seaside divisoria.

a colleague was nice enough to accompany me to a deep dive into the streets of divisoria because i cannot be satisfied until i have achieved an all-out seaside style for my place.

my shopping list included:

• boat paddles
• white / blue hammock
• miniature lighthouses
• miniature sailboat

we parked my car at robinson's place manila and took a cab to the "other end" of divisoria. by other end, i mean the end where the sights and smells are more extreme.

recto street (lonelyplanet)

the photo above was taken on a monday morning. we went there on a saturday afternoon. needless to say, it felt like we were countless little ants swarming all over the street. i actually brought my SLR thinking that i could capture some interesting shots but i underestimated the crowd and hyperactivity. i wasn't even able to take the camera out of the bag.

map of divisoria (stoicpassion)

we walked through what felt like the entire recto street, looking for juan luna street (where all the fishing supply stores are). when we finally found it, i asked just about every store if they had boat paddles (the hammock was an easy find).

white hammock for php200 (i know this could be implemented better, but i need ideas)


i seriously need to get rid of those old blinds.

after a few hours and a LOT of walking, sweat, frustration and tagalog (my colleague and i made a bet to see who could survive without speaking in english - i lost.), we finally found wooden boat paddles back at juan luna street. the irony is... this is where we essentially started, except it was on the OPPOSITE side of the street, where we failed to look.

wooden boat paddles for php200 each

my next steps:

1. smoothen the boat paddles with sandpaper
2. apply varnish
3. distress the boat paddles to achieve an antique/vintage look
4. apply another coat of varnish

"it breaks my heart when something so new is made to look old" - J.

thank you albet, for being the driver, tour guide, and kargador. not to mention, for tolerating the questioning stares you got at robinson's manila when you were carrying the boat paddles.

turning japanese.

a colleague of mine once featured a curious little japanese grocery located in little tokyo, somewhere near makati cinema square. choto stop carries japanese goodies like instant noodles, rice cracker snacks, vegetables and fresh produce for php75 each.

choto stop (all things manila)

i decided to swing on by choto stop to try out the japanese ice cream featured here. i went on a weekday evening, which was probably a bad call since the traffic at the cramped makati cinema square parking lot was a challenge. anyway, after asking where little tokyo was (just look for the japanese-looking pillars), i arrived at what may be described as a mini plaza of authentic japanese restaurants complete with outdoor tables and kimonoed waitresses eagerly awaiting customers.

at choto stop, i found a selection of interesting frozen delights, but the one that particularly caught my eye was this:

lotte vanilla monaka

apparently, monaka is a popular treat in japan. the one i bought was a simple variant. vanilla ice cream wrapped in what tastes like an ice cream cone minus the crunchiness. the ice cream stays remarkably intact even after being outside the freezer for a considerable amount of time.

it's a huge serving, likely big enough for two people.

and of course, i couldn't resist buying rice cracker snacks (in white packaging) and little packs of the things they serve at japanese airlines (in orange packaging). i really have no clue what the official term is.

japanese snacks

read more about choto stop and see photos of shelf displays at all things manila.

little things on a sunday.

lately, i've been working on both ends of the day (that's asian and western european, sometimes even latin american timezones) so staying home has taken on a slightly new meaning.

whereas before, i craved for adventures, black markets, city lights and malls, these days i find myself deeply engrossed with the little things that i love about my apartment.

top 5 things about coming home

1. the way natural light enters my windows and makes every photograph beautiful


2. eating on plates that match the colors of the sea


3. lounging in the sofa with a cold drink


4. experimenting with cheap decorating elements


5. making clutter look presentable

enjoy LCD in 8 steps.

i made up my mind to get myself an LCD TV primarily because i have no space in my little apartment for the normal ones. i've tried fitting my old "normal" TV into every possible "TV area", but it seems that it just wouldn't do.

on my way to avant at greenbelt, i envisioned that this is how it would look like:

apparently, it's harder than it seems. read on to find my step-by-step narrative of achieving a flawlessly mounted LCD TV.

1. i brought home the TV in its box, stared and marveled at it for a while.

2. the avant service crew came, and, as promised, they mounted my TV on the wall. for free.

3. sky cable came and installed a digibox. i was thrilled until i realized that those wires dangling down the wall were just plain NASTY.

4. i discovered that the installation of the digibox had one horrible negative effect -- the need for even MORE wires. this is because the digibox doesn't make use of a normal coaxial cable, therefore eating up the slot for these RED-WHITE-YELLOW cables that are normally used for DVD players.

therefore, i had a "read the fucking manual" moment and learned about composite connections (RED-BLUE-GREEN + RED-WHITE). yes, i'm a total geek.

5. those damned cables drove me crazy. total of four sets dangling from the TV to various slots in the digibox/dvd player/wall socket.

6. i bought plastic molding to match the white of my walls and arranged for one of the building's maintenance people to install them for me.

7. now i have a minimal amount of cable exposed.

8. i can stop bitching and just enjoy 32 inches of virtually wire-free TV.

well, that was a productive weekend!

treasure hunting at dapitan arcade.

dapitan arcade is some sort of secret mecca for home decor fanatics. it's been widely featured in home and lifestyle magazines, including the likes of real living and more recently, tsuper.

dapitan arcade (journal of journeys)

last friday, i made a trip to dapitan arcade with a couple of friends, hoping to find some nautical or sea-inspired accents to spruce up my place. again, being a preppy former resident of the south, i had no idea how to get there.

highlights from our road trip below...

• J was very helpful the night before our dapitan arcade trip. all of the text directions that came up on his net searches didn't make sense to me, so he looked it up on google earth. the image he sent me seemed easy enough to follow. go straight along edsa, get to quezon ave, find the welcome rotunda, turn right on the first opportunity (mayon street), just keep going until you reach the corner of dapitan street.
• i did NOT print out this google image. i was super confident that i'd be able to keep the directions IN MY MIND.
• as it turns out, you will not find the corner of dapitan street along mayon street. we traversed the entire stretch of mayon until we reached a. bonifacio street. this made me feel stupid, and suddenly made me doubt my long-term memory skills. so much for IN MY MIND.
  
• we should've turned right when we saw suki market. it will be easy from there.

anyway, it was worth getting lost because i found these lovely things, all for a total cost of less than PhP500!

in this photo : 1888 milk bottle (PhP100), three navy blue rattan balls (PhP100), ceramic starfish tealight holder (PhP50), blue old-fashioned kerosene lamp (PhP200) from various dapitan arcade stalls

i'm taking my time, arranging and re-arranging these things, moving them around my place to find the sweet spot that makes each item stand out perfectly.

the different shades of blue contribute greatly to the beach cottage feel.

thank you to khay for driving, and to mike for leading the way to quezon avenue! :-)

i love mickey.

just because in my kitchen, there is only a toaster and a microwave...

doesn't mean that i can't eat well in my apartment.

in photo above: bockwurst with chili, authentic german pretzel, mashed potato salad all from mickey's deli

the wonderful german deli along jupiter street in makati is just a few steps away from my place. inside the deli is a bakeshop (l'artizan) that carries freshly-baked brezn (that's the german word for pretzel), sourdough, pain au chocolat, and more french goodies. mickey's carries an assortment of sausages and german dishes such as:

• schweinshax'n - crispy pork knuckles.. german version of crispy pata?
• leberkas - LOVE THIS! it's bavarian meatloaf
• schnitzel - i think this is pretty popular all around, anyway
• sauerkraut - a staple in any german household
• kaiserschmarm - austrian... shredded pancakes with apples and raisins, served in flambé style with vanilla ice cream
• apfelstrudel - i heard this is definitely worth trying
  

cold cuts, cheeses, and sausages are also available to bring home.

they even carry a selection of german beer and canned goods. hehehe the absolute best part of it is that they try to complete the german dining experience by playing bavarian music in the background!

J, you'll definitely have to try this restaurant with me when you come :-)

divisoria coast guard.

a few weeks ago, a couple of shops seemed to have something common in their window displays -- an authentic-looking coast guard lifesaver. needless to say, i obsessed over it and decided that i absolutely had to have one for my studio.

with a bit of charm and a willing companion, i managed to score one of them.

read the story below...

believe it or not, i actually tried convincing the sales attendants to sell me the lifesaver. i told them i'd pay triple the price they paid for it. this tactic didn't seem to work, so i thought of escalating my whim... to store management ;-)

i asked for the phone numbers of these shops' head offices, got in touch with the marketing department, and again tried to negotiate. since they insisted that they couldn't sell these things, i relented to asking for the supplier's name and contact number.

finally, one of them admitted that the said item was sourced from divisoria.

being a child of the suburbs, i became rather hesitant at the mention of divisoria. for those of you who are not familiar, it is actually a market district known for dirt cheap prices and a wide assortment of... well, just about everything. indeed everything from fruits to electronics to fishing supplies to fabric can be found here. the market itself is comprised of several intersecting streets, and not to mention four major malls.

of course, i forgot to ask WHERE exactly in divisoria i can find the lifesaver.

i convinced one of my friends (seen in the photo below) to join me in this hunt for the lifesaver. we met up after work and drove to taft avenue where we parked my car and hailed a jeepney.

my friend, demonstrating the use of the lifesaver.

we found the item at juan luna street, which, luckily enough, was exactly where the jeepney dropped us off. too bad that it was already late evening by the time we arrived. all the fishing supply shops were closed except for ONE, and the owner exploited this fact by charging me PhP300 for the lifesaver (i'm sure i could get it a much lower price if i got there sooner).

if you plan to head to divisoria outside of rush hours, it might be easier to take the MRT or LRT-2 and getting off at recto station (i haven't tried this, but apparently, it's common knowledge).

divisoria (philippines exiles and stellersjay)

pearly shells.

now that the styledecision has been made and my landlady's furniture has been removed, the fun part begins --- SHOPPING for home decor!

since i've always known myself to be an impulsive buyer, i had to maintain a clear mindset about implementing the beach cottage style. i kept the following things in mind:

1. stick to the theme -- if it doesn't fit the beach cottage look, do NOT buy it.
2. keep your budget in mind -- you will also have to pay for the bills by month-end!
3. less is more -- this is, by far, the hardest thing to remember.

a quick win for achieving my chosen look is to display shells all around the place. it's surprising how easily it gave my living area a laid-back feeling...

"ten more minutes (until J gets home)"

"the afterhours"

in photos above : big seashells from kultura (php100 each), sand (php30) and glass cylindrical vase (php350) from mall of asia department store

coupled with slow blues music, dim lights, and the evening sky, i'd say my first attempt at inviting the sea into my urban apartment was a damned good quick win.

style deliberation.

packing what is practically my entire life into five big boxes and four suitcases was a no-brainer. it was actually unpacking and sorting that was a big headache. finishing this was an accomplishment i looked forward to because it meant that i could proceed with choosing the right style to decorate my studio with.

some ideas included...

mod (thomasfj)

warm neutrals (momoy)

and all white (home millwork)

it was a long process involving countless hours of browsing through design blogs, but the final verdict came down to...

beach cottage








above images from sköna hem, a beach cottage, the lettered cottage

since the walls, built-in shelves and elevated bed platform are already white, i've got a headstart on achieving the beach house look. i'm excited over being able to come home to something so reminiscent of the sea, in spite of being located somewhere in the middle of the central business district!

first step -- get rid of all of my landlady's things and begin the hunt for seaside goodies.

starting out.

i've read from a lot of lifestyle and interior design blogs that the first step in decorating is to pick a style, or at least a color, and build around that slowly.

easier said than done, since girls are known to change their minds rather quickly about the look-and-feel of home.

thank god for this:

flipping through its pages gave me a good sense of how to manage color combinations, storage solutions, etc.

i know ikea has its fair share of critics, but i've always been inclined towards the edgy modern minimalist concept. plus, i'll have to work with a very small space.

the funny thing is that there are no ikea stores in manila.

but we do have small showrooms that carry some of the smaller, more common ikea items - one is in makati but pretty near DLSU (mobler) and the other in quezon city (ikeaph). certainly enough to make the pinoy ikea fan giddy! click on the links to check out their multiply-based catalogs.

a bold decision.

being 21 and fresh into the world of financial independence, my first desire was to start living on my own. desire, coupled with the justification of horrible traffic along the south super highway (due to the construction of skyway phase 2) led me to the bold decision of moving out of the comforts of the home i've lived in all my life.

after 2-3 weeks of looking for what COULD be the perfect apartment/condo unit, my shortlist came down to three choices rated against the criteria below:

• size
• location (distance to office)
• price
• furnishing
• bathroom
• phone line / cable TV
• amenities
• security

upon careful consideration and much discussion (including a scorecard with stars as rating - great idea, J!), the final decision came down to this:

a studio condo unit (around 30 sq.m.) on the 9th floor of a building just a few steps away from my office.
it's not much to look at, i know.

but all i needed was the ability to see...
POTENTIAL:

anxiety came over me as i signed the rental contract. i've been told by friends that the price was steep relative to my paycheck, but my family members say the price is a good deal, considering the location.

money aside (since it's the obvious), i was more worried about whether or not i could fix up the place and make it look like a home i'd want to come home to (alone) everyday.


this blog is a chronicle of re-inventing an ugly place and the things i learn along the way.