TOPAZ HORIZON

"Life is too short to spend time with people who suck the happiness out of you."

Enjoy!



Those Japanese are beyond crazy! I laughed until my tummy hurt and there were tears in my eyes. I have got to visit Japan soon!!! But I hope I don't get to be a prank victim!

Well, for Vince it's a PS3! For me, it's a shopping spree!

Yup, that's what we got each other for our wedding anniversary last April 18. I got him a new console to replace the first one I gave him in 2006. Back then, the newly launched Playstation 3 was a whopping 45K; (now, it's less than 15K). That's why I proposed to him because in my mind, a mere boyfriend shouldn't be getting gifts as pricey as that. He better be my fiance, dammit! To my delight, Vince agreed with me wholeheartedly and married me four months later.

Vince is beyond thrilled with his new plaything (see photo here!). I didn't get him PS3 games, though. He still has tons of games he hasn't been able to play since going back to advertising. But because of my gift, he's been devoting a couple of hours every other day to gaming pleasure.

Do I recommend giving Playstation 3, Wii and other gaming consoles to your hubby? Yes! When it's from you, they feel so loved and appreciated. They think, "She really understands me!" Plus, because it's from you, you get to control his gaming hours! Best. Gift. Ever!

As for moi, I got a shopping spree! I've already bought some cool things but I'm not yet done. This is so much fun! Thanks, Vince! Happy anniversary!

Looks like a lot of you saw my guest stint at Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho. I didn't (we watched Fringe instead!) but blog reader Mav Duran sent me a link and so I was able to watch it. Thanks, Mav!

Don't blink or you'll miss it!



On Twitter (follow me!), some of my followers who watched the show teased me about my voice. Yes, it's really soft and high-pitched. I screech when I'm excited, too. It's okay, I don't get offended about it. I even coined a term for my voice--boses pekpek. In polite company, it's boses ipis.

I used to try to modulate but I dunno, I just never can do it. As a writer, I never dreamed I'd be in a position that I'd have to actually express my thoughts verbally so public speaking was never a skill I developed.

I do wonder, though, since my Twitter followers said, "I didn't imagine you to sound like that" and "Your voice is unexpected," I wonder how exactly did you think I'd sound? Just curious!

It's been exactly one week since the royal wedding of William and Catherine but the fascination remains. I'm an entertainment magazine editor so part of my job is to appear on TV shows to talk about the biggest wedding of the year (the century!).

I love jewelry. They just make every outfit look loads better! You know what looks really great with everything? Pearls.

Of course, real ones are the best but, my goodness, a pair of real pearl studs costs as much as a MacBook Air so I really don't mind wearing less expensive but just as beautiful pieces like these gorgeous necklaces from Carolee's new Style Icon Collection:

Jackie Pearl Necklace with Emerald-Cut Crystal Clasp

Jackie 8mm Three Row Pearl Necklace

Michelle 16mm Pearl Necklace

The collection is named after glamorous women in history: Jackie Kennedy Onassis, Evita Peron, Wallis Simpson and Michelle Obama.


The U.S. President's wife actually owns a Carolee pearl necklace and she wore it on the cover of Newsweek and on the night her husband won the Democratic nomination. Yeah, the night the couple made the fist bump famous.

Since I have Mrs. Obama's penchant for sheath dresses and pearls, I guess I should go and stock up on Carolee necklaces! And I'm actually going to Rustan's Makati tomorrow. Hmm. I just might get myself one. I actually have my eye on this Evita perfection:

Evita Five Row Graduated Pearl Necklace

It's lovely. Perfect for Mother's Day!

For another Mother's Day gift, click here to see what Michael Kors made for mommies!

April has been particularly insane. It's the anniversary issue of the magazine I edit. It's also been the royal wedding month so I've been appearing on several TV shows regularly.

Fully made up and still pale

Like Catherine, the new Duchess of Cambridge, I did my own makeup. Unlike Catherine, I didn't look as fabulous on screen! I honestly don't know how to do makeup for the camera. I'm always still very pale and my dark circles always still show up.

I need to learn to cake it on, contour my cheeks and nose, make my eyes stand out (on video, my eyes look very small), and I really should wear lipstick.

At TV5's morning show, the makeup artist dragged me to his chair even though I said I looked fine. He said I looked awful. "Ate, mag-pink lipstick ka," he demanded while he applied this alarming shocking pink on my lips. "Tanda mo tingnan sa beige at sa red. Promise." I so did not believe him. But on TV, the shocking pink was a pretty rose pink! Wow.

So anyway. TV guestings, radio tours, and now a working weekend as we rush to finish the wedding special and run the May issue by tomorrow evening. Wish us luck, folks, because the entire magazine staff is about to collapse.

Then there were events I had to attend, dinners with friends (I promised that I will no longer neglect my friendships), blogger friends to meet, a new workout to try, Amper family issues to resolve (why do I never have Sales family problems?), and a garage sale to do (I earned P15,000! Hooray!) which I promised on my Twitter to never ever do again. Then my yaya and maid went on a five-day leave because of a family tragedy. I honestly have no idea how I'm still standing up!

We were all so excited for Vito's first plane ride!

Of course, April was also a happy month--it was my wedding anniversary! Vince and I had so much fun celebrating it. Then we went to the incredible Shangri-la Mactan, too. Soooo many photos, so no time to tell you about them all! As soon as things settle down, folks, I'll blogathon!

This is a working weekend for me at the entertainment magazine I work for because of the royal wedding. The entire staff is all busy looking through thousands of photos and researching all the details. It's very exciting and terrifying at the same time because we have to finish this issue in 2 days so that you can have it by next week. Fun fun fun!

I was squealing and gasping the entire time. So many thrilling moments! When William and Harry departed Clarence House, when the Queen showed up in sunny yellow, when all those gorgeous Philip Treacy hats paraded outside the Abbey, when I saw those trees in the Abbey, when Pippa showed up (I though for a moment she was Kate), when Kate finally appeared, when she met William at the altar, when I saw all those magnificent horses and the cavalry, etc etc. Of course I clapped most during the kisses at Buckingham Palace! Love it love it love it!


Anyway, I think I'm one of the very few underwhelmed with Catherine's dress. Underwhelmed and disappointed. It's a lovely dress and she looked absolutely amazing in it but... it's not the Alexander McQueen the fashion world remembers.

I'm not dissing it, okay? Like I said, it's a gorgeous dress--simple, elegant, lovely. But those are adjectives you don't really use to describe a McQueen. McQueen is--rather, was--the rock star of the fashion world. He's known for his bold, out-of-this-world, outrageous, sexy, controversial, shocking, theatrical, lavish, rebellious, fantastical, edgy, avant-garde designs.

I honestly could not imagine classic, elegant, sophisticated Kate wearing a McQueen! Just look at his designs as worn by the Great Cate Blanchett:




When I heard the rumors that Sarah Burton for Alexender McQueen might be the lucky designer, I got so excited. William and Kate are known to be a modern couple but even I didn't expect they'd be that modern. Here's the bridal dresses from his last collection:




I was sooo excited to see if Catherine will actually be able to pull off a McQueen! Well, turns out Sarah Burton designed a very Kate Middleton dress for the new duchess. Compare her wedding gown with those dresses up there. Not even close. There's nothing McQueen about Catherine's dress at all.

When I saw Catherine in her gown, I said, "Oh, it's gorgeous! She looks lovely!" And then I got sad because that beautiful gown just emphasized the fact that a true design genius is dead and gone.

However, I figured that Catherine chose the design house of McQueen because he was one of the most celebrated British designers of all time. But if she had actually worn something outrageous, well, that just wouldn't get the approval of two billion people who want their princesses to wear fairy-tale gowns, not cutting-edge fashion!

So great choice, Catherine! You wore something very British and were able to marry tradition with modernity. You've proven to be a master at compromise. So very you and William!

* * * * * * *
See what other designers have to say:
Top designers Lagerfeld, Givenchy and Lacroix give their verdict
San Francisco's top wedding designers weigh in

And what Preview editor-in-chief Pauline Juan has to say:

For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV

For the official wedding photos (so breathtakingly beautiful! The one with the kids is my favorite!), click here.