Love Chic

If a psychic ever foretold I’d be doing this, I would’ve laughed the incredulous thought off, until about two weeks ago. Me, dive? The only time I’m ever near the ocean is when I cover beachfront events for magazines or produce summer segments for a TV show. I can swim only in waters shallow enough that I can stand up with my head above the surface—which suffices to say I can’t swim to save my life.

Yet despite my trepidations about the sea, last weekend found me at Mabini, Batangas with my friends Magel, Joanne, Chez and Chris. Not just to swim, but to learn how to sink. And as I would later find out, to learn many things more.

We got to meet Magel’s friends as well. Dan and Jonathan beside us are intro divers too, while the ones in front (Magel, Anton, Javy and Kevin) have all been diving here for years.

I met these two in 2009. We were all part of the production team of Project Runway Philippines 2 and instantly hit it off. From back then until now, Magel and Joanne have always been a source of strength and wisdom. I know I wouldn’t even think about trying this if they weren’t the people I’d be with.

Pool session with James, our instructor.

We were taught the basics of mask clearing, regulator clearing, equalizing, finning and proper breathing. To my pleasant surprise, I took to water like, well, a duck takes to water. The week before our diving trip, up to the minute I was already parking the car at the resort, I had spent so much time and energy being scared and worried how everything would go. All that wasted effort on something that turned out to be so ridiculously simple!

I volunteered to go first. Pink fins always help give a girl courage.

And then I was off to sea. There was nothing but the steady rhythm of my breathing, harmonizing with the muffled gurgle of a thousand tiny bubbles around us. Even the noise of my own thoughts was drowned out.

Underwater shots care of Javy’s GoPro and underwater camera case.

At first, I held on tight, like a baby about to take her first few steps. But as we went deeper and deeper, the water seemed to be more welcoming, beckoning us to come and see all the beauty she has to offer.

It’s gonna be okay, it seemed to say. Slowly, the current washed away the fears and anxieties and I was able to let go.

The undersea wandering left me wondering why I’ve been squandering all those opportunities in the past to try new things and see what else is out there. Why I’ve let myself be hindered by so many fears I myself conjured up, by apprehensions I allowed people to shove in my head, by regrets I willingly wallowed in.

Joanne and Chez, who were just as afraid at first. When we all came up, the feeling was indescribable.

It helped enormously that I was with three types of divers that day: the inexperienced ones who shared my fears (thank you, Joanne and Chez), the seasoned ones who showed us how awesome they feel (thank you, boys), and the teacher who helped us transition from one to the other (thank you, James).

Above all, thank you, Magel. I’ve been a hermit crab this whole year, and you patiently coaxed me out of my shell to try and do things I previously thought unthinkable.

“Dive, but don’t drown.” I texted my parents and siblings just before I went out to sea, and that’s what my dad said to me. Knowing his penchant for humorous wordplay, he was probably just trying to be funny in telling his daughter to be careful. But his words spoke volumes more than that.

As the sun sank into sea, the realization sank into me that indeed, there are many things that will besiege us. Challenges, triumphs, excruciating sadness, immense joy, failures, victories. Whichever of these pressures arise, what’s important is that we learn to equalize, to go with the flow, to take deep breaths and calmly work our way through the current and not let ourselves be swept away. To clear the fog in our masks that might be keeping us from seeing things clearly. To dive into things and take it all in, embrace what’s enveloping us, but not let it drown us.
   
I can’t wait for what the next experience will be teaching.

Blind Clothing one-shoulder dress, CMG wedges, SM Accessories necklace, earrings and clutch bag, XOXO watch. Contacts from Japanese Candy.

Hype this on Lookbook here, Chictopia here.

Sometimes I get asked how I think of look titles or entry themes. It’s nothing serious or scientific, haha. While uploading the photos, I usually just look for a detail somewhere in the outfit and then try to connect it to the day’s story.

Like this dress with all its lines. Wore it to a dinner date with some awesome people. Lately I’ve been having a lot of these dinners, with old and new friends from diverse backgrounds and countries. Different folks with different strokes, yet somewhere along the conversation, we find intersecting interests. I’ve been learning a lot from them and loving it. I think the Universe is making up for a couple of years of incidental social constrainment. :)

On another note of gratitude, to everyone who’s been continually interacting with me through this blog, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and/or YouTube, thank you :) It’s still as kilig and inspiring as the first time, and so lots of exciting things are in the works. Here’s to a great week ahead!

Giordano chambray button-down shirt and shorts, Forever21 Run DMC cropped tank top, SM Accessories bangle and ring, Nine West shoulder bag, Call It Spring platforms.

Hype this on Lookbook here, Chictopia here.

Titled because Run D.M.C. is a hip-hop group from Queens, and because my best friend Lester lives there. This outfit is inspired by the street photos he sends me every day of stylish people and interesting scenes he comes across. It’s part-torture and part-motivation; before this year ends, I aim to finally see New York in person.

Giordano released a line of colorful shorts for the summer and I picked out this light blue. It can Iook denim, cotton or chambray, depending on the piece it’s paired with.

Got this button-down from Giordano in Hong Kong just because it was on sale when we went, but I think the Manila stores also have it.

Thought I’d throw in a couple of non-poses. Haha. My mom continued clicking the shutter while I was taking off the button-down.

Yes. On some days there’s many an awkward stance and last-minute clothes-fixing before arriving at a fairly decent shot.

I’d love to know how you’d style this look differently. Maybe with sneakers instead of platforms, change the hair, choose another color button-down? Or we could just chat about whatever. How was your Labor Day holiday? Have you ever been to NYC? Do you like Run D.M.C.? Why is it so hot? Drop me a line here or leave a comment below :)

Candies sundress, Quirkypedia headband, SM Accessories necklace, Janilyn wedges. My third and last outfit idea for CloseUp Summer Solstice.

Hype this on Lookbook here, Chictopia here. 

As you may or may have not noticed in the first and second, there’s an undercurrent of green in this trilogy. I took it upon myself to work with three musts. First, the outfits must be from pieces I already own (you’ll see this dress in a future post; I wore it on the HK/Macau holiday).  Second, the outfits must call to mind words like summer, fresh, carefree, happy and young. And third, I must not take more than three hours from styling, to makeup and hair, to shooting everything. I like playing little games like that. Haha.

I was able to put together and shoot all three in one afternoon, and my awesome photographer (Hi Mama!) did an amazing job as usual. It was quick and so much fun!

Don’t let the height of these lace-wrapped wedges fool you. They’re quite easy to walk in! I tried dancing in them as well and I think with a little more practice, they’re a good enough compromise for the vertically challenged who don’t want to wear flats to the festival.

Let me know what you have in mind for your Summer Solstice outfit, or ask me style-related questions, here! Oh, and which one’s your favorite among the three? :)

Binkydoodles cutout top and maxi skirt, Crocs wedge sandals, SM Accessories necklace and bangles. I’m doing a trio of outfit ideas for the CloseUp Summer Solstice, the first music festival of its kind to happen in Manila this Saturday. While my first one has a more casual urban feel, this one’s for the hippie in you. Hype it on Lookbook here, Chictopia here.

In putting together these outfits, I wanted to only use pieces that are already in my closet. I wore this cute top in this post and the maxi skirt in this one. I like going floral on floral for summertime events.

I tucked the bottom of the cutout top in the skirt to shorten it and balance out the look, since the skirt is already long and flowy. It’s a really breezy outfit that’s great for staying cool despite the heat we’ve been beleaguered with these days.

Since everything’s already colorful and feminine, I went with pointy white accessories.

It’s going to be difficult to wear heels and complicated shoes to a music festival—they’re usually held outdoors in unpredictable weather, and entails doing a lot of standing up and walking. I went with these Crocs (yes, they’re Crocs) to complement the accessories, and of course, to add height. Maxi skirts make you look longer, especially when paired with wedges.

Pulled my hair up into a bun in keeping with the carefree vibe of the outfit. I don’t really comb my hair because it tends to go against the natural waves. Buns are a good way to keep hair in place, as frizz and sweating are inevitable at a summer music festival.

How do you like this outfit? Is it something you’d wear to Summer Solstice? Let me know what you think, or ask me your style-related questions here.

Tiered top from a friend, Hang Ten denim shorts, Skechers wedge sneakers, Human hat, SM Accessories earrings and bangles. Hype this on Lookbook here and Chictopia here. 

It’s only a week before CloseUp Summer Solstice, the first music festival of its kind to happen here in Manila. If you’ve got your tickets and your date(s) but still haven’t figured out what to wear, here’s one of three outfit suggestions I’ve come up with. A hat to keep your hair in place amid the frizz-inducing heat and breezy clothes you can groove in.

It’s the top I wore here, the hat I wore in the last outfit here, and the same shorts and accessories that I wear, well, just very often. What I’m doing with this trilogy is to mix and match pieces I already own—you could do the same, check out your closet for anything that might work so you can save your shopping money for next time.

I’ve kept makeup and accessories just as fuss-free. Just enough to make a statement without having to worry about them while singing and dancing to the beats. After all, you’re there to enjoy the music, not to flaunt your entire wardrobe. Heh.

My current favorite: wedge sneakers! Skechers named it Skch +3 for the added three inches to your height. I’ve always professed my liking for boots and for wedges—boots with wedges hidden inside them? Yes, please. Especially for a music festival, where you’ll want to stand tall and you’ll need to be in comfy footwear at the same time.

Let me know what you think! Or if you have questions you want to ask me about style, feel free to write. Click here. :) Check back tomorrow for my second outfit idea!

Forever21 tops, Marithé + François Girbaud jeans, Skechers sneakers. My dad surprised us with a Hong Kong trip during the Holy Week. It was a short one—we left on a Sunday and came back on Tuesday to be here before Holy Thursday—but really fun. It was the first time all five of us traveled out of the country together. The weather was comfortably chilly, which was nice. It was lazy-day weather; needless to say, I was (not) dressed (up) for the occasion. The outfits I packed were the type you could just pull on and be out the door fast. My picture-taking was just as lazy; since my first trip to HK involved taking a bazillion photos, this time around I decided I’d rather make the most of the family-bonding by not going on travel-photographer mode. So yes, this post is more OOTD and less tourist. Heh.

You couldn’t get more comfy-casual than these. I haven’t worn jeans on a regular basis ever since acquiring a taste for (and a sizable amount of) cute shorts and skirts, so my old pairs didn’t quite fit me right anymore. I dropped by Girbaud scouting for skinnies, and this one fit me snugly without depriving my lower extremities of oxygen. It’s one of the four styles of basic jeans they recently launched, all coming at PHP1,800. A steal, considering Girbaud’s usually higher price points. Even better, you can take home a pair of basic jeans for free if you shop there regularly. From March 11 to May 31, you get a stamp for every P500 purchase. Collect 18 stamps and your choice of jeans is yours.

Check out the bindi-inspired button details. Looking at it now, they seem to subtly match the graphic prints on the Forever21 tank top. Don’t they? Or maybe it’s just me and my unwavering penchant for matching pieces of clothing. Haha.

My trusty Skechers. Every time I slip into sneakers for errands and travel, I find myself wishing I were taller than my 5’1” stature so that I’d be able to wear flats whenever the situation doesn’t absolutely require high shoes. Love how the red just pops out.

Taken with Instagram (@shailagarde). If you’ve been to Victoria Peak, you know just how fickle the air is up there. One minute the sky is clear as day and you can see skyscrapers and mountains mingling in the distance; ten seconds later everything is enveloped in fog.

It was so cool (Get it? So cool? Sometimes I am too funny I forget to laugh). Ateneo hoodie from my brother’s girlfriend, SM Accessories eyeglasses. Hype this on Lookbook and Chictopia.

My siblings, Miku and Vince. I’m the eldest, but often get mistaken for the youngest. These two are more “adult” than me in a lot of ways. I love them to bits. They keep me sane.

Well, when we’re not goofing around, at least. So, how have you guys been spending your summer break? :)

What I wore to my brother’s graduation. Shopaholic at SM Department Store dress, Asian Vogue pumps, SM Accessories necklace, bangle and clutch bag.

Hype this on Lookbook here and Chictopia here.

That day, realization upon realization started hitting me like a snowball in the face (not an entirely unwelcome prospect in this hot and humid weather).

My alma mater. I would often come back here for random things—meeting friends who are now teachers, going to church, running errands. Snowball number 1: for years, Ateneo was just a place for me to do stuff at. I never bothered to look around and marvel at the fact that this was where I was shaped, where I grew in intellect and in faith.

Our elders. The professors, deans and leaders of this institution, without whom none of its students would be where they are now. My Science and Society professor, astronomer and physicist Fr. Jett Villarin SJ, is now University President. Snowball number 2: I was in the classrooms of the country’s most intelligent, compassionate and generous people and instead of appreciating that, I would balk and sulk whenever challenges came my way.

The ceremony. There were twice as many graduates this year compared to my batch of about 1,900. Yet even their number is but a tiny percentage compared to the millions of young Filipinos with no access to quality education. Snowball number 3: I was given the privilege of a full scholarship in Ateneo and I gave my bare minimum in return. I let each school day, each requirement pass me by like it was nothing, when it could’ve been another kid of equal skill level and aspirations in my place. I didn’t even try to run for honors or be the well-rounded Atenean I was supposed to be. I was placed in a Merit class of a legendary teacher, Max Pulan, that produced young leaders and achievers excelling in their chosen fields, while I’ve spent the last few years squandering my education on less worthwhile endeavors.

The graduates. I imagined them feeling grateful, excited, hopeful, relieved, maybe a little worried at what the real world holds in store for them. And then I remembered how I felt when in that blue toga. “I can’t wait to get out of here and get it over with.” Snowball number 4: I was so full of teenage angst at my pseudo-problems at the time—petty things that all seem so pathetically trivial now—that I failed to remember what we were taught: be a person for others. What were my trials compared to the sufferings of others? What have I been doing with what I’d been given, to make a difference in their lives?

Vince. It took all those years and his graduation to shake me back into my senses. In a happy coincidence, the resolutions came in time for my birthday.

So, instead of the usual party or dinner, here’s how we celebrated. Duyan Ni Maria (Cradle Of Mary) is a shelter in Angeles City, Pampanga that takes in children as young as newborns until they finish school and can earn their keep.

Sister Alexis Casas, S.M.E. runs Duyan ni Maria. Hers is a story of profound faith in God’s provisions. She was able to build a children’s home out of donations and fundraisers she worked on. Rain or shine, day in and out, she would commute from house to house and organization to organization to solicit funding for her children’s food, clothing, schooling and other needs. She continues to do so until now, even while struggling with diabetes. I can’t imagine my grandmother having to travel around the city in the hot sun with a never-healing wound in her leg, working to make ends meet! Yet she’s always smiling and saying that God never fails to provide her with what she needs—sometimes, it’s not what she hoped for but turns out to be even better.

Sister Alex knows all the names of all the children, and she introduced them to me one by one. They told me their stories. Some were abandoned at birth in public hospitals. Others were rescued or ran away from abusive homes. Most of them were named by Sister Alex herself, and they treat her like their real mother.

It was a small party and the food was simple—just spaghetti and fried chicken—but the way the children were so excited and happy, you’d think it was a lavish feast on Christmas eve! Gratitude is such a nice feeling.

We often see in movies or TV shows how unruly it can get in children’s homes. They were polite and gracious and cheerful. Sister Alexis’ kids couldn’t be further from that depiction. Then again, them being raised by a soft-spoken and loving nun, it isn’t surprising at all how well-behaved they are.

In collared shirt is my uncle Tito and behind her is my aunt Bunny, siblings of my mom (who took all these photos with my phone). They’ve been doing apostolate work ever since I can remember, and Duyan ni Maria is one of the places they visit to bring food and do tutoring. The lady in purple is Sister Vicky, who helps Sister Alex to manage the place. They kept thanking us profusely for coming over but what they gave me is far more precious.

Graduation. Learning enough to take you to the next level. I graduated many summers ago and each summer I turn a year older, but if I were to be honest, this year is the first time in a long while that I actually felt it. :)

As I write this, the A/C and fan are on full throttle and bright sunlight gashes through the window despite the blinds being drawn. Seems like summer doesn’t just want its presence felt; it wants us to be looking it in the eye. Lol.

No complaints there, though. It’s the best time to be donning breezy outfits, few accessories and barely-there makeup. Forever21 dress, SM Accessories, Parisian shoes.

Hype this on Lookbook here and Chictopia here.

Coinciding with the coming of summer is the coming here of one of today’s hottest actors, “Hunger Games” star and newest Bench endorser Liam Hemsworth. This is what I wore his lunch tête-à-tête with the media a few weeks back. 

Here’s what went down with the hottie from Down Under as he talked “Hunger Games,” action films, beating up Thor and men’s fashion.

   
Shot with my DSLR on my right hand while my left hand was shooting with my iPhone (just to be sure). Haha! Just think of the shakiness and un-enhanced audio as your way of feeling like you were actually in the room—it was utter and enjoyable chaos.

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Today’s national holiday translates to “Day of Valor.” Historically, it marks the fall of Bataan in 1942, when over 76,000 Filipino and American soldiers weakened by hunger and disease were surrendered to Japanese troops and forced afterwards to walk 140 kilometers to Tarlac in the “Death March.” Only about 54,000 made it; the rest succumbed to dehydration, starvation, fatigue, heat exhaustion, or were simply executed at whim.
     
It’s been 71 years since that moment in time during World War II. I imagine those nameless, faceless soldiers, roughly our age, and their families—spouses, parents, siblings, sweethearts, friends—having to endure pain and suffering on a huge scale. Our generation is blessed that we didn’t have to go through anything like that.
     
History has always been a subject I’m fond of. I find that remembering these helps put things in perspective. These days, we have our mini-crises and mini-tragedies and we react like it’s the end of the world. I believe it’s not so much out of callousness or self-centeredness as it is of a lack of a reference point; we can just get so wrapped up in our little bubble, oblivious that there are other things happening everywhere else in the world.
     
One of my mentors, journalist Howie Severino, was telling me the other day about a book by German sociologist and philosopher Erich Fromm on holocaust survivors. Despite having been sent to the same concentration camp and subjected to the same horrifying tortures, two types of people emerged—those who chose to dwell on the darkness and stay embittered, and those who chose to see the light and be a source of it for others. Proof that in the end, it’s all about how we choose to see things.

        
     
Today is also the birthday of a person who reminded me of the same thing. Lester, a best friend of mine for nearly a decade, is a photographer and graphic designer based in New York, the one who got this blog started by taking its first photos. 
     
A week before my birthday, Lester asked me to meet with our friend Ali and pick up a package he had for me. I’ll need it for sure, he said. The day of our meet-up, I almost didn’t go as I was feeling blue and didn’t want Ali having lunch with a downer. 
      
Good thing I squared my shoulders and went anyway—I entered the café, didn’t find Ali, and spotted a guy who looks like Lester, staring at me with a poker face. Took me long to get over the fact that he was in Manila. He was right about me needing it for sure. 
       
We talked for hours, a fraction compared to the three years he was building his life in New York and I was busy with mine here. In that short amount of time, our conversation made me realize how much I had forgotten. I’d forgotten everything I said I’d be, in favor of what I said I’d never want to be. I’d neglected aspects of my life that deserved my attention more and channeled it instead into petty causes. I’d allowed myself to be crippled by my fears and failed to stay the brave go-getter he knew me as.
      
A lot of you have been sending sweet messages and asking when my next “proper” blog post would be (yeah I’ve been Instagramming to make up for it but I know it doesn’t really count heh). Since turning a year older, I’ve had to recalibrate, put priorities back in order from a distance where I can see the bigger picture. In perfect Paulo Coelhian timing, Lester wouldn’t be the only person I’d be reunited with, and I suddenly found myself blessed with opportunities to reconnect with people, places and things I’d been too preoccupied and afraid to go back to in the past. 
       
Today, “Araw ng Kagitingan,” I write this in honor of everyone who gives us our courage.