It's Baaacccckkkk! Buffet Thursdays at The Ice Cream Bar!

Oh. My. Gas. Here's another way to cool off this summer! Much sweeter too! Get UNLIMITED ice cream for only P295 all Thursdays of April (except April 9) from 2 PM to 8 PM, at The Ice Cream Bar, Joya Tower, Rockwell Center, Makati City (Tel: 403-0891)

If this doesn't make you go and run off to Rockwell now, I don't know what will!


Sigh, thank goodness for that pint of Ben & Jerry's Karamel Sutra in the freezer. That'll do! Otherwise, I'd be off to the grocery to get me some more ice cream! Growl! Ok, gotta go and get my ice cream fix! (And it's still kind of cold here these days too!)

FILED! and Organized

I hear the heat is getting unbearable back home. Then there's no better way to cool off than a trip to the beach, or the backyard pool at least, haha!

And with summer comes a lot of great stuff, the perfect reason to shop. So indulge your urges and add a beach bag to your shopping list - it is a necessity after all. Plus, when it'll only set you back Php695, such as this on from FILED!, hey bring it on.


What's nice about this bag, apart from the really reasonable price, is that it has water-resistant pockets for your gadgets, a detachable toiletries pouch, a wet clothes bag, and pockets for flip flops. Talk about being organized, even on a carefree summer day!


Oh, and did I mention, there are 6 colors to choose from? Just in case you want to go matchy-matchy this summer...


For more on FILED! products and the young entrepreneurs behind the label, check out their Multiply site!

Second-Racked, Trying Hard Copycat! Still About Topshop SoHo...

While Racked has posted the innards of Topshop, thanks to WWD...this is all I have to show you...photos of the store facade and store window display which I took yesterday! I know, I've turned into this Topshop stalker, but when you're a housewife with a lot of time in your hands, and with a deep longing for Topshop, this is what happens!

Check out the Brit flag!



The Topshop window display...






Topman window display...




For your Topshopping pleasure, here's the floor plan from WWD:

"In the New York flagship, each selling floor is 6,000 to 7,000 square feet, with Topman for men’s wear on the basement level. Topman includes a Lens boutique for contemporary wear and Topman’s runway looks showcased during London Fashion Week; a revolving shop to highlight trends like trenchcoats, blazers, and scarves; a denim area that features skinny jeans in a variety of washes and finishes; a “T room” for graphic and more basic T-shirts; an accessory area for geeky eyeglasses and Trilby hats; an area for Plimsol canvas pumps and other footwear, and a Smart shop for suits.

In Topshop, on the main floor, front and center is the big trend story, which is currently themed Glory Days, a post-War nod to florals, stripes and “Englishness,” as Homer noted. On the mezzanine is the DJ booth, and on two, right off the escalator, is a 500-square foot “Boutique” featuring runway looks and designer collaborations including Jonathan Saunders, Richard Nicoll and Preen. At the end of April, Topshop will introduce a line by Barbara Hulanicki of Biba fame. Nearby is the 700-square-foot Kate Moss shop with about 60 percent dresses including sequined, sexy styles and long chiffon tiered dresses with Liberty prints, as well as daywear pieces such as jersey tops and statement jackets.

The second floor also houses denim, featuring slim boyfriend “Harper” jeans and “Baxter” slim skinny fits. There’s a jersey display, and a holiday shop for swimwear, shorts, sunglasses and beach cover-ups.

The third level features the “Voodoo” shop with darker, cobalt and grayish items; lingerie, and the most dramatic element — the shoe shop, which has the advantages of three dumbwaiters pulling up styles from storage and being naturally backlit by the tall windows overlooking Broadway. The shoe area is filled with colorful platforms with metallic embellishments and plenty of height.

Also housed in the store is a 1,500-square-foot media and event space, and to facilitate the selling eight personal style advisers in women’s and two more in men’s."

Oh dear, I hope it's not going to be ransacked as Racked has been forecasting! Now if only I can get hold of one of those $500 gift cards the roving Topshop van has been giving away...

Sloppy Joe at 27 Weeks

Now this is me at 27 weeks.

Dear Hubby says my jeans look sloppy! Hahaha! Guess he's not used to me wearing baggy jeans! Then again, he doesn't know boyfriend jeans are THE shape of jeans these days! Hahaha!

Side view! Berry is getting so big!!! And she's been moving a lot! She especially likes it when we are talking about her or when she hears a lot of people chatting. As if she wants to join in on the conversation! What a gossip girl! 

Sneetch!

When we were little, my mom bought us the whole set of Dr. Suess books. One of my favorite books was The Sneetches and Other Stories. I loved the rhyme-y quality of Dr. Suess stories, and The Sneetches was always such a fun read! Even up to now, I can still remember some of the lines...

"We're the best kind of Sneetch on the beaches"
With their snoots in the air, they would sniff and they'd snort.
"We'll have nothing to do with the plain belly sort!"

I know, such snobs these Star Belly Sneetches! But the book taught a valuable lesson about discrimination and the pitfalls of vanity and pretension, because sometimes, we really are just victims of "Fix-it-up Chappies" like Sylvester McMonkey McBean. Dr. Suess is a genius!

What's amusing is, I always thought those Sneetches looked so funny, absurd even. But then again, aren't all Dr. Suess characters such characters? When I took this picture of me, as I have a habit of chronicling how my belly has been growing, I couldn't help but think how I have slowly taken on the shape of a Sneetch! Hahaha!

Not so obvious here! But once the coat is off...


Tadaa!




This is me at 26 weeks!

Topshop Countdown Continues

The signages were up by Wednesday, March 24...


And more clothes are hanging on the racks and put on display! Take note, shoe section is on the third floor! Swimwear and tanks are on the second floor...


I think the shoe section is huge! The whole window on the third floor showed rows of shoes! This is just one side of it!
'

Exciting times! Oh, and did I mention Kate Moss is flying in for the opening?!

Topshop's Taking Shape!

So these posters came up over a month ago along Broadway, by Howard Street...




Then, these posters were plastered on the windows last Friday...


I saw the workers putting them up one by one...


But I was too fast for them! Haha! I took a peek into the inside of the store!


They started hanging clothes too! Check out the second floor! Ooohhh!


The window display is all about Americana, reds, whites and blues! But it was not yet done at this time...




Exciting times! I miss Topshop so much! So happy we're getting one here soon! And it's gonna be as big as the Oxford Street flagship too! Apparently though, there are mixed feelings among NY girls about Topshop coming in according to The New York Observer. While most are excited, there was one who was worried that it will become such an ubiquitous label here. But I mean, come on, stop being selfish and forget about "exclusivity", Topshop is a high street chain and it's meant to be enjoyed by all!

Goodie Bag!

So the real housewives (Sarj and I) went to Queens again to eat spaghetti and Yumburger with cheese in Jollibee. Next stop was the Filipino store, just to see what they have. I had no plans to shop for groceries but I just could not leave the place without stocking up on essentials (ie kare-kare mix because Dear Hubby loves kare-kare, bouillon cubes, Maggi Savor) plus stuff from home I've missed so bad!



Our best find? This!


Finally! After almost 2 years, I found calamansi juice for patis and toyo! And I can make authentic bistek tagalog now! Lemons really have nothing against calamansi!

Next is this! Champorado mix! Last time I had champorado was at Cendrillon in SoHo with my friend Ivy some months back and it was just so comforting! Cendrillon has now closed and is moving to Brooklyn, and will reopen as Purple Yam.



Sarj said champorado will not be complete without salted fish, so I got convinced to get this ready-to-eat daing which they funnily call Jeprox! I wonder why?



Ok, I know pregnant women should avoid eating this...spicy Century tuna (the doctor said once a week is fine anyway, and was mercury content in tuna from Philippine and Indonesian waters ever an issue?) and corned beef (nitrates? what nitrates? besides, its the hard to find Palm corned beef!) but I just had to get it. Gotta squeeze out our trip to Queens for all its worth you know!



Ginataan! I love the glutinous rice balls, I've been craving for this since I don't know when. It's far from the taste of the ginataan from home that I grew up with, and the ginataan made by Auntie Lilian's cook, but well oh well, it'll do...


Oh, and this I've got to try! I grew up eating Italian style spaghetti sauce, with oregano and basil, olive oil and all that jazz. My mom is all about authentic, as much as possible, natural food so I missed out on a lot, haha! I only got to eat the ketchup-y spaghetti when attending kiddie parties or when ordering in Jollibee. When I was in grad school, my friend and roommate Jaraiza would bring this super yummy spaghetti from their home, made with McJolly sauce (which I only saw once in a grocery store back home and never saw again!) that was so sweet and spicy I got hooked on Pinoy style spaghetti! It was just so good! The best Pinoy style spaghetti ever! I'll see if I can replicate that with this! Sorry Mom! I love your spaghetti, but sometimes, I just need to switch Marcella Hazan with this!



Sigh, the things we used to take for granted when we were back home are exactly the sort of things that transport us back home, even for just a while!

Chika Lang!

Did you know that these two popular fashion/street style bloggers are a couple? It's been making the rounds of the blogging grapevine!

I'm talking about The Sartorialist and Garance Dore! I can just imagine what beautiful pictures they'll be taking together!

I thought all that chatter must have been referring to something like a professional relationship, but it's apparently true that it's more than that! Read all about it here and here!

(Photo credit: teenvogue.com)

Walk The Green Mile With Ipanema

This is today!!! Meeting point is at the parking lot of Le Souffle at The Fort. Registration starts at 3 PM and the Walkathon starts at 5 PM.



Get a chance to win a pair of personally signed Gisele Bündchen flip flops, a baller ID or a Walk the Green Mile t-shirt. Gisele Bündchen flip flops are 10% off at the Ipanema booth - this day only!

Unarosa Summer 09 Collection

The Unarosa Summer 09 Collection is all about extremes! Short, short, short jumpsuits and rompers. Long and flowy, breezy maxi dresses that can go from day to night. Add to that a burst of billowy ruffles and tiers in solids and sheer printed fabrics. All in a palette of of azure, sunset orange and canary yellow, as inspired by the Santorini sunset!

In stores now at the Shangri-La Plaza, The Block at SM North Edsa, SM Megamall, and Shoppesville Greenhills.







Oh and make sure to keep all your Unarosa receipts, so you can work your way towards more discounts with the Unarosa A-list card...



For terms and conditions, click here.

Jollibee NY On The Radar + Tips for Cleaning Light-Colored Bags From The Bag Hag!

The first Jollibee in New York, in the East Coast in fact, finally opened last month. And I mean finally! It has been a long wait for the East Coast Pinoys. Last week, my college buddy/fellow Radar writer Sarj and I paid a visit to the fast food mecca of our youth. And we wrote about it for The Radar of course! Watch out for it this Sunday!



Hi Christine! I saw your picture at Jollibee in the Chuvaness site.. Were you carrying a Gerard Darel bag? I have one kasi in this sort of lilac/lavender shade and I hardly use it because it easily gets dirty... Do you have any tips on how to take care of it and how to keep it clean? - Joni



Hi Joni! Thanks for your question! Yup, it is a Gerard Darel and admittedly, I haven't been using this gray bag that often too because I tend to stick to my easier to maintain black and brown bags. I can just imagine the horror if a pen mark or some kind of stain touches a light-colored leather bag! It will be so obvious!

This is a timely question as well, since it's officially the first day of spring here, and it's summer there, so just about time to bring out our lighter colored bags, to go with Spring's color palette - neutrals!

To help us both out, and I'm sure a thousand other girls out there are thinking of buying or maintaining their white, pastel or light-colored bags this spring/summer, I sent out an SOS to no less than the bag expert, Ingrid Go, our favorite Bag Hag! Here are her tips for maintaining light-colored bags!

Light colored bags are really a pain in the ass to clean, so before you actually "baptize" your newly purchased light-colored bag, here are some precautions:

1. Do not pair your light-colored bag with dark denims (which usually bleed). There is nothing worse than having those denim stains on your bag. And they're pretty permanent.

2. Before you use any products, make sure to test it in an area of the bag, preferably the bottom. Leave overnight first. If the bag doesn't "stain" or "react" to the chemical, then you can go ahead and spray or treat the bag.

3. Use a dirt/rain repellant spray on your bag. If it's a canvas tote, go with Scotchgard. If it's a leather bag, I recommend Apple rain and stain repellant Spray. Make sure to keep the can about 10- 12 inches away from the bag when you spray it. That way, the repellant won't be concentrated in one area.

4. Make sure to clean your bag after use with a clean cloth. Always check for stains after you retire the bag for the night. That way you can already immediately "clean" the bag if there are stains. Do not allow the stain or smudged area to "sit" overnight as it may seep into the leather/ canvas, making it harder for you to remove.

5. Be conscious enough to know where you put your bag. Don't ever, ever, ever put it on the floor! All it takes is one big stain to ruin your beautifully pristine bag!

To sum it all up - "An ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure"! Bags are meant to keep our things safe, and to be used and enjoyed as well. With these tips from The Bag Hag, we will never again let the fear of keeping a bag clean prevent us from taking our babies out for some lovin'!

Apple Leather Care kits and stain repellant sprays are available at Tresorie, 2/F Dona Consolacion, 122 Jupiter Street, Bel-air, Makati City. Tel. No. (632) 890-0037.