End of Regina's Era

This is a sad day for Greenhills geeks like me.

As a kid, there were 3 places I'd never miss visiting in Greenhills: Fun House for funny and weird stuff, Nova Fontana for toys, and Regina's for almost everything else.

Regina's was a treasure trove of items - particularly imported ones. Back when imported candies weren't as readily available as they are now, Regina's was the place where you could buy Lifesavers, Bubble Yum, Hubba Bubba, and a host of other imported sweets.

They also had a lot of imported novelty items, like Trapper Keepers. They had imported cologne, like Nenuco and De Ne Nes. They had imported toys, like Cabbage Patch Kids. They pretty much had everything.

It was my personal black hole as an elementary school kid. When I was inside Regina's, I'd stay there for at least an hour, browsing through every shelf, examining every nook and cranny.

As I grew older, Regina kept its same charm. But they had more items in store, including imported overruns, which I'd frequent. Before H&M opened in Manila, they already had H&M overruns there. I'd buy baby gifts there, too. And they even had imported magazines! So, they pretty much had everything I wanted.

The news that they're closing down was swift and shocking. It was expected that small businesses would suffer during this pandemic, but never did I think that Regina's would be one of them.

I just hope that they have a proper send-off before finally shuttering their doors. A place with such a storied history, and an impalpable role in the lives of Gen X-ers, deserves nothing less.

LFLTAT: Happy Hues

Or, "Things you find when you're not looking for it, part 2."

As the Marie Kondo tidying up project continues, bags that are hiding in unexplored crevices of my closets are inadvertently found.

Which includes a red eco bag which has been hiding for many months, only to be found today. 

I still remember this red eco bag. It was from my visit to Greenhills, particularly Shoppesville. Initially, my purpose there was to look for Oreos from my favourite PX store. 

Now, beside that PX store is one of my go-to dress places, Apartment 8. They had a rack outside their store with big signs shouting "Sale," "P500," and "P300" which I couldn't refuse. So, after shopping for Oreos, it was off to shopping for sale items.

And that yielded 2 dresses in bright, cheerful and happy colors.

The first is this mustard yellow dress with a ruffled hem and a belt. It's a fun, flirty and flowy dress that's going to be great this summer.

Second, this off the shoulder dress in a colour that's a slightly darker hue of cornflower. It also has an asymmetric hem that keeps it from being boring.

And yes, these dresses were under the P500 and P300 categories. So, together, they're beautifully hued, fashionably designed looks for less than a thousand!

I wonder what other things I'll find the next few weeks.

Color story: The OK Corals

One of the most ignored colors in my 64-piece Crayola set was Coral Pink.

Back as a kid, none of my coloring books or art projects needed this hue. Frankly, I found it a bit confused for a color. It was like a mish-mash of pink, orange, and red. Plus, I was never a fan of pink, so this was automatically off my consideration set.

But as I grew older, my appreciation for Coral Pink started. Especially when I saw them nicely executed in fast fashion brands. Usually, they'd come out in the Spring-Summer collections, and they'd always look refreshing on the runway.

It's no longer summer, and we don't have spring, but that didn't stop me from whipping up this Coral Pink outfit for Ate.

Both pieces are from my Greenhills haunt. While I don't go there as often as before, they never disappoint when I'm there.

The first piece is this top with ruffled sleeves. I got this for Ate Bullet in white, and she loved it. So, when I saw this deep Coral option, it was a must buy.

Then, I saw this pair of printed pants, also in a lighter shade of coral. And it was a nice contrast to the heavier shade up front.

Given how funky and chic this ensemble is, I'm sure Ate will be tickled Coral Pink.

LFLTAT: Of skirts and off shoulders

 If you drop by Greenhills and H&M on the same day, chances are, you can whip up a "Look for Less Than A Thousand."

First of all, the Greenhills tiangge just reopened, so you can expect to see a lot of new stuff at the same old low prices. Then, H&M just further marked down their items, so you can expect a lot of their chic items on the cheap.

And this delightful discount duo helped me come up with these 2 outfits for the Ates.

Outfit # 1: Orange you glad it's just P950?

Yup, that's the total cost of this look. The top is from Greenhills, and it's this pretty off shoulder blouse in a bright orange hue.

To match it, I found this H&M skirt with a bright orange print against a muted blue background. And the combination is refreshingly stylish.

Outfit # 2: Don't feel blue, it's only P750!

Yup, it's that cheap! From the same shop where I got the orange one, this off shoulder top comes in a navy blue color.

To match it, I found this electric pleated lace skirt, also in blue. It was the perfect match!

I'd say this Sunday was well (and cheaply) spent.

More Florties

When I was in Greenhills yesterday, I dropped by Shoppesville and went to my usual haunts. That's when I saw this beauty from afar, and immediately knew that it would look perfect on Ate.

It's another fabulous florties dress in a rich, emerald color.

It had a full skirt, which is very forties. But the fabric makes it modern and tres chic!

Obviously, this fabulous dress went home with me and is now hanging in Ate Lissa's closet.

Dessert comes first

Oh look! Skittles Desserts!

I found this new variant in Greenhills - Regina's in particular - and it had blueberry tart, key lime pie, orange creme, among others. Needless to say, it's divine!

After all, that's what desserts are supposed to be.

Dead Hungry

Today's most interesting conversation was overheard in Greenhills. It was between 2 middle aged ladies (MAL) in the food section of the Greenhills Tiangge.

MAL 1: Oh, you should try this suman. It's SO good, I swear by it!
MAL 2: Really? It's that good?
MAL 1: Yes! At first I just tried one, then I ended up eating 4 sumans.
MAL 2: Where did you try it?
MAL 1: During a wake. It was so good, I went to the wake again the next day just to eat suman.

Ah yes, the things they do for suman.

Color Story: Wine not?

Red wine is often seen as elegant, classy and preferred by people with good taste. In my opinion, the traits of the beverage are the same traits that can define red wine as a color.

Take for instance this red wine dress that I snagged at Greenhills a few weeks ago. Apart from its very classy color, the cut is simple but elegant, and it looks like a dress preferred by people with good taste. That's why I gave it to Ate Lissa.

To further up the classy ante, the dress can be paired with this layered necklace from Forever 21. The ornate piece - with its brass color and black stones - play beautifully well against the simplicity and color of the dress. The total look is worthy for the FLOTUS. (Or First Lady Of The US, for those who want to spell it out.)

What a truly intoxicating color. And look.

Neon Flowers

"Neon Flowers" sounds like the name of an American drag queen. I imagine her to be around 6'2", a bit burly, has a loud personality, wears neon wigs and is often garbed like a space cadet. She could follow the footsteps on Nina Flowers and join Ru Paul's Drag Race.

But no, this isn't about a drag queen. It's about clothes.

Neon colors and floral prints might sound like an odd pair. But thanks to some pieces I found at Greenhills and SM Department Store, I discovered that it can be a visually interesting ensemble. 

Like this one:

The top is one of those neon-colored tops that I found (and bought) in Greenhills. What's nice about this shirt is that its fabric is a bit nubby, which gives it that aged and worn look. For this ensemble, I chose the neon orange version. (Which I initially thought was neon pink, but turned out to be orange.)

I paired the shirt with this skinny, floral trousers from SM Department Store. Unlike the usual floral trousers that are loud and bright, this one is a bit more subtle. The canvas is this oyster colored fabric, and it has this watercolor-like floral print in a muted palette. There's actually some orange in there somewhere, which is why this particular top works well.

The result is an ensemble with balance. A bright top with paired with a muted bottom. A patterned pair of trousers with a plain shirt.

See, neons and florals can work together.

Bursting with goodness!

Way, way before Sugus and Fruit tella, there was Starburst. In the US, Starburst was one of the most popular fruit chews and delivered what it promised - a burst of fruity goodness with every chew. I remember how Lolo Doring and Lola Pining would send us Starburst from the US, and it was such a thrill and joy whenever they did.

Unfortunately, Starburst isn't readily available in the Philippines. The only place I'd see them would be at S&R or in duty free stores in Subic. But that changed today when I found out that they also sold Starburst in Greenhills, and in different variants, too.

Today, I picked up a box of FaveREDs, which is a collection of their berry flavors.

Cherry and Fruit punch in one box! Gosh, my heart almost burst in joy when I found this!

Color Story: Neon na 'yon

When I was a kid, I was obsessed with Stabilo boss. These were the highlighters that most students used to highlight their books and notes. They usually came in 5 colors: neon pink, neon orange, neon blue, neon yellow and neon green.

Being the imaginative kid I was, my Stabilo was used for jobs other than those academic in nature. In fact, I used to color my coloring books using my Stabilo stash, and this made for a very bright and distracting coloring book. But what can I say? Neon colors are my thing.

Today, I went to Regina's to buy some special Skittles. As anyone familiar with Greenhills knows, Regina's is a wasteland! It's a place where you go to buy one thing, but end up staying in the store for hours and buying things that you initially hadn't planned on buying. Just like what I did.

And what were those items I bought? 

Stabilo Boss colored t-shirts!

Yup, the colors that I enjoyed as a kid are now on shirts! They're shirts for girls, though, so I bought a couple for my sisters. Then again, even if these shirts were for guys, I don't think I'd buy them for myself.

This first one registers neon orange on camera. But it's actually neon pink!

There's neon green as well.

And finally, a happy neon yellow shirt.

Because I bought them at Regina's, they're uber affordable, too. They cost less than P200.00 each!

Not only are these shirts comfy, I'm sure they'll brighten the day of the person wearing it.

Neon colors can definitely do that.

Why Becky Bloomwood might consider moving to Seoul...

In Dongdaemoon, there are 4 different buildings that are filled with the latest clothes and accessories. It's a melding of Greenhills, Tutuban Center, MBK and Mong Kok - and that combination can only be described as "shopping heaven." Another apt description can be "shopping black holes," because when you get inside, believe me, it's almost impossible to get out.

And if 9 floors of shopping (per building) isn't enough reason, here's one that might be of added interest:



Yes, the malls are open until 4:30 am! Heck, aPM is open until 5:00 am! Imagine, 17 full hours of shopping. That's enough to turn anyone into a shopaholic.