Feeling Fashionista

I got a text from Jill (I can never get used to calling you Jill, Clems!) asking me if I wanted to watch the Project Runway Philippines Final Runway Show with her. Of course, she really didn’t need to ask…I’m so there! I’m such a fangirl/sucker for this show.

So last night, the two of us trooped to SMX Convention Center (my first time here…it’s impressive) to catch the show. And what a show it was!

Unlike majority of reality shows where there’s always some contestant who undeservedly makes it into the finale, the three finalists for PRP Season 1 are all deserving in my book.

My thoughts on the show (I won’t reveal too much, for those who don’t want to be spoiled):

Philip Tampus’ collection was girly, beautiful and very intricate. Overall, I was impressed, but there were some clothes which looked a little bit costume-y to me. There was one outfit with weird coil-like designs on the bosom, it reminded me of a costume for the Star Wars movies. Actually, Philip’s designs could be worn by Queen Amidala. I’m just not sure if that’s a compliment. :)

The Amidala Dress

Coming into the finale, I was personally rooting for Veejay Floresca, because he made my favorite creation of the season, a very chic and modern wedding gown for the Bridal Challenge. But his collection was a tad disappointing. It was…safe. Nothing was extraordinary, although every single piece was wearable (no funky headdress in sight, no sticky tapes needed). It was underwhelming.

Veejay's minimalist style exemplified

And then came Aries Lagat. From his introduction alone, you could already feel that the collection was something special. He even had a title for his collection, “More Than A Woman”. (O di ba? Kahit di ko gets yung connection, basta may title siya!) He was the only one who used some color (Veejay and Philip stuck to a neutral palette, which didn’t really pop onstage) and he also used this shiny black sequin-y material that looked so attractive under all those lights. And unlike the other two designers, Aries had that “wow” moment that had the audience (and even the judges) smiling and clapping in appreciation.

That's actually three outfits from one dress...impressive!

My pick for the winner is obvious, but I’ll still be watching the telecast of the finale on ETC to see if the clothes also translate well onscreen.

[ETA: I found pictures of all the clothes in the runway show! For those who want to be completely spoiled, check out Click the City (where I got the pics above). Jill attempted to take some shots as well (including one fangirl moment for both of us), you can view them here: PRP Finale]

It's Worth a Try

I’m a bag-a-holic and a sucker for internet contests and freebies, so naturally this caught my eye:

24 Handbags in 24 Hours Completely Free!

Contest description from the website:

Handbag Planet is almost here. To celebrate the October 15, 2008 launch, we are giving away a free handbag every hour for 24 hours on the day of the launch. Our high fashion, trendy handbags are inspired by popular designer brands and priced between $30 and $80.

“Inspired by popular designer brands” screams fake designer knock-offs to me, but what the heck? It's worth a try!

Posting this blog entry will apparently increase my chances of winning.....so there you go... :)

Sold!

I’ve known about this for a few months already, but it became official last Wednesday. My parents just sold our present family home, so we’re moving to a new place early next year.

I feel a little a bit sad, a little bit relieved and somewhat excited. This has been my home for practically my entire life (we moved here in 1981) and if not for some factors beyond our control, I would have really loved to stay here. The location is very convenient for a commuter like me (jeeps, trikes, taxis and colorum vans all pass by in front of our house). BF is like a mini-city, everything you need is just a 5-minute drive/ride away. But BF is no longer the quiet, peaceful subdivision it was years ago, and despite my parents’ efforts to fight commercialization, we just learned to accept the fact that you really can’t fight city hall.

Not surprisingly, the buyer of our house intends to convert it into yet another restaurant. So six months from now, this house will no longer be a home, but a crab shack.

The good news is that my parents are building a new house, and I can finally get that walk-in closet that I’ve dreamed of for years. And a bedroom with purple walls. :)

Post Office Horror Stories

Note to self (and a word to the wise): Never ever have an international package delivered to a Makati City address!

I ordered a Beauty Blender a month ago to take advantage of free shipping from a US cosmetics company and a Paypal rebate. I normally use my address in Paranaque as the shipping address for all my online orders, but I decided to switch to Makati for a change because the Paranaque PO is out of the way from my normal route to the office and they allow you to claim packages on Tuesdays and Thursdays only. Since the Makati PO is just a 10-minute taxi ride from the office, I figured it would be more convenient since I can just drop by the PO on my lunch break, take my package, and go.

I dropped by the Makati PO at lunchtime to claim my long-awaited package. I didn’t mind that it took about 30 minutes before I was finally able to get ahold of it (it only takes me 10 minutes max in the Paranaque PO, but I guess Makati being the center of business and all, I should have known the place would be busier). I also didn’t mind that I only received the postal notification today, even though the package arrived at the Makati PO on September 15 (a whopping 14-day lag time). I was willing to forgive the red tape as long as I received the Beauty Blender safe and sound. To my horror though, I opened the package and discovered that the Beauty Blender’s plastic container was crushed beyond repair, as if somebody (with really large feet) had stepped on it. I immediately tried to restore the case to its original shape, and this is the best I could come up with:

You can still see the dents. I thought, okay lang, it’s just the case, I’ll throw that away anyway, what matters is that the Beauty Blender is not ruined. But Mr. Postal Office Big Foot didn’t even spare my cute little pink egg:

There’s a huge dent on one side which is irreparable. Honestly, I don’t think the Beauty Blender’s function would be significantly diminished by this dent, but that’s not the point. I paid $$ for this, I expect to receive something in tiptop shape. And I don’t blame the online seller because it was packaged really well, with sufficient bubble wrap to protect it from reckless handling by the local PO. In all my years of receiving packages from Paranaque PO, I have never received any package with its contents in less than perfect condition, and trust me, I’ve ordered or bought stuff even more delicate than a pink sponge egg. Makati PO, which probably receives more packages than any other city in the Philippines, can’t even handle packages properly. No wonder the top online stores like Amazon don’t ship to the Philippines, they’ve probably heard how unreliable the system is. My experience isn’t even the worst case...I’ve had friends who waited and waited for a package that never came. Once, a friend sent my sister a gift of 6 Nike baller Ids (nung uso pa dati), and she got only five. And it was clearly indicated on the outside label that the package contained six bracelets ha...garapalan talaga. Sabi ko sa kanya, punta ka sa PO, tingnan mo kung sino may suot-suot na Livestrong bracelet doon, tapos i-confront mo! LOL

After this, I'd rather be inconvenienced and make a side trip to the Paranaque PO than having to go through this Makati PO shit again. Hmph.