handmade with love

I made something new again today: another handmade necklace (which I am most satisfied with out of all the necklaces I've done so far). Still working on better combinations, but the ends and quality of this one are much better than my work before.

daily print: tablecloth/pillows

Some tablecloth and pillow prints around the house. 

the joy of eating

One of the two things I do and enjoy most in my life (aside from sleeping): EATING. I'm pretty sure all my friends are used to (and might probably be annoyed) by the fact that I always take pictures of my food (yeah, i'm one of those people). But I really don't care. I can take photos of every single thing I eat no matter how many copies of the same dish I have. It makes me remember that moment of happiness when I get to try something new or eat my absolute favorites.

Macaron at Le Petit Cheri

Cinnamon at Cinnabon

Opus' Beef Wellington 

Opus' Lamb

Mona Lisa's Caprese Salad 

Mona Lisa's Margherita Pizza 

Salmon Sashimi at Geisha

Conti's Turtle Pie

kape kape sunday

Kape-kape is family time with the mom's side. The gathering is often done at night after dinner, but today it was spent lunching at home, celebrating two birthdays and a despedida, eating nonstop and drinking coffee, Skyping with loved ones abroad, and playing King of Opera. Nothing more comforting than this! I especially love the coziness of it all during this gloomy, rainy, Sunday. 

There really is nothing like family time after nights out with friends. It really balances out the whole weekend, relaxes me and prepares me for a hectic week at school. 

scarf making

As a birthday gift to one of my very good and long-time friends, I decided to make a scarf. 

Scarf-making started with my tita Marisa (my mom's sister who's very, very creative). She is actually the one who provides me with the materials I use. Every time she comes to visit, she brings with her some materials for arts and crafts, which is why a lot of the things that I have are from her. She was even the one who taught me how to use the sewing machine and make handmade notebooks! 

Note: a lot of the art materials my tita brings back to the Philippines are actually scraps from different stores in Canada. She buys the scraps from shops and turns them into an art project of some sort. Some strings used in scarf making are actually scraps from Canadian stores.

EDIT: The strings used in the scarves aren't scraps according to my mom. Some strings are actually imported from Italy! 

Here is the scarf I made for my friend Isa. 

Made two more scarves when I woke up this morning.

The little mess in my working room now.

sewing

After years of regret for not listening during my Woodrose home economics class, I am finally relearning and appreciating the art of sewing. I've been longing to get my hands on the old Singer which was given by my mom's sister, but I had no clue of how to use it. The other day, I finally got to use it. My tita Marisa, who is visiting from Canada, took some time to teach me how to use the machine.

Great photo taken by my sister Chesca while I was being taught. 

My first few stitches. 

My first pouch! Don't be fooled--the fabric is just gorgeous. The stitching is still quite bad. 

Attempted a draw-string pouch and here is the outcome. It actually turned out better than I expected, but still needs more improvement in the workmanship. 

Got frustrated while trying to make a few other things so I went back to the basic for more practice. 

Takes a lot of practice, patience, and getting used to the machine. Hopefully in time I'll be able to learn more and make more! 

jing monis salon

Went through some of my iPhone photos to find the Preview BTS shots and came across more behind the scene shots from my first ever shoot with Midnight Bonkers.

Last May 25, I got the opportunity to do BTS for the Jing Monis Salon project. It was a first for me, so I was really excited and at the same time nervous because I didn't have any apprenticing or out of school shooting experience with videographers. I got even more nervous after finding out the group of people we were going to shoot, because not only were the videographers talented artists, so were the models and photographer.

Here are some behind the scene photos at Bellevue.

The It girls + Mark Nicdao + Midnight Bonkers + Jing Monis = amazing first apprenticing experience ever! It was a tiring one-day shoot but I loved every minute of it. Being around these professionals really was so overwhelming and inspiring. 

I continued joining Midnight Bonkers in some other projects for Preview, Folded and Hung and Unica Hija (Philippine Fashion week) that were all equally enlightening and fun, and really taught me a lot about what my course entails. 

Hoping to be able to shoot alongside Midnight Bonkers again soon! Thank you Dondi Narciso, Ejay Leung and Paolo Pineda for taking me in! 

preview best dressed 2012

Check it out! Here's the video for Preview Best Dressed 2012. At the time this was shot, I was apprenticing for Midnight Bonkers so I got the opportunity to shoot with them for this project (and a few others).

Wasn't able to take much BTS shots, but here are some I was able to take with my phone.

geisha

Anton and I finally tried out Geisha, a Japanese restaurant in the most recently developed area of Bonifacio High Street. My friends Nico and Sam have been recommending we try it, and after seeing some photos of the meal they had, Anton and I decided to check it out.

Some photos from our dinner

Salmon sashimi, Spicy Tuna roll and my Tempura. Aside from this, we just got Miso soups and Anton got his Gyudon. Just the usuals to satisfy the craving.

Good food, classy ambiance and great service! The food was delicious and the presentation really pretty! Of course I couldn't help but take photos (Instagram). Plus the friendly and accommodating waiters made our meal even more enjoyable!

All worth the slightly pricey bill. Check it out! Just a restaurant away from Nolita. 

jako

For those who haven't, meet the family favorite.

Our pug Jako.

necklace

Finally finished my first necklace! Unfortunately, the extra long string I used was still not long enough, so the necklace is shorter than the desired length. I can still wear it, but because the ends have to be tied, it's harder to put on.

A lot of improvements still have to be made with regard to the ends. Been itching to use the locks I have but since I'm using a lot of string, it's so difficult to put them on. Hoping I can make some improvements in the next one!

free your mind

Here

Monday night thoughts driving me crazy. Got to FREE MY MIND from the big and small thoughts and worries going on and on and on.

- THESIS. THESIS. THESIS. How do I make this work?!
- Time management. Meetings and work and practicum and thesis documenting and school
- Attending Preview's Best Dressed Ball this Saturday because I took part in shooting for the video. What sporty chic attire to wear? I'm outfit-less and panicking. My retreat before the event is giving me less time to prepare. Help!
- Practicum
- Money money money. Always the problem!
- Some personal problems

Now I'm a bit relaxed. Thoughts are much more chaotic in my head. But when I listed them down one by one, I felt a bit better knowing that these are my only problems. Could have been worse.

Happy second day of July!

more bracelets

Made more bracelets the other day! Unfortunately I've been so pressed with time that I haven't been able to finish some and make new ones. Hoping for more work free days to come so I can make more while I endlessly re-watch Friends.