Fabric from ByAnnie”.
“We love the quilting she has done with her HandiQuilter Infinity long-arm machine for the panels and that gives the bag such a special touch. Fern’s speed at completing her sewing projects never ceases to amaze us”, they added. /TISG
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