BIRTHDAY AND CUPCAKES

Good friends, bunnies and unicorns were part  of the beautiful set in lilac, pink, lime and lavender who came out to celebrate the Bag Hag’s 25^th (she claims) birthday at the Vanilla Cupcake Bakery.

Imagine Lilly Pulitzer, Martha Stewart and Ralph Lauren in wonderland. Alice definitely was in Mary Katranzou. 

ROLLIN LIKE A BOSS

Thanks to the country’s record economic growth, iconic British luxury vehicle brand Rolls-Royce has finally come to the Philippines. Fast forwards and a couple of glasses of cranberry cognac and champagne after, I just found out the Rolls-Royce Ghost on display for P25.9 million has been bought on the spot by Willie Revillame. Ok, I think my jaw and my man boobs just dropped. haha

(At last night’s launch: myself in a bespoke black suit from Yuen’s, Striped green dress shirt from Ralph Lauren and Fratelli Rossetti black calf cap-toe lace-ups. Ingrid and her Papillon leather twisted and knotted bag by Bally – beautiful! )

And oh, I think I was the only non-Chinese in the crowd aside from Victor Aliwalas hahaha. Anyway, where on earth is my cheese fondue?

LIFESTYLE ASIA, BHUTAN AND TOO MUCH LYCHEE MARTINI

Hail to the Queen! Lifestyle Asia recently celebrated its 26^th anniversary with a Royal Gala honoring The Queen Mother of Bhutan, Her Majesty Ashi Tshering Pem Wangchuck.

Who knew partying with actual royalty could be so much fun? I mean, seeing Her Majesty dance to the tune of Dancing queen – you just got my applause! 

After a plate of lentil and eggplant salad, Tshoem beef cheek with oyster mushroom, Bhutanese coconut panna cotta and free-flowing  chardonnay and champagne courtesy of Moet and Terrazas wines, Boston-based yet Manila-raised DJ Katrina “Katsunami” Razon kicked the night with intoxicating beats from the 90’s getting everyone the mood to stand and hit the dance floor.

(Ingrid Chua Go, Linda Ley and Jewelmer's Janthina Fong)

Fashion and society fixtures such as Rossana Ocampo - Rodriguez, Ingrid Chua-Go, Maurice Arcache, Tessa Prieto – Valdes and Jewelmer’s Janthina Fong all looked impeccably stunning.

(Myself in a suit by YUEN with Moet Hennessy's Richard Alarcon, Ingrid Chua - Go and Manila Bulletin's Emil Yap)

Congratulation on yet another successful event, I have got to hand it to Cheryl Tiu, Ms. Anna Sobrepena and the team of Lifestyle Asia. *hic* I think I had too much lychee martini .

WEDNESDAY RAMBLING – TOTALLY UNRELATED

Two more weeks till I drown myself in seclusion, find peace at the four walls of Pak Tai and enjoy the quiet streets of old Central. The past two months have been crazy and my fluctuating weight is not helping at all. 

(My cousin's beautifully curated window in her New York apartment. Photo courtesy of Happy David)

Totally unrelated to my usual posts on menswear and dressing well – I’m stopping myself from turning into a sloppy dirt bag and finally learned the difference between someone who flatters you and someone who compliments you. Someone who spends money on you and someone who invests in you. Someone who views you as a property and someone who views you properly. Someone who lusts after you and someone who loves you.

Knocks head on the wall. Don’t mind me – next post please! Now playing: Mermaids by the Jinja Safari.

PS: Ingrid, Danelle, Marbee, Sarah, Teddy, Akkunda, Rafa, Mark and Pia, you guys are the best! 

ON MONOCLE AND SCRAMBLING ON A SATURDAY

Before my head explodes, here are all the news that I have been scrambling to find time to blog about. Yes, one more client project and I’m done for 2012. Thank god!

(Look who's thrilled!)

Monocle just sent me a package and I was thrilled to receive a personal note from them. I know it ain’t big of a deal for some but for someone who owns 3 years and a half worth of complete issues of Monocle, I felt like a baby with my first tooth officially peeking through. Two spread on my interview with David Celdran – fantastic! 

(This month's issue of Monocle Magazine with a feature on Hong-Kong, Shanghai and Manila)

Also, a couple of Filipino furniture designers from Cebu and mom’s birthplace, Bacolod, were featured – Monocle’s first!

 

(A feature on Filipino furniture designers: Kenneth Cobonpue of Cebu and the Gastons of Bacolod)

Ladurée! A box of sugar coated almond from Ladurée  is love. Enough said! Thank you Ingrid!

(Thank you so much Ingrid for this - I'll definitely die of diabetes next year! HAHAHA!)

And yes, that sweet ride (though it felt like my heart was in my throat), I still couldn’t stop myself from smiling.

In closing, It’s past 3 on a Saturday and guess what, my brain is simply swimming!

VROOM WITH A VIEW

"In Search of Italy's Dolce Vita on a '61 Vespa" - Peter Moore and no, this is not my version of Audrey Hepburn's Roman Holiday!

(Suit: Bespoke, Crisp White Shirt from Brooks Brothers, Red socks from UNIQLO and brogue lace-ups from Salvatore Ferragamo - La mia ode in Italia. Grazie Janthina Fong per la foto.)

OK, more like "Roman Holiday" minus Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck and Eddie Albert and no, I wasn't complaining. Blame it on the Mozzarella ball!

VOYAGER, ODYSSEY AND A COUPLE OF CIN CIN’S

My lack of posting is due to my lack of full brain function thanks to all the client and brand reports I have been busy working on. I swear, I can even hardly combine my sentences.  I have been swamped with work lately and my recent house move didn’t help at all – blame it on my freaking slipped disc.

Still looking like a zombie and a raccoon, I see myself distracted and frantic for the next few days until my parents arrive from the south and hoping I will be able to think in a straight line again and enjoy a glass or two of Cabernet Sauvignon or better, whiskey on the rocks. Make it 5 glasses, please!

(The Voyager at night)

Just recently, John Walker & Sons Voyager arrived in Manila after docking in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Taipei. The luxury yacht gathered Manila’s crème de la crème to experience the pinnacle of luxury craftsmanship, heritage and modern innovation, and launch the new rare triple malt, John Walker & Sons Odyssey.

(Ingrid Chua Go and Paul Whelan)

(Jules Knight, Oliver Baines, Stephen Bowman, Humphrey Berney and Dominic Tighe of Blake)

(Celine Lopez and Chut Cuerva)

(Secil and Arif Esenc)

(Amelia Ablaza, Florence Ko, Sandie Castro-Poblador)

A literal reproduction of an epic journey, the Voyager will sail through Asia Pacific and 9 key ports of call including Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, and India.

(Indy Villanon, Janthina Fong, Kenji Ong Lao, Alfonso Tagliaferri, Veronica Mendez and Myself)

(Wig Tysmans, Liza Ilarde-Cuenca and Elbert Cuenca)

(Dennis and Tessa Prieto Valdes)

What still amazes me, an exquisitely crafted, crystal-grade glass decanter has been created to house John Walker & Sons Odyssey. This stunning work of art is a reflection of the nautical heritage and success of the Walker business that perfectly captures the motion and romance of the sea. When gently pushed, the bottle swings elegantly to and fro and as the case is turned, rotates fluidly 360 degrees. When at rest, it will always point up, paying homage to the steadfast and progressive direction shown by Sir Alexander Walker himself.

Tipsy? Not really!

Cin cin!

CHAMPAGNE AND FLIP FLOPS

Aside from boogieing the whole night with a glass of champagne on my right hand, what better way to start the lunar year and welcome summer than with a timeless new pair of flip flops from Bling Duck (Thank you Ruby and Trina!).


(Happy 25th Anniversary Lifestyle Asia and a big congratulations to my friend, Cheryl for doing a great job! Photos by Ingrid Chua Go)

Gong xi fa cai! Yes, these tired feet of mine embarrassingly need a lot of help from all the pain I got pretending to be an expert in tap and instead of tucking myself in bed at 2 AM on a weekday, I still opted to dance for another hour at Salon de Ning.

People close to me know I rarely wear flip flops in public but Bling Ducks’ just too impossible to pass. It has an ultra soft rubber foot bed making it more comfortable than any other flip flops in the market and yes, making it hard for the wearer to say no.


(Yellowduck LTD. is a Hong Kong-based company known for its high quality and comfort at a very reasonable price. The company recently launched a new and innovative line of urban flip flops.)

Bling Duck is also available in all Schu stores in TriNoma, Glorietta 3, Mall of Asia. Chocolate Schubar in Power Plant Mall, Rockwell and soon in Schu Ayala Center Cebu.