no effort

more of what i wore and a review of shu uemura's tsuya skin at everydaysundaes

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if not now, when?

~ printed dress : props

~ bag : props

~ rorschach necklace : props

~ forest green wedges : qupid

~ gold cuff : pink pvssy

~ ring : forever 21

been dying to wear this dress but never did

as i felt it was too short for my everyday office wear.

then i rummaged through my closet to find something to wear for my birthday dinner. 

then voila!

|| mini cappuccino brulee : madeleine {waterfront hotel & casino - lahug

|| chocolate fudge cake : madeleine {waterfront hotel & casino - lahug

my birthday cakes were to die for! seriously!

you should go check out madeleine's cakes.

the chocolate fudge by the way is made to order and not on their display nor menu.

you have to order it a day ahead and directly from the chef.

thanks to our friend who works at the hotel who introduced us to this.

my birthday dinner was only with family and i wouldn't have it any other way.

with my little sister in australia, she still joined us via facetime.

dinner was nothing fancy, just korean barbecue, at the banri.

we had a good fill, nothing to complain regarding the food.

service should improve though, that you nearly need to shout to get their attention.

also, they don't honor senior citizen's discount!

i don't really know where to complain for that 

but i hope someone from the government will read this and take some action.

all in all it was the birthday i wanted,

tranquil, warm and with family.

tnt!

| if not now, when? - incubus, "if not now, when?"

my october symphony

~ white off-shoulder shirt : props

~ blue 3/4 pencil skirt : props

~ grey ankle boots : forever 21

~ pink faux alligator skin envelope bag : props

~ assorted bangles : from everywhere {china, bangkok, props, sm accessories}

~ butterfly ring : pink pvssy {platinum mall, bangkok}

i've had this skirt in my closet for the longest time

and it's the first time am able to wear it... i don't even know why.

though now on, i might wear it more often as the fit is really nice

and comfy enough as opposed to how pencil skirts could be constricting.

though, i just need to watch it when getting into the car

as the hem could very well get caught when i fold my knees

and i might just rip the skirt off me if am not careful.

it's october now, how time flies... and it will be christmas soon,

but first comes my birthday! {in a few weeks}

tnt!

| my october symphony - pet shop boys, "behaviour" |

battle of one

~ t-shirt : from warren's closet

~ asymmetrical vest : PROPS

~ printed leggings : PROPS

~ resin bangle : pink pvssy {platinum mall, bangkok}

~ black cuff : china finds

~ wedges : rubi  

these wedges arrived last monday

and have been so excited to wear it.

so again this time,

the whole outfit is inspired by the shoes.

the t-shirt might seem like a mockery of che guevara

but am not wearing it like that. not at all.

am wearing it, for one, it is cohesive with the rest of the outfit

and second, it's fun!

you have to admit, the humor behind it is quite amusing.

at least i think so, every time warren wears it.

our day at the office always end up

with a few games of monopoly deal.

but this night, as it was pay day, five of us from the office

{two of our artists, our marketing manager, me and warren}

brought our game over at julia's grill in talamban.

this game is so addictive!

once you get the tricks, you always want to play more.

though our last game after dinner proved my last statement wrong.

as it dragged on far longer than the game usually does.

no one won even after how many times the community cards was re-shuffled.

ugh! it was the worst game ever!

oh, i'm not discouraging you,

you have yet to try the game.

there are two versions that we've played.

the regular one, and the hong kong edition.

the hk edition have twenty additional cards

with five action cards that are game changing.

really, try it!

tnt!

| battle of one - thirty seconds to mars; "a beautiful lie"

dj got us falling in love

~ knit oversized top - from my sister ipay {thrifted}

~ jeans : PROPS

~ wedges : primadonna

~ necklace : china finds

~ leather cuffs : khaosan road, bangkok

~ silver bracelet : china town, bangkok

|| these are just a few of my instagram photos

it was warren's birthday last weekend,

one could say it was a whole weekend of celebration.

on the eve of his birthday,

it was just the two of us with dinner at banri.
then a dessert date over at dolce.
i had their mango brulee while warren had their smores.
am sorry but i don't understand the fuss over dolce.
yes, the place is nice.
perfect ambience for coffee, some dessert and catching up with friends.
but their cakes, were not much to rave about.
i mean, one could get better dessert fix somewhere else.
i guess in this case, ambience wins!

we went home right before midnight,
so warren had the chance to blow his first mini birthday cake at home.
this cake we got from madeleine at waterfront hotel & casino - lahug, 
it's their gateau and this is all so worth it!
moist chocolate cake, rich choco mousse & creamy custard filling!

this is warren's official birthday cake

that we served after dinner with his family on the day of his birthday.

you might notice the blueberry cheesecake at the back

and think that it's too much dessert for one evening.

then, you don't know how big warren's family is.

both cakes we also got from madeleine

though they might be a little pricey, their cakes are all definitely worth it!!!

after dinner with warren's family
we headed down to alchology to celebrate with his friends.
they just opened their new VIP lounge.
it has about four lounge sets,
it's own comfort room and soon it's own bar.
truly, you'll feel like a VIP being there.
you enjoy the music, feel the energy of the crowd
but in your own little party space.

and this bottle of johnnie walker was followed by two more
that we all ended up so plastered, it was a riot!

i would have wanted to post some photos of the evening
courtesy of alchology's official photographers.
just my luck, the head photographer called me come monday,
reporting that the memory card used that night got busted.
boohoo!

tnt!

| dj got us falling in love - usher; "versus"

neon brights

~ top : PROPS

~ shorts : roxy

~ jelly flip flops : PROPS

~ jelly woven bag : chatuchak market, bangkok

~ neon bangles & necklace : china finds

of course, we didn't leave panglao without enjoying the beach one last time.

we woke up early, soaked and splashed.

|| four cheese pizza 

we checked out around one in the afternoon

and our ride to pier was picking us up at two

so we had an hour for lunch.

we were somehow looking forward to this oven baked pizza

only to be disappointed.

i don't need to say anymore,

but it's not a must-try when you happen to be at alona beach.

all good things must come to an end...

as much as we would have wanted to stay in panglao much longer,

we had to leave.

then again, there's still no place like home.

tnt!

| neon brights - taken by cars; "endings of a new kind"

times like these

~ top : PROPS

~ shorts : roxy

~ swimwear : PROPS

~ ring & neon bangles : china finds

~ woven bag : chatuchak market, bangkok

finally, panglao!

this was during the three-day long weekend two weeks ago.

the vacation we badly needed.

the vacation we deserved.

we arrived at our resort, lost horizon in alona beach, panglao, past twelve noon.

and we were lucky at that 

because if we arrived just a minute later at the oceanjet terminal, 

we would have been bumped to the two pm boat

which was supposed to arrive in tagbilaran at four pm.

you see, oceanjet has a new system 

that you have to check-in thirty minutes before your boat schedule

or else your seat will be given to chance passengers.

it's not supposedly new to everyone, because airlines do that.

just that oceanjet just started implementing such system,

and like us, not a lot of people knew about it.

before, as long as you have a ticket, a seat is reserved for you.

that would have been convenient, but i prefer this new system

even if we would have been victims,

because i believe, a new and better system 

will always benefit everyone in the long run.

for one, oceanjet can keep their trips right on schedule.

we had lunch as soon as we arrived,

then walked along the stretch of alona beach

just to check the possibilities of activities for the next two days.

we went back to our room to unpack

and supposedly prepare for a little swim.

"supposedly" because we later found ourselves 

just watching tv for three hours after that.

so shoot us for wasting a perfectly nice afternoon at the beach!

we don't have cable tv at home,

and it's only during trips, at hotel rooms that we get cable tv.

pathetic huh?!

we promised to enjoy the beach outside the next two days.

so it was already dark when we went out again,

just in time for dinner.

i had a delicious plate of lemon-butter shrimps all to myself,

as warren isn't a fan of seafoods,

and two cups of rice!

we actually went bar hopping after that,

with one drink at every bar.

and my drink of choice when at the beach

is always a refreshing caipirina.

oh, and i didn't have just one glass.

let's just say, i had enough to get me tipsy.

tnt!

|| times like these - jack johnson; "on & on" ||

grow up & blow away

~ knit top & pleated skirt : PROPS

~ inner top : mango

~ bag : parisian

~ wedges : ramp {the ramp crossings}

~ cuff & ring : pink pvssy {platinum mall, bangkok}

these wedges were a gift from warren during one of our trips to manila.

the shoe choices they have there can get so overwhelming.

it's usually during trips to manila or abroad that i shop for shoes.

i love the color of these wedges.

it goes to show, the shoes inspire me first

then the whole outfit next.

on another note,

one of warren's friend, kenneth, just passed the nursing board exams 

taken last june 30-july 01, 2012!!!

it indeed called for a celebration.

it was dinner at sunburst, then drinks at IT park.
the boys found this newly opened japanese restaurant beside chicken & beer 
{and am so sorry but i didn't get the name of the place} 
which at that time they had a promo
where all their food and drinks were at half the price!
surprisingly, the place wasn't crowded.
perfect for drinks and a whole lot of talking.

i especially loved the interior of the place & their white-washed tables and chairs.
i promise to get the name next time i visit!

|| grow up & blow away - metric; "static anonymity"

sweet disposition

so, i have two long weekends and a whole week in between of blogging backlogs.
phew! i never thought blogging could be such hard work.
am not really complaining, and not giving up…
at least not yet, hopefully never!


lemme start with that 4-day long weekend.
we would have wanted to go somewhere, escape and relax…
but we were too late for bookings, so we saved it for the next 3-day weekend instead.
basically we stayed home,
went out a little,
did some errands…
and here’s a little rundown.



{ day 1 - saturday }

~ asymmetrical dress : PROPS

~ clutch / sling bag : PROPS

~ gold cuff : PROPS

~ bandage wedges : aldo

it was the bapstism of warren’s neice that morning at sacred heart church.

i did a little work, had a haircut and a few errands in between the baptism rites 

and the dinner celebration in the eveningat café laguna, oakridge pavilion, a.s. fortuna.

i wore the outfit sans the heels for dinner.

after which, me & warren went to a friend's place for poker,

and that's when the heels came out.

after midnight, we were supposed to meet with some other friends at irie gastropubliko,

as one of them just got back from a few years of studies in the u.s.

but they were not there anymore when we arrived,

so we called it a night and went home.

it was still a hectic day i should say,

running from one place to the next.

{ day 2 – sunday }

~ jersey color block dress : PROPS

~ sandals : little black

~ necklace : china finds

~ assorted bangles : from everywhere

it was definitely one lazy sunday.

much to warren’s urging that we go out for coffee that i gave in.

after a few hours of coffee, i found myself home

lazing in front of the tv, did not do any work at all,not even a little blogging.

i get lazy like that.

only to be interrupted by warren's hunger past midnight with nothing to eat in our fridge,

so we made a trip to the nearest convenience store,

the newly opened seven eleven at caltex a.s. fortuna.

|| mountain dew slurpee : seven eleven

seriously, i don't understand what the rave is about this slurpee…

so shoot me for even giving it a chance.

and warren bought their burger pandesal,

and in warren's words,

it took him about four bites to get to the burger patty part, 

and that's it, nothing more after that.

take note, warren is NOT a picky eater.

{ day 3 - monday }

eid-ul-fitr actually ended the day before but its a philippine national holiday to give respect 

to our muslim brothers and sisters who are celebrating the end of ramadan this day.

~ skirt & top : PROPS

~ necklace & gold flower cuff : pink pvssy {platinum mall, bangkok]

~ leather cuff & oval ring : PROPS

~ sandals : little black

i really wanted to just stay home today,

but i had no escape, as we had to go out to do some groceries

or else we won’t have anything to eat anymore!

|| carnitas burrito : burrito bar {btc} 

after that, we dropped by burrito bar in btc to grab some burritos for dinner.

still the my burrito of choice in the city… 

it's huge, it's filling, it's delicious!!!

...sorry army navy.

{ day 4 – tuesday }

this time, i got my wish!

we just stayed home the whole day.

i did get some much needed rest, thank you very much!

tnt!


|| sweet disposition - the temper trap; "conditions"