{Our Couple Game} 12 Gifts of Christmas

I came up with this crazy idea of doing a Kris Kringle game--- a contest between my husband and I to make our first Christmas together exciting. So we'll be having 12 gift giving days with different themes. We have a budget of P50-300 per gift and we can have our own interpretations per theme.

DAY 1: SOMETHING COOL 

His Gift: The coolest and smallest Donut desktop usb fan from Clippers Gift Shop in Robinson's Manila.  

My Gift: I gave him his favorite toothpaste purchased in our local grocery.

I still can't get over my donut fan's cuteness. So for this round, my husband scores!

JIGGER: 1
ALESSA: 0

DAY2: SOMETHING USEFUL 

His Gift: Pink Water bottle from Clipper's gift shop. Most of the time I'm dehydrated so this is just perfect. 
My gift: Burger Bags since my husband loves to make his own burger and Multipurpose Clips since he loves those chips! Both are from True Value.

 My gifts were unexpected so I win this round haha!

JIGGER: 1
ALESSA: 1

DAY3: SOMETHING FUN

His Gift: A lint remover from True Value.

My gift: A butter pod/container, also from True Value.

 My husband insists that taking out lint and rolling this brush is more fun than storing butter. Butter should be eated not stored.. okay fine. Anyway, for this round, he wins but i still think my Moo butter pod is super cute and useful.

JIGGER: 2
ALESSA: 1

DAY4: SOMETHING NAUGHTY

His Gift: let's just say... it is naughty hahaha. I don't want to post.

My gift: Whipped cream.... for all the Christmas desserts and goodies :)

Because Jigger really made sure his was naughty, okay... the point goes to him haha!

 JIGGER: 3

ALESSA: 1


DAY5: SOMETHING FUNNY

His Gift: A Panda Bear Therapy Pack that can be used as warm or cold compress. We have this bear joke so I guess that's why he associated this to "something funny"

My gift: Drunkasaurus Shirt that looks like my husband when he's tipsy (bought from Robinson's department store) & a Taz Car freshner from True Value; talk about old school. Taz was my husband's favorite cartoon character back then. He was obsessed to it!

Hands down, I win this round :)

JIGGER: 3

ALESSA: 2

DAY6: SOMETHING LONG

His Gift: Hem Tape from True Value

My gift: Cord Organizer from Ace hardware

I would never expect my husband to know what a Hem tape is so because of his effort... he wins!

JIGGER: 4

ALESSA: 2

DAY7: SOMETHING SHORT

His Gift: Rug adhesive from True Value (it's short coz' it came from a small pack, what??)

My gift: Pastillas from the local grocery. I got these because I know my husband loves those small treats. 

I score! I really don't know why he gave me this, hahaha!

JIGGER: 4

ALESSA: 3

DAY8: SOMETHING RED

His Gift: Hot Sauce from Healthy Options (my husband loves hot stuff)

My gift: Wine bottle Stopper (because gone are the days that I could finish an entire bottle by myself hahaha)

So we both tried the hot sauce and it is just awesome! Super hot and yummy and it's under P300! For this round, I win since Jigger super loved his hot sauce.

JIGGER: 4

ALESSA: 4

DAY9: SOMETHING GREEN

His Gift: Mosquito patch... ummm... because the box is green (duh!)

My gift: Green Apple Candies from Healthy Options

I was magnetized to the candy case since it had a cool "J" letter on the side. So since the candy tastes great and the container seemed to be personalized for Jigger, I win this round.

JIGGER: 4

ALESSA: 5

DAY10: SOMETHING BIG

His Gift: Laptop Case from CDR King

My gift: Microwave food cover from Howards Storage

Both aren't really big things when you define "BIG" but both are just super useful so we decided that it's a tie!

JIGGER: 5

ALESSA: 6

DAY11: SOMETHING SMALL

His Gift: USB

My gift: Miniature Black Label

A USB is really useful but it's really meant to be a small item. The Miniature black is an unexpected thing... it's super cute and inexpensive. So for this round, I win.

JIGGER: 5

ALESSA: 7 

 DAY12: SOMETHING SWEET

His Gift: Bazooka Lip Balm from True Value

My gift: Candy Crush Jelly Fish from Rustan's Grocery (My husband is addicted to Candy Crush)

Both of us loved our gifts, we both score points for this round! :)

JIGGER: 6

ALESSA: 8

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Overall, my husband and I really enjoyed this activity turned contest. It's not about the amount we give nor who scored more. It's really more of the thought, creativity, and effort. We enjoyed figuring out each others likes and personality. We were thrilled searching things as if it was a scavenger hunt. We recommend couples to do this to spice things up and have another avenue to learn each other more and communicate.

 

Dapitan: Haven for last minute budget gifts and decor

Looking for anything below P 500 for Christmas gifts, decor, and collectibles? Dapitan Arcade is the perfect place!  

December is too late to purchase Christmas decors BUT if you're a decorating addict, this actually is the best time to buy. Decorations are now on sale and sellers are willing to give good discounts before they repack and do closing inventory. 

Check out photos from my Dapitan trip :)

lovely flower arrangements highlighted with white fairy lights

Garlands and swags; assorted flowers sold by piece

Assorted Cute Santa Resin Figurines

Candy Ornaments-- 3 for P100 only

Traditional and Disco Glam Nutcracker figures

Classic and Rustic Nutcracker Wooden Figures, it's quite expensive at P850
but I think It's a good heirloom piece to pass on

Export Overrun Table top Christmas trees

For all the Candy lovers out there, here's the perfect Sweet Santa for you! 

More Santas Please

Here's a tip tough, if' you're looking for extraordinary pieces.... don't put your hopes too high. Dapitan Items are budget indeed thus it may look cheap and may be of mediocre quality. Some are spin offs from Export items. For RESIN pieces, look closely at the hands and faces. If it looks too chubby then they are just replicas from purchased items remoulded to sell at a cheaper price. Note that Resin figurines should look smooth and that little details should be defined and well placed. BUT, there really are some unexpected gems if you look hard and bargain well.

Now for those who are not into the novelty holiday stuff and are looking for houseware, there's a wide selection of plates, bowls, glasses, and vases that are to die for!

These super cute Holiday plates and bowls are so cute and so cheap.
Everything in this photo is less than P300!!!

Cool Flower vases that can be displayed year round

These are just P50 each! 

Hello Snowman Collectors! The serving plate and bowl is just P150 each



HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!
Happy Shopping & gift giving! :)



 

Confession of a Christmas Workaholic

November stormed in so fast, next thing I know... I'm already saying hello to December. 

For the past 8 years, I have been working full time for the family business making Christmas decors whole year round! Yes, one complete cycle of Christmas designing, marketing, manufacturing, and distributing. I love my job and Christmas but the holidays sometimes mean less time for myself. SeptemBER signals the start of sleepless nights; countless ingress, set ups, deliveries, and projects; take outs and bazaar food. But like what everyone says.... 

Busy days mean good business.... IT'S A GOOD PROBLEM! :)

November 2013: We did a Candy land display for Noel Bazaar 

I write not to rant but to share that I'm back to writing. I promised myself to write more and I simply can't miss out on my favorite holiday :) 

HALLOWEEN 2014: 15 Coolest Halloween Decorations in the Metro

Halloween is the second most celebrated and marketed holiday next to Christmas. It's widely celebrated in the states as well as here in the Philippines. I'm glad that the number of halloween events are increasing every year however I didn't really feel the Halloween vibe in shopping malls, stores, or boutiques. Yes there were a lot of stores selling halloween stuff but what I was looking for were showcases. 

Anyway, I went around different areas in the Metro and I'd like to share some of the best places that displayed awesome Halloween decorations. 

15 Coolest Halloween Decorations in the Metro

15. BGC HIGH STREET (Taguig)

Thanks to my sister in law Tris (who sent me this photo), I was able to see this cool display. I'm not quite sure what the event was. I'm assuming High street had trick or treat on the weekend of October 25-26. I went the following Monday but saw nothing. Nevertheless, I liked this especially the tree with the pumpkin "fruits" haha. 

Photo taken by Leatrice San Juan

14. MESCLUN BISTRO (Serendra, Taguig)

It may just be paper cut outs and cobwebs but I think this one has a cohesive window display. They had the right amount of decor; it's simple but it works. 

13. SABOTEN (Serenda, Taguig)

I had to look twice at their decors to get what it was about. They had oriental looking masks, cobwebs, and spiders. I wasn't my favorite but I appreciate the effort and hard work to put those up. I'm impressed that their masks didn't look like the normal ghoulish types you can easily buy. 

12. KRISPY KREME

Personally I'm not a fan of Kripsy Kreme (the calories from their donuts scare me) but, I am a big big fan of their themes, promos, and decors (even if most of the time they just use stickers; I do prefer decorations with dimensions). I just love how they're always in sync with the Holidays. 

This year's Krispy Kreme Halloween revolves around ghosts and the Ghostbusters.

I applaud their attempt for these thematic donuts. Promotions were indeed enticing but the actual donuts didn't look like the photos. I was hoping to be blown away with cuteness, but when I went there... it was just okay. 

The branch I visited was in GREENHILLS

11. Gino's Brick Oven Pizza (Salcedo Village, Makati)

With its modern rustic interiors, Gino's just needed simple Halloween decors to make it festive. I loved their oven brick pizzas plus their red brick wall.

I don't know if this was done on purpose; Gino's placed their cut-out bat on this light bulb that happens to be right in front of their air con. It's spooky-funny to watch a bat flap its wings.

10. MURRAY AND D'VINE (Serendra)

I think their lights were too bright. When I was walking to find if any of the places in Serendra had Halloween decors, I almost missed this one. I'm glad I walked slow and saw the sign HALLOWINE. I was not able to go inside but by judging their front decors, I could say that they did a great job with the placement of their cobwebs and spiders, plus extra points for the super creepy witch.

9. Paseo de Magallanes (Makati)

Paseo de Magallanes had lighted outdoor Halloween Pumpkins made from fiber glass. It looked awesome at night. And because they're bright orange, I bet it looked festive during day as well. They only had it by the entrance; wish they had more of these pumpkins; super cute! 

8. RECIPES (Resorts World Manila)

Alot of establishments used store bought bat cut outs and spider webs. To me, Recipes had one of the best uses or placement. I enjoyed seeing the bats "fly"!

7.Buona Vita (Molito, Alabang)

The restaurant's color and logo somehow ties up well with the halloween colors. I liked that they had scarecrows and their display looks fun & kid friendly rather than creepy. I think the only creepy part here was my brother, hahaha, just kidding :)

6. BLUFROG (Greenhills Promenade)

Back when Blufrog was still at Tiendesitas, Pasig, I remember that they do decorate for Halloween. I think they had this inflatable carriage with some witches, I think; I hope I'm correct haha. 

Anyway, I liked Blufrog Greenhills' display because of their cool decor pieces--- the scarecrow, skulls, and the skeleton server.

Also, their liquor display was super cool. The lighting + the spiders and cobwebs created this eerie feeling. It felt as if this was modern day Dracula's bar, haha!

5. PLAYERS (Alabang Town Center)

We went to check out Players after Halloween and luckily they still had their decors there. I loved how this Pub went all out. Their dark walls and cozy interiors also added to the Halloween feeling. 

4. RED CRAB (Resorts World Manila)


Mad props to Red Crab and their display! Talk about recreating Magandang Gabi Bayan, hahaha!

Also, they have the coolest crew who went all out for halloween. I went on a Sunday, October 26, and the servers were all dressed and "ghouled" out. 

3. SLICE (Bonifacio High Street, Taguig)

I asked friends if they know of any place that decorated for Halloween. Most of them said Slice so I checked it out.  

Slice's Halloween decorations made sure they gave emphasis on their products. The focal point was their Halloween table which I loved!

2. TOMAHAWK (Kapitolyo)

Tomahawk is my number 2 because of the experience. I went with my sister Angel and we were immediately excited with all their decorations. Servers Ross and Mike greeted us warmly and toured us around. 

Because their entryway is a bit narrow, I felt as if we were in a tunnel and that a huge spider is about to get us.

Wait! There's more!!! 

I thought that Tomahawk was just small. I was pleasantly surprised that they had a bigger area that could accommodate 30-40 people.

1. FELIPE AND SONS  (Makati)

My 2014 Best Halloween Decor award goes to the coolest Barbershop and Haberdashery in town! Their decors were just brilliant thanks to interior Designer Melissa Arriola. 

My best friend Margaux sent me these pictures and I got so excited. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to see this myself but nevertheless... I was immediately blown away!!! The ground floor was transformed into a graveyard and the main store had quirky skeletons dressed with their handsome suits. 

To me this was the best--- the most dramatic and most accomplished amongst all the places I saw. The place was just awesome!

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I had so much fun with this experience. I can't wait for next year.

To everyone on the list, THANK YOU!!!! Thanks for the time and effort to decorate and celebrate Halloween.