One of my favorite clothing brand just announced their “Savers 50% off” sale. This will run until the 4th of May in all their stores in the UAE.

I am excited to visit their store in Dubai Mall tonight! hooothooot

Images courtesy of Topman Middle East FB page.

Follow the in Instagram at TopmanME

Before Dubai’s Global Village came to a close, we thought of celebrating a friend’s birthday and try “what they say” as the best and authentic tom yum soup in town. Our street food adventure became a bargain spree adventure, and also a chance of doing an outfit blog.

Because it was just an impromptu invitation, I just grabbed what I can from my closet. Global village is located just a bit outside the metro so it was expected that it will be colder compared to city. 

Forget about the floral plastic bag, but it complimented what I was wearing.^^

We spent most of the time in the Thailand Court. We got a lot of stuff there and ate a lot as well. We bought some bamboo magic towel also in the Austrian Court (we love it).

What am I wearing: Striped round neck shirt and long sleeves shirt both from TOPMAN, Pants from H&M and Shoes from ALDO.

“You can’t escape the past in Paris, and yet what’s so wonderful about it is that the past and present intermingle so intangibly that it doesn’t seem to burden”. -Allen Ginsberg

Paris is indeed one of “the” traveler’s dream destinations. I’ve been waiting for this day ever since I saw a clip of the Eiffel Tower lit proudly in one of the city’s New Year’s Celebrations (I think I was in grade school back then).

I took a Gulf Air flight connecting from Dubai to Kuwait to Paris (Charles De Gaulle Airport). The flight was smooth and I was already dreaming of doing some outfit photographs in the most fashionable city in the world. Paris made packing my clothes very challenging. I was thinking of having an outfit for the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Versailles and an outfit just to roam around.

 ——and SURPRISE SURPRISE—my baggage was declared lost upon our arrival in Paris CDG.

 I love God’s sense of humor.  Initially I got worried, but at some point, I actually didn’t mind. I just wanted to get out of the airport and see PARIS! ! – reporting about my lost baggage caused me more or less an hour from my intended arrival to meet the owner of the house where I will be staying (good thing he’s a pastor ^^) . So I left the airport hoping that my bag will turn out in the afternoon or maximum the next day —-I got my bag after 5 days (oops)

So here are some of the things that I learned from my short and sweet backpacking adventure in Paris—and some side stories. ^^

Always start your tour by getting as much resources a possible. A handy dandy map (look for an English one of course) and some Ctiy Guide brochures  to know what the city is currently offering.

Learning how to commute is really helpful. Paris is really commuter friendly, with a metro station (Metropolitain) in every corner, you can really find your way around. The tricky part is, there are 14 (i think) metro lines in Paris, so  you better get the hang of it before you can be a pro (I was able to—so you can also).

To know more about their subway system check out this helpful guide:http://www.paris.com/tourism/getting_around/metro

The first landmark that I saw was the Arc de Triomphe. It was indeed “wow”. My house was near this place—in fact, it was just a 10 min. walk.

With the help of Ate Annie (she’s the Aunt of my friend back in Dubai) I realized that the Eiffel Tower was just a few walks away from where I was staying (just walk opposite from the Arc).

 When I first saw the Eiffel Tower, I forgot that I lost my baggage in the airport. I can stare at it for hours and hours!

As an artist, the Louvre was at the top of my priority list. They do offer a Museum Pass where you can go to every museum in Paris w/o lining up and no limit (w/in a period of days). I was about to avail this, but because I was visiting during the first Sunday of the month, they advised me not to buy because —most public Museums are free every first Sunday, then Mondays they are closed. (I will do a separate post on the Louvre soon)

The Seine River Paris

This was my first Disney Land Visit ever! So I was a happy traveler! The happiest place to be! I only wish I was with my nieces.

What I wore: 21 Men maroon long sleeved shirt, Topman peach striped  round neck t-shirt, Topman khaki shorts (I wore this pants for 3 days while waiting for my bag—then decided to buy new pants for my trip, for shirts,I started buying souvenir shirts and used them while I waited)

Notre Dame Cathedral

The Moulin Rouge. Makes me wanna sing—hey sister go…sister..

The marvelous Chateau de Versailles. My experience here was magnificent and surely deserves a separate blog! One of my most memorable Paris destination.

My trip became really awesome because of the people I met. They said that people in Paris are all snob and arrogant but I must say they were the opposite based on my experience.

I met a number of kakabayans who really stretched their Filipino hospitality to me. Ate Annie helped me a lot to know the basics, specially commuting. Also, she and her sister gave me basic toiletries that needed to survive while waiting for my bag to be found.

Pastor Vir (wearing the vest). I didn’t get a chance to have a photo taken with him because both of our schedules were not really working together, so I asked Ate Aimee (who made a way for us to meet) to send me a photo of him. He was very generous to offer his studio for me to stay in. (free house! yey)

The Beranger family! I met them in Versailles. They were touring also and they adopted me for the day! I love this family and now I became good friends with the youngsters!

Paris is really a great city. The culture, the art and the people are just oozing with color. There are still  a lot of places that I haven’t visited and things I haven’t done—that is why I will be back very very soon!

merci beaucoup

I love this! BLUE is really my color! With denim (faded or not) as one of the trend this season, this palette will make you look hip and trendy this weekend.

photo from Topman Middle East FB page.

Who doesn’t love a good T-shirt? If I have a choice, I will wear it everyday, even at work. People are always drawn to comfort and a T-shirt (cotton shirt) is indeed comfort at its basic form—oooh deep

Graphic tees have been around for quite some time now. I still remember, back in my college days,I always get fascinated seeing shirts with prints such as “Tummy illfigure” instead of Tommy Hilfiger and “GI Jose” as a Mexican/Filipino spoof of GI Joe.  They are brilliant—and funny.

Aside from the spoof graphic shirts, with the age of digital printing, having a very intricate art print on a shirt is not a problem anymore.  

Now, T-shirts are not only a piece of clothing, but also another form of canvass where we can express ourselves and where fashion can become an expression of one’s passion.

I was totally intrigued when a friend of mine linked me an article from Gulf News reporting that a new T-shirt brand will be launching here in Dubai, where artists can have their artworks printed (and get a percentage of the sales). Since I just started doing some fashion blogs, I was interested to know how this brand came into being.

 Ursom (which means draw in Arabic) – according to an article from art in the city, is the first e-commerce site that sells designer T-shirts by artist from across the Middle East. — bridging the gap between the worlds of art and fashion. Printed on high quality T-shirts with state of the art equipment, Ursom operates the entire production line out of Dubai

To read the full article clink on this link: http://www.artinthecity.com/en/articles/post/2013/02/12/ursom-celebrates-the-launch-of-its-website-with-regional-artists-and-designers/512/?cct=119&ccid=512

(Sample graphic tees. Showcased by hanging them around the venue on clothes line.)

(giveaways—YEY)

What I love about Ursom is that the idea is so simple but brilliant. T SHIRT + ARTIST = EXCELLENT GRAPHIC SHIRTS.  This is perfect with the emerging artist communities in Dubai.

(With my brother —there is a story behind this). What am i wearing: 21 Men cardigan, black skinny jeans from TopMan, scarf from Urban Behavior, leather bag from Ted Baker.

(With Ursom’s co-founder, Luma.)

(yey—food. What a treat!)

The event was simple. I was able to talk to one of the co-founders, Luma, who told me that they wanted the event to be as casual as possible—and it did turn out to be so. The place was full of artists and promising entrepreneurs eager to have a glimpse of the T-shirts being showcased during the event. –The venue was also awesome! (and I will do a separate blog about it)

I can’t wait to submit my design to Ursom and have someone wear it (and pay )

You can check out what they have in their online shop by checking their website at http://ursom.com/. As of the moment T-shirts are available AED 120 each.

Photos from Ursom Official FB page and Zheena Vergara Photography

i think this is the last stretch of winter and we will start packing all those winter clothes. I saw this post in TOPMAN Middle East, and i must say,everything works together. Didn’t know that knitted scarves can be thrown over a denim jacket!—i love denim jackets. it feels very casual and gives that “street on the go” vibe. This year, i believe we will be seeing a lot of these for mens’ wear. (but i will never wear it in the airport going the Philippines—i know the Filipinos will get what i am saying here).

Hope this inspires you to gear up with all those layers for a few more days—hopefully weeks!

image from Topman Middle East FB account

As most of the bloggers out there have their “casual sundays”. Here in Dubai, our Saturdays are actually our version of Sundays.

Being in a Muslim country, sabbath days fall on fridays, making our days off fridays and saturdays (ok too much explanation now).

It was a gloomy and cold morning, heading to church i decided to wear a checkered hoody under a blue blazer. I love that nowadays we dont need to wear something “semi-formal” when we serve the church, so a black denim and grey sneakers will do.

i was able to ask my friend to take a full body snapshot (i still need to get the hang of it)

I wore a blue-almost semi faded denim like blazer from TOPMAN and paired it with a red checkered hoodie i bought from NewLook. I love wearing a hoodie under a blazer, it creates a very young appeal, although it needs a bit of getting use to. 

To complete my whole ensemble, i wore a grey metallic sneakers from ALDO, my favorite Rayban Aviator and of course i always bring my stylish Surat Journal whenever i go to church to write down notes.

I still need to improve those full body shot, well my DSLR got broken so for the meantime i am just using my blackberry phone to get the job done. Hopefully sooonest! 

Till the next one! I’ve been eying my ELMO sweats these past couple of days, so most probably i will wear it anytime soon and for sure i will share it with everyone!

 February my birthday month…the month that I will have to welcome the big 3-0.  So, i decided to start blogging again. A lot of people have been asking me to start blogging about interior design, my journal business, travel and most of the time they want me to blog about fashion.

I’ve been following a number of fashion bloggers in from the Philippines and I must say, some of the things that I am wearing are coming from their influence.  There are only a few bloggers here in Dubai, atleast the ones that I know (I’ll try to google some of them later).

 Here’s the start of my attempt to be a blogger.  First stop, during the inbetween time of my full time work as a Design Architect and multi-tasker of my Journal business I decided to do some fashion blogs (I am actually typing this down while I am waiting for the glue binding of my journals to dry).

I confess that I don’t have that much clothes, you will see me regularly riding the Dubai metro and will repeat the same clothes after a week or two but I think the designer gene in me helps reinvent the (few) clothes that I have and allows me to mix match it and fool my colleagues about the size of my closet.

I love wearing layers that is why this season here in Dubai is the best time for my to just step up the fashion game. The only challenge that I have is that, everyday, I commute and ride the bus and metro going to work so this blog is an ode to those commuter fashionistas out there!  (I know how tough it is)

Yesterday at work i was wearing this new blazer that i bought in a TOPMAN sale. I thought i will find a lot of stuff in the store but apparently i was a week late and what was left hanging on the sale rack was this orange blazer. I love the challenge!!!

I wore it over a red and blue striped round shirt and black skinny denim both from TOPMAN (i love the fit of everything from this shop). To accessorize a bit, i have this oversized purple scarves from H&M which i’ve been thinking of using from a week now (and yes i used it for this ensemble). For shoes, i wore a high-cut RL. 

So here’s my first shot of creating a fashion blog—->I know i know, i need to have a full body shot but i haven’t figure out how/who to take photos of what i am and will be wearing.

Till the next time!