Flattering Tops Giveaway!

Giveaway: Flattering Tops 3rd Year Anniversary Blowout!

Flattering Tops is celebrating their third anniversary this October, so to share their love for all the support, they’ll be giving away FOUR tops for ONE Reader and THREE of his/her friends!

To join, click HERE

notes:

• This giveaway is open to Philippine Residents only
• Deadline of submission of entries is on November 1,2012 12:01AM
• Winner will be chosen via random.org and will be announced shortly after at the Pretty Ingenious Facebook Page.
• all entries will be double checked for validity

D.I.Y. Project: Placemat Clutch Bag

One of the most overused phrases that I love repeating over and over again despite being heard everywhere is: "DREAM BIG!" You see I've always had this immense dream of living a luxurious life. Ambitious as it may sound, I fantasize of waking up in a 7-star sea-side hotel somewhere half-way around the world, being fetched by a Mercedes SLS all the way to the airport to ride a private jet back to my modern-contemporary-designed mansion where I keep several Hermes, Louis Vuitton and Chanel bags! Okay, now snap back to reality... I have only touched a Hermes bag, and consistently drooling to own one when heyday comes. And being still en route to success, I always try to save money the best way I can and "make-do" with what's left - even if it's just a lowly plastic placemat!

D.I.Y. Project: Placemat Clutch Bag


Materials Used:
A Plastic Placemat [we bought for only 24 pesos (USD $0.58) at Bargain Exchange, Robinson's] Velcro straps, Super glue, Decorative button, a Ruler you're not going to use anymore, and something to heat up your ruler (like a Candle and a Lighter)


This is how you do it:
1.) Fold the sides of the placemat and secure with superglue:

I chose the rougher side of the placemat to be the exposed side as it looks less plasticky.

2.) Fold up the placemat 5 inches from the bottom and secure with superglue on the sides. TIP: To fold the placemat with ease, heat the edge of the ruler first and press the heated edge against the placemat. This will create a mark to guide you:



Sorry for the crappy nails, the cracked nail polish was falling off, and I haven't redone my nails yet. It looks like an overly abstract nail art though, don't you think?

3.) Then fold up the placemat 5 inches from the top. This will serve as the flap of the bag. You will need to heat up your ruler again for this:


4.) Once the flap is finely folded, it's time to attach the velcro straps. These will be the lock of your bag:


5.) Then glue your decorative button at the bottom of the flap. The button will make the bag look like it has a magnetic snap lock. My personal term for this is: pseudo-lock. Hah!


♥ Congratulations! You've just created your own ENVELOPE CLUTCH! Let's see what could fit in this little bag:


2 phones, a digital camera, a wallet and a cologne bottle... yet this bag still looks pretty slim!


Does this bag look familiar here in my blog? Of course! I've worn this bag a couple of times already!
One. To Day 6 of the Philippine Fashion Week Holiday 2012 last May:

and~
Two. To the Dolan Batang Pinoy Superheroes and Animé 2012:

...A bag made from a 24-peso placemat! Bahaha! With a bag this cheap, I can now save lots of dough to buy a Hermes Birkin -a fake one at most. LOL! Just kiddin'. I better stick to my dream of owning original designer bags. Maybe not now, maybe in my 80's? *dunno* Well at least I know in my heart my dreams will come true. *wink!*

Dolan Batang Pinoy Superheroes and Animé 2012!

 Kids, kids, kids! They simply color my world. Why do they have to grow up? Just imagine how cute the world would be if we see children in police uniforms and doctor coats, chasing criminals and doing surgeries. Even seeing these adorable little creatures take a pee makes me smile.  =) So what else would I say when a business friend invites me to a kiddie event? HELL YES!

Outfit: Blue Square-Print Button Down, Blue Clutch Bag, Gray Shorts, Black Belt, D.I.Y. Fringe Block Necklace, Metallic Blue Heel Less Shoes

Since it was a kid's event, my outfit was kiddie-inspired.

Two of the contestants of the show are sons a business friend (Ate Beth). And though the venue was at an SM Megamall Cinema, the seating allocation in relation to its price was a little unusual. The closer you are to the stage, the pricier the ticket.

Thank you Ms. Beth Andres for our gold patron tickets!

We also ate at a kiddie food chain before the show! Yay!

My boyfriend and I on opposite sides, beside me was Ate Beth with her sons Richard and John Jude:

The mechanics of the contest was quite simple: Each of the contestant would showcase their costumes onstage and project their chosen superhero or animé character and the judges would choose who among them has the "bibo" factor. The contestants were divided into two categories: Baby Category (0-6 years old) and the Kids Category (6-12 years old). There were 80 contestants. Those who were included in the Baby Category should be accompanied by their parents onstage.

Go John Jude and Richard!

John Jude (Kids Category) wore a Cyclops Costume while Richard (Baby Category) showcased his Mulawin Outfit!

That's Richard on screen!

Some of the intermission numbers on the show:

If I'm not mistaken, this Superman guy is Herbert Chavez, the man who underwent multiple cosmetic surgeries just to look like Clark Kent, because of his obsession with the man of steel:

Some of the girls of the Kids Category:

Two of the female contestants brought their whole baranggay with them. Their loud cheers tore out my eardrums! Haha:

Congratulations John Jude and Richard for winning three special awards!

But wait there's more... The hosts asked for five moms to come up on stage for a mini-contest. The challenge: Mommy-modeling showdown!

Ate Beth did some super-heroic moves just like what her kids did:

And guess who won the mommy showdown:

Congratulations Ate Beth for winning the mommy showdown! Moreover, congratulations for being a supermom to your kids! You have raised them well not only to be contest winners, but also to be winners in life!

Oh, when will I get to see kids in costumes again?

An Egyptian Costume for a Friend!

I'm not a designer, I'm not a seamstress, but one thing is for sure: I'm a selfless friend... I find joy in sharing my little blessings with others. I feel blessed whenever I give out. I'm not stingy in giving even my time to people who are dear to me. Maybe because that's the very nature of my work, or that's just who I am. Last week Ashley asked me to make a D.I.Y. Egyptian costume he would be using for the OLFU Mr. & Ms. Tourism 2012. For three (or four?) sleepless days, Anj, Daryll and I created a costume that would fit Ashley's idea of an ancient Egyptian attire. Thank God we were able to finish it before the pageant!

From fabrics to foil, can you believe that we only spent 238 pesos (USD $5.64) for the entire costume?

Making an Egyptian headpiece drained out my right brain!

But it ain't gonna us from night till day!

During the pageant, we had to help him wear the costume:

This is the finished product, the sum of our efforts and ideas:

It was all worth the pimples!

Seeing the costume being modeled onstage took away my weariness:

And even if Ash did not win the pageant... the fun, the skills developed and the camaraderie are things that I will never forget!

To Ash, it's okay. Try again next year! Colonel Sanders failed 1,009 times before his home-made chicken became KFC... Keep in mind that, winners never quit, and quitters never win!

Guni-Guni Red Carpet Premiere

Claiming a prize from a twitter contest has never been this fun as not only I, won as a celebrity look-alike but also my boyfriend and a close friend, Anj! 

I WON!

MY BOYFRIEND WON!

and... ANJ WON!

Since we three won two tickets each for the Guni-guni Premiere Night, we tagged along another three:

Tita Maribel,  (Anj's cool mom), Darwin (my boyfriend's brother) and Mikee (Darwin's cute girlfriend).

It's so overwhelming to think that 10 percent of the 30 lucky people who won this nationwide contest are people who know each other well. Hahaha. Don't you think it was a little biased?

From left: Daryll, Me, Anj, Mikee & Tita Maribel:

Outfit: Sheer Black Long-sleeve Blouse, Yellow Polka-dot Skort, Black Belt, Cuff, Mango Envelope Clutch, Long Cuff Bangle, D.I.Y. Yellow Ombre Tassel Earrings, Black Open-toed Wedge Booties

On my boyfriend, Daryll: Blue Button-down, Denim Jacket,  Black Necktie, White Pants, Black Men's Clutch, Ballers, Black Caterpillar Boots

My D.I.Y. tassel earrings which I was about to wear at the event wasn't finished yet when these pics were taken: [Photos by Anj]

We went straight to Cinema 3 of SM Megamall only to find that the venue was moved to Cinema 9. Before even reaching the entrance of the hall where C9 is located, we witnessed quite a number of fans and movie-goers waiting for the cast to enter the venue.

Our tickets to the movie... Thank you Mr. Nico Nicomedes!

T.V. personalities & celebs who walked down the red carpet:

Kiray, Lhar Santiago:

Alex Castro, Mother Lily:

Ria Garcia, Jake Cuenca:

Empress:

The main character of the movie, Lovi Poe with her leading man, Benjamin Alves:

This is it... The moment I had been waiting for... Me walking down the red carpet!

Hahaha! As contest winners, we had to enter through this path. Sorry for the crappy pic. Daryll took this while he was walking behind me. He felt a bit shy of taking pictures while on the Red Carpet. After the scene, we were given Splash gift packs.

Dear Splash, thank you for these skin care products!

Then we entered the Cinema.

How creepy this model looked like...

The theatre was overcrowded with jolly people who made watching a horror movie feel like watching comedy. Haha! As for the movie, It was thrilling and I enjoyed watching it! Lovi Poe is indeed the queen of Pinoy horror movies! Before we got out of the cinema, we spoke in front of the T.V. camera about our short opinions of the movie. It was another first-time experience!

Awooooooohh...