TOPAZ HORIZON

This post is inspired by the new SUN Postpaid TVC. Aside from Marco Lobregat being nice to look at, I identify strongly with his story.


"Success? I worked hard for it so I know what it's worth," Marco said. Yep, I know exactly what he means. My one dream when I was a kid was to become a writer and then an editor-in-chief of a glossy international magazine at 33 years old. I had no idea back then how I was going to make this dream come true, and everyone I know thought it was a silly, stupid dream. But work hard I did and my dream came true even before my goal age (I became EIC at 30!).

I am so grateful that all my hard work paid off. But I've also been thinking all this time, "Now that my childhood dream has come true, what's left for me to do? I'm not even 40!" So it's time to dream a new dream!

Just one outfit today because, despite my intensely busy and fashionable week, I only remembered to take one outfit shot! Such a shame because I liked all my outfits this week and just forgot to take pictures. Did I mention it was an intensely busy week?

So I'll just show you what I wore to the Esquire Ball.
I'm wearing a column dress by Anja. I bought it from Catalogue 63. It's a beautiful bright turquoise that the camera sadly didn't capture.

I wore purple accessories with it. Yes, I thought purple and turquoise go well together. I had been mulling over the usual turquoise-and-coral combo but, at the last minute, I decided I like purple. I wore my bib necklace of amethyst crystals that I bought from this tiny boutique at Glorietta 5, an amethyst bracelet by Nicole Whisenhunt and my purple satin-and-suede Kenneth Cole peep-toe heels.

I chose a column dress because I had planned on bringing Iñigo with us. And Iñigo is still exclusively breastfed so I needed an easy access dress. As it turned out, the baby happily slept, which allowed his Mama and Papa to steal away for a few hours. Yey! I also wanted a column dress because it's not structured so it should be kind to a body that had just given birth.

These were my inspirations:


Here's Demi Moore in VB's dress, but in royal blue. I like that Victoria's column dress is held up by a corset. So you won't have any problems with your dress slipping down and exposing your boob/armpit fat, like so:
Oh, my man is looking mighty spiffy in his three-piece suit! I am so in love with him!

After a few glasses of wine, a blurry photo with Esquire editor-in-chief Erwin Romulo.

Inspired by Chuvaness's post, I had a photo taken with society photographer Daniel Tan

I thought it was Richard! But I do prefer Raymond. He's the more cultured and sophisticated one!

With accessories designer Happy David, Elle Decoration's Kissa McDermott and Spot.ph's Lou Albano

Anyway, I had wanted to bring the dress to the tailor to have it tweaked a bit. Sew up the sides and the hem so that there's less volume (I kinda look pregnant) and so it won't drag on the floor. But delivery was delayed so I didn't have time to go to the tailor. Still, I love my dress. Everyone loved it, too. So it was a fashion success!

I hope you're having a fashionable Friday!

Sigh. I had wanted to watch Backstreet Boys and New Kids on the Block when they were here. But I had just given birth.



Now, I just found out that Sting and Elton John will be here in December. J.Lo's coming, too, but I'm not a fan. Vince is a huge fan of Sting. I'm a huge fan of Elton. But, with the high cost of concert tickets, it's either we watch both concerts OR buy Christmas gifts. It can't be both.

So... dear families and friends, if you find out that Vince and I watched the concerts of Sting and Elton John, that only means one thing: You get Christmas cards and a hug!


*images from Philippine Concerts

I had lunch with Jericho Rosales last week. He's the new face of Collezione C2 and I'll talk more about that on Beauty For A Living. Meanwhile, let me confess: I've had a crush on Echo since he and Kristine Hermosa were a love team. When was that? More than a decade ago? Basta Pangako Sa 'Yo years. Since then, after immersing myself in work and marriage and motherhood, I've stopped following his career.

So I was so surprised at how thrilled I was when he kissed my cheek and joined us for lunch. He sat a mere two seats away!

He's polite, charming, smart, articulate. Oh, and soooo gwapo! And I like that he said, "I'm 33," just like that. Some stars, heck, a lot of people never confess their age. I find that I don't like people who are ashamed of/lie about their age haha.

But the reason I liked Echo even more was his passion for his cause: bringing awareness and putting an end to human trafficking. He said that humans that are trafficked are a commodity that never loses its value—that's why it's a billion-dollar business. A baby may be sold to childless couples. Kids can be used for labor, for begging and stealing, and even for sex. Teens are used the same way. Adults for cheap labor and sex slavery, and old people are for begging. It's horrible.

Echo produced a movie that will highlight the problem. Yep, human trafficking is huge here in the Philippines. I only found that out when I visited UNICEF recently. So I am so happy that a celebrity is using his clout and doing something about it.


And to think Echo used to be like this:


Aminin! Natawa kayo! He's definitely come a long way. A lot of us, I'm sure, hardly ever make an impression on others. Maybe it's because we're not pretty enough, smart enough, rich enough, tall enough, skinny enough, old enough. We don't have the right background, the right connections, the right clothes, the right accent. But that doesn't mean we can't ever make a difference. Just look at that silly young man in that video. He sure proved himself alright. He sure did.

You don't have to comment on this blog post. Under the new law, that is now considered a crime punishable to up to 12 years in prison. But please write to our senators, especially Ralph Recto, Gringo Honasan, Pimentel, Chiz Escudero, Ping Lacson, Bong Revilla, Pia Cayetano, Manny Villar, Loren Legarda, BongBong Marcos, Lito Lapid, Jinggoy Estrada and Tito Sotto, and—most tragic and ironic of all—to the President himself, Noynoy Aquino. They made this anti-democracy law.

Then please sign the petition to junk R.A. 10175.

I did. I care about my freedom of expression, my right to privacy, and my children's future.

UPDATE!

Vince made this meme.

Actually, don't be scared to comment, share, spread, blog, Tweet about this law. Under the 1987 Philippine Constitution - Article III, Section 4: No law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, of expression, or of the press, or the right of the people to peacably assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances.

The Anti-Cyber Crime Law is UNCONSTITUTIONAL. It is WRONG. Protest it. The constitution protects us against this law. Make your voice heard!

Show your protest on your social media pages with these free images courtesy of Filipino Internet Freedom Alliance.