Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Best bedsheets ever! Ever!!!

I've been sleeping in luxury for a while now. Actually, my whole family has been! All because of Butterfly Dreams. Just before Christmas, the luxe linen brand from Hong Kong emailed me to say they wanted to send me bedsheets. I was so surprised! Vince said, "They must've seen our ratty sheets."

Haha, you know, in our defense, we actually have a nice collection of sheets. But I did notice that whenever I post photos of my kids on the blogs, and the kids are on the bed, we happen to always have the striped sheets! And, yeah, those are old.

But now we have brand new sheets and they are the best sheets we've ever lain on. Ever!

We got a queen size set. That includes a flat sheet (350 thread count!) in white cotton, and a fitted sheet and two pillow cases in the signature Swankysuede. We also got a duvet cover (our duvet is from Rustan's, if you're asking) and now it feels like we are cocooned in velvet butter. It is the most amazing experience!

What do I love?

1. The Swankysuede. It's the material the sheets are made of, except for the flat sheet. Swankysuede is hard to describe. It looks like velvet but it isn't. It kinda looks like the furry side of leather but it isn't. What it is is super soft and smooth and it caresses my skin like kisses!

2. The flat sheet is made of high thread-count cotton. That makes it extra smooth and soft. It's edged in satin (ours is serene green to match the Ethan Allen headboard). There are also very subtle butterfly designs all over the flat sheet. My toddler Vito likes looking for them. It's a cute game for him!

3. I really like that the pillowcases are zippered. That way, you don't have the pillow peeking out.

4. Butterfly Dreams is luxurious but the price isn't. Well, it's still more expensive than most bedsheets. My queen set is USD 165 (Php 6,700) and the duvet cover is USD 230 (Php 9,360). But for the quality and the experience, it really comes out as quite affordable!


Okay, to prove to you how exquisite the sheets are, I had them tested by the most discerning people in my life: my kids! You all know how kids are brutally honest and how their skin is so sensitive. But Butterfly Dreams passed their stringent standards! Just look at them rejoice!


I posted Iñigo's photo on Butterfly Dreams' Facebook page haha. It got a lot of likes!

It's so nice that my kids love Butterfly Dreams. Especially since a portion of the profits are donated to Savong, a school and orphanage in Cambodia. Won't that fact give you sweet dreams, knowing you've helped kids while you sleep?

I think every family should get a set or two. Your kids will love them. If you don't have kids, I swear, the sheets are so nice on your skin, they will make you want to make kids *wink wink*!


Sleeping on Butterfly Dreams feels like sleeping on rose petals. Velvety smooth. The kids sleep deeper and longer, too. And what mommy wouldn't like that?

If you want a deeper, more restful, and definitely more luxurious sleep, get a set (or two!) of Butterfly Dreams. While this luxe linens brand is based in Hong Kong, you don't have to order online anymore (although if you want to, order at their website!). Just this month, Butterfly Dreams is now available in Make Room. Soon, the linens will be available in more stores! How wonderful! Must get a set again!


Friday, February 08, 2013

Get your financial life in order. Now na!

I wrote an article on managing money in Good Housekeeping a few months ago. I confessed there my shameful secret (credit card chaos) and how it affected my marriage and how Vince took control of my credit card kalokohan. After just one year of painfully following my husband's strict guidelines, I was free of debt, my finances were in order, and I am now a fabulously wealthy woman.

Well, actually, that last part is still a wish haha. Super I wish talaga na yumaman na ako! Joke. I actually don't dream of money, you know? I dream of a nice house in a nice, secure neighborhood. I dream of traveling with my kids to any country in the world every year (and sana business class seats!).

But most of all, I dream that we'll be ready for any emergency. After growing up and seeing my pets die (we can't afford a vet), my Mama and I suffering chronic pain and asthma (we can't afford medicines), and then—saddest of all—relying on the kindness of everyone who loved Mama to pay for her wake, funeral and burial, I am determined to see my family financially stable.

We've started with this happy fact: Wala akong utang! I'm not saying debt is bad. Debt can be a good thing but only if you use it wisely (for starting a business, for example) and if you can pay it. I don't know everything about finance—I'm still learning!—but I can tell you that these guys know a whole lot:



Sonny Santiago can really coach you since he's been practicing in the field of Attitudinal Training for more than a decade. His clients include San Miguel Corp., Philippine Airlines and First Manila Corp. Gus Cosio is the President of First Asset Management, Inc., managing the mutual funds business of the country's leading investment house. He also blogs at GusCosio.com, so if you can't attend the workshop, you can just read his blog where he dishes out great financial advice.

Okidoki, reserve a slot! 


P.S. Martine, favor granted! That's for all the free blogging tips you give me haha.

Sunday, February 03, 2013

Best vacuum ever!

Confession: We haven't really vacuumed the house in a long, long while. We've been relying on walis and dusters, which aren't the most efficient cleaning tools. Plus, they just stir up the dust, so horrible to Vince and me since we have allergies. So why aren't we using the vacuum? Because the noise freaks out the kids, especially Iñigo.

So imagine my happiness when Electrolux came out with the UltraSilencer Green vacuum! How do I love it? Let me count the ways:

1. It's so powerful! 
I tried it out on the carpet and I am very impressed at the suction. It is so powerful, it sticks to the carpet.  And I could really hear and feel the carpet being cleaned. Plus, the vacuum hardly makes any noise that it didn't scare Vito at all. In fact, he even wanted to play with it! 


2. It's energy-efficient! 
Here's better news: Even though the suction power is huge, electric consumption isn't! The 1250W motor is so efficient—it has the power of 2000W but consumes 40% less energy. 

3. It's environmentally friendly!
Not only does it consume less energy, but it's also made with recycled black plastic material. Plus, it's designed to clean the exhaust air by 99.9% before releasing it back to our home. I love that! 


So if you have a problem with hot exhaust air that smells dusty, you'll love this vacuum, too. When I used the UltraSilencer Green, Vince asked, "There's no exhaust?" There is! But the air is cleaned so well, we don't feel or smell that it's exhaust!

4. It's designed well!
Even though more than half of the plastic used to make the UltraSilencer Green is recycled, it doesn't look recycled. In fact, it looks so sexy. But it doesn't just look good, it also is designed to be efficient. 

And the best reason of all is... 

5. It's so quiet! 
Here is a comparison of our old vacuum and the UltraSilencer Green:


See how Iñigo reacts to the noise? But with the Electrolux vacuum, he barely even noticed it! I love it!


Clean house, clean air, no noise, kind to the environment and to the budget, the Electrolux UltraSilencer Green is the dream vacuum for every family! I super love it!


The Electrolux UltraSilencer Green retails for P13,995 and is available at selected branches of Anson's, Robinsons Appliance, and Metro Gaisano. If you buy now, you get P500 off the SRP and there's 0% interest on a 6-month credit card installment plan!

UPDATE! 

Contest! Contest! Nuffnang and Electrolux Philippines is giving away the UltraSilencer Green, the Powermix Silent Blender and other fabulous appliances! Click here for the details!

To know more about the best vacuum ever, check out Electrolux's online home. Like their Facebook page and follow them on Twitter.

P.S. Sorry for the no makeup, unbrushed hair look. I'm at home kasi! Special thanks to Third World Nerd for my videos!

Saturday, February 02, 2013

I got the pink!

Zalora ships fast! I ordered Sunday midnight (so technically Monday morning) and I got my iPad and phone cases Tuesday lunch! Wowza!

Packaged in Zalora-print tissue paper.

The Paperthings plastic boxes are cool, too, although I think hardly necessary. But that's just me.

My pretty pink goodies! They are made of recycled leather, which is "ground down leather scraps that are a by-product of leather manufacturing." I'm quoting from the information card, which is also made of recycled leather. It's kinda like them saying, "No tree was hurt in the making and packaging of this product." Which is of course not true but kinda cool anyway.

Recycled leather does not smell like real leather. But it still smells great! It's kinda stiff, though. I need to push in my gadget and pull it out with force. I'm hoping that with regular use, the leather will soften up a bit, allowing for more ease in use.

The quality is blameless, I must say. Really well made! And that beautiful pink color? Perfect. I'm a-wanting the other colors now but I'm simplifying life this year. So I won't buy. It will be Paperthinks's leather envelopes and leather-bound notebooks that I'll buy next!

Shop at Zalora now!

Friday, February 01, 2013

Topaz Fashion: What I wore some days of this busy week

I keep forgetting to take photos of my clothes! After all this time, I still feel so awkward posing in front of the camera. I keep hearing Tyra Banks's voice in my head: "Are you showcasing the dress best? Is your neck elongated? Is your face fierce?" Top Model has ruined me forever.

My ISO settings aren't correct this week so I have all these fuzzy, grainy pics. Will fix that next week! Meanwhile, here's what I wore...

Meeting. Topshop T-shirt, Zara pencil skirt, Zara ballet flats, Kate Spade tote.

Shopping. K & Company dress, Charles & Keith sandals, Amina Aranaz Rags to Riches woven bag. I'll write about this fun shopping trip next week!

Event. Zara dress, The Ramp flats, fascinator courtesy of SM Babies. The event was for the launch of SM Babies. I'll write about it on Topaz Mommy next week (meanwhile, check out its new look!). 

I must improve my pose! I must improve where I take these photos. I must always do it in light!!!

Anyway, I miss accessories. I haven't been able to use my earrings, bracelets and necklaces. Bracelets dig into my bony wrist when I'm carrying the kids. Necklaces get chewed on. Earrings are pulled at. So I've been left with just dresses. I guess this means I must start using fabulous bags! But let me edit my current collection first. Then we'll see!

Happy Friday, folks!