It certainly took me a while to share it with the rest of you folks here on Style Manila. I reckon, I’m only just coming out of my travel mode. This usually results in a self-imposed sabbatical, seemingly like taking a vacation from my vacation. But, yea, here it is!

Lovely Days

The universe has a weird sense of humour — folks who are in on it will understand the significance of the title, haha. No, I didn’t have a hand in coming up with it!

“Lovely Days” | Sasha Manuel featured in Woman @ Work
of Style Weekend, a fashion and lifestyle magazine of Manila Bulletin | 01 March 2013

So. I don’t own a scanner and too lazy to use the big camera to take a snap of the 2-page spread (!!! — I hadn’t expected it to be that big, haha). I hope this will do. If you’re interested to read the article, here’s a screen from the Manila Bulletin website (click the image for a larger view):

Or head on over to the article and have a read!

Here’s also a quick guideline to help connect each outfit photo with the proper caption (I also included links to posts with outfit breaks:

Monday

Blogged here: Black and Blue; Tog du jour

Tuesday

Blogged here: Denim Dilemma: Printed vs Distressed

Wednesday

Blogged here: Palazzo Pant x Rope Around Your Neck; Tog du jour

Thursday

Blogged here: Beatnik; Tog du jour

Friday AM

Blogged here: Chambray

Friday PM

Blogged here: I need more skirts in my life.

Saturday

Blogged here: Denim Dilemma: Printed vs Distressed

Sunday

Blogged here: Finding MrDarcy in New Shoes

‘Tis always a treat to experience such things. I’m grateful to the folks from Style Weekend and Manila Bulletin, esp Maris (hope to see you again soon and thanks again for the feature)! Oh yea, if you happen to visit my blog through the feature, hallo! I appreciate the visit and do say hi. I’d love to hear from you!

xo,
Sasha <3

I get lazy when it comes to fixing my hair, so having someone do it for me: shampoo + head massage + blow dry to perfection = a must.

Where else should someone like me go for this service but to the experts!

Enter Blo Blow Dry Bar. The first Blow Dry Bar in North America has finally reached our shores!

Located at the P1 level of Powerplant Mall (across Mercury Drug) you can’t miss this for it’s a vision of (hot) pink and white.

I instantly fell in love with the place (I know, i’m a very typical girl, but wtv). It’s so girly, pretty and fabulous!

The place is immaculate! In an instant I knew that i’m in for a treat (for my hair). Kinda like a candy store, but for women.

The bloers (session stylists) greeted my friends and I the moment we entered, and ushered us into our seats.

They served us (pink) wine and desserts and gave us the “hair menu”so we can choose a hair style.

You’re not cheating on your hairdresser.

The blo concept? “No cuts, no color: Just WASH BLOW and GO.”

Blo is open from 9am – 9pm on weekdays and 9am – 10pm on weekends. They accomodate appointments as early  as 7am, as long as you book in advance.

Hair Cadets (what they fondly call their clients) can choose from 7 different styles (from classic to rock) all for Php 500.

some of the hair styles from the blo hair menu

photos taken from Blo

They offer bridal packages and they teamed up with several caterers and events planners so they can offer clients the full package. They also do bachelorettes, theme parties, special events etc.

We had a little chat with the owner, Howard Chua and according to him, they plan to open 4 branches this year (the one in Serendra is now open).

Most of the staff they have are already experienced in the salon industry, but they want to make sure that they have the best, so they got trained hairdressers from the US to train all (13) staff.

Each branch will have a “style boss” making sure that the “bloers” complete a service within 30 minutes or less.

Since Blo is a niche category, they want to offer the best and the most efficient service to their clients.

“There is a science behind all of it…” according to Mr. Chua. Apparently, before they open the store, they have to make sure the pressure of the water is just right, because something so little may affect the efficiency of the staff and the service.

“It’s not just the service we’re looking for, but the whole experience.”

And what an experience we got.

1. Our after “blo”photo 2. Goodies from Blo

We heart you too, Blo.

You may contact Blo at:

blo rockwell

Stall #019 P1 Level, Power Plant Mall,
Rockwell Center, Makati City
+63 917 6-blodry(256379)
blorockwell@blomedry.com

blo serendra

2-C01A 2nd Floor Serendra,
Fort Bonifacio Global City, Taguig
+63 917 6-blodry(256379)
bloserendra@blomedry.com

Also check out their website.

A little fun styling experiment inspired by my sister’s farewell gift. Life art book, as she calls it, has a photo of me when I was little, pudgy, and cheeks were a truckload chunkier than they are now. I was wearing my school uniform and a huge, uninhibited smile. I knew I was going to tell the whole world (er, more like the handful of people who read my blog, haha) about the gift and this idea came to me since I’ve been doing a lot of pairing experiments and outfit photos.

Look, it’s Sasha in her Montessori-inspired outfit.

Not typically something I’d wear so how I was able to put something like it together and pull it off, is a wonder. I must add that I am currently traveling so I’m doing all this out of a suitcase. Who would’ve thought I’d be able to wear the Mango wrap skirt, which I bought on my last trip to Singapore (2011), this way? Just shows you can create outfits out of what you already have. You simply need to get to know your wardrobe better.

Top Mossimo
Skirt Mango
Sandals Jeffrey Campbell

Peanuts: I actually don’t wear short skirts when I was in school. I like my school uniform LONG. I reckon I hold the record for wearing the longest skirt back in highschool, which often gets me into trouble with the prefect (best buds!). That and my tardiness (not my fault, serious!).

And then the accessories. I love accessorising. I try not to overdo it and be flashy but sometimes, it’s quite hard to settle on one thing to wear so they’re included in the pairing experiments. A bit of trivia, I actually have a special case packed in my luggage that’s dedicated to accessories alone. It was somewhat bare when I left Manila but, as usual, I’m going back with it filled to the brim, haha.

Necklaces Lotus, Sportsgirl, Aldo
Rings Chick Flick, Sportsgirl
Arm Band Sportsgirl
Earrings Heirloom
Studs Target
Ear Cuff Sportsgirl
Bag Cotton On

Yea, yea. I know I won’t get away with wearing this much jewellery with a uniform. If I do, I’ll be spending an afternoon in the prefect’s office — more than I already had back when I was in school.

I must admit that the necklace stack wouldn’t have worked had it not been for the Valentine’s gift I received from my sister.

I esp love the barrel chain (I want the real kind of that one!) and the love heart. <3

Yea, 30 years and minus the knee-high socks and maryjanes later, the outfit turned out to be somewhat faithful to the original methinks. I know I don't own the ribbon blouse thing-y but, hey, one must go with what she has! Besides, I reckon the 5-year old version of this look is waaaaay better. And appropriate. Lulz.

To get a better idea of what I'm talking about, you should read this post: The Road to Happy. And you’d get to see how the life art book looks like!

So, how did your school uniform look like?

xo,
Sasha <3/h5>

]]> http://www.stylemanila.com/2013/02/22/montessori/feed/ 2 http://www.stylemanila.com/2013/02/22/carnival-de-rainhas/ http://www.stylemanila.com/2013/02/22/carnival-de-rainhas/#comments Fri, 22 Feb 2013 05:29:47 +0000 Sasha Manuel http://www.stylemanila.com/?p=11538 The Regina Iustitiae Sorority (Sorore Lex Atheneum), a sorority composed of law students of the Ateneo Law School, is holding a 1-day fair and carnival event at the The NBC Tent, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig entitled “Carnival de Rainhas II”. It will be held on 07 April 2013, Sunday, from 10:00am to 9:00pm.

Carnival de Rainhas literally translates to Carnival of Queens and is in fact held annually in the city of Bethlehem, Brazil a month before Easter. The carnival is considered as a farewell to negative things, as well as a preparation for the coming of Easter. Religious or not, I’m all for anything that will help rid negative things in my life. Wouldn’t you want to join in celebration of that? Oh yea, there’s shopping involved so I’m in, haha.

This year’s event is the second installment of Carnival de Rainhas held last year at the Rockwell Tent. It’ll have over 100 food and non-food concessionaires, several game booths, inflatable castles (bouncy castles!), and concessionaires offering services geared towards the young and young at heart: face painting, balloon twisting, caricature drawing, fortune telling and many more. I wonder what my fortune is for Summer 2013..? Hm. Oh, oh — can I go on the bouncy castle? Pleeeeaaaaase..?

Updates about the event can be found on their FB page.

Seems like the event might be a fun way to spend your Sunday with family and friends. You reckon it’s a good idea to go? Let me know and I might see you there!

xo,
Sasha <3

]]> http://www.stylemanila.com/2013/02/22/carnival-de-rainhas/feed/ 0 http://www.stylemanila.com/2013/02/20/chambray/ http://www.stylemanila.com/2013/02/20/chambray/#comments Wed, 20 Feb 2013 11:27:39 +0000 Sasha Manuel http://www.stylemanila.com/?p=11519 cham·bray |ˈ sh amˌbrā; -brē|
noun
a linen-finished gingham cloth with a white weft and a colored warp, producing a mottled appearance.

Shirts, fashion tops, dresses, jackets, even rompers, skirts and trousers. It comes in different colours, too. Red, Black, Grey, and several shades of Blue — from deep indigos to faded light blue — yes, especially popular in Blue.

Often bears a resemblance to a denim shirt, rightly so, since the latter is usually made out of “a fine, lightweight fabric woven with white threads accross a colored warp,” only made out to appear denim-like. Makes more sense really since it would be more practical and, not to mention, more comfortable to wear something light for your top than the actual textile used on jeans. The idea of wearing that in a tropical climate makes me feel claustrophobic and sweaty for some reason.

Chambray x Denim Shirt, Esprit – originally priced at AUD$ 89.95 (roughly around Php 3,870.00), only got it for AUD$ 24.95 (roughly around Php 1,075.00)

Explore different looks with the Chambray. Preppy, with the buttoned up shirt and cardi; Boho, with maxis and flat thongs; Urban tough, with long-sleeved shirts and leather pants; Or mix it with trends by adding military inspired pieces and wear ‘em with boots. Style options are quite endless, come to think of it. Chambray is quite a versatile element which will make a look interesting when done right. However, it goes well with just about anything. Just be careful not to go putting something together which would end up like you wanted to wear everything in your closet in one outfit. I’ve seen that happen once too many.

I <3 nerd pockets, haha.

Shirt Esprit
Cargo Short People Are People
Sandals Jeffrey Campbell
Clutch Sportsgirl
Sunnies RayBan
ID Collar Sportsgirl
Bracelets Sportsgirl, Rubi, Diva
Rings Sportsgirl, Mango
Studs Target
Ear Cuff Sportsgirl

Oh, yea. You might want to check out a couple of style ideas for a chambray x denim dress shirt:

So. How would you wear Chambray? Tell me all about it!

xo,
Sasha <3

High marks for this style board by Eena:

Posted on Tumblr, Instagram and Facebook Profile (smarts for thinking of cumulative likes, haha)

Trivia: I was planning on putting together an outfit that matches an outfit in your board for this announcement post but I realised that I’m missing a piece or two. I’ll see if I can come up with something for a later post — even for just a fun tiny styling project, have fun with the leopard print mocs.

So, let’s just share what you’re bringing home (well, technically I’m the one bringing it home THEN I’m going to give it to you, haha!) to other StyleManila.com readers — the Palmer Ankle Boot from Rubi Shoes.

You’ll be seeing this baby IRL next month!

So, folks, for those interested to participate in the next #StyleManilaPopQuiz, you simply have to keep an eye out for it. It can happen anytime, haha. Cheerio!

xo,
Sasha <3

P.S. This is not sponsored by Rubi Shoes. #justsaying

Move over Cinderella. It doesn’t matter if I’m missing out on snagging Prince Charming, I’ve got a pair on that I’m not planning on losing.

It may not be comparable to your glass slipper, sweet pea, –

nor would it win a spot in Imelda Marcos’ shoe closet,

New shoes retailed for AUD$ 17.50 (roughly around Php 755.00) — under a buy 2 pairs for AUD$35 deal

but I’m keeping them. metal-tip and all.

Faerie tales, schmaerie tales. My life, my rules. I’m setting out to find me a MrDarcy instead, haha.

Finding Mr. Darcy by Amanda Hooton

Blazer Topshop
Top Zara
Short Miss Selfridge
Shoes Morning Glory
Sunnies Sportsgirl
Bag Cotton On
Necklaces Sportsgirl, Aldo
Rings Chick Flick, Sportsgirl
Earrings Heirloom
Studs Target
Ear Cuff Sportsgirl

A play of imagery with butterflies, a cool breeze and a soft light — what pair would you be wearing when you go meet THE ONE? Hihi.

xo,
Sasha <3

The celebration was hosted by Miss Teresa Herrera, with music from DJ Badkiss (Christina Baertgas) and DJ Meow (Mia Ayesa), while Ballet Philippines and a fashion show helped bring to life the video animation that unveiled Estee Lauder’s latest product line. The dramatic image mapping throughout the venue showcased Tom Pecheux’s, Estee Lauder Creative Make-Up Director, masterpiece in the limelight, giving the guests a first look of his creation made for women all over the world.

Play and display booths manned by Estee Lauder make-up artists and nail technicians allowed the guests to test and try Estee Lauder’s PureColor Lipstick, PureColor Eyeshadow Palette, PureColor Blush. Guests also fell in love with the Vivid Shine Collection – PureColor Gelee Powder Eye Shadows, and PureColor Vivid Shine Lipstick. Women lined up to sample the PureColor Nail Lacquer with True Vision Technology which contains crystalline laminate that magnifies and intensifies color to a glowing metallic finish, thus extolling the eyes, lips and nails.

The female guests of the launch of the PureColor line experienced the truth of Mrs. Estee Lauder’s famous one-liner, “Every woman can be beautiful.”

Color. Light. Texture. Inspiration. Tom Pecheux and Constance Jablonski explore the City of Light. Makes me miss the city.