It’s summer once again and though I think I’ve done a summer essentials blog already, I couldn’t stop myself doing another, not after being out in the sun and seeing people under the sun. Here goes:

Just because it’s hot doesn’t mean you have to look like A) melted ice cream or B) wilted flower (or worse, vegetable). For those who have the time and patience to put on make-up on a daily basis, that’s your business; for those who go as light possible like me, I strongly recommend that you bin those cakes of pressed powder and start collecting your pots of id bareminerals. They’ve got a foundation type loose powder which is to be topped with veil mineral (which gives you a healthy glow. I swear by this), or go straight to the mineral veil like I do. The baremineral is so light you’d forget you had some on. Splurge on the application brush and get a kabuki. Lipstick and gloss finishes the look. For natural shades I prefer Mac or Shu Eumura, for rich reds go for Shiseido; again, for the gloss my top picks are SexyMotherPucker and Mac Lipglass.

L-R: SexyMotherPucker, MacLipGlass, Mac lipstick, ShuEumura lipstick, Shiseido lipstick

To the hair. Tie it with a scarf, put a headband on, whatever you want, just have healthy looking hair. Since I’ve got waves and locks, I tend to ignore products for straight hair and know nothing about it. As for the goddess hair (ahem), Clarins Herbal Essences has one especially for us which comes in a purple bottle in a, you’ve got it, curve; it’s got matching conditioner, which I’ve put on my hair before going out for a swim in the beach with the result that my hair was unbelievably gorgeous even drying under the sun as we feasted on fruits and our suits dried under the sun. For some reason, it succeeded not only in taming my locks but also disciplined them enough so that it looked like I had it set. Now, hair gets really damaged once in a while (too much beach, too much sun, too much bad air, too much stress). You know how you feel like your hair is so filthy from lounging at the beach all day but you’re afraid to soak it in shampoo again as that’d most definitely dry them out? When you find yourself in this situation again, run to hair specialty shop and grab a bottle of Brown Rice shampoo. Even better if you can grab a bottle of Brown Rice conditioner with that. Works every single time.

L-R Clarins Herbal Essences Totally Twisted Conditioner, Brown Rice Shampoo and Conditioner

If you find you havent got an inch to spare in your bags, seriously, this is the answer to your prayers. Dolce Light Blue (yes, light blue, we owe whoever put this scent together) body wash/gel/shampoo/soap that can literally fit in your pockets. Seriously.

Now, if you find yourself on the move a lot, like I do, and you worry that you haven’t got enough clothes and stuff but if you pack any more you’d have to travel on a truck, this is my must haves: slippers. You can buy flipflops anywhere at all so buy that when you get to where you’re going (my personal fave are Speedo’s and Roxy; great on the feet and comes in nice colours), but do bring a comfy pair that you can use even on malls and yes, if you’ve got enough of the it factor you can even wear it on a night out at the beach – however sexy it may look, don’t, and I can’t stress this enough, don’t go barefeet. People spit on the sand and I’m not even going into what kids do on the sand. This is where Birkenstocks come in – it’s heaven sent; the style and colour to go for depends on your style. My first one was white, so was the second and the third and so on and so fourth. Decided to go pink couple of years ago and then back to white, but you know Birks, they last forever so the 5k is totally worth it and my pink Birkis refuse to retire – and I use it practically everyday.

my only Birks which isn't white. I may have mixed feelings about this; Years old and it refuses to retire.

Bag. Aside from the one containing your clothes, you’ve got to have a spare which will hold all your essentials like wallet, mobile, ipod, lipstick, face spritz etc. Since it’s summer backpack isn’t such a mortal sin, so long as you pick ‘em carefully. I suggest white. If you’re standing by your highschool promise of never getting caught in a backpack again, I find denim hand bags ideal. Denims always has that casual feel to it, remember. Others opt for the more famous body bag, which I find so cute, not to mention so very practical. As usual, pick ‘em with care. Bags can make or break the whole look and different people get away with different kinds.

I've tons of bags; even I'm not sure how many I have, only that my most faves are in an especially made cabinet and the rest are hung on the wall in the hall outside my bedroom door. My father says if I sell them I can buy a second car, but I can't wear a car

Bling. Just because its summer and you’re travelling light and channelling an Asian goddess doesn’t mean that you have to go to night outs on the beach without a single piece of bling. My diamond cross necklace goes with anything and sparkles like nothing on night outs at the beach; strongly suggest you get something similar. Also, this season, go for some boldness. This ring with purple stones on purple setting is all the boldness I’ve ever needed for times like this (though it isn’t exactly mine, but borrowed from my mother’s jewellery cabinet. It’s not like she’ll miss it and it’s been so very useful to me). It’s such a whole bling on its own that it absolutely goes with anything else I’m wearing. If you’re wearing tops that leave most of your chest bare, put the bling on your neck with a statement pendant. Remember, this is best served with two helpings of attitude. And it’s so much fun to wear stuff like these, especially because we don’t usually get to wear ‘em on regular days without looking like go-go dancers. For those whose been living under a rock during the past weeks, bling also goes on your hair. Strongly suggest that you minimize everything else when you do put bling on your hair. Best thing about these clips is that it really brings out the woman in you, and draws attention to our locks. It just doesn’t look as gorgeous on straight hair but the world isn’t fair, deal with it.

gorgeous, aren't they. can you just imagine wearing this on a night out in a beach...

if that isn't girly, I dont know what is

Sunglasses. I usually wear my fancy oversize sunglasses from YSL, so this summer I’m bringing my old favourite back: Juliet, from Oakley. They come in different combinations, mine has a titanium frame and fire lenses. These things are sturdy as hell, useful like the devil and just as flashy. I’ve driven in these just as the sun is rising, while it’s high up in the sky, while its on the way down – and I still get clear vision. I’ve played basketball wearing this, driven kart, gone swimming – and still! Although it may seem kinda heavy when you weigh it in your hands, once you wear it it really does wrap around your eyes and head and it stays there no matter what you do. It’s just so useful and perfect that you’d forget you were sunglasses. If I can have only one pair of sunglasses all my life, it would be this, and it’d probably last a lifetime too. Juliet (the one for guys is called Romeo) came out at around summer of 1999, the year I got mine by fluke, and wore it almost all year long in 2000, freshman year in college and it rocked. And now, it still rocks. That’s getting your moneys worth. Five stars for this one.

Romeo isn't the only one who loves this Juliet

Cap. Mine are I generally mementos (tributes to my F1 racing loves Mika Hakinnen and Kimi Raikkonen of McLaren) and I find wearing caps and hats a bit constricting not to mention hot not to mention is messes up your ‘do. But as they say, pick your poison and my sister wears caps whenever the sun’s hot and she’s in rugged enough clothing and three quarters of the worlds population wear caps so I guess there’s some good here. Whether its the sporty baseball cap or fishersman’s, I suggest you pick one you feel most comfortable in, which also goes with what your wearing. For heavens sake that may be a Coach fisherman’s style cap but does it go with a white eyelet summer dress, really. Also, never forget that not everyone can wear hats and pull it off. Wearing a hat requires a lot of the wearer. Seriously. You gotta wear the hat, not the other way around. You need a specific attitude that goes with said hat, a certain nonchalance and confidence that yes, that hat looks fab on you and you know it and should someone else try it on, no, they would not be able to totally pull it off quite like you do. So yes, hats are not for the fainthearted, you were warned. That said, I like hats but haven’t mustered enough fabulosity to actually wear a debutante style one outside our property. Everyone’s got an Eleanor, said debutante style hat is mine.

The Mika cap, which I'm seriously contemplating putting in a glass case

Kimi cap, which I probably will encase in glass

Most important: tan. Assuming your Filipina like me, or Malaysian or Thai, this isn’t a problem for you. However, if you aren’t any of the above, you can either A) Get it all natural with the risk of having prune-like skin in ten  years and then on to skin cancer B) go to tanning spa, just make sure its a really good one you want to be glowing gold not orange, or C) DIY with a tanning spray. Highly recommended is ModelCo, but nothing beats the real thing which stays all year long, doesn’t streak and doesn’t cost a cent.

Almost as important: music. You can’t walk into the beach looking like venus walking off the shore when some idiot is playing Offspring’s Pretty Fly on the giant speakers. Not modern Asian Goddess. Neither is Kardinal Offishal’s Dangerous (though I personally like this one. Come to that, Pretty Fly isn’t bad either, not if – again – you can pull it off. Time and again: It’s all in the attitude). Each song has their own feel; you wanna rock not scare everyone away, be fun without come off as a working girl. There’s reggae, you just gotta watch what the song is actually saying. My never-fail (which isn’t reggae, though I have to admit I love the sound of reggae): Smooth by Santana and Rob Thomas. Never fails. Six stars.

Now go off and live the life you love!

Me Time this Summer

If summer were a handbag she’d be a one-of-a-kind gorgeous bag of white woven cloth and handmade wood buttons with her handle an intricate braided wood. And I’d forever pity her because people keep trying to stuff all sorts of stuff into gorgeous summer: vacations you wanted to have starting ten years ago but failed to do so due to buggers known as school or work, visit an old person you call lola and who is so very distantly related to you that even your mother isn’t sure exactly how either of you are related to her either (which you don’t really want to do anyway but will because it’s, after all, the summer and you’ve nothing else to do), visiting the grave of the same very distantly related to you person that even your mother isn’t sure exactly how either of you are related to her because she’s passed away five years ago and you weren’t able to make it to her burial or visit her grave ever (which you don’t really want to do anyway but will because it’s, after all, the summer and you’ve nothing else to do), all those mall sales you missed last year because you instead went to the bazaars that promise great finds and which springs up everywhere, the bazaars that promise great finds and which springs up everywhere which you missed because you had to do something utterly dreadful and a horrifying waste of your perfectly good time like filing your tax returns.

If summer were a handbag she’d be a one-of-a-kind gorgeous bag of white woven cloth and handmade wood buttons with her handle an intricate braided wood, and she’d be wondering how in the world she’d make all those things fit inside her delicate, handmade interior.

After that two hundred ninety-six word intro, we get to my point: this summer, at least for several days, discard everything and spend time, and all the cash you have, on you. For a couple of days, forget about all of the crap I mentioned in paragraphs one and two. And do this:

Grab your bag, put your mobile in silent mode, and settle into a luxurious foot spa @ the Nail Loft. Said foot spa is composed of a scrub and massage that lasts for a solid heavenly hour. Try the paraffin treatment. They soak your hands or feet or both in warm paraffin and once its completely covered and all you need is a candle wick to finish the job, they cover your hands or feet or both in plastic and let it stay. After about half an hour or maybe a bit more (I can’t clearly recall as I’ve already fallen ten minutes into the foot spa), they peel it off and it comes off whole like squishy rubber and your hands or feet or both are baby smooth and soft. Then to mani-pedi. Try a new color. Not, horror of horrors, an orange or coral blue lest you want heaven to strike you down there and then; you should be safe with a nice pearl or deep plum. An eye pad with cool cucumber slices on them and hot tea completes the relaxing hour and are complimentary. Soothing music is softly played in the background. My fave branch is the one @Shopwise Commonwealth, basement level. Said foot spa/mani/pedi is called package 2 and costs 6oo bucks, the paraffin is around 450 bucks. When your bill reaches a thousand bucks, you get a loyalty card which is not so much a loyalty card as you can get it on your first visit but really a reward-for-spending-a-thousand card. This pink card entitles you to 30% discount on your next visit, etc. Good for five visits and to be consumed within the next six months. I’d say its worth it as the rewards costs around a thousand and five hundred bucks.

Now dash to Melisa’s @Rockwell’s Powerplant Mall. Don’t pinch those bills. A good pair of anything should set you back a little. My summer essential sandals this year is a pair of brown wedges from said shop. It’s soft but firm brown rubber coated all around with woven abaca in brown and white; there one horizontal strap at the middle of your foot, one around your big toe and a diagonal one across the rest of your toes, all made of again soft but firm brown rubber, the shiny type this time around. This wedge can go anywhere: from malls to lunches to dinner to beaches.

Since you’re already @Powerplant, get a tub of BareMinerals ID mineral veil. I strongly recommend applying said light powder, which incidentally illuminates your face for a healthy glow in addition to making it appear super smooth when it really is just smooth, with a Kabuki brush. If you can’t live without blush, I recommend Body Shop’s bronzing balls, applied sparingly with ModelCo. brush across your cheekbones and vertically over your nose. Lipstick in your lips’ natural color topped with Mac Lip Glass finishes everything.

Now you’re looking and feeling like the goddess of summer, off to refreshing lunch @Italianis. For the love of Tom Ford I can’t recall what it’s called but order the salad dish with the peeled oranges, vibrant greens and goat cheese on them. If you’re more of a carnivore, them jet off to Jack’s Loft @EastWood. Their Panini sandwich serves two (so does their Fishbowl Icedtea. You kinda get it with the name alone and yes, they did serve it in especially made Fishbowl glasses before, now they’re more of a Flower Vase Icetea) and comes with some chips. Take your lovely time eating every inch of the said sandwich while leaning back on their comfortable couches while soaking in the dim, laid back atmosphere. I love biting into the grapes in the sandwiches; gives the dish that oomph.

Now get some gelato from Fiorgelato @The Podium, then off to your trusted hairdresser. Have your frock trimmed, and along with it get an aminomint treatment. This is an hour of hydrating your hair – they give you said hydration by massaging the aminomint potion into your hair and scalp with firm, relaxing, rejuvenating massage moves. If you want to try waves, this is the time to try digiperm. Tony and Guy does good job, and so does this place @ Tomas Morato I just cant remember what the place is called . If you’ve got longish hair, be prepared to shell out around 5,ooo bucks, but then again you get wash-n-wear waves as if you were born with it. Although I’ve never tried this one I know it works because my sister had it and I had to pay for it so yes, this digiperm thing works.

By now its late afternoon. Skip Starbucks; we’ve had enough of that throughout college, try something else now. Go instead to Figaro. This is a Filipino-owned cafe which serves magnificent, and I do magnificent, Al Tono pasta and their sandwiches, to die for. Really. It’s also so much more elegant and quaint that Starbucks, not to mention it’s not packed with college students dying to tell their friends, and everyone in the shop is free to listen to it too as their voices are just that loud, every detail of their lovelife. Now enjoy your food. Feel all the texture, taste all spices, absorb it all. Read a paper in leisurely pace if you want to. Better yet, pick up a book and spend the rest of the afternoon enjoying it.

Good Omens is ideal. This one’s a collaboration between Neil Gaiman of Sandman graphic novel fame and Terry Pratchett creator of the Discworld Series. Gaiman’s brilliant story plots and inspired use of names (in his book American Gods – one of my unquestionable favourite books and I have high standards – the main character is befriended by fellow inmate called Low Key Lye Smith, who turns out to be Loki Lye-smith, god of mischief. American Gods is about the fate of gods, old and new and though some people may view it as anti Catholicism as the dominant religion of the day, I think it’s a daring piece of work that doesn’t challenge the Roman Catholic Church or any other Religion so much as it is simply putting another way of looking at things out there. This book is marvellous and is a must read for everyone) combines perfectly with Pratchett’s talent for effortlessly humorous lampooning everything set in stone.

The book opens with Aziraphale, the angel guarding the Garden of Eden with a Flaming Sword, having a conversation with Crawly, the serpent who tempted Adam and Eve to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. Crawly was saying that he was just told to create some trouble and then sent up to Earth; tempting Adam and Eve seemed to fit the bill. Aziraphale, wretched that the creator was, more or less, pissed off, tells him that perhaps Crawly couldn’t have helped it, him being created evil, and a highly illuminating (once you get past the highly confusing part) conversation unfolds. Crawly gets annoyed at the angel’s trust in the Ineffable – good is good bad is bad and good always win) argued why in the world would anyone create a tree with fruit that was not for eating and put it smack the middle of the damned garden in the first place, and cuts the conversation with asking where Aziraphale’s sword, which apparently flamed like anything, was. Turns out Aziraphale pitied Adam and Eve who were banished the Garden of Eden after all and there were all sorts of beasts outside the garden as the lord has created and the first storm of the Earth was on its way as the clouds had announced and it was cold and Eve was expecting already, so he gave them the flaming sword. The two beings had been on Earth since. The modern times arrive and Crawly, now A.J Crowley, in his shiny vintage Bentley whose gas gauge was pointing to empty as it has been for twenty years since, was taking care to break all speed limits because every little helps. He was summoned by Hastur and whatshisface (dammit), Dukes of Hell; he was handed a basket and informed that time has come. This was the anti-christ, the Spawn of Satan, Devourer of Beasts, etcetera, etcetera, deliver him to the sisters of the Chattering Order (nun satanists who babble all the time, the lot of them, whose sole purpose was to switch the anti-Christ with the son of the wife of the American diplomat in London), who promptly messes things up and puts the kid in the wrong room. They also bomb naming him and instead of Damien and the like the kid gets named Adam and is raised human by his parents. Fast forward eleven years and Armaggedon is due to take place that Saturday, and Aziraphale and Crowley (enemies for thousands and thousands of years which really makes them sort of BFF) are at the birthday party of the son of the American Diplomat waiting for the arrival of the Hell Hound who would be the guardian of the son of Satan, only it never arrives because it has a built in homing device and it goes to Adam. And Adam goes on and names it Dog to save all the trouble and, built to obey its Master, it becomes a small dog, Adam’s every dream and desire: a pedigree mongrel. Enter an ancient witchfinder sergeant who keeps on referring to his old, nice female neighbour with phrases like ‘Awa’ wi’ ye, harlot!’ and who recruits Newt Pulsifier who turns out to be descended from witchfinder major Thou-Shall-Not-Commit-Adultery Pulsifier who has 9 brothers and sisters with names which I bet you can guess, who then falls in love with Anathema Device descendant of John Device who invented the Device and of Agness Nutter, Witch, who, with her burning at the stake, brought witchfinder major Thou-Shall-Not-Commit-Adultery Pulsifier with her to wherever it is they go to when they snuff it. Turns out Agnes is psychic and wrote The Book which you will later on find out is in fact not the bible but one entitled The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agness Nutter, Witch in a time when witch-hunting was in its peak. Said book predicts the future, specialising on those affecting her descendants like Newt and Anathema getting it on after an earthquake and hours from the Armaggedon; and she writes in it such a way that you really understand it only after the predicted event has already happened, so it’s a challenge getting meaning from it. Oh, there’s also the Four Riders – Death who is the leader who never shows his face and doesn’t really do anything, doesn’t even know how computers work except if they’re the kind you play games on in diners, which annoys War, a redhead and a real adventurer, which is fine by Famine a sleek guy whose made his millions in Meals TM, Snacks TM and such which tastes like food but isn’t really food but just junk (oh, wait, just like all the existing fastfoods, right, lol) and Pollution, who was really just a young man as he had only recently taken over when Pestilence retired when the Penicillin was invented. And they ride motorbikes. They’re to meet up with Adam and he shall lead them, his generals, and the rest of the hosts of hell in their war against the hosts of heaven. Adam is now a powerhouse of raw force and 11-year-old reasoning, and leader of the Them as they’re called by the elders of Lower Tadfield and composed of Pepper (a girl), Brian (who seems like he’s made of dirt) and Wensleydale, the intelligent one. It’s all up to him to decide whether old people are messing up the Earth what with killing the whales and nuclear weapons and obliterating the rainforests and it would be better if he got rid of them and everything else, leaving only the Them and things they like and he can go ahead and re-make everything as he likes it, or he can decide that there’s much of the Earth he hasn’t explored and discovered yet and riders and heavenly hosts and those from hell go away now. A really nice read by Gaiman and Pratchett; not really surprised, like ‘em both, ‘course I’d like their collaborative work. And you even get to meet Adam’s father.

When the sun sets, you may now book your whole body massage for after dinner and a shower.

Head home and prepare dinner for the family. Have fun doing so. Smell the sauce, feel the heat of the stove. But before cooking, slice half a watermelon into inch chunks, lay on a tray and slide into the freezer. This is dessert. Back to the pasta. I use Smirnoff, and prefer to add a bit more of it, and cover my portion (on my plate) in parmesan. Recipe from about.com
Ingredients:
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup (50 g) grated Parmigiano (buy a chunk and grate it fresh)
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste, diluted with 1/4 cup hot water
• 1 hot pepper
• 1/4 cup or so (maybe a third of a cup) good vodka — you want something that has a taste to it
• 1 teaspoon brandy
• 2/3 cup fresh cream
• 1 pound rigatoni
Preparation:
Bring pasta water to a boil, lightly salt it, add the pasta, and give it a good stir.

In the mean time, melt the butter in a large pot and stir in the tomato paste and the hot pepper. Let the mixture simmer over a low flame for a couple of minutes, then stir in the cream, and when the sauce comes back to a boil, the vodka and brandy. Fish out and discard the pepper, stir in the grated cheese, and continue stirring gently until the sauce is well amalgamated and creamy.

By now the pasta should be about done — you want it still somewhat al dente. Drain it, transfer the pasta into the sauce (this is why you need a large pot), and cook over a brisk flame, stirring energetically, for about a minute to help the pasta absorb the sauce.

Serve at once, with a light red wine.

Yield: 4 servings penne or pasta alla vodka.

Pair with garlic bread. Use the best china. Talk over dinner. The possibilities are endless: music, clothes, your pets, clothes, everything you saw earlier – from fashion victim people to trend setters, to your new secret recipe (only let on that it’s got vodka in it, that should spark enough interest). When the pasta’s all gone, get the tray of watermelon. Drizzle with honey. Serve. Take compliments graciously, and they can further thank you with washing the dishes.

Bath. Do a sixty-minute one, not one second short. Scrub furiously then scrub lovingly, or the other way around, but scrub. Soak. Use up half of the whole bottle of rose body bath. And again. Dry with towel. Pick out decent undies and cover yourself with robe or towel. Time for that massage you phoned for.

Choices are now endless, from those with aromatherapy (they now have scents from flowers and things you haven’t even heard of) to those with stones to reflexology and stuff. I recommend an hour of Shiatsu followed by an hour of Swedish, top off with an hour at the sauna. If you don’t have sauna at home, skip it. I have to say, I prefer home service; you can drift right off to sleep without the bother of getting your clothes back on or anything.

Now wasn’t that wonderful.

goings on and the Summer

Oh my gosh, I haven’t blogged for so long I’ve almost forgotten my own password.

Anyhoo, there’s an advantage with having been so out of it for so long as far as the cyber world is concerned– there are tons to blog about, all seemingly to just have happened and in the moment, so here goes…

Manny Paquiao is indestructible. He’s just won his latest fight yesterday and though it wasn’t KO like the rest of his last fights, it’s a win nonetheless and one that made Filipino people forget about the rotating brownouts –that is if they had electricity to watch the fight. To be honest, I wasn’t so sure he’d win this time around mainly because he’d been winning so much so spectacularly against so big a names that it only seemed there’s no way to go but down, but that just goes to show how much I know about boxing. And though I don’t particularly fancy the latest Team Pacquiao flag jacket (I think the one I have is still the nicest one, lol)  here’s a big one to Manny!

As with all greats, and make no mistakes he is one of the boxing greats, the next question is now whether he ought to retire now or push it. Well that’s one question I’d rather not get into. I’m just happy he won and yeah, damn proud that this Filipino boxer is making it, and big, in the world stage. Or ring.

FYI, heard that Ricky Martin’s twit on the day of the fight was: Kamusta ka, Pilipinas? I guess he was watching our Pacman too, huh

And on to another sport. Formula1. Nothing matches F1, not for me, and I suspect, not for a lot of people as well. We’ve got two more teams this season, though its kinda hard to say which team is ‘new’. There are now two Mercedes teams so can’t call that new, can we, and Lotus is as old as F1, so lets just leave it at that: we now have 12 teams instead of the usual 10. Missed the race yesterday night, though I heard Fernando Alonso won. No suprise there, really, after all, he’s a double world champion and he’s now driving a Ferrari so. What I don’t know is if it was an exciting race. I hope it was, and I hope F1 will be exciting as it was in the last years of Schumacher when Kimi and Fernando had been giving such serious run for his money that it was never quite clear until the last race of the season who’d take home the honors and opposing bosses had nothing but praises for contender drivers on air whilst trying to steal them offcam. Lol. Kimi @Ferrari was quite different – he was off getting celebrating wins with tattoos and wild parties which had critics saying it was irresponsible as young people look up to him. Kimi’s reply was his usual ice-cold: it doesnt affect my driving; and Ferrari’s Jean Todt: I’d sooner drop a sponsor than drop Kimi. And on it goes. Now those were fun seasons (though they eventually did drop Kimi, which converted me into being thoroughly anti-Ferrari). But so, alas, my all time fave racer, Kimi Räikkönen, is now off F1 and in rally, which means F1 will never be the same even if Michael is back and Fernando is still there – not for me anyway. Oh, and no offense meant for Hamilton fans.

then F1 newbie Kimi with his ice-cool calm. No one saw this finn coming, except for Ron Dennis and Peter Sauber themselves.

Wildman Kimi @Ferrari; making the history books and shutting critics

Kimi @WRC. Let's see what rally will bring out in notorious F1 badboy Kimi

And off sports we go. Summer is already here though its only mid-March. In fact, it’s too much of a summer in some places like in the Northern region of the Philippines where we’ve had el niño. Thankfully, el niño is now past us, though the extreme heat isn’t yet. Born and raised in the wonderful orient as I am, I’ve no real complaints. Though the word to describe the summer heat nowadays is ‘wow’ (as in ‘wow its sweltering’), it is the summer, and its not so bad when you’re near a body of water or beneath an army of shady trees. Point, people: we live for summer, and take it from me, Miami may have that party everyday vibe and LBC may be the place to driver around in during summer with the top down, there’s no summer like summer in the Philippines. To be more specific, no luxurious Miami or Long Beach Calif beach can compare to Boracay West Cove, which, incidentally, is partly owned by Manny Pacquiao.

The rooms are great (stay in the premiere suit if you can, it’s so worth it), the food fantastic and the beach, well, its Philippine waters – teeming with life, color and in perfect temparature. Service is typically Filipino as well: the best. You can reach the place via water (one of their boats will pick you up and you’ll set foot on their dock) or land (their vehicle will pick you up and you enter the place via a web of underground rock cave going up).

me at the cave-like rock entrance to West Cove

View from our veranda (dont mind the date, I dont think it was set right. shows our priorities, right hahaha)

Either way, your stay coordinator, who’ll cater to all your whims from water sports to tour guide in the party district, will carry your luggage and you’re greeted at Boracay West Cove’s water or land entrance by a staff or two with fresh juice and a long necklace of tiny shells. Now tell me if that isn’t better than bienvenido a Miami or any drive at the LBC.

wearing said seashell necklace

There’s a flat screen with surrond sound system in your room, a lounge, vault for your precious stuff, stocked minibar, veranda where you can eat when you want to and which overlooks famous Boracay waters, the bed is plush, and the bathroom is spacious with that shower from the ceiling that I love. A drawback, and this depends on the person taking a shower and who you’re she, is that the part of the wall in the actual shower stall (which is the most spacious I’ve seen, five-star hotels included, and accessorized with pebbles all around) is made if reinforced glass facing the bed. Lol

If you fancy watersports, they’ve their own kayak and you can snorkel or reef or whatever you fancy, and if they don’t have what you want right there, you’re coordinator will get it for you; if you want to soak up the party scene, your coordinator will get you to the coolest places as well.

As for keeping in touch with the otuside world, and I never do much of this when @West Cove as its just so perfect and set apart from the noisy part of Bora, they have wi-fi paviollions which you can use whenever you want to. You can opt to have your meals in the beautiful pavillions as well – its sturdy shiny wood with a low wooden table, colorful pillows to sit on, nipa over your head and flimsy white curtains showing you which direction the wind is blowing – I know, so perfect, right.

The food isn’t particularly great, more of the basic food high-end hotels serve, but maybe this is good as you’d want that swimsuit to fit you not burst. If you dont remember passing by West Cove on your Bora, trips thats because its in a secluded part of the island:

map of bora from the West Cove site

Bottom line, West Cove is gorgeous by day and breathtaking at night, and there are few places I’d call those.

And to those who are stuck far from the beach, its only mid-March and there’s still hope. However, for those who are positive they wont get out of the city, you can always do summer via clothes, shoes and general look. I strongly recommend wedges from Sapato Manila (they’re at Rockwell) which you can wear during summer and beyond as they absolutely rock, my absolute faves when it comes to casual footwear; and clothes, hey, with a good piece of linen, imagination is the limit. It works to our advantage that we’re Asianas – we can get away with sarongs and the like. Not only do they look positively lovely and ultra feminine, they’re about as comfortable as your birthday suit!

When we talk of summer nail polish, generally you can wear what you can get away with especially if you’re at the beach as sand goes with anything. I opt to store my deep reds during most of the summer and paint on some creams and pearl whites. Top with trusted Sally Hansen high gloss (costs a bit if you’re Manila like me, but put it this way, if your toenails were cars, SH high gloss would give it that showroom shine).

But for a few select occasions, the red lipsticks also generally take a backseat during this season. Stick to nudes and light brown lipstick, top with matching gloss (I swear by mac nudes topped with mac lipglass) and use bronzer as blush (my top choice is from body shop, applied with a huge brush; modelCo is makes for a nice second choice). If you accidentally get burnt beyond recognition, after burying the idiot who told you spf 15 is enough, you have to get on with life and pile on the bronzer without further delay. Whenever stepping from beneath your wide-brimmed hat, house or umbrella, remember that the aim in tanning is to be able to channel a tropical goddess at the end of the day, not a burnt tiki. So yes, the more prone you are to burning and the hotter the sun, the higher the spf, and yes, sunblock is essential until shops sell instant replacement to old/burnt skin. I should probably take my advice here, but I’m not much for sunblock unless its on the face; elsewhere, especially when on the beach, I just spritz on tons of dry olive oil mist from body shop. You glisten, you smell gorgeous – and don’t forget the hair.

Spritz some on your locks as well, you don’t want them coming out like twisted strips of metal wire. For those not gifted with waves and swirls like mine (hey, if you have it flaunt it gloat, or does it stop at flaunt it? Hmmm…), summer is the perfect time to try curls! No, don’t pour on the chemicals; stick with the iron barrel (mind you, use good quality ones unless you want your crowning glory to be peacock-like head dress), spritz some of the said dry olive oil mist, et viola! You should probably come with an advance party warning guys of your entrance, preferably hunky ones with bull horns and great tans…

Of course , as with every diva, background music is crucial. I find that Santana and Rob Thomas’ Smooth never fails. Ever. But as you can’t play it in loop without people staring (not in a good way), I’d say now is the time to blare out the beach beats; reggae, baby. Here are some suggestions, not strictly reggae but they all have that unmistakable carefree summer flavor: Escape (better known as Piñacolada), Come over by Estelle, and of course, This Kiss by Faith Hill, Summer Sunshine by the Corrs, Shy Guy by the queen Diana King, Follow Me by Uncle Cracker, Love.Sex.Magic by Ciara and JT, Nothing in the This World and Stars are Blind by Paris Hilton, most of the tracks in No Doubt’s Rocksteady album, and of course, reggae classic Red Red Wine by UB40. Actually, most UB40 re-makes are quite perfect for the beach.

So. That covers sports and everything summer, and now I have to see to my own summer look. Ta-ta!

cramming

Haven’t blogged for ages and as I’m so busy these days and I’m not quite sure when I’d be able to update again, I decided to squeeze in assortment of things for this entry so bear with me.

First: going to the advanced screening of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. So excited. Apparently, the Vatican Paper, L’Osservatore Romano, hailed the latest movie installment to the HP Series. According to the paper, The Half-blood Prince shows a clear picture of the battle of good versus evil and that sometimes sacrifices are entailed for good to triumph. The same paper says the movie depicted an accurate picture of adolescent love as well.

I’m not quite sure as to the opinion about the good versus evil thing – isn’t it more interesting when Harry is confronted with his inner battles about this (remember those instances when he thinks he’s turning bad, or Voldemort is controlling him, or he thinks a part of him is from Voldemort?) As to the depiction of adolescent love, come on! Book 6 was Ron and Hermione getting together and Harry and Ginny getting together – in the last chapters! This isn’t a big thing in the book, I sure hope they wouldn’t make it so in the movie. And with L’Osservatore Romano hailing it, well the paper isn’t exactly a great movie critic paper…

Nonetheless, I’m ditching tomorrow to get ready for the premiere!

 

Two: haven’t played airsoft for ages, for a various thousand reasons. Great way to pass the time as it is, I have to say I’m not really missing it much, primarily because I’ve been spending Sunday mornings hunting for exotic plants @ the Sunday market @ the Lung Center, and the rest of the day hunting up other stuff to put in my garden. The area is roughly 200 square meters, I think, so it’ll be a real challenge and if I had my way I’d be spending every minute working on it for months. So far we’ve decided to make wide terraces with the slope and to go with a distinct asian theme. Not the millions of greens everywhere type; less but not exactly minimalist, if you get my drift. So far my biggest obstacle is doing the fountain as I can’t find neither dark sheet rocks to stick together to make 2feet by 2feet boxes with them or ready made stone/concrete boxes like it (it’ll serve as fountain, well, three of those set in decreasing height – starting at around 5feet – will serve as my fountain), and deciding on my patterns – I want different colored pebbles arranged in artful way but I also want clean lines and nothing that’ll crowd the eye. The patio and greenhouse should be a peice of cake – of course I could always be mistaken, but you know what they say about aiming for the stars and landing on the roof. I’ll post a picture of my garden here when I finish it. If anyone’s got suggestions, please.

 

Three: I’m looking for a new pair of heels for ages and ages now! Not just any pair of heels, red ones. I have to have one for a lot of reasons:

     1. red is my favorite color

     2. it’s red! everyone has to have a pair of to-die-for heels

     3. it’ll go absolutely perfectly with my carved red coral bracelet

     4. It’ll kill even with just plain jeans and white collars, Gucci earrings and rings 

     5. my father just got me a white Gucci bag with red patent leather trim last night! 

So you see, I just have to have one. I’m checking out Aldo’s tomorrow. I really, really hope they have one that I’ll like…. SOS to the shoe lovers in the Manila, any other suggested stores?

 

Four: the usual IGT entry which I hope girls would find useful: You know how you want to wear red lipstick? Not brick red, but red red -  that’s the one, well you know how you want to wear it (you know you want to, we all want to wear red lipstick) but come across a series of things that keep you back ? (will it suit me? Do I even have a prayer of pulling it off? What clothes do I wear it with? Make-up style? etc, etc.) 

Well, here are a few things to know about red lipstick – and when I say red I don’t mean sissy red, we’re talking red Red here, all right: 

     1. it’s Red, and like all things Red, few people can wear it and look good. Luckily, there are some reds which are a tiny bit more subtle than Red, and sometimes this makes all the difference. Remember, when we’re talking about Red,  we’re talking about the exemption rather than the rule. Try it on and see what suits you. If you can pull off red Red, wear it.

     2. I’m neither a stiff penny-pincher or a spendthrift but I find it’s always wise to spend on specific things, one of which are those that are for me – really, why would you try to spend less on yourself? I’m not big on make-up, my staples are lipstick and lipshine and loose powder, which I guess is why I findthat  spending on these things make sense. With lipstick, I’ve tried all the best brands and I can personally vouch for Shiseido. It’s smooth, has this luxurious moisture, smells nice and as intense red as you get – it even stays on even after I’ve had breakfast, lunch and afternoon snacks. Seriously (forget about smudge proof, there’s no such thing yet, but along wit the rest of womankind, I’m keeping my fingers crossed for that). I use the Rouge Authentique before, I’m now using Perfect Rouge from their new line. It’s twice as expensive as Mac but it’s worth every penny.

     3.   Putting it on and getting it to stay on. This starts with application and which has to be maintained throughout the day (not so much with Shiseido. that PhP 1,500 not looking so expensive now, right). Using lip brush makes the lipstick stick to your lips better so this is advisable. After applying your color with a lip brush (evenly. cover all areas, don’t be afraid to reach into the corners it won’t kill you), blot it with tissue (or with a towellete to be used only and only for this purpose) until very little lipstick transfers on the tissue/towellete. Smack your lips. Check that you don’t go over your lip line, unless you did that intentionally; check if there are any on your teeth. Lipstick on your boyfriend’s crisp collars and on coffee mugs/champagne goblets are sexy (especially with dramatic exits) lipstick on the teeth aren’t.  

     4. Gloss. I use Soap & Glory’s Sexy Motherpucker (I’m not swearing, that’s what it’s called). Get the Plum Juice. I love this one; the shine is perfect, and it’s got a bit of a minty feel to it. This was a gift from one of my bestfriends and sooner than I would have wanted I had to hunt around for a second tube, which was a miserable failure. But life must go on and I hunted, and found MAC Lipglass. I suggest Tittle Tassle, which is basically the color of raw flesh (sounds disgusting, but no worries, it looks great with Red  lipstick) and gives your red lips a more vibrant feel, or the Ample Pink (pink; if this isn’t self explanatory for you there’s absolutely nothing I can do for you) which makes you look a bit more womanly (as opposed to vibrant). But nothing beats Sexy Motherpucker for sultry. I wish they’d open up shop here soon or I’d have to resort to having them shipped over, which is such a pain. Apply at the inner center of your lower lip and at the very center of upper lips. This is one of the few instances where less is more. And I’m later tonight I’m placing an order for several tubes of Sexy Motherpucker.

     5. Show it off. Smile. Don’t press your lips together and look like you’re holding back puking. Don’t hold back. Dazzle. But don’t go overboard either; remember that when you smile, you’re showing off your teeth and lips, not your gums.

     6. Or steal attention with a pout. Delivered just right, this can bring down empires. Don’t just press your lips tightly and shoot dagger looks at your boyfriend who forgot that it was your tenth-day anniversary; plump up lips, don’t clamp them together but gently press them together with increasing pressure so that a millimeter or two of your inner lips show, suck your cheeks in just an itty bitty bit, send ONE resentful look at your hubby (make sure he sees it) and then refuse to look at him ever again until he goes down on both knees or presents you with a Louis Vuitton Min Lin.

Warning: I don’t mean to be a b***h but pouting only works if you’ve got the looks and attitude to back it up. Otherwise, stick with the smile.

 

Four: the usual funny entry. 

I guess I’m a bit green minded ‘cos apparently your’re not supposed to see any green stuff at all. But I maintain that no matter how you squint, you’ll see the green stuff:

 

And fifth: I’m trying to make the cl0thes of my beloved poopy doggie (he’d probably scratch my eyes out if he only heard my nickname for him from a human ear but well…) myself! No, I havent posted any pic of that here and it would probably be several hundred tries and some help from professionals before I do so! 

Girls & NailPolish

Nail polish. If you happen to be a daughter of Eve, the day will come when you have to put on nail polish – yes, this day will come even if you were born wishing you were a son of Adam. It is as inevitable as teenage crushes and Louis Vuitton bags and should be embraced as part of your femininity with just a wee bit less enthusiasm than teenager Josh Jackson and a Louis Vuitton Speedy. Sadly, where mistakes concerning teenage crushes and Louis Vuitton bags are not really considered mistakes (it’s okay, everyone once had a crush on Jason Priestley, and Louis Vuitton bags, well, there’s never anything wrong with any Louis Vuitton, maybe with the occasion or the outfit or the person… but not the bag. Point: the Graffiti ones are strikingly gorgeous on the arm of the right female and on the arm of the wrong one, well, change the arm, the person if possible), mani/pedi mistakes are mistakes with a capital M and tend to be captured either on film and immortalized on someone’s yearbook or, worse, branded on the minds of the most beautiful people you know. When you get down to it, mani/pedi mistakes should be avoided at all costs.

 

So. What you need to know about everything mani/pedi:

 

Mani/pedi (manicure/pedicure) sessions should ideally take place every other week. This isn’t a chore – you’d be surprised how a good a bonding opportunity this could be with girlfriends, your mom, siblings, close cousins, etc. (in fact, if only my father gets his nails done in the ‘female’ salon that my sister/mom and I frequent, it would be a great bonding session with your over-the-top-strict father as well. As it is, he gets his nails done at the ‘male’ salon a.k.a. barber shop). Arm yourself with gossip and fashion issues during mani/pedi sessions and prepare to soak in new gossip and fashion issues of others as well. Tip: this is neither the time or place for heart-to-hearts. Keep it light.

 

Two. Unless it’s a strictly nail salon/spa, hair and make-up suggestions happen in salons. Unsolicited for or otherwise, they happen here. They just do. So your estimated time to spend in the salon for a mani/pedi and then double it.

 

Three: make an appointment. You don’t want to go out wearing your little black dress and towering Manolos only to – horror of horrors – unclean, unpolished, un-beautiful (this isn’t a real word, kids) toes/toe nails. (Don’t worry about the unsolicited for hair and make-up suggestions, your salon people have the ability to manage their unsolicited for inputs into any specific amount of time that they wish to fit it in.)

 

Four. You want to look for someone who does good work and when you find them, make sure you keep ‘em. You want someone who cleans your nails and takes care of cuticles without drawing blood. Of equal importance is someone who has the ability to put color on your nails evenly and perfectly that it looks like the paint job of a prized Jag on an automobile show. If they do a spectacular mani/pedi but can’t resist updating you on the latest gossip about names you haven’t even heard of, smile and pretend to listen. Nodding once in a while is a good idea too. Playing deaf/blind for a great mani/pedi is an acceptable price. Plus tip, of course.

 

Five – and more important than most people think: Choose the right color. You may be tempted to try out all those fashion colors, blacks, blues and glitters. It’s okay if you’re four years old or in a play that requires it (maybe you’re Tinkerbell?). Otherwise, don’t even think about it. A word the ONLY four acceptable colors on my book:

Red: Vamp. Vixen. Sexy & dangerous. Marilyn Monroe. My favorite. (Kills. Every single time.)

Caution: as the saying goes, few people can wear red and look good. This is true.

Twist: Plum. Deep purples. As with the red, few people can.

French Manicure: polished. Sophisticated.

Caution: This is clear with a white strip at the edge. No alterations are acceptable. Period.

Cream: Uber high maintenance (it’s also literally hard to maintain this color on your nails. Every possible nail disaster is just around the corner). You know a really, really good manicurist.

Pink: flowers and white skirts. Girly. Girly girl. I don’t what else to say about pink.

 

Six. Always have a file handy. I know it sounds so… secretarial, but for heaven’s sake I didn’t say file your fingernails away in the middle of the workday while sitting behind your desk. Chipped nails happen. It’s a fact of life and one you have to deal with. Asses the damage, do minimal filing. Escape to the nail salon at the first chance.

 

Seven – applicable only if you’ve got on red or plum nail polish. Always have a bottle of the nail polish in question, along with a clear one, stashed in your bag no matter the size of the bag. (Remember: chipped nails are a fact of life.) After adequate filling, dab with polish. Once dry enough, coat with transparent polish. Dry. Do not flaunt repaired nail as much as you did pre-damage. Get to the nail salon later that night or tomorrow morning.

 

You’ll thank me soon enough J

New Moon; can’t wait for the movie

New moon videos, everyone! Yeah, Bella isn’t supposed to find out about Jacob like that, but hell, doesn’t Jacob Black looke awesom here?!

 

I’m note quiet sure if this is official, but seems all right with me; The Volturi Coven:

 

And the Wolf Pack, of course:

Mulberry Icon – Bayswater pic

I just realized I didn’t even post a pic of the adorable Mulberry Icon bag! Here it is. 

mulberry icon: bayswater

Someone said that when it comes to women’s bags, men just don’t know the fine distinction. I would hazard at a guess: this is a woman who said this, one who found opposition to acquisition of a ‘fine’ bag, from a man.

Luckily for womankind, this isn’t a universal truth. Even luckier for me: I’m someone who enjoy more than the usual person’s share of good luck.

For example, it’s lucky for me that all the men in my life – the youngest being kuya’s 6-year old kid, the oldest being my 50-year old father who’d pass for 45 – know fine distinctions of most things that matter, one of which are women’s bags. Luckier still, they value their lives enough to not insult any woman by presenting her with anything that is less than luxurious.

So, this morning, happily swinging from my right arm and loudly shouting out joy to the Philippines is a Mulberry bag.

Right now it has a whole chair to itself, sitting next to my desk, right on my sights. It’s my very first Mulberry bag, and it isn’t just any Mulberry bag, it’s one of only two Mulberry Icon bags, the Bayswater – and I absolutely adore it! It’s great that it’s big – it’s perfect for one of those days when you find that, for some reason, you need everything at the ready, from that hardcover copy of Hannibal you’re re-reading to the pot of id bare minerals to ease the shine off your nose, from the satin shawl that make pretty much any outfit fit for a nice dinner out to the comfy pair of Roxy flipflops you’re going to slip on when you go to that big sale on a mall tonight.

I look at the Mulberry Icon bag on the chair and I just know that this is one bag I’ll really enjoy having around. True, I generally prefer the classics – monogram Louis Vuittons and Guccis over, say, rocks on yellow leather by BabyPhat or a purple, triangular one by Marc Jacobs – and though the Bayswater isn’t exactly classic, there’s something about the bag’s cut that screams ‘timeless’, at least to me. So yeah, this’d probably be one of my favorites.

Oh, a bit about Mulberry, for those thinking about acquiring one, or two or three, bags from them:

Mulberry is an English luxury brand established in 1971, which soon became so fashionable it was referred to as ‘le style Anglais’. One of their Mulberry Icon items is the Bayswater, which ranges from 387 to 1,995 UK pounds. 

McLaren adverts

The McLaren group does really good work of using their famous drivers in their adverts – and with F1 car unveiling like theirs, really, did we expect anything less of McLaren?. Here are a couple, starring my favorite F1 driver, Kimi.

This is for Nescafe. Note the pitcrew in the background, clad in Ferrari scarlet – hahaha!

 

I’m not quite sure if this had been filmed while he’d still been in McLaren, but I find it nice nonetheless – Kimi, as Taxi driver, is absolutely cute in this one.   

 

This one’s pretty upfront, for Mercedes:

I’d say the McLaren Group makes really nice adverts – and not just of Kimi, though my faved are definitely those of him. Here’s a really amusing one starred in by two F1 World Champions (like Kimi) but put together was a disastrous pair for McLaren:

The song perfectly described the relationship between them as team mates, don’t you think?

Kimi Räikkönen: Real Wild Child

Saw this video of Kimi Räikkönen posted on youtube – it’s adorable! – called Real Wild Child. That’s the title of the track that’s playing as well, performed by Josie and the Pussycats.