Insert long and winding introduction here. These are the things that made my week.

This was sent to me by The Body Shop last week but I'm including it in this list because this is what I used every day. Full review to be posted soon but for now, can I just say how I LOVE its color and how it moisturizes my lips?

I made an internal big WHOOP! when I finally got my copy from Fully Booked in Greenbelt as I've been wanting one ever since I saw the cover online. I love How I Met Your Mother and I feel like watching its last season beginning September 23 will feel like breaking up with a long-time partner. I'm preparing the tissues as early as now.

After more than a year, I finally got my Samsung NC110 a case so she'll be safe and secure whenever I lug her to and from the office! This was a commissioned piece by Meream, whose handmade works I am a huge fan of. I love the "tiny town" fabric and the itty bitty purple buttons.

I attended the Shiseido Ibuki event last Thursday and it was definitely a one-of-a-kind experience! I will share more information about what happened at the event in a future post.

New skincare regimen I can't wait to try, mostly after seeing how Sophie swears by it!

Yep, always a worthy addition to a "what made my week" list. ♥

Ralph plus Mike doing what he does best: make fun of me. That pose is kind of a private joke that has already become public.

Last Friday, Mike and I went to Fort to have breakfast in the Toast Box branch at Ralph's office building. I love the smell of toast and tea or coffee in the morning. And even though these two always make fun of me (in a good-natured way, not in a mean way), I really appreciate how close we've become in the past few months. :)

See? Mike loves making fun of me.

Come lunchtime, I was also able to drag Gerick and Rica to Cafe Juanita with us. I love when my friends from different fields come together and become friends, too.

Tegan and Sara Live in Manila One of the most awesome news I've heard this month!

VIP tickets that include Meet and Greet passes(!!!) have been sold out already so I'll just sit in my corner for a while and cry (ノД`)・゜・。I am willing to forego watching Sugar Ray (and miss out on seeing my sixth grade self's crush Mark McGrath in the flesh) and Matchbox Twenty just to have enough monies for Tegan and Sara huhu. Thanks, Lorraine, for introducing me to their music!

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Call me the biggest loser in the land, but yesterday was my first time to watch this 2009 movie. LOVED IT. Flint Lockwood speaks to my soul.

Well... If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.

Photo taken during the despedida party we had for Tita Tits last night. She will be migrating to the US soon, thus leaving our carpool service. She's always been nice to me so I'm going to miss greeting her good morning every work-day, but I wish her all the best.

My Charm makeup brushes and J&C Super Clean Solutions Makeup Brush Cleaner

Having nothing better to do this lazy rainy afternoon, I decided to give my brushes the TLC they badly needed. My foundation and concealer brushes are the ones who've gotten the most abuse so I made sure to give them a good dose of deep cleaning.

I bleed glitter

While waiting for the brushes to dry, I whipped out some of my latest makeup and did product shots for future reviews. I love this palette because the colors and micro-glitters are so pretty! Very inexpensive, too! Will reveal the brand when I post my review.

Aaand that's it. Wish you all a bright and sunny week ahead!

Catch the collections in stores nationwide. For more information on Freeway’s collections, log on to Freeway's official website or like them on Facebook. You can also follow them on Twitter and Instagram.

The last four days had been incredibly busy and stressful, so I am thankful that Friday served as a little breather for me. I even got to have a very relaxed breakfast at Toast Box in Fort with my friends Ralph and Mike. 

We've known one another for a year now but it is only recently that we started talking about more personal stuff. Today, over constant ribbing toast and milk tea (and during lunch and before we went home after work --- it was a very serious discussion), we talked about my being sensitive and tendency to take everything - especially their jokes - seriously. I debated that that's not really true as I also joke about being offended by their jokes, and that if I do get offended I make sure that the offending party knows about it. I told them that I've actually mellowed down and that thank god they didn't know me when I was a petulant child, or else I would've had my mom talk to my teacher about them bullying me, as what happened to a couple of my classmates back in grade school. Heh, kids.

Still, it is nice to have conversations like this. Sometimes I can get too wrapped up in my own world that I fail to keep myself in check so it's good to have friends who can be blatantly honest with me and tell me what I need to hear instead of "friends" who feed me bullsh*t.

Not everyone can get me: I am awkwardly excitable, I tend to blurt out my thoughts loudly before I get the chance to process them in my head, and I am extremely passionate about things I like. I know this makes me seem exaggerated or overacting and can put some people off, but I don't want to have to apologize for my passions and interests. Not everyone can get me, but I am glad and grateful that a lot of people still can and still make the effort to get to know me and be friends with me. ♥ 

PS: Credits to my favorite tweeter Stefan for the title of this post.

Christmas is almost here, ladies. Time to update your wardrobe for the holidays. ;) Check out some of the key pieces from Ensembles' collaboration with Vania Romoff below.

Now on its fifth year, Ensembles is back with another budding fashion designer for its Young Designer Series 2013. Ensembles is all about the strong and independent woman with a style that’s fashion forward yet elegant. That’s why this year’s collaboration with Vania Romoff is a perfect match. With her designs being predominantly classic and feminine, Vania’s design aesthetic is definitely fit for an Ensembles woman. Her collection is a variety of tops, dresses and jumpsuits featuring easy to wear pieces and key classics that are both functional and chic at the same time. As for the silhouettes, it is a showcase of simplistic lines and basic shapes flattering to a woman’s curves which is one of the highlights of Vania’s design persona. The collection is also a multitude of different trends and styles such as color blocking, prints and soft drapes presented in mostly subtle colors and neutrals, all capturing a woman’s grace, maturity and charm.

A fresh take on vintage was the highlight of the campaign shoot for Vania’s collection, complete with a classic yet fun styling featuring shoes from Janilyn. Described by Vania herself as a fresh yet timeless collection, her pieces will surely capture the attention of women of all sorts. Whether it is worn in the office, a smart casual affair or on a simple lovely day out, Vania’s pieces will definitely bring out any woman’s confidence and highlight their beauty. The Young Designer Series 2013 Collection featuring Vania Romoff is set to release in Ensembles stores nationwide this September!

I am loving the subtly sexy silhouettes. What are your favorites?

For more information, please log on to Ensembles' official website or visit their Facebook page. You may also follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

Wake me up when all these outdated Green Day song-related jokes are over.

In a more positive note, I'm glad that the sun shone this morning before the rain clouds swallowed him up again. Our office is right across the Ayala Triangle Gardens so during break, I went there with my friends/ officemates Rica and Far for brunch and a few outfit photos.

Dress - Butternut Fashion Boutique | Belt - Tomato | Espadrille wedges - Parisian

I really, really, really like this dress because of its fabric, cut, and print. It can be worn without a belt but I opted to wear one because it has a garterized waist that might hike up. I wouldn't have dreamt of pairing it with my red polka dot belt that came with a different dress but it's the first one I saw when I opened my drawer so I tried it on, and it was an "Oooh!" moment for me. Voila, a perfect summer dress that my stylish officemate G even said looks Parisian chic.

And then of course it had to rain so I slipped off my wedges and wore my Kickers boots instead. It still worked. ;)

PS: Rica, Far, and I put up a new Tumblr blog to document our work outfits and other shenanigans. Harhar. I will post the link once it has a few posts already. Hope you can also visit it when it's up! ♥

I know that unlike food or shelter or water, I do not really need these things in order to live but with the many uses they serve in my current lifestyle, it has become almost impossible for me to go on with my daily life without them.

I present to you, my {gadget edition} necessities of life.

♥ My Samsung NC110 I named Robyn. I got her a little over a year ago and she has become an indispensable part of my professional and blogging life since. I bought my netbook meaning to use it mainly for work, but ever since my personal computer broke down I have started bringing her home during weekends and every time I want to blog so that I wouldn't have to bug my brother for his computer. I didn't like her candy pink exterior at first because I originally wanted a black netbook I can call Robin but she has already grown on me. I even jazzed up her keyboard with a kawaii sticker set I found in Fully Booked. I hope she stays longer with me than Lady Fabrize did.

♥ My Accutone Aquarius In-Ear Headset. This comes with me everywhere I go as I almost always need to drown ambient noise and listen to music when I'm alone or whenever I need to zone out in the office and focus on work. At home, I use this when I watch movies or my favorite TV shows using my netbook. I love how comfortable and light it is that I use it even more frequently than my mustard Urban Ears Plattan headphones.

♥ My phones: a Cherry Mobile Flare for personal use that I named Zippy and a Samsung Galaxy Chat for work. Some people told me that my Flare won't last very long as Cherry Mobile is not really dependable when it comes to gadgets, but I have been using it for more than nine months now and it hasn't failed me so far. I mean, sure, it force closes and reboots sometimes (about twice or thrice a month, tops) but I think it is still in tiptop shape. Not bad considering I got it almost ten months ago for only P3,799! The Samsung Galaxy Chat, on the other hand, could be a lot faster but I couldn't complain too much as it's just an office phone WITH unlimited data plan so, you know, no big deal heh.

My boss also entrusted me with our official RSVP phone so aside from these two, I also bring the office Blackberry with me everywhere I go.

♥ My Canon Powershot A3300 IS. Because I can use my phone camera for spontaneous Instagram moments anyway, I can leave my camera at home or in my office locker anytime. I much prefer using this for events and OOTDs, though, LOL. Also, I realized just now, while typing this, that I don't have a name for my camera yet. Before, one look at my gadgets and I already knew what I was going to call them, but now I hit a stump. I have used up more than five cameras in the last seven years (they either get broken or stolen) and maybe that's why. Do you have any suggestions on what I can name her?

♥ My Kindle I named Max. I remember this story all too well. I had extra monies and I was choosing which to get between a Kindle and a camera, so I bought a phone. Well, that didn't end as expected because two weeks later, I bought a Kindle. Another two weeks later, I bought a camera. Extra-low EQ in the house, y'all, but no regrets. The moment I turned Max on was a huge "WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE?" moment for me, and no cumulative smell of old and new books alike can beat the ease and convenience having a Kindle brings. Max currently houses more than 200 books already, and so I am left with no shortage of books to read. Whenever I make plans to meet up with someone I almost always end up to be the first one to arrive, so having my Kindle on hand makes waiting much more tolerable and even leisurely, at times.

Aaand that's it. It has been fun sharing with you my {gadget edition} necessities of life, so what do you say to other categories like, hmm, {makeup edition} or {closet edition}? Sounds fun? Y/Y? Care to share your necessities, too?