TOPAZ HORIZON

A month ago today, I was packing for our first trip abroad as a family. We went to Bali, Indonesia, for the wedding of one of Vince's best friends, Jukka.

This is us at the airport on a really rainy, very early morning. Vince and I are sleepy but excited. Vito is excited. Period!

Vito just learned to walk so, while Vince filled out immigration forms, Vito wandered about. He was just amazed at the huge space. He just had to explore it!

Hi Vito! Hi Vince! I love those two boys to bits! They wore matching shirts. So cute and preppy!

Vito and the smile that can melt any heart. Such a cutie pie!

His first international flight! So excited! We didn't have a problem at all. Was really scared he'd be one of those babies that cry and cry on the plane. Thank goodness he was just happy all the time!

This is us in Singapore. It's Vito's first bus ride, too. Later on, when we took the train from one terminal to another, Vito had his first train ride, too. Many firsts!

Still at Singapore. You can tell that someone's pretty pumped. Just lookit that silly face! Meanwhile, my arms were dying at this point!

By the way, my son's kind of a little flirt. Every time he sees pretty girls, he unleashes his charm. And it's pretty lethal, his charm. I let him loose on the plane aisle. Seemed like an okay thing to do since I could hear oohs and aahs and gurgles of adoration. When he came back to us, however, Vito seemed upset about something. Someone stole a kiss!

At Bali finally! Where the flowers grow in thick clusters...

Where the clime is hot and makes everyone, like this fat dog, lazy...

And this cute baby, too! Look at his wrinkly-nose yawn (he got that from his father). Must be the fresh air. Vito ain't used to it. I like that I didn't have to put on makeup and brush my hair. Such freedom from the city!

There's the little punk, ready for his swim! That's his porn star trunks. I love his porn star trunks!

Our villa was swarming with mosquitoes so we all slept under dreamy nets that kinda didn't work since Vito still woke up with red dots all over him. I was so freaked out! Vito's first mosquito bites! Even though I slathered him with insect repellent, those pesky bugs still got to him.

One more thing that freaked me out? The many many many statues of their gods. Devil worship! Sorry, that's the Born Again in me talking. Vince kept rolling his eyes at me and laughing at my Born-Again-ness. Well, even if I weren't Born Again, they are pretty scary. Look at Vito. I rest my case!

Next post: The romantic sunset wedding!

I love how Michelle of My Mom-Friday absolutely loves her new bag!

She Tweeted it as soon as she got it!

And used it every day, everywhere!

Here's her review summary:
1. Twin magnetic snap closures make opening the bag easy to open and yet still secure.
I really love that this was my idea haha!
2. Craftsmanship and materials are Grade-A!
Thanks to Malabon cows and Batangas talent!
3. Small bag still looks great on a tall girl!
This bag looks great on anyone!
4. But the small bag still fits a LOT of stuff.
Hooray for the pliant leather!

Thanks, Michelle, for loving the bag and for using it so often!

But in my other blogs!

Beauty For A Living
Topaz Mommy

Will be back here soon!

Was looking through Burberry Prorsum's Fall/Winter 2011 collection and loved all the sumptuousness. Furs, coats, tweeds, embellishments. Truth be told, I'm not a fan of cold weather so I usually just give F/W collections a cursory glance. I do, however, look at accessories like bags and shoes obsessively.

Then I suddenly noticed that the models were carrying satchels! The bags aren't clutches--they're satchels with the straps removed!

Framed Luggage Leather & Suede Crossbody Bag

Framed Luggage Leather Crossbody Bag

Framed Suede Alligator Crossbody Bag

Hmm... Makes me think about my own satchels. Maybe I should have the option to remove the straps, too! My leather bags look great as clutches, too! Thanks, Burberry Prorsum for the fab idea!

Shop for my bags here.

For more on Burberry's collection, check out my beauty blog. I have lots of updates!

In the Philippines, Burberry is available at Greenbelt 5, Rustan's Makati and Shangri-la Plaza Mall.

I dunno where I was when 5-year-old twins Jeremy and Justin Garcia trended but thanks to OK!'s associate fashion editor, Kabbie Rodriguez, who told me about the Heya Wii twins, I am now hooked!



I don't know which is which but the kid on the right is obviously the dancer while his brother is the singer. Here's the other proof: Covering Justin Bieber's "Never Say Never," little boy at left really likes to sing but boy to the right dances from the heart!



They're so funny! They can really dance! And they have an understanding of improv. This vid of Bruno Mars's "The Lazy Song" is hilarious:



The best part! They're Pinoys!!!



I think Justin's the singer then!

How I wish now that I had twins! It's only hard at the start! But look at how adorable they are, and I wish Vito had someone like that in his life. Well, he'll just have to grow up and find him some friends!

UPDATED: Oh, now I know where I was when Jeremy and Justin went viral--I was in Bali where there was no Internet! They came out on Huffington Post on July 23 (click!), then on the UK's The Sun on July 26 (click!), Perez Hilton and NYmag.com wrote about them on July 31 (click! click!), and they've been everywhere since!

That's the reason I'm so in love with our bespoke leather satchels (buy your own!). Each bag is cut, tanned, tooled and sewn painstakingly by hand. Each bag is different and yet each bag is perfect in its own way. Much like how each of us are different and perfect, too! Gotta love handmade!

You know what else is handmade?

My son's birthday party invitations! Vito's turning one year old! Oh my goodness. Where did the time go? For more on those adorable invites I handmade all by myself, click here!

And she's wearing all my favorite things: orange, skinny jeans and my very own bespoke leather satchel!

Her review summary:
1. She was surprised to find that the satchel was gorgeous!
Why?!
2. She loves that the bag has many compartments.
I do, too! I'm such a pocketsy person.
3. It may be a small bag but it can fit a LOT of stuff.
Leather is soft and pliable and did we mention the many pocketses?
4. The leather smell is heavenly.
Mmm. Right now, my living room smells like leather!

Thanks, Joanne! I love that you love it. Love your orange top, too. Where'd you get it?

Who hasn't heard of Samantha Sotto? (If you haven't, do you not have Facebook/Twitter/online life? No? Then... good for you!)

A couple of weeks ago, Samantha exploded into our consciousness with the launch of her first novel, Before Ever After. I missed the launch because I was in Bali but because of my wonderful group of mommy bloggers, I get to meet her tomorrow! And I'm glad I will because I have a ton of questions about her book!

But before that, let me warn that if you haven't read the book, you should stop reading this post if you don't want any spoilers. I'll try not to give away too much but that's kinda hard to do if you're doing a book review!



Before Ever After is the story of Shelley, a young widow who finds out that her husband Max is actually alive. The thought is both wonderful and agonizing because if he had been alive all this time, why'd he leave her? The question takes her (and Paolo, Max's grandson, another person Max loved and left) on a loooong trip from London to Boracay and back in time to find out the truth of her husband's identity, history and, well, if he ever really loved her in the first place.

It's a lovely story and I like that I never was able to predict how it was going to end. That's a sign of good storytelling. Being a history buff, I loved how each period in time was used to build the story and the character of Max. What I didn't like was the flowery language (too chick lit for a horror/fantasy girl like me, but that's not Samantha's fault). I also think that while it was obvious to the reader how totally lovable Max is--sexy, funny, smart and fabulously wealthy--I just couldn't fall in love with Shelley. All I know of her is she's gorgeous and young and sad. Maybe that's enough for some people, but if I were funny, sexy, smart and fabulously wealthy Max, I'd fall for someone more interesting.

Then again, vulnerability does have its charms. As Tina Fey said in A Mother's Prayer for her Child, "May she be beautiful but not damaged, for it's the damage that draws the creepy soccer coach's eye, not the beauty." And Shelley was very damaged. And as you find out more about Max, he is, well, kinda creepy! In a sexy kinda way, of course.


But aside from that little underdeveloped character aspect, I did like Before Ever After. I finished it in 8 hours! While my favorite books are by Stephen King, Tolkien, Carroll, Atwood, Rowling, Gaiman and the like, I did find this love story to be a page-turner. So if you're a romance-novel lover, you'll enjoy this book immensely.

I guess what fascinated me was it wasn't really a love story for me as it is a story about grief and how people cope with it. Grief is a strange thing. Some people go crazy, some wallow, some get busy with life to forget the pain, some overcompensate, some celebrate the life lost, some just never get over it. Well, as someone who is familiar with death, I can confidently assure you that no, you never get over it. You just learn to live without that love. The closest I can compare it with is learning to live after you lost your sight or your leg or your hand. You can live, you can be happy again, but it's just never going to be the same.

For me, Before Ever After is a story of grief and how it is to live with grief. Samantha describes the different ways of coping so well that I cried twice, brought back to that hidden place in my soul that I rarely visit. Of course, the great thing about grief is it is only great if the love was great. You cannot grieve over trifles.

So as the story of love unfolds--love between a couple in their golden years, love between a man and his ailing wife, love between a grandfather and a little boy, love between two men, love of a father, and of course the love Shelley and Max had--the threat and reality of loss is ever present and Samantha succeeds in making me feel like my own loves can never end happily ever after because we will all die and then there is the end. So what I should do is truly nurture the relationships I have and love the people I treasure while they are still here. Because who knows what tomorrow will bring? So love now, love deep, love true!

* * * * * * *
Okidoki, so I'm meeting Sam tomorrow and if you have any questions for her, send to me at frances@topazhorizon.com.

To know more about her and her book, click here.

And to those who asked me if this is my first time to meet and talk to a published author, uh no. Writers aren't very rare. Good writers are! I know several authors, work with a few, was taught by a handful and, most deliciously, I sleep with a really hot one.

I take a break from all the bag promoting (shop here!) to talk about a serious matter: marriage and babies.

On my mommy blog, I wrote a post about the new power I feel now as a mother, and it's resonated with a lot of women, both mothers and single ladies. But I got a bit alarmed when I started getting emails from girls saying that because of my blog post, they've decided to get married and/or have babies because they feel so powerless and empty.

Kids, don't do it. I love being married and I love being a mom but it's not a joke taking care of people. It's a job that needs all the love you can give, every day of your life for as long as you live (thanks, Sound of Music!). If you're empty and aimless now, what can you possibly give to other people, especially children who need to be nurtured and guided 24/7?

Go out, have fun, make friends, make love (just don't get sick or pregnant!), try different jobs, live for yourself! Find the meaning of life, your purpose. Find God. Find yourself. Your teens and twenties are designed to be wild and free and kinda weird. Live it. Live for yourself because sooner than you think, your life will be about others and you don't want to feel like you missed out.

I think there's nothing wrong with being selfish. Especially when you're young and have no responsibilities. I think selfishness is a good thing for young people. It allows you to find yourself, to do what you want, to live the way you want and pursue happiness without feeling the burden of guilt and responsibility.

Imagine, for example, wanting to be a musician and being very talented, too, but your parents tell you to be a computer programmer so that you'll have job security and help the family out financially. (This thinking should stop. I am never going to ask my child to help us out. Parents, stop treating your kids like money-making machines. Be responsible for your own future!) So you give up your dreams, your purpose, your life so that you can help other people. It's very noble but it sounds like a path to despair.

My mother wanted me to work for Meralco, where she worked all her life. Meralco has (or had?) great benefits for their employees--a really amazing compensation package. Naturally, when I decided at 8 years old that I wanted to be a writer, she became upset. My father wanted me to be a statistician and work in an insurance company. Again, job security. Writing as a career was just preposterous and they both did their best to discourage me. I fought back. I obeyed them for most everything except my career choice (and my boyfriend choice, although for the latter, maybe I really oughta have taken their advice!).

Anyway, I once overheard my mother talking to her friend. "What's your daughter taking in college?" Mama shrugged, "Creative Writing. I don't know what it is and what will happen to her. But it's okay, I guess, since she's a girl and she'll just marry someone and be a housewife. I'm very disappointed really."

I confronted Mama about that and she insisted that if I cared about the family, I'd take up something more reasonable. I still didn't. I cared about my family, sure, but I also cared about me! My parents said writing will never be financially rewarding, that I'll starve. I didn't care. I decided that if I'm going to have a hard life, I might as well do something I love. I was young and selfish. This is what I want and no one is going to stop me. Years later, I turned out to be the one who helped (and is still helping) the family financially. I've made a career of surpassing low expectations.

What I'm saying, dear young ladies, is if you're empty and confused now, a man or a baby won't make you feel better. As Princess Diana said, "People think that at the end of the day, a man is the only answer. Actually, a fulfilling job is better for me." True! Find your purpose and do it well--whether it's a job or promoting a good cause or cooking or whatever. You need to have a life before you have marriage and kids. Don't commit to anything as serious as marriage and children unless you're ready to give up yourself. And love demands complete surrender. I still have a hard time doing that actually!

Now go and push away all thoughts of weddings and babies from your heads. Fill your hearts instead with love and friendship and fun! Have a good life!

This is the new handmade leather bag of Fleur of Mommy Fleur.

I love how the photo shows her life: organized chaos and style! Yep, organizer to the left, toys to the right, and in the middle of it all--my bag! Fleur is my mommy blogger friend. She's one of the funniest, most real people ever. We finally met a few weeks ago at Philippine Fashion Week. Read the fun story here! You have to read it so that if you ever meet me, you'd know it's safe to approach hahaha.

Anyway, her review summary:
1. The smell of genuine leather is love!
I love that smell myself. Kinda overwhelming, though, when all the bags are delivered and my entire living room smells like a pet shop haha.
2. The strap is long enough so that she can carry it across her body, freeing her hands.
And when you're a busy lady--mommy or not--that's very important!
3. The neutral tan color is perfect.
Matches absolutely everything in your closet!
4. The magnetic snaps makes life easier!
And don't we all need things like that?
5. She loves the many pockets.
I love that, too!
6. Considering it's made entirely of leather, it's affordable.
Yes, it's absolutely affordable!

Thanks, Fleur! May utang pa ako sa iyo!

Aileen of Travel.Food.Finds. totally loves her new satchel!

Her review summary:
1. Ordering was simple and easy.
That's because I like things to be simple and easy. I'm nice, too!
2. Real leather!
Yep, the entire bag is made of real Pinoy cow hide.
3. Impeccable workmanship.
Thanks to the expert hands of Uncle Buck of Batangas!
4. She loves the many pockets!
Because I love pockets, too!

Thanks, Aileen, for liking the bag and saying I'm "super nice." And may I say again: Such gorgeous photos of the bag! Even I wanted to buy it, totally forgetting I sell it!

Meet the uber cool Trixie of Wild About Retail.

She got her satchel the night before she left for a Bangkok trip and she is totally in love with the bag!

Her review summary:
1. The satchel may be 11" long but it can fit a lot of things.
(that's because the leather is supple so it's flexible enough to expand for your stuff!)
2. The leather survived being drenched in rainwater.
(that's because it's real cowhide!)  

Thanks, Trixie!

There was another royal wedding this year, by the way--that of Prince Albert to Charlene Wittstock. I wasn't able to catch it on TV last July 1 so thank goodness for YouTube!


My ten notes:
1. She looked really scared!
2. She kinda looks like Grace Kelly and Kristen Stewart.
3. My gosh, her collarbones are amazing!
4. The light in that place is a photographer's dream.
5. Her ring was a tight fit, too! Did they have the same jeweler as the Windsors?
6. I love that the royal family wore pink.
7. The kiss was super quick (like mine haha) but she did look at Albert most lovingly. He did not. Hmp!
8. Where was Carla Bruni? I wanted to see a pregnant Carla Bruni. She'd have been the Victoria Beckham of the Monegasque royal nuptials!
9. Sorree but their Lexus looked like a pick-up.
10. Why was there another ceremony at a smaller chapel? And why did Charlene cry so much? And why did Albert look at her with annoyance?

Another note: I wish I knew French. I really should've paid more attention to my French classes in college and I really should've continued with my French classes at Alliance Francaise!

Anyway, I also noted that the royal couple used a lovely pen to sign away their lives (hahaha). I was told that it was a specially crafted pen from Maison Montblanc.

Here are the very special details about the very special pen:
The unique fountain pen is made of solid white gold. The cap and barrel of this masterpiece is engraved with a rhomb-shaped pattern and is set with 161 rubies and 128 diamonds, reflecting this royal occasion and the colors of the Monegasque State.
The 18K gold nib is engraved with a dove, rings and crown – all meaningful symbols of this state union.
The design was inspired by the architectural elements of the Palais Princier and the Principality Flag, embellished with precious stones and the monogram of the Princely Couple.

The largest stone to adorn the writing instrument is a ruby in rhomb cut set on the clip.

As a writer, I am absolutely in lust for this beautiful pen! I have lots of pens actually, lots of Parkers and Crosses, but I have no Montblancs yet. Since I can't hope for Maison Montblanc to create a pen just for me, I'd be happy with one or both of these:

Meisterstück Tribute to the Mont Blanc in Platinum

Meisterstück Tribute to the Mont Blanc in Red-Gold

Sigh! Yet another luxury item to put on the dream list!

P.S. Royal weddings aren't over yet! Zara Phillips, the daughter of Princess Anne and cousin of William and Harry, is marrying her rugby player love Mike Tindall on July 30. She reportedly did not invite Harry's on-off girlfriend Chelsy Davy. Oooh! What's up with that?

Montblanc is exclusively available at Rustan's Makati, Shangri-la Plaza and at Newport Mall, Resorts World.

This is my friend Nikki.

We met in 2007, when I hired her to be the Fashion & Beauty Editor of the magazine I edit.

This is the staff on a team building trip to Zambales.

Nikki, Lana and Joanna get silly in Zoobic. This is the only photo of Nikki "wearing" something not chica!

Nikki with Lana and me at the Cosmo Bachelor Bash in 2008.

We did the rounds of TV shows taking about celebrity style.

Here she is at the staff shoot in 2009.

She worked as a stylist (in heels no less!) for our staff shoot.

She's also a beauty columnist.

Nikki with Nicole and me at The Spa to do reviews.

Here we are again at a Lancome event. (I was pregnant!)

Or we do dinners and lunches at each other's homes.

Uber chic couple Nikki and Bern

Nikki's cloud gown.

Her entourage photo looks like a fashion editorial!

As you may have guessed from all the photos above, Nikki's a woman of many talents. One of those talents is her unerring knack to put together a completely stylish look. Everywhere Nikki goes--whether it's to a gala, a TV show, a lunch meeting or a dinner at home, she looks absolutely amazing. Not a hair out of place and always flawless. And she makes it look so effortless, too!

So we've been entreating, begging, nagging and pushing her to put up her own style blog. She's been giving us shopping, style and beauty advice for years and her tips are always unbelievably easy! I think my outfits drastically improved when we became friends to be honest. So wouldn't it be nice if she did the same for you?

Well, she finally agreed. Meet The Picky Dresser. In her words, she's "living life one outfit at a time!"
Do give Nikki a warm welcome to the blogging world!

Update, Sept 12, 2012: Nikki shut down her blog =(