Around the World with these Things

Now, I understand how it feels not to be connected. One week without/limited internet access is like being sent to outer space and have no/limited contact with the real world. But thank Heavens for the free 30MB connection of Sun. I can browse and check my FB and IG page yet very limited. But it's better than no connection at all.


Okay back to the real topic. Last night, I went with hubby to buy piping materials to replace our leaking toilet sink at Wilcon Builder's Depot. While browsing the lanes/racks, my eyes directed me to this corner and with such delight, I couldn't help but take photos instantly. I don't know if it's not allowed but I snapped anyway. Thankfully, nobody called my attention. So here are the things I saw and would love to have for my home decor.

Aren't they glorious? Anything related to Europe are my 'in' -style now.

How do you call this cases? I love these for storage.
The small ones are around Php600.00 and the bigger cases
is about Php900.00++

The one with the British flag design is like a book.
But ones you open it, you may store stuff like cards/letters or
jewelries (sans division).

London's Tower Bridge.
Not exactly the way it looked minus the British flag at the center.

This really caught my attention. I love these beautiful storage chests.
I've been looking around for something like this and put it in our living room.
I like it as a side or center table. This cost around Php2,000.00.

That's all folks! Did you enjoy my new discoveries? I still want the storage chest but I'm afraid my toddlers would write anything on it. You should see our walls full of pencil scribbles. That's why I couldn't buy anything yet to further beautify our inside. It might cost me a lot. 

London Diaries 2014 (Part 2): Charity Shops & Tea Cups

For all of you who are not familiar with this, London has several charity shops that sells second hand and even brand new stuff that owners didn't use even once. You won't miss a shop since every area in London has two or more. Some of the charity shops where we frequent to are Salvation Army, British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK, Princess Alice Hospice Shops, Oxfam to name a few. They are called as such because the proceeds goes to the needy. Each charity shop has its respective recipients depending on their cause. They are legal entities operating in the country. While for us here, we can equate it to the thrift shops or "ukay-ukay" being the seller that benefits. It's not more on the cause anymore… hehehe. 

Being a thrifty-natured one, we always end up entering into these shops because we can buy items priced from £1 or even less and at the same time helped in their cause in our own little way. So imagine my happiness when I bought Aldo wedge shoes about £7, a Zara belt for only £2, a Havaianas slippers for my daughter for the same price as my Zara belt. There's also this one charity shop where I forgot the name, I saw and bought a brand new (tag still attached) Levi's 501 jeans in black (but unfortunately didn't fit me but I gave it to my mother) that cost me only £4. That's less than Php300.00. It's such a steal! But so much of my random steal finds (to which I plan to make a separate post), here's to one of a charity shop find (or was it a car boot sale find?) that is actually given to me by my ever generous and sweet SIL. Since they moved out to UK na and now based in the US, she gave these pretty tea cups with saucers perfect for tea break and matching plate for a dessert to pair with it.

I was actually inspired to write this post because of Ms. Ellen of PseudoShrink. Hers is a brand new elegant royalty tea cup talaga. But in my mind, hindi naman lalayo din kung ano yung meron ako. Hi Ms. Ellen! If you happen to come across this post of mine, here's my share of tea cups din! Toast to our tea cups, hihihi… Parang sorority sisters lang ang peg. "Would you like a cup'a (of) tea?"

It is already a habit for English people to have tea breaks or drink tea. Whittard of Chelsea is a famous brand that sells premium teas and drinks that is renowned worldwide and dates back in 1880's. I had the chance to visit their store and taste their selection of tea and chocolate. I must say that it really satisfied my taste buds more so to my palate. See their various products here.

This one is my pasalubong for my boss. He like it!

This first set of tea cup I got is more on a Chinese-y inspired design because of the blue and white color combination. Owning something like this inspires me to get fit. Why? Because ang sarap uminom ng tea pag ganito ka elegant and kaganda ng craftsmanship ng tasa. Diba? Not to mention tea  has a lot of healthy benefits. Inom lang ng inom.

And when we say royalty and elegance, Europe and the Great Britain automatically pops in our mind. The following two sets of tea cups I own now says more of that. Ala Greta Baretto diba? 

Part of our London trip last October of 2014, we went to museums and visited castles and palaces where the kings and queens have lived. In there, they displayed various kitchen utensils and dinnerwares they used. It is very amazing to see such fine porcelain wares. Talagang royal highness ang dating lang.

These three are sitting prettily on my cupboard and never used any of it. I love staring at them. But just this morning I thought of using the blue one first for my tea breaks here in the office. It's not only inspiring but it teaches (forces) me to drink tea for health reasons. ;-))

How lovely! Common expression of typical English people when they appreciate things. Couple that with a very warm and welcoming smile and politeness that makes me a happy tourist in London. 

Onitsuka Tiger: Behind the Fever

No! I do not mean the kind of sickness but a brand of footwear. Based on history, it started out making basketball shoes and is a registered trademark of Asics Corporation which I'm familiar with. Oh, well! I am not really a sneaker/rubber shoe fan though having one or two to own is enough to sport a casual and comfort feel and look. I do not have any idea when it comes to rubber shoes and sneakers except for those well-known brands like Nike, Addidas, Fila, Tretorn, Chucks from Converse to name a few. And with this particular Japanese brand Onitsuka Tiger, I would never knew about it until our recent trip to London late of last year that my in-laws introduced it to us this cool brand of shoe. To think that its already making waves here in the Philippines with celebrities already wearing it. Why I didn't know?

My one and only pair of Onitsuka Tiger. Let me tour you to every part of the shoe...

I love the color of my Onitsuka. It's very 'London' where I actually bought this.
Like the colors of the British flag.

A closer look of its design. It's their signature style.
Pardon for the stain. How do I actually get rid off that stain?
Anyone? Please share...

The bottom sole.

The insole.

I'm so lucky to have bought a pair for around P1,300.00 Philippine peso. Wonder why it's so cheap? Because I bought it in one of the outlet stores located in Great Britain particularly in Ashford. If only I had the extra money, I would have brought two more for me and hoarded for my family. To think that the local price for that would cost around 5,000.00 - 6,000.00 pesos. Even if I sell it double the price here, it's still way cheaper. Don't you think?

The feel? Very comfortable and easy to walk in. With the color design that I chose, it can perfectly fit to any wardrobe color of my choice. But even if I knew about it, I might have difficulty owning one because of my personal reason: not practical spending for thousands of bucks. Browsing over to their website wants me to own one again. 

The Red Door

Hello loves! What a great month to start with. It's already February and we're nearing half of it which means Valentine's day is almost around the corner. They said that love month is synonymous to red color, red roses, red wine and the like. But now, we can say that brown color is so much related to the love month because of the chocolates. Yeah! Why not?


Well, I'm not talking yet about my family's plans for this year's Valentine's day. But it's kind of something symbolic because of the new color of our house's main door, which is red #crimsonred (and brown for our screen door). 

Our new main door.

What inspired me to color our main door with red was when we travelled to London last October 2014 with my hubby. In London, the hues of red, blue and green are the main colors of their front doors. And I fell in love with it. That gave me the idea to color it like that because it gives a rich and striking accent to the plain and simple facade of our house. Before that, I was already eyeing the door color of #MsDaphne house. From then on, I told myself, in time I will have our door painted in red too. Me thinks it's so chic and grabs attention to everyone. Don't you think? The only problem I have with our door is it cannot be noticed right away because our screen door which is colored brown blocks the sight of it. Anyhow, it's still okay as long that it's colored red which symbolizes luck for Chinese.

It's Chinese New Year too! Just timely to have it painted in red.

The reason for changing our door is not just because we just want to (inspired with London's red door). Our door has been broken already at the middle part because of wear and tear. It's been a decade already. And the carpenter of our new door told us that aside from wear and tear, the wood quality actually is not really sturdy. We started have it made last year pa (end week of December 2014). But the painter is not available and the paint of this is not the ordinary one. It is auto-finished (the one used in automobiles). And it's quite expensive huh! But I guess it's all worth the wait (more than a month) and the hefty price tag (the paint alone). It is polished, smooth to touch and also easy to clean. We just use a dry flannel cloth and just wipe it to the entire door. Squeaky clean in an instant! I love how it turned out.

My li'l helper. She patiently hold the door for me to take photos
with side comments that mosquitoes already kept biting and
hanging out on her legs...

Cheers to love, life, new year and… new door!!!

Owning a #CathKidston: The loooong wait is over!

Bringing London's Cath Kidston here in the Philippines is one brilliant idea. I couldn't contain my giddy and excitement when I first saw and read it at Ms. Daphne and then at Ms. Leah's blog when its first store in the Philippines opened to the public on December 6 in Manila at Bonifacio Global area in Taguig.


About 3 to 4 years ago, my SIL brought me my first Cath Kidston bag. That time, I never had any idea of the brand name when in fact it's been in the business since 1993 but only in London. Since then, I've been hearing and reading articles from lifestyle and mommy bloggers and later on became one of my favorite items too. Funny thing is one time, when I happen to visit a Divisoria-like store here in Davao City, I saw Cath Kidston-inspired merchandise (of course not the authentic ones)! So it really is popular already here.


Our recent trip to London a month ago (see link here), gave me an idea of how popular and a staple to every Londoner Cath Kidston bags are in particular. Visiting their shops there makes me feel like a child, drooling and envying every item they have in store. Not only I am wishing to get myself to have one but also for my little girls. But it all fade away after the generous SIL I have gave me this as the latest design Cath Kidston has released in the market. 

The London bus design of bag and a card/paper bill holder.
The newest design they introduced in the market.

How it looks in the inside of the card/paper bill holder.

The bag. You can snap it or not on the sides.

Unlike the regular inside or back zip pockets,
for this design it is located in front.  

See how roomy this bag is.

I also own a booklet of labels and stickers to which my SIL also gave me in summer this year. I use this when I send gifts in any occasion.

What I love about Cath Kidston bag in particular aside from the design and style, durability and versatility, is its texture. The bags that I own are made of water-proof materials that when it rains or accidentally something spills on it, I can just easily wipe it and not afraid of getting it stained or ruined. 

So to all Cath Kidston fanatics out there, I feel for you. A look of their trademark design alone can give thrill and chills to ones spine. It's something only a girl can understand. Looking forward to my next Cath Kidston possession. Anyway, it's Christmas!

London Diaries 2014 (Part 1): Away From Home

Hey yah! I'm back. Sleeping blog it is. Not a pretty site. But while in that absence, I've been to and done something worth experiencing. I am not a traveler, but by heart, who wouldn't want to? I admit that I have fear of heights and flying by plane gives me panic attacks all the time. A 15-hour plane ride is no joke, gruesome and it's like eternity for me! But I've come to terms with myself while in the plane. The constant mind conditioning made my 15-hour journey worth the challenge. The idea of thirty-four-days-in-London was all I needed to fight back that anxiety and fear. 

As of writing, I am back to reality. Me and hubby are still recuperating that jet lag. Blame it on the 8-hour time difference here and in the United Kingdom. But nevertheless, the fun-filled memories we had in our London trip is still fresh and keeps us up in our momentum daily while chit chatting with our friends and family our wonderful experience. It is a different world out there that I will forever cherish. 

With all the photos we have taken, it's very difficult to know where to start. But for this post (and several more to come), I intended this as a diary from day 1 and to our everyday life while in London. Hope you guys enjoy some photos that I'll be sharing.

Warning: photo bombarded blog post ahead…

We chose Philippine Airlines as it flies straight to London's Heathrow
Airport from Manila Terminal 2 airport. but for 15-something hours. Quite tiring!
Others prefer to have stop-over let's say in the Mid East to somewhat stretch
those lax body muscles.

This is the inside of PAL plane. I like the service of their cabin crew.
Very warm, accommodating, friendly not to mention beautiful ladies.

One of our 2-full meal course in the plane. Their food is delicious
and fine. For a petite frame like me, it's quite generous.

One of our 2-full meal course. There is also a 2-snacks course which
I forgot to take photos of. Their drinks have wide selections as you can
just ask anytime you want.

A sight of London.

Our neighborhood where we stayed. I am amazed of London's
building structure. It's very fascinating to see brick-made
houses.

Inside the neighborhood. Most of the residences looks like this.
However there are also landed ones but generally all are made in bricks.
Those two are my constant companions roaming the city of London,
my nephew on the left and my hubby on the right.

This is the next day after our arrival. Heading to the park
for these two boys wanting a basketball one-on-one.

Entrance leading to the park. At this time, I'm freezing.
It's so cold especially it's early in the morning.

Upon reaching the park, this is my view while waiting for them to finish playing
basketball. It's so relaxing and refreshing to see this view.

Roaming around the city, we choose to ride the bus if not walking.
We love seating at the top deck to see the full view of London.

Each bus stop has a sign like this. Those are bus numbers that pass this
street. You can never get lost as the bus stops has legend route maps
which I haven't took photos of.

Behind my BIL and hubby is a passing bus. That's how double decker bus
looks like. Oh, that's the Big Ben (will let you see later on my upcoming posts
the tourists spots we visited).

Another mode of transportation in London is their tube/train/tram as what their
terms are. This is one of their busiest station, Liverpool Street. On the screen are
schedules of the timings of the train arrivals and departures.

This is the King's Cross Train Station where I'll show you later on the Platform
where Harry Potter scene was shot. Those machines are where you tap your
Oyster card or tickets which serves as payment for the ride. Oyster cards
are used to pay for all the rides in the city. 

A view of where the trains are passing. In here, we are waiting
for our train to arrive.

This is the inside of a tram (a kind of train also).

Cycles. If you want to have adventure, bicycles are for hire. There's a machine
here where you can drop your coins for renting this. No need for you to go back
here in case you're done using it. There are lots of like this in the city, so you can
just return it anywhere where there is a post of this.

Black cabs.

Worry not. If you're a tourist here, you can never get lost as maps are
very convenient for you in their sidewalks.

Most of the telephone booths here don't have telephones anymore.
It mainly serves as a tourist attraction where London is known. 

Being away from home, these two are the ones we terribly miss. Everyday 
Skype-ing is what keeps as in touch. This is our everyday communication
so that it doesn't feel like away from home.

So, this is just my initial London tour-sharing with you guys. Stay tuned in my upcoming London diaries 2014. I hope you enjoyed!