Chocolate Brown

Instant love

I've always loved the Nightingale.   I am late for the party I know, and deciding to get the bag took some thinking.  I was worried about the It Bag status of a few years back - I thought it might go the way of the Chloe Paddington, or the YSL Muse.   But then I decided, what the heck, I love the shape, I love that the leather is so incredibly thick but slouchy at the same time, and just went for it.   I was also initially hesitant about the shorter shoulder strap, since I couldn't wear it crossbody and I am steadfastly a crossbody bag kind of girl, but my husband (who bought the bag) made a good point: I use it for work, not for weekends, and my pencil skirts and dresses do not always work well with messenger/crossbody bags.

I thought I'd get it in black, but this deep, rich chocolate brown color just really called out to me.  It fits anything and everything - truly the perfect work tote.   The bag is now my daily beater, and I am still loving every inch of it.  In fact I am so happy with it that I now have a problem: I am starting to like all things Givenchy and have my eye on the Pandora (in black!) and Obsedia next.  Uh oh.

*For Manila-based friends: it's still cheaper to buy Givenchy in our own Duty Free store.  Even cheaper than buying it in Hong Kong or Singapore!

Before the Reception

My husband and I attended a friend's wedding in Sofitel yesterday. They served cocktails at the seawall garden before the reception. Great view of Manila Bay. I've always loved the cakes in that hotel, so I ended up ordering a pre-party snack before the newlyweds arrived. It was a wonderful evening, and a great way to kick off the weekend.

Clutch from Miss Albright, available in Anthropologie ( a gift from my best friend).

Almost Over

Summer's almost over.   I speak of summer break of course, as it is basically "summer" here in the Philippines for 80% of the year.   In case you're not from here, summer holidays start sometime mid to end of March, and last well until around the second week of June.   Come June, school and the rainy season begin.   We have at least 1 more quick getaway to look forward to before my son goes back to school in June. 

It has been a very eventful summer for my family.   We traveled, were in and out of the hospital, and enrolled our son in various summer activities.  The past few months have tested our love and patience with each other - my little unit of three - and I feel that now we are tighter than ever.  Like peas in a pod.   The next half of 2013 will inevitably involve even more hospital visits, but lest this post sounds too cryptic, let me just clarify that it is actually all good.  I am looking forward to the second half of this year.

Spent a glorious week in The Bellevue in Panglao last month

CHECKLIST: The Geek Watch

I've wanted a geek watch for a while.   

It's all aesthetic, I admit, but for this watch I didn't really care about the functions - or quality, for that matter.  I've liked the Re-Run for a while now, but before I was able to get it, the vintage Casio craze exploded here in Manila.  They have something that kind of looks like my Nixon here, and now everyone and everyone's sister has this Casio.   I went with the Re-Run.  Nixon has been bashed on and on by the Watch Snob and other watch aficionados.  And well, I have to agree with them.  But it's fun, and after this I think I still want to get a big old calculator watch.

Nixon Re-Run watch available from Segnatempo; stars and dish from the Cornerstone Pottery Farm