Thursday, February 28, 2013

Pinterest Challenge: How to Make a Decoupaged Decor

Who here can remember the MTV Asia from way back with Mike Kasem as one of the VJs? If you do, high five to you because we're both old!

Now, if you're familiar with that, I want you to chant the following to the tune of Request of the day. Request of the day. Request of the day.


 I highly encourage you to sing with me. Pinterest Challenge. Pinterest Challenge. Pinterest Challenge. 

This is the time when, if Laika can already understand what's going on around her, I am sure she will be beaming with pride. She has the funniest mother in the world! *waving SARCASM flag to Sheldon Cooper*

Anyway, before we get anywhere else, I would like to say that I am a Pinner (Pinterest-er?). 

One of the images I pinned is this decoupaged letter from this site made by the Petersiks.  


I am here to challenge myself to make my own decoupaged letter. I also challenged myself into doing this without spending a dime.


First thing I did was to look for things I can use around the house. Good thing for me, somebody gave my daughter some puzzle mats, a magazine that is a freebie (a complete affront to my principle of refusing anything free if I can't find a use for it), and a glue stick (because I thought it's the least messy glue around).


This portion is brought to you by the letter B (I am such a couch potato 90's kid) which stands for Basman. I detached it from the puzzle and tear some pages from the magazine.


Here comes the fun part. Tear the pages up to the acceptable size. I learned as I went and realized that I should have cut some pieces smaller for the nooks and crannies. The bigger pieces where useful for when you are covering everything entirely. For detailing, use the small pieces. 

I went on and put glue on top of the page to create a protective seal. It's the poor man's Mod Podge (because I don't think Mod Podge is available here).


Wait for it to dry and cut the edges. Et voila! I now have my own version of decoupaged decor. Now to look for a place where I can hang this. 

This challenge is completely unofficial (Pinterest does not have anything to do about it) and is a product of imagination of a few people who wants to stop pinning and start doing. Feel free to go to the pages of the hosts to look at their own versions of this challenge: 
Sherry of Young House Love  
Katie of Bower Power Blog  
Megan of The Remodeled Life  
Michelle of Decor and the Dog  
 PS. I am contributing to this fabulous site about calendars and it would be great if you can visit through this link on my post about kitchen office ideas. 

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Pops of color on the front

Ola!

I would like to share some inspirations to you through this blog and let me share my first post on this to you.

If you are like me who used to be so afraid of colors, I would like to suggest one fool-proof way to, little by little, introduce pops and bursts into your life.

Are you ready?

Here it is.

Bold-colored door.

Yes! Yummy, yummy facade :)

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 I started my love affair with colored doors when I saw Daphne Osena-Paez' door through her blog. Her red door attached to their vintage bahay na bato family home really brought tingles down my spine. Isn't it lovely?

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I can think of one person who would readily color her frontage pink. That, plus the whites make the otherwise boring bricks interesting, don't you think?

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Yellow is the winner for me. I will definitely put this in my future home. Sunshine-y yellow brings sunshine-y disposition, don't you agree?

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I'm sorry for the repetition of the color red but look at that shape! And the oil-rubbed bronze accessories seals the deal for me. Makes for one interesting door.

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I know that this is not bold-colored but it is the great combination of different colors. It helps that it also lets light in. No other words for this. Perfect for any narrow doorway.

Now that you've seen some samples, are you ready to take the leap? What color can you think of? Bonus points if, aside from making your door colored, you can also add interesting details.

Monday, February 25, 2013

Why "Pocket-Friendly"?

You might have seen on my domain name that I have a little phrase there. Pocket-Friendly.

Well, let me tell you a little something about me.

I was raised by a frugal person. So much so that when his office made him choose what car to drive, he chose a simple Toyota.

Papa never raised us to love material things. Even if he was entitled to it, he never bought flashy things for himself. Credit cards? Unheard of. Mortgages? Never had them. He never bought a property, be that real estate or vehicular, unless he can pay for it in cash. I'm not saying we have much. It's just that Papa believes in delayed gratification. If you can't afford it, then maybe you don't need it.

Growing up, I only heard of Polly Pocket from classmates. Lisa Frank, who is she? Toys are not given to us. It was earned. I got a hundred pesos when I topped the honor roll. It's up to us how we will spend it. Same with buying school supplies. We are given a certain amount. If you want to splurge, so be it. But you must know the consequences of that.

Maybe that's why I am so in love with gadgets. I had none when I was young. I am not saying I was deprived. It made me realize that my parents worked so hard to get us where we are. My father is a simple man who made us shop in Tutuban at times and made us dine in Cafe Jeepney in Intercontinental Hotel during others.

Until his dying days, he chose his family. He was offered by his office to be sent to Netherlands for treatment but he opted to stay here and be with us. Family is numero uno to him.

All my frugal ways, I learned from him. I hated him for it before but I am so full of admiration for him now.

Makes me miss my Papa during times like these. He, to me, is the epitome of contentment. And I love him for it.

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Home Office Evolution

Hi, I'm Talia. I'm a mother and I work from home.

Family Picture 2008
A little background for you: Being that I grew up with seven siblings, I have always craved for a place of my own. Eight kids means one room for boys and one room for girls. In our case, that means I had to share a room with four of my sisters. Eventually, my older sister had her own room and I then shared a room with three.

The one on the left was my workspace when I was sharing room with three of my sisters. I was a landscape architecture student then, so yes, a drawing board is in order.

And then I got my own room (although my older brother will disagree because that's his room. I just loved claiming it when he moved to the room downstairs) which is colored aqua blue and is much too masculine in my opinion. Too long a story but the point is, I wanted to have my own space that I can decorate. 

Please ignore the face. Pretty please.
When I got married and my husband and I rented our place, I asked him if it would be possible if each of us had our own workspace. One table for my things, another for his. It was a luxury given that space in the city where we live is precious. Think goldmine. That's how I would describe it.

There are times when I would bring my computer (no matter how heavy it is) to the bedroom temporarily just because that's where the air conditioner is. I would like to think this happened around summer time because there is no way I will lug the computer around unless it is scorching hot. But then again, I am known to push around humongous cabinets as a hobby so I guess, never say never, right?


And then me, the biggest-furniture-mover in the world, the one in charge of space layout in the house, I changed my mind. Not just once. More of a hundred times. We don't need a table for each. One is enough for both of us. 


After giving birth, I was tired of sticking to a color palette. Motherhood made me crave for different bursts of color. Red is my favorite at present. It shows. Oh, yes, it does show.


But who am I kidding? I am a mother now and I enjoy being with my kid. So I was demoted to working on the floor with my daughter in front of me. Total joy. Except when she's crying her eyes out and I just don't know what to do. In that case, I whisper to myself, "you love your daughter, you love your daughter, you love your daughter".


How about you? How has your home office evolved? Is red your style? Do you love working on your bed?

PS. Take a look at my new domain name. Isn't it awesomesauce? (Name that TV show!) Gives you a clue on what to expect in the future, huh? The site is still on the works so stay tuned.

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

My "Me" Time

I have always valued my "me" time. When I was in college, whenever stress overwhelms me, I would jog around the university to take a breather. Or sometimes, I eat out alone and window shop by myself.

Now that I have a little family of my own, having quality time with myself has been difficult. It may be hard but I make a conscious effort to make it possible.Otherwise, I don't know if I would still be sane now.

My "me" time happens every night when my husband and my daughter have already fallen asleep. That's when I get to write or read blogs. Other times, when the husband is at work and the baby is in the dreamland, I get to have time for myself, too. Or there are times, I force myself to wake up early even if I'm the last one to sleep so that I can have my quiet time alone.

How about you? How do you spend your alone time?


Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Renting sucks! (Or should it?)

The master bedroom when we first moved in (March 2011). Yes, I thought it was acceptable to curtain of just one side of the window.
We all know that renting is discouraged by many. You are paying for a property that will never be yours and more often than not, you allot the biggest chunk of your budget to rental fees.

But for some (read: us), it is the only possible way to live. Unless of course, you can think of a way where you can live by yourself without paying for rent and buying a property. In that case, please tell me how you do it.


Living room circa March 2011. I put contact papers to an otherwise blank white wall. I am in love with contact papers! I think it's the answer to everything. Blank wall, dining table, computer table, world hunger. Seriously. Except for the last part.

Husband studying in one part of the living room then.
My husband always believe in looking at the positive side (must be why he's been with me for so long. Good luck looking for my positive side! HAHA). We may be wasting our money but he told me to look at it this way. Renting allowed us to be experimental. Had we bought a property early on, I may not have had the courage to always, always, always (don't ever think I'm exaggerating) change the look of our house. 

Because my solution to a leaking ceiling then was puzzle mats, garbage bags, and pails (June 2011)
Aside from being experimental, we, at least, have an idea how to manage a house if ever we bought one now. Leaking ceiling, dripping faucet, tangled extension cords--not foreign to us anymore.

I know you're tired of this picture. It's what the master bedroom looks like now.


What our living/dining room looks like now

Thanks to renting, we also know what our house style is. We used to think brown, black and white is our style. All neutral, no excitement. But now, pops of colors everywhere. Having a child really does make ones house an exciting place.
Because every post looks cute with a Laika on it
 How has your place evolved?

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Living Life to the Maximum

People think that my decision to declutter is my way of converting into a minimalist. On the contrary, doing this have made me into a maximalist--I want to use the things I have to the maximum and exhaust its potential. I have just recently adopted this lifestyle and let me tell you, this is not an easy path to take. Here's why:

1. Dilemma: I am a first time mother. An excited one at that. That means I have the tendency to shower my daughter with material things just because I think she needs them. The moment the pregnancy test showed two lines, I was in a need-to-shop-badly mode. This was aggravated by the discovery that my first child is going to be a girl--my own little doll! Imagine the amount of baby clothes I accumulated.

Lesson learned: Babies are all different, and my child--a low-maintenance one. Out of all the gifts she received during her aqeeqah, she only plays with two toys. That's it. Two toys out of all the many. The other ones, she likes to believe they are all teethers.

My action: I have requested my family to minimize the urge to shower Laika with toys. I have also stopped buying things that is not in the "need" column. Bumper pads and teething guards? Need. Cute dresses that she will most likely not enjoy? Want. After all, at her age, what she needs are non-material things.

Who needs three chairs? No one, I tell you. Although we have been using all of them most of the time. 

2. Dilemma: I am a girl. I was pre-programmed to like all things sparkling and beautiful especially if it starts with a sh- and ends with a -oes. I. Can't. Stop. Buying.

Solution: I bought a rack that can house just a dozen pairs of shoes. When I buy one pair, I have to give another pair up. This way, shoes are kept to a minimum. And I mostly stay at home now. No use owning too many when I am usually in a shirt-pants-slippers getup.

3. I love magazines. I also can't bear the thought of throwing one (as if I need to read it again or browse through one when I need inspiration. Hello, internet!).

Solution: E-subscription. This is one of the things I love about having an iPad mini. I can still enjoy magazines and books without worrying about clutter. I am no book purist. I am for reading a book even if I cannot touch book pages physically.

4. My husband is a doctor. Every time he has a convention, you can just imagine the amount of freebies he gets! I get a headache every single time I see him with ball pens, USBs and markers he doesn't even use!

Solution: I asked him to refrain from hoarding things just because it's free. One ball pen is enough. USBs are useful but who needs a lot of them? Markers? We will just buy when he needs one. I am not a snob. I just think there is no need getting things just for the sake of having one especially if it's free.

Those are just some of the things I can think of at present. What pushed me to declutter is now, I think of any space as a real estate property. When I need to throw something, I have to think of the last time I used it. There are times when I feel like I am wasting something but I am now choosing to think of it this way: The storage space that an object occupies can very well be used for something that is more useful. I can live in a smaller space but I can't because of the amount of stuff we have. Now, we have reduced the amount of our things and I can't wait to reduce it again in the future. I also disagree with the notion that you need to have a big storage space. Big storage space means more things you accumulate. At the end of the day, these things don't even get to be used. I say no to more storage, yes to proper place for everything.


Friday, February 8, 2013

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Hey ya!

This blog will be undergoing changes in a matter of weeks.

I started this blog June of last year to chronicle my pregnancy. To act as an online diary of sorts. I was six months pregnant then with a serious bout of insomnia and I needed an outlet. That was when this blog was born.

Eventually, it evolved into something else. I now write on many things and then I thought, there's not much written on design and DIY in the local setting. So, yes. I might delve on that here.

Although, of course, this being my journal, you will still read about my family life, my WAHM adventures, and my blog hopping. I need to figure things out but you will definitely still have something to read here.

What do you want to read about on my blog? Family life, saving tips, decor ideas? I need your opinions please.

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Yey to plan reduction

Who wants to do a happy dance with me? In a completely permissible, halal way, of course! That means only with my girl friends with the door shut tight without any men in sight. Unless you are my husband, in that case, no other girls allowed to dance in front of him.

Just kidding!

But, seriously.

Anyway, the happy dance is for the e-mail I got last night from the telecom I am subscribed to. My cellphone bill decreased dramatically. As in, divide-last-month's-bill-by-three, that's how much! Woot, woot!



How did I do it?

Simple. I called customer service to have my plan reduced. I don't even remember to which plan I am subscribed to. I just know that I chose the lowest possible option without me having to pay for the phone that came with the subscription. Mind you, I have the simplest phone. I just didn't want to pay for it. I'm cheap like that! :P

By the way, since choosing to stay at home, I realized that I don't get to use my phone that much. Good thing there's Viber and Facebook and Twitter and Yahoo! Mail. So, yes, that's my way of saying I will most likely be able to read your messages to me through those than if you text me. 

PS: I have big plans for this blog. Stay tuned for that. 

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Decluttering, anyone?

When I was pregnant, I was struck hard by the nesting syndrome. I felt the need to purge, purge, purge! 

My thinking was, if something does not have its own proper place, it does not belong to this house. I was so much struck that I was able to declutter and live with less than 15 pairs of shoes (that's modest, ask every girl you know) and four bags.

On a good day, meaning Sharon or I had to urge to clean up, our rented apartment looks like this.

The bamboo mat does not belong to the living room anymore
The master bedroom is divided into different areas as we live in a small place
However, if Monica Geller of FRIENDS has a Secret Closet, I have my Secret Room. Whenever I entertain guests in the house, the door to this room is shut very tightly.

It looks like this right now.




I KNOW!!!

Good thing when I accepted a certain thrift shop challenge, I was able to discover this beautiful place.


In time (I wonder when?), I want to be able to tackle my Secret Room and sell stuff at that Thrift Shop. I read somewhere that the philosophy when decluttering should be, if you were to move to a different place, what will you be bringing with you? And since we will really be moving before the year ends (in shaa Allah), all the more we need to do this.

Repeat after me: No more clutter. No more clutter. No more clutter.


Monday, February 4, 2013

House Hunting

I promised that I will be walking you through our future house adventures. I also mentioned there that we had to consider many things when we were deciding if we are to buy a unit. After all, we didn't want to end up without a home if and when the husband's residency training is over.

The question lies on whether we will be renting, buying a house (if only...) or buying a condominium unit.

Renting is a big possibility. We have already decided on where we will be settling down but we did not have a house on that place that time. We did not want to live in our parents' place. It just not one of our choices.

Buying a property is also good. Whether it is going to be a house or a townhouse or a condominium unit, that, we don't know.

Luckily, an opportunity presented itself. We were just minding our own business, strolling along the mall to take a look at the showroom of our friend's company, and that's it, we saw that buying a unit can be done.

This is to be our first big purchase so we had to consider a lot of things.

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I told you that we already had a location in mind. I am a South kid through and through. Even if I live in the northern part of Manila now, I know I will always go back. Husband is on board as long as he is assured of good medical practice, good internet connection, and good air conditioning unit (don't ask me!). Good thing there are two projects on that place. Are we lucky or what?


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Having kids in the future is definitely part of the plan that time and I am getting worried that kids nowadays don't get to play outside like we did when we were young. So, yes, I need a big running space for our kids if and when we purchase a place.

What made us say yes to this place? The many, many amenities! I can practically work for DMCI as I have always been singing praises to all their projects. I love that they never took the amenities for granted. Good thing they have a Landscape Architecture Department (plugging!) which means every space is well thought of!

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There is this one company that has it all for you, but unfortunately, when I took a look at the properties they are selling, it was very expensive! That or I simply cannot afford them. I'm thinking it's more of the latter. Haha... Anyway, this unit we are buying has really friendly payment terms.


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When I researched (yes, I stalked them!) the company, I learned that they have a good track record. They are also continually improving their projects which means, they learn from their past mistakes.  I trust this company so much that I am thinking of investing on their stocks in the future (another "if only'').

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Do not, and I mean it, do not be lured by a good showroom. I am quite saddened whenever I know that somebody purchased a unit without even taking a look at the blank floor plan, or even imagining what the unit will look like if there are no furniture and appliances in the room.

I also learned this one trick from years of house-hunting and showroom-looking: showrooms should not be trusted. More often than not, they add a couple of inches here and there. What my agent did was she toured us to a finished unit about to be turned over to the owner, made sure that it was a blank room, and had us take a feel of the place. I also took advantage of this opportunity to look at the natural lighting that the room gets and the amount of ventilation it receives.

And that's, it. We were pretty much sold to the idea. That afternoon, we signed the papers. Now, we are just waiting for the building to be done and we will be moving in! :)  






Sunday, February 3, 2013

Playtime with the baby


When I first started working from home, I only did sideline writing and designing jobs. I was still pregnant then with a full-time day job. It was difficult but, with the help of my husband, I was able to do it. Nights were stretched and I did work even during the weekends.

And then, I had to stop working online when Laika was born. By December 2012, I resigned from my job with the plans of working again on January. I was very eager to work that I eventually forgot my reason for adopting this lifestyle--the work-at-home mommy lifestyle.

One day, I saw Laika smiling more when she is with her Ate Sharon (the nanny). Being a happy baby that she is, of course, she still adores me but when I saw how she looks at her Ate, I had to reassess. This is what I have been avoiding and which led me to resign from my work before. Mommy is jealous and she has to do something about it.  

Right then, I had to stop getting projects from people. Quality over quantity this time. I wanted to still be able to play with my daughter in the morning and be there for the husband when he needs me.

I devised a way for this to be possible. Sharon was reassigned to do household chores in the morning while mommy and Laika play in the room. By afternoon, when it is Laika's nap time, I get to face my jobs and be more productive. I also do work when Laika sleeps at night.


Now, Laika has a playschool time with mommy as the teacher.

What do you do to make working at home possible?

Revisiting our future home's model unit

Who here is tired of hearing me say that I am a frustrated interior designer? Show of hands? None? Good.

Let's get it on with this post then :)

We will be transferring to our future house late this year and I can't wait to design our unit. Yawning now? No? Cool!

I want to walk you through my design process and the first order of business is to let you in the model unit by showing pictures.

But a side story first. How did we decide on getting this condominium unit? It was August 19, 2011, the Quezon City day (think of me as Ted Mosby ala-How-I-Met-Your-Mother), both the husband and I did not have work as it was a holiday. I had to process my visa for China that morning and he accompanied me. We did not have anything to do that afternoon and then I remembered my very good friend April's constant reminder to please, please visit their showroom in Megamall as she was one of the people to design the room. We decided to go there from Makati.

When we got there, we were amazed by the showroom. It was tastefully done and, our agent, convinced that we were buying, entertained all our questions. I want to clarify that we did not have any intention of getting a unit that day. It's just one of our hobbies as a couple to dream and look at model units, hoping that one day, we will have the ability to afford one.

That night, I was not able to sleep. I really, badly, wanted to buy a unit just because I loved the location, the price, and the design (please note that I am not carried away by showrooms. I know how to block out the furniture as I know when the unit is turned over, it will be as blank as a coupon bond).

A week later, the agent we talked to told us that the project we were considering to buy had a promo that month. We can pay for a measly 10% for 23 months. That's it! Now we can afford to buy one.

Still, we had to consider many things. And in the end, we bought one.

Phew! That's too long a story, isn't it? On with the rooms now!


 
Can you tell I'm super excited? Anything you're looking forward to this year? Are you just like us who will move from one side of the region to the other? 

Saturday, February 2, 2013

A Story on a Hijabi's Dreams

If you are expecting a story on when, how, and why I decided to be a hijabi, I'm afraid now is not the time for that long story. I just knew that one day, I will have to be one. When, I had no idea. Then one time, I got out of the shower and knew I wanted to wear a hijab that day. No plans before that. I wanted to do it spontaneously. The good thing about that was I also had no chance to back out. And now, I wear a hijab whenever I go out.

There. Not a long story after all.

Anyway, that is not the subject of this post. My dreams are.

Funny how, before, I have always had dreams of myself going out in public naked. As in, In my dream, I will go to school and suddenly discover that I am naked. I would find myself running so that I can cover myself up. I read that in psychology, it means I have low self-esteem.

Now that I am a hijabi, I no longer find myself dreaming that I am naked. This time, I always see myself forgetting to put on a hijab and really looking for one in my bag!

Am I really just bound to forget an item of clothing in my dreams? If that's the case, I am plenty grateful that at least now, I have clothes on.

Just a random musing on a weekend.