Sunday, August 28, 2011

Features this month


Zee Lifestyle's Fashion Femmes

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Photos of me by Anne Uy


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Teenage Tasteland on the Philippine Star (Young Star)

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Shoes by Asian Vogue





MEG magazine's Music Issue (August 2011)

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It makes me smile seeing my mom pick up copies of things we're on... *sentimental music on* Growing up I was always too insecure to even imagine that I'd land on some glossies or the newspaper for doing things that I actually loved/enjoyed. I guess there's always that awkward stage in your life wherein your self-esteem's just... in the pits (mine lasted for years). I don't always write about features here but compiling them on one post just makes me SO thankful that I have things to look back on and look forward to even if I'm packed with things to do for school and work.

Please grab copies of Meg and Zee Lifestyle to read the full articles, friends! :)





Friday, August 26, 2011

Iceland and Morocco in the eyes of Vito Selma



My very talented friend and "kuya" Vito Selma was kind enough to send me his photographs from Iceland and Morocco a few nights ago. I envy this guy's life right now (who wouldn't?!) since he gets to travel all over the world, study Industrial Design for free and work under a huge firm in Italy. He deserves all of that, of course... He's my best friend Izabelli's brother and I can definitely say that he's one of those really hardworking Filipino designers who is just overflowing with talent and love for our country. He's one of my idols, really. His photographs inspired me to pick up a camera at a young age, and being able to see their factory while I was in high school sort of convinced me to really dive into the world of design. Even if he didn't finish Interior Design to focus on making furniture, that hasn't stopped him from creating amazing displays during expositions (and never fails to bag awards at each one he joins).
I think he took down his blog a long time ago, so he continues to post these type of beautiful photos only on his Facebook page. You can go to his viewbook or check out his design portfolio instead.
So here are some of his photos. I'd share with you the rest from his European adventures but I tell ya, there's just too many and they're all so pretty! He was too lazy to put a watermark on his photos that night so he told me to just fix them for my site. Chose Morocco and Iceland from his collection because of the scenery and the details in the interiors. Enjoy!!!






ICELAND

Vito met Bjork's sister through his friend Sonja, so he got to meet their parents (and he just HAD TO write that on my Facebook wall to piss me off, jeeeez hahaha). He says Icelandic people are the most fashionable people you'll ever meet. I think this is easy to believe since I remember Yvan Rodic saying that every kid there has a band and dresses impeccably. It's like they go out everyday looking like they've hired a brilliant stylist to dress them. Vito said that in Iceland they don't follow trends and they're just really creative. Even 5-year-olds are fashionable! I'm more pressured to really prepare my wardrobe before visiting! I think Bjork will be there when that time comes (she was in New York when Vito visited their house, HA HA HA!!!).

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I really wanted to cry when I saw this photo! Vito said that you could spot 3-5 rainbows a day at this time of the year!

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People keep asking him if he sends his photos to National Geographic but all he says is that those guys are PROs... And Vito, you're not?! Jeeeez :))

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Quirky shoes from KRON, one of the most expensive boutiques where Vito's friend works. LOVE IT.
Iceland only has a population of 300,000+. If I were to live there, my name would be Raleene Ralphsdottir and Issa/Izabelli would be Isabella Moisesdottir. We'd have to use our father's first name then dottir after it. HAHAHA! My brother would be named Ralph Ralphsson (he's Ralph Jr.).







MOROCCO

I decided to share these photos on my blog the moment the first photo below was posted on Facebook. These were taken inside a Moroccan riad, one of the small apartments converted into a hotel by its previous owners. I was amazed at how detailed everything looked and how nicely each tile was placed. The smaller details are hand-painted. According to Vito, there's really nothing else to do there so their interiors look AMAZING and they have all the time to put such details on everything. He's also visiting during the hottest time of the year. He said Morocco was a place for travelers, not tourists. Girls have to be more careful as well... One of his friends kept being bugged and a man wanted to buy her for 10 camels. Oh my gosh! :))

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The door on the left is the only thing you could see from the outside. "Never judge a house by its door."

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From Vito's window

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And here's just one of those enviable status messages he posts on his Facebook (mind you, he posts one or two each month!):

"DREAM COME TRUE. working with a documentary filmmaker, sustainable designer and consultant for a new program show for National Geographic. Empowering people with sustainable solutions in the Philippines and the rest of the world."
GAAAH. Make us proud, Vito!!! Thank you for sending me these awesome pictures!







Thursday, August 25, 2011

I'm a paranoiac in reverse.

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Hallo, friends.

Blogging backlog, yes I know. I have tons to share with you all- can't wait to post about them soon... I'll make up for it once our construction load's been lightened, I promise!


Anyways, here's a bit off the past 7 days (I've been a total bore so I guess you'll have to settle for this).


The night before we got ill...

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As you all know, I've been busy with my thesis this month and I've been overseeing our booth at the construction site everyday along with my group mates. We've hit the 6th day of the actual construction today, and so far it's been going well. I just can't explain to you how damaging it is to the body since our 1,200-sqft. hall is more like a concrete box with no windows, keeping in all the sawdust, paint and fumes inside with only a small opening for the entrance to let all of that out. We guard our booth for a total of 14 hours a day, with one-hour breaks for lunch and dinner. For most of the batch, it's their first time to experience the REAL world of interior design and even if it's the total opposite of glamour and fun, it's so amusing and quite fulfilling to watch our room getting built-up.

I picked up some sort of virus circulating around the site and I may have passed it to my beau (oops) during his 7-day stay here in Manila before he had to fly back to America. Our time together was basically spent trying to recuperate and do absolutely nothing but drink meds & fluids, chew on nasty lozenges... Plus we managed to bore ourselves to death with the telly.

This week marked our 2nd year anniversary and we've been planning to have some sort of celebration even before he came back for the summer. I knew I could leave all the planning to him since he thinks it's the guy's job, but he also knows that I never want him to spend so much for anything unnecessary. I just want some time for us to talk, have dinner. I hate flowers (am I the only one who thinks they're useless?) and those over-the-top cheesy gestures. They make me shiver.

The plan was to have dinner at a Japanese restaurant in Makati (Robot? HAHA!), but since we were SO sick that day- 39C fevers, mad tonsillitis, shivers, the works- he had to move the 6:00PM meeting time to 7:45 so he could "get checked by a doctor". I was so thankful that he moved the time since I was feeling horrible and practically took twice the usual amount of time to get ready.

I get to the condo, he meets me at the lobby so we could "go to the parking lot together", and hastily pushes the button on the lift to his floor instead of the parking lot since he "forgot his wallet"... I open the door and see this...


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"You're crazy."

But I was honestly just super kilig! For a while, we didn't mind eating with our poor tonsils screaming in pain.

Our celebration was short and sweet. Just the way I wanted it to be.
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Seriously thankful that he's the total opposite of me- thoughtful, cheeeeesy and sweet. Everyone says that if I dated my male counterpart, we'd probably end up with our iPads and carrot sticks in front of the telly on our anniversary... Not that it's a bad idea (in my world, at least).

Oh, and there was supposed to be a cake with the statue of liberty on it. Would've died laughing if he really went for that!

((I just realized how my creativity during special occasions and gift-giving hasn't improved... Take for example 2 years ago- my dad and I greeted each other a happy birthday over breakfast (yeah we share the same birthday), I gave him 5 cans of Altoids and he gave me a head of a Moriones soldier. FUN!))




Monday, August 8, 2011

Catwalk Cosmetics


I received a lovely package two nights ago. Got too giddy about it and I just couldn't wait to try out the highly-pigmented shadows...


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*lens cap included for size comparison



Thanks to Marj, I now have fun colors in my makeup kit! I've been overusing my NAKED palette for night-outs/gigs and I can't wait to use these eyeshadows from Catwalk Cosmetics for future events.

Will post more makeup looks soon.

[Visit & like Catwalk Cosmetic's Facebook page for more info]



Thursday, August 4, 2011

Apple Juice




APPLE JUICE by The Walkie Talkies
2010

LYRICS

I won't bother with love notes
My hope's not coming back up
Losing every bit of luck
Luck was never a friend of mine
Luck was never a part of my life

Life long dreams aren't
Always what they seem
Never expect and you'll regret
Only that's not what they tell
All the girls who are dating
Boys who are wanting to kiss and tell

Kiss and tell
I'm sure as hell
Not gonna tell on you
Between you and me
I'm keeping you beneath my teeth
Between my lips
My lips are sealed
No I'm not gonna go around revealing
Feelings of intimacy
See you in a while
I swear I'm not in denial

Dialing your digits
I'm fidgeting in my seat
Seatbelt's fastened
Hasten a bit
Call me old fashioned
But I'm looking for something
Sweeter than apple juice
Are you sweeter than
Are you sweeter than
Could you get any sweeter
Any sweeter than you?

I won't bother with take out
Won't make out any one liners
Fortune cookies served in diners
Aren't s'posed to be the source
Of any unnatural force

Forcing Cupid, I'm stupid
For thinking he's
Willing to make any difference
Our days are running out of time
It's not long now before
You're no longer around to kiss

Kiss and tell
I've been dying to tell you

That baby I'm

Dialing your digits
I'm fidgeting in my seat
Seatbelt's fastened
Hasten a bit
Call me old fashioned
But I'm looking for something
Sweeter than apple juice
Are you sweeter than
Are you sweeter than
Could you get any sweeter
Any sweeter than you?

Kiss and tell I'm sure as hell not
Gonna tell on you
Between you and me
I'm keeping you beneath my teeth
Between my lips are sealed
They're sealed for you to kiss
Now tell me
You are sealed for me to miss
C'mere and give me a...


Filmed @TheSoundCircle
by Luis Daniel Tabuena




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More local artists will be featured. I'm so excited for the next few videos!




And even if I rarely announce our upcoming gigs on this blog... Please drop by Route 196 this Saturday!

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