florals – Girl Gone Cuckoo

maternity diary: the pregnant stylist

I got pregnant but the world didn’t stop for me. Sure, I had to take extra care of myself and people around me were careful with me too, and gave me special attention but I had to continue working — 1) To do what I love and continue to pursue my passion for creating and 2) Because I needed to make a living considering I am a full-time stylist.

Throughout my pregnancy, I was lucky enough to have had stylists wanting to join the team. I had to laugh because God really does put everything into perfect timing. On my 1st trimester, Tara Chua joined Cuckoo Cloud Concepts as my co-stylist then Ephraim Rabanez on the 3rd trimester. I continued conceptualizing photo shoots but Tara or Phraim executed the styling for me, together with my production assistant, Amalia Bautista. I continued to attend all events {weddings} that we had to style and just made sure to sit down whenever I can and lie low on physical activities. Believe it or not, I even flew to Pagadian to style a wedding on the last week of my 1st trimester. A week before I was due to give birth, I attended the last 2 weddings of the month. Whenever I got afraid, I had to remind myself that God won’t give me something I can’t handle.

This post is a tribute to my support system all throughout my pregnancy and even after that. To Tara, Phraim, Amalia, my Uncle Jesan, my amazing mom and dad, my trying-not-to-be-supportive but awesome hubby Harry and now Phil (who just recently joined us as a stylist) and all my event assistants — THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART. ♥

silk kimono from BFTS | floral crown by Cuckoo Cloud Concepts

photography by Rainbowfish Photo | hair & make-up by Markie Bautista

citrus floral burst

as we’re counting down to Bloggers United 3, we’re also counting down to the end of summer. although i have only been to the ocean once this summer, it can’t stop me from wearing it.

the style items here are are probably one of my favorites this — the citrus thrifted pencil skirt, the sheer and lace loose top, the turquoise lighting flap bag, the brass filigree necklace and turquoise connector ring. i may have overdone it and turned more eyes in this outfit but who cares, right? i say wear what you love. ♥♥♥

fairytales need hard work too

while i was growing up and spending summer afternoons imagining my dream wedding, i always thought the essentials just burst out from magic. i’d imagine the dress i’d be wearing, the ring on my finger, walking down the isle with heaps of flowers on the side and saying i do with a romantic song in the background. yeah, dream on. planning a wedding is hard, really hard.

although searching for an inspiration for my wedding dress is fun (yet also challenging), finding the perfect wedding ring is definitely not as much fun as i thought. harry and i spent a whole afternoon checking out jewelry stores and at the end of the day, our vision was clouded with a tinge of yellow — from all the gold (tacky chinese gold) that we’ve seen in most stores. ugh! the wedding ring is not like the dress that i get to wear only once. it’s something i wear forever so it has to be one of a kind or at least, special.

here’s where i need your help: if you find a classic yet stylish wedding band design, tell me? post the link on a comment. ♥

on another note, while i was browsing for wedding band designs, i bumped into another kind of jewelry. i might be crazy from all this wedding band hunting because at one point, i considered getting an earring after finding these great cartilage earrings online. i could definitely need the change, considering i haven’t been doing some shopping since we started saving money for the wedding. hmmm….

a pop of color

there are days when i love to layer colors and prints. there are days when an all-black ensemble is the best way to go for me. i love adding surprises to my outfits like a hint of something unexpected. something that says, “it’s not supposed to be there but it works…” that dash of turquoise from the belt did that for this outfit. i love pairing a bit of edge to feminine pieces like this flirty black and white floral skirt being paired with the studded top.

we will be returning to Cebu by today and hopefully, we’ve found heaps of amazing loot to sell. i can’t wait to show the buys to you guys…soon! ♥

black studded top – thrifted

black and white floral skirt – thrifted

turquoise belt – robinson’s mall, dumaguete

grey ballet flats – gifted from charm

dog tag necklace – custom-made

silver cutout cuff – carbon find

oversized floral ring – carbon find

work watch – swatch

i shampoo and brilliance comes out!

i’ve been losing sleep because a lot has been running on my mind lately. the last two hours before my eyes shut down are one of the best times to think. i’ve also found myself attending sunday masses and my head just has this influx of thoughts and ideas that i lose focus. and oooh, i believe that in the process of shampooing my hair, the head is massaged into producing creatives and brilliance. do you believe so too?

future plans. future projects that i can’t divulge yet because i don’t want to jinx it. are you superstitious like that? or is it just me. sometimes, when i want something bad enough, i am so so tempted to talk about it but i get a hold of myself because i want things to be right first before blabbing about it. trust me when i say that not blabbing is so hard for me because i am such a chatterbox my old elementary teacher transferred me to the opposite side of the room because i was always talking. LOL.

one thing is for sure, with my future project, i would need all your support. *smile and nod please!* yes, that’s more like it.

ps. i’ll be gone for the weekend to have a super belated anniversary celebration with Harry in his hometown. on our first year, we went to Bohol. on the second year, we went to Moalboal beach. this year, the plan is to have a food trip among the amazing food places in Dumaguetue.

ps.2. i may sound gross but i only shampoo every other day. and on days when i don’t shampoo, my hair is like this. gross but i love it! haha.

floral dress – thrifted

eggshell mesh booties – parisian, sm dept store

leaf necklace and chair necklace – carbon finds

silver cuffs – carbon find

Style Inspiration: D&G Spring 2011 RTW

one of the best things about living in a tropical country is we can dress in spring/summer garb 85% of the time throughout the year. despite my love for the rain and colder weather for the reason to layer clothes, i have such a weakness for prints, florals and color.

as our second trip to BKK (the shopping haven in asia nears), i have scoured Style.com for some style inspirations. this is so i know what i am looking for when i walk their huge fashion malls, markets and bazaars. first up, D&G Spring 2011 RTW:

the need to be busy

as lazy as i have been these days, i ironically love being busy. i love having something to do for the whole 8 hours at work because it makes me forget the time. i love being surprised that it’s already dark outside and be reminded that we have to lay down our stuff and forget them for the night, only to get back on them tomorrow. i love it when ideas run like crazy in my head that i tend to become disorganized and all over the place. suffice to say, this week has been kind of a bore. it’s surely a breather from last month’s chaos but too much of a breather, i’d have to say. our co-worker in the production team is getting restless and hasn’t stopped talking all day today. she talked about anything she could think of. i need to get this woman a damn project to work on or we’ll drug her to shut her up! LOL.

white floral dress – thrifted

military jacket – thrifted

eggshell mesh booties – parisian, sm dept store

green braided belt – manager’s garage sale

necklaces: elephant – carbon find | elephant tusk – thailand buy

bangles: pink rhinestones – gifted from india | brass ones – carbon finds

rings: bow tie, dotted and owl connector – carbon finds

a failed attempt to un-plan

for someone who intends to just unwind and not make any plans for my long-awaited permanent vacation from the corporate world, i am failing badly at it. my mind is just built to plan and look at least 5 steps ahead. i plan when i’m driving, i plan before i go to sleep and i just plan even when i’m doing something else. ironically, i like being spontaneous when it comes to having fun like road trips in the middle of the night or just deciding to go to Bantayan island without any plans where to stay or where to eat but when it comes to making a living and making sure that i am able to support my family and survive, i simply cannot just be spontaneous about it. so when i told my manager that i do not intend to plan for the next month, oh no boss, i think i was partly lying.

here is my failed attempt to un-plan:

start planning a clothing line with Armand Alforque next week | do part-time online article writing to earn extra bucks (and learn new stuff too) | celebrate my birthday in Daanbantayan with my family | Bangkok trip with family on the 3rd week of August | invest a little in my sister’s clothing shop, Props by being her shopper and wholesaler | start working as marketing executive for Drawing Board Creative Studios by September — it’s a growing advertising agency my sister and her fiance manage so at least i’ll be working closely with people and meet new ones as well AND it’s a day job — yey! |

my friend and i also planned to list down ten things we haven’t done in Cebu and pursue them over our vacation in August. apparently, quarter-life crisis is common among close friends so we both took leaves together. she’s on a one-month leave while mine will be permanent. will update you on our list..soon!

floral dress – thrifted

mustard cardigan – thrifted

white peep-toe heels – janeo, sm dept store

vintage-y long necklaces: watch – hongkong gift shop | safety pin + trinkets – DIY

rings: orange howlite ring – dane’s giveaway | burnt stone – thrifted at carbon

bangles – props and a gift from april

a weekend of nothing

nothing to do. nothing productive. this is exactly what i needed this weekend. it’s been raining intermittently all weekend and it’s just what our city needs. saturday morning after work was spent blog surfing and just discovering more awesome fashion blogs (ie. grunge manners). if i have schizophrenia, she would be my other personality — i wish i have the guts to dress like her and don’t give a shit about society. being a fashionista is already defying certain rules here in our small city and being grunge will definitely be a cause for more raised eyebrows and head-to-toe look-overs. the next hours of my saturday were spent sleeping and waking up to harry bringing over mcdonald’s cheeseburgers, large fries and an apple pie — major junk food fest, while watching karate kid which was good but so predictable.

here’s my sunday, so far: waking up next to harry, making my sunday even better. a breakfast of eggs, spam and leftover dinner. 2 episodes of how i met your mother season 1. sunday mass at 7:00 AM. caramel sundae and pancakes. and ongoing DVD marathons with harry. he says this may be a glimpse of sundays in our married life. if this is, sign me up as i’m packed and ready to go!

ps. it’s funny two competing fast food chains in the philippines are just right across each other. if i have to choose, i’d choose mcdonald’s over jollibee. i hate mayonnaise in my burger. haha!

floral electric pleats dress – thrifted

gun-metal layered necklace – props

silver cuffs with pink shells – props

oval stone ring – props

grey bag – mongkok ladies market, hk

borrowing policies

if you have a sister or in my case, sisters then you would know what i mean about borrowing policies. i have 3 closets because i have two sisters — charm, who is older than me by 8 years and aimee, who is younger than me by 2 years. we get to borrow clothes, bags and accessories except jeans and shoes because we each have different sizes — charm is 5’7″ so her jeans are too long for me, her shoe size is 39 which is too big for me as i am a 37 and aimee is a size 0 (yes, she’s a zero..is that even a size?LOL) so her jeans will not fit me at all, her shoe size is a 35 or 36 which is too small for me. our clothes go on rotation. it’s like shopping everyday as we get to visit each other’s closets. but there are rules — rather strict rules with borrowing stuff:

first dibs always goes to the owner — meaning, the clothes you borrow should have already been worn by the owner
always take care of the stuff you borrow — no stains, no scratches, no tears.
the clothes or stuff have to be returned to the original place we found them — or at least, it has to make an appearance in the owner’s room or closet once a week.

aimee is a bit harder to borrow clothes from because she’s always possessive and hardly wears her clothes because she wears a uniform to work. i sometimes ban her from our thrifting trips and disregard any thoughtfulness we have when we see clothes she might like when my mom and i are out thrifting because she has too many stuff she hasn’t worn yet. so now i am patiently waiting for her to wear the striped dress she bought a month ago, this studded, leopard print off shoulder top, a military jacket (that i might secretly wear to work when she’s asleep…LOL) and this pale blue plaid chiffon dress. last week, i insisted on wearing her grey apron-like top to work and she allowed me to (which is a miracle!) but here’s the catch, i cannot take photos of it…haha!

ps. my mom’s the easiest to borrow clothes from and she has lots of boho tops that i wear all the time. her closet is my favorite. *wink*

how about you, do you have ‘borrowing policies’ with your sister/s? how about with your mom or roommate?

striped top – random

black and white floral skirt with cutouts – lil’ sister’s (yey!)

black blazer – thrifted

braided belt – props

silver cuffs – thrifted at carbon

summer of one-oh! ocean series: farewell summer!

it was hot, scorching hot. it was filled with laughter. it was cramped with road trips and trips to the beach. it was filled with shopping sprees. but it was quick, so damn quick that i haven’t gotten enough of it.

goodbye summer!

i’ll see you in 2011…

on charm (my big sister):

blue embroidered kaftan – from bangkok

aviator sunnies – from hongkong

on me:

blue floral tube dress – a gift from goring

floral scarf as bandana – thrifted in sindangan

brown sunnies – thrifted in carbon

bangles – props | random | gifted

on aimee (my lil’ sister):

floral dress – thrifted

yellow sunnies – thrifted in carbon

summer of one-oh! ocean series: dry and salty

the beach was too beautiful to pass up. it was sunday and the workers were not there destroying the sea wall with their loud drills. it was peaceful. the water was blue and the sand as white and fine as ever (yeah yeah, not as fine as boracay’s sugary sand but still beautiful). but before hitting the waters, my mom, dad, his friends and i decided to ride up to the main town of bantayan to buy some of the island’s famous dried fish. i don’t know in other countries, but here in the Philippines, we can live off on dried fish and rice, matched with tomatoes and maybe, onions. bantayan had a separate market for dried fishes alone and they even had dried squid. we also bought a bottle of ‘ginamos’ which is salted, fermented fish and guess what, some caviar for only P60 a pack. woah! couldn’t wait to try it when we get back home.

upon getting back, we had lunch at a small ‘carenderia’ — a very small eatery by local people, bringing along the crabs and rock lobsters my dad bought early in the morning. eating at a ‘carenderia’ is the best and cheapest way to get good local food when you’re in places like this. no etiquette to observe and no utensils needed either. we dug our hands into the crabs and lobsters, paired with native noodles (pancit) and some tomatoes and onions. yum! the best lunch ever!

ps. those are aimee’s yellow polka dotted toenails. insane! LOL.

floral maxi dress – thrifted

black and white bikini – props

tan leather bag – thrifted at baguio

blue and brown flip-flops – havaianas

blue polka scarf as bandana – thrifted at sindangan

bangles – props | gifted | random