TOPAZ HORIZON

My publicist friend Marcie Linao (because she saw that I blogged about my Watsons shopping) asked me to tell you that the health and beauty shop is honoring some of the brands they carry. Behold! The winners of the Watsons Health Wellness Beauty Awards!

Basically, these are the brands that performed well in terms of sales, promos, customer service and (of course!) product excellence. The winners are:

• Maybelline for Mascara Brand of the Year
• ProActiv for Acne Care Brand of the Year
• Dove Hair Care for Shampoo Brand of the Year
• Kojie San for Bath Soap Brand of the Year
• Colgate for Oral Whitening Brand of the Year
• Ralph Lauren for Prestige Fragrance Brand of the Year
• Nivea Men for Men’s Grooming Brand of the Year
• Myra E for Adult Vitamin Brand of the Year
• Ceelin for Children’s Vitamin Brand of the Year
• Ascof for Cough Remedy Brand of the Year
• ATC Redoxfat for Slimming Brand of the Year
• Belo Glutathione for Whitening Brand of the Year

I agree with the Dove Hair Care, Colgate and Nivea Men. For vitamins, I highly recommend Sangobion, the organic iron supplement with vitamins and minerals! Anyway, that's just a few of the brands Watsons loves. For the complete list of the winners, visit www.facebook.com/WatsonsPH. 

I was at LeBunny Bleu's launch party yesterday and, boy, was it packed! I didn't realize that the shoe brand was that much of a fashionista favorite! Here's a few snaps from yesterday:

Patty Laurel hosted the event. She also babysat my baby stroller so I could shop. Thanks, Patty!

Patty with Michelle Chan and my friend, Zerline Chan Ortiz-Luiz, the stylish women who brought in LeBunny Bleu (and Quirks, too!)

Sorry, I forgot to bring my camera so I had to use my Blackberry. Sad. It's a good thing Le Bunny Bleu gave us photos of their super cute shoes! Here are just a few styles. There are a lot more. There's Oxfords, brogues, espadrilles, boat shoes and loafers, too.

The numbers on the photos aren't the prices, okay? I put the price in the captions. I'm sooo happy the shoes are reasonably priced!

Linda Heel, P2795

Angela Ballet Flat, P2795

Cotton Slip-On, P1995

Spring Tassel Slip-On, P2095

Vina Hadden Heel, P2795

And here's some style ideas:





The shoes are a bit too young for 36-year-old me but I did find a pair I liked. A two-tone black-and-white flat. It's quite nice! I'll debut it next week haha.

Shop at LeBunny Bleu this weekend! The flagship store is at 5/F Bridgeway of the East Wing of Shangri-la Plaza Mall. Next week, the Glorietta 5 branch opens!

On my way to a mom blogger event at Glorietta 1, I passed by the very large Karimadon shop and couldn't resist going in and browsing.
I've been a Karimadon fan since I was 17 years old. I'm 36 now. That's a love affair that's going on for two decades! At my high school graduation, I wore a Karimadon lace button-up blouse with matching pencil skirt. I also bought a matching pleated skirt which I changed into at the graduation ball. I felt so beautiful!

I always feel beautiful in Karimadon. That's why I still have Karimadon in my wardrobe until now. If you want proof, check out all my Karimadon outfits and accessories by clicking here!

I was really just going to window shop (I was on my way to another event, remember) but there were so many pretty clothes and accessories that I found myself grabbing a few dresses and heading to the dressing rooms!

That's how I found out that there's a secret door that leads to the VIP dressing room!!! Since I've been a Karimadon lover for decades, I figured I could ask to take a peek. The saleslady didn't just allow me a peek, she told me to go try my clothes in the VIP room!!!
Chandelier, shag rug, scented candles, cozy sofa for friends or lovers, large mirror! Love it! I loved the space most of all. The curtained off fitting area was big so I could change in and out of my clothes without bumping into walls.

You guys should really try it! I actually don't know who gets to be lucky enough to use the VIP room. Maybe you should be a regular customer who buys a lot of dresses? Or maybe you're a bride with your bridesmaids? I forgot to ask! But I wasn't a regular customer at the Glorietta branch (I go to Robinsons Galleria and Megamall) but I was still allowed access so maybe you just need to ask!

And here's what I got! I love it! It's a wrap dress. Vince loves me in wrap dresses. He says I look sophisticated yet sexy. But I think he likes how easy they are to take off haha! Anyway, I'm planning to wear this to a magazine shoot. Yes, I'll be in front of the camera this time! I still need another dress, though, since the shoot called for me in my usual look (I'm usually in wrap dresses or sheath dresses so check!) and a glamorous look. I still don't have a dress for that one. Maybe I should drop by Karimadon again!

Just one outfit today because, despite my intensely busy and fashionable week, I only remembered to take one outfit shot! Such a shame because I liked all my outfits this week and just forgot to take pictures. Did I mention it was an intensely busy week?

So I'll just show you what I wore to the Esquire Ball.
I'm wearing a column dress by Anja. I bought it from Catalogue 63. It's a beautiful bright turquoise that the camera sadly didn't capture.

I wore purple accessories with it. Yes, I thought purple and turquoise go well together. I had been mulling over the usual turquoise-and-coral combo but, at the last minute, I decided I like purple. I wore my bib necklace of amethyst crystals that I bought from this tiny boutique at Glorietta 5, an amethyst bracelet by Nicole Whisenhunt and my purple satin-and-suede Kenneth Cole peep-toe heels.

I chose a column dress because I had planned on bringing Iñigo with us. And Iñigo is still exclusively breastfed so I needed an easy access dress. As it turned out, the baby happily slept, which allowed his Mama and Papa to steal away for a few hours. Yey! I also wanted a column dress because it's not structured so it should be kind to a body that had just given birth.

These were my inspirations:


Here's Demi Moore in VB's dress, but in royal blue. I like that Victoria's column dress is held up by a corset. So you won't have any problems with your dress slipping down and exposing your boob/armpit fat, like so:
Oh, my man is looking mighty spiffy in his three-piece suit! I am so in love with him!

After a few glasses of wine, a blurry photo with Esquire editor-in-chief Erwin Romulo.

Inspired by Chuvaness's post, I had a photo taken with society photographer Daniel Tan

I thought it was Richard! But I do prefer Raymond. He's the more cultured and sophisticated one!

With accessories designer Happy David, Elle Decoration's Kissa McDermott and Spot.ph's Lou Albano

Anyway, I had wanted to bring the dress to the tailor to have it tweaked a bit. Sew up the sides and the hem so that there's less volume (I kinda look pregnant) and so it won't drag on the floor. But delivery was delayed so I didn't have time to go to the tailor. Still, I love my dress. Everyone loved it, too. So it was a fashion success!

I hope you're having a fashionable Friday!

When you're a mommy like me, you want to be able to run around comfortably. When you're in the magazine business like me, you want to be able to look good at work. When you're trying to be chic whatever the occasion like me, you want to never sacrifice style for comfort and comfort for style.

So I'd like to have one pair each of these Chelsea ballet flats please! Size 36.
Tory Burch studied an actual ballet slipper when she designed this wardrobe staple. So the soft leather, the lightness, the grosgrain ribbon trim and narrow toe box will definitely inspire you to dance while walking! The name, meanwhile, is taken after New York's art district. So the shoe is for the girl who likes to while away the days visiting museums and galleries, attending exhibits and shows--in comfy shoes, sure, but in luxe comfy shoes!

At P9,650 a pair, it's quite pricey but, hey, as someone who's spent loooong days in heels for years and years, I'm ready to invest in flats as beautiful and comfortable as the Chelsea.

Tory Burch is available at Greenbelt 5.

I've been telling everyone that I'm selling everything in my closet. Nearly everything I have is for my pre-pregnant body, which was a size 4. Now I'm a 6 and, with my birth-widened hips and milk-filled breasts, I don't see myself shrinking back to 4 anytime soon (or ever). So I need to sell everything so I have money to buy new stuff for my new body.

Then I remembered that for Christmas, Pinky, my old old friend from way back in third grade at Assumption, gave me GCs for Unarosa. I wasn't familiar with the brand. Pinky said the clothes are nice and I'll like them. So I went to their website (but their Facebook page was much better) and she's right, I do like the pieces! Here's what I loved:

Top- P 1,795.00, Pants- P 1995.00, Shoes- P 1,760.00

I love pussy bow blouses. And lace. Vince doesn't like lace (he's reminded of doilies) but I really like that top. I also like the pants. But since I still have a post-partum belly bulge, I don't think I'll look good in it. Yet!

I've made it no secret that I want a Tod's D Bag. But as I said on my blog post here, the too simple design is making me hesitate. I mean, don't you want something more spectacular for 70,000 pesoses!

So Tod's came out with these goodies for their Spring/Summer 2012 collection!

This D Bag comes in snakeskin, which will look really good with...

... these matching Gommino driving shoes!

Or if you're not the matchy-matchy type (I'm not), try these driving shoes in bright colors.

I love the color orange and this D Bag in bright citrus and rough textured leather is love!

The perfect shoe with that orange bag? This heeled lovely in smooth buttery leather!

But since I'm a mommy now and I run after a toddler, these penny loafers are better for me. Except that I am so not the loafers type!

So if I must go with practical flats, then I should go wild with the bags! Just look at these luscious colors and skins!

So there. After all this time, I'm still lusting after anything Tod's. Well, a Tod's D Bag more than anything else since I don't drive so I don't need their iconic driving shoe nor am I the loafer-type (but Tod's does have adorable ballerina flats!).

Anyway, Vince keeps telling me to just end my misery and go buy a bag already (and if I remember right, every year, the Italian brands at Greenbelt 4 go on a mega sale). But I keep feeling guilty over that price tag. I think I need more blogging raket and eBay sales to finance my Tod's obsession!

*photos courtesy of Visions & Expressions