greetings from manila

card from Behance Network

Festive are the parties where food, drinks and gifts overflow. But nothing could be more joyful than to discover what true Christmas is. May our celebration of Christmas remind us of the love of God in Jesus Christ!

-something I found online....i think it rings true for us Filipinos who are sure to be partying all night...but remember, the greatest gift we have received is the love of God! Merry Christmas everyone! 

{gift ideas} top picks for christmas

Every year for Christmas, I pick out two to three things to give as gifts--it just makes shopping much easier (for me at least). Not that I grab the first thing I see and buy in bulk...I still put some thought into it, in case you're wondering, and that's because my mom once told me, 'Give something you would want yourself.' 

So here are my three picks for this year:

1. monogrammed mugs. I love the font on these mugs--not too fancy, not too plain. The ones pictured here are from Anthropologie, but you can can find nice mugs in SM Homeworld, Landmark, Uniwide Warehouse Club, or Divisoria and just have them monogrammed at any print shop.

monogrammed mugs from anthropologie

2. artisan chocolate from the philippines. I first saw this on my friend's facebook page and instantly fell in love with the packaging (of course!). What's interesting though, is that it's made with green mango and sea salt. Now I love chocolate..and I love green mango with salt. But together? It just seemed weird. So I had to try for myself and well, it was actually good! Check out Theo & Philo for all the other flavors. 

3. be well teas. I didn't think these were available locally until I saw them at healthy options. I love how they're made for specific 'needs.' There's one for clear skin, one for digestion, one for energy, one for detoxing...you'll find the full range at the republic of tea. (oh, and it wouldn't be me if I didn't say I first noticed this because of the simple packaging...and the bright colors are just too cute!)

be well teas from the republic of tea

christmas trees

I can't believe it's december! Have you put up your tree yet? I haven't, and I know I'll have to do it soon or I'll be scrambling to have it done before Christmas! Fortunately, I love having a Christmas tree and other decorations that I don't really mind putting them up. Taking them down, now that's a different story!

We have an artificial tree and I'll be decorating it with red and gold. Typical, I know. But since we bought it just last year, I know I'll be seeing it for many more Christmases to come. Too bad though, because I found some really interesting alternatives...

origami Christmas tree ornaments from Paperoni Press, Etsy

The ornaments are the ones for sale, but the metal tree they're hanging from is actually really cool, too!

possibiliTree

Has wooden slats that fan out to form the tree. Easy to assemble and will store compact. 

superstar holiday tree, modernica

 A bit more ornate. And at the same time, not. 

(scanned from my domino mag)

Here's a simple way to have a tree without sacrificing space (or money--if you're budget is tight).