Happy Halloween! What have you been up to?

This month was probably the busiest month I've had this year, made worse with a bout with the flu. I barely noticed the days flying by, and now it's almost Christmas again!

Aside from the book launch of Beyond Vol. 2, we also did events for JBL, Sennheiser, and the launch of Barbie Loves Plains & Prints collection. The collection won't be available nationwide until November 7 but I'll show you more photos from the launch and of the pieces on my next post!

My sister also celebrated her 18th birthday this month, and it was fun-filled night attended by our extended families and her friends.

I loved that night.

While I am not looking forward to panic-buying for Christmas gifts again (like I always do), I am excited for the Justice League movie coming out this November. To kick off the pre-event promotional campaign for this movie, the Justice League #UnitedTheFans weekends were organized, starting with the Glorietta leg that happened last Friday to Saturday.

J was asked to display some of his toys, and I played the part of supportive girlfriend.




His birthday comes exactly a week before Christmas so I should start thinking of gift ideas stat. My birthday surprise for him last year came as a total shock for him but it was appreciated, so I need to top that.


He's back to racing Tamiya cars again (that pink car's mine!) so I'm glad he has another hobby to keep himself busy when he's not working. His schedule for the next months are going to be erratic and I'm not sure how we're going to see each other -- it will be like being in a long distance relationship again.


As for me, my doll collection grew exponentially over the last month. You've already met my extra tall Madeline Hatter, well J got me the regular-sized Madeline Hatter, so now I have two of my favorite Ever After High character! I also got the Adult Collector Skelita Calaveras from Monster High, shown on the first photo at the top of this post. She's so pretty despite being a skeleton! Aaand I got another Ever After High doll but I don't have a decent photo of her yet as I haven't taken her out of the box. I'm thinking I should get her out come Valentine's Day, as befitting her character, but we'll see if my EQ can stand waiting that long. ;)


Meanwhile these are a couple of beautiful babies I haven't had the chance to delve into yet: The Art of Neil Gaiman and my Daycraft Notebook from Scribe. I finished all three seasons of Bojack Horseman this month so there's that, but I just wish I have more hours in a day to accommodate all the books gathering dust in my shelves and every little nook and cranny of my house as well as all the Netflix and iflix shows and movies I want to watch.


New month coming up! I wonder where November will take us.

Back in June I hinted at working on a project with three of the best names in the local comic scene:

Me and my short hair with Hulyen, Rian Gonzales, and Mika Bacani after our first meeting in Le Petit Soufflé in SM Megamall

Four months later, and look at them now:

Hulyen, Mika Bacani, and Rian Gonzales holding their variant covers of BEYOND Vol. 2!

In a bid to celebrate creativity and innovation through modern technology, Apple Premium Reseller Beyond the Box compiled these artists’ original works in the second volume of BEYOND, a comic book compilation drawn entirely using the Apple Pencil and the iPad Pro. You may remember the first volume that featured Mervin Malonzo, Harvey Tolibao, and my idol Manix Abrera last year.  It's amazing that Beyond the Box did it again this year, this time featuring female artists.

They were given three things: an Apple Pencil, an iPad Pro, and the keyword "beyond" and they ran with it fiercely and assuredly. Mastering their new tools and the tight deadline proved to be a challenge, but they did not disappoint!


I love that they were able to showcase their own take on the theme using their respective art styles.

In my five years in this industry, this is definitely one of the projects I am proudest to have been a part of!

Lending her signature humor to her take on the classic folktale Alamat ng Pinya, Hulyen shares that Beyond gave her a new experience, “Nabigyan ako ng Beyond ng chance mag-explore ng bagong medium sa pag-drawing. Ginamit ko yung Procreate app and na-enjoy ko 'yung experience nung nag-drawing ako with the Apple Pencil at iPad Pro kasi halos tulad lang din siya ng traditional na pag-drawing with pen and paper. (Beyond provided me the chance to explore a new medium. I used the Procreate app and I enjoyed the experience using the Apple Pencil and iPad Pro because it’s almost the same as drawing with the pen and paper.)”

Describing her style as “visual problem solving”, Mika explored non-traditional comic formats with the help of the Adobe Photoshop Sketch app in her story It’s Fine. Her story depicts the emotional journey of a long-distance relationship. When asked about gender representation in the industry, Mika takes the side of neutrality. “I am not defying any gender biases and stereotypes. I’d like to consider our field as gender-neutral. As an artist, I’d like to focus on the challenges that revolve in my craft.”

On the other hand, Rian brings in an adventure about rekindling a forgotten passion with Candy Dreams. Using the Procreate app, she showed what her signature anime-slash- Lisa-Frank gouache style would look like if it were digital. “I like that I was able to draw directly on the screen using the iPad Pro and Apple Pencil, it makes the whole process easier,” says the young artist.

We launched their comic books at a special event at The Studio in Fully Booked BGC early this month, and it was so heartwarming to see their friends, readers, and fans support them and their new book! (I remember my own book launch that coincidentally happened exactly two years ago!)

Of course I got my copy signed by all three artists.




♥

Congratulations, Hulyen, Mika, and Rian! Congratulations, Beyond the Box! Thank you for inspiring and empowering Filipinos to go beyond their limitations by exploring the possibilities of their creativity using the power of modern technology. I wish this series goes on to discover and collaborate with more comics creators!

Alex, Jean, Hannah, and yours truly of ARC PR!

Get your copies of Beyond Volumes 1 and 2 at select Fully Booked branches. Fully Booked is the exclusive distributor of Beyond comics series.

It's pink, it comes from the Beauty Wonderland that is Korea straight to your doorstep in 10 to 15 days, and it can drive everyone into a beauty frenzy --- it's Althea! Now that they have developed their very own product range, I am all for it!

The first product they came up with is the Althea Petal Velvet Powder, and I'm sharing with you my review!

Althea's very own product range is here, and we're starting off strong with the Petal Velvet Powder! This debuting beauty is a translucent powder that sets makeup and leaves behind a silky finish to the touch. Infused with oil from Althea seeds, this powder works to keep sebum production at bay without drying out the skin for a radiant, fresh look, all while giving out a gentle scent. Keep your makeup looking great all day or dust some on to stay shine-free!

If, like me, you experienced dusting baby powder on your face growing up, then using loose powder like this will bring those memories back, except this one is a more "grownup" version. Being their first product, I admit I didn't have high expectations especially as I already love my Ellana Sheer Velvet Powder Primer and Innisfree No Sebum Mineral Powder which serve the same purpose, but of course I was willing to try this one and see if it works well.


The Althea Petal Velvet Powder is definitely more compact at 3g so it's a nice addition to any makeup kit. I would have preferred it with a mirror just so I wouldn't have to tote a separate compact, but for its P210 price tag I guess it's not so bad. The powder is very finely milled and blends nicely on the skin.


I can definitely say it's ideal for everyday use/ quick grocery runs/ casual day-outs, but I also put it to the test on a big event we did.


It makes for a great setting powder to make sure your makeup doesn't budge. It also mattifies the face and keeps the oilies at bay! My makeup definitely stayed on longer than it usually does so if you're looking for a setting powder that won't break the bank, then purchase your own from Althea Korea now! ;)

Scribe is one of those stores I can spend a long time in just ooh-ing and aah-ing at the stuff available for sale, pestering the sales assistants with endless questions about this and that, and taking a mental note of everything I wanted to add to my insatiable wish list. I was saddened when their Glorietta 5 store closed and got really excited when I got the invite to their Glorietta 4 store opening!

And it's a lot bigger with more merchandise to ooh and aah at!

What immediately struck me with the new store is its updated look, starting with the logo. They ditched their longer name Scribe Writing Essentials and stuck with just Scribe and gave it a more modern, sans serif branding but still retaining its identity with the nib serving as the "i" on the logo. The interiors also have a more industrial and open feel to it, giving it a fresher and a more inviting vibe. Marian told me they're also planning to update the look of the other stores soon so watch out for that in the Scribe stores near you!

I thoroughly enjoyed tinkering with the products on display and I'd like to share some of the things I saw that might be of interest to you.

My sister will drool for these Faber-Castell sets!

Different types of Arist Pens brush sets depending on the art style you're going for

Notebooks and journals galore!

These Daycraft notebooks are sooo pretty!

Rhodia in all colors of the rainbow

TOOLS to LIVEBY binder clips for your journaling needs

Speedball Calligraphy sets

Nibs and nib holders to last you countless calligraphy sessions!

Inks!

Fancy calligraphy sets I wanted to get something like this but without the sealing wax set because I already have one, but unfortunately they already ran out of stocks of that. Next time, then!

Seal coins for the sealing wax set

Fountain pens and brush pens

Color pens in different color grades and formula

Fancy pens

Fancy pens and inks

More fancy pens and inks

Color-in masking tape that you can decorate with the coloring pencils (included when you buy the set) when wash tapes are too mainstream for you

Whether you're a hardcore DIY-er or a casual crafter, a pen collector or a notebook hoarder, a BuJo girl or a Hobonichi planner, a stationery pack-rat or a discerning hobbyist, there's surely something here for you. Thanks for having me today, Liz!

I like attending events, especially when I see people I only get to see online. Hello, Arriane!

I am so annoyed that I wasn't able to take a nice photo of my loot. One of the items I got is my 18 Treasures gift to my sister on her debut party this coming Sunday, but I'm hoping to update this post with a photo and descriptions of the stuff I got for myself. First on the list, this beautiful Kalocsa Marigolds Daycraft Flower Wow Lined Notebook. It has a cloth cover with gilded pages and floral designs inside. So premium, and I expected it to cost a lot more than its P725 price tag. ♥

Come visit the new Scribe at the ground level of Glorietta 4 (it's by the exit facing SM Makati) and do your Christmas shopping for your crafty friends and family members early. I'm sure you'll also score a thing or two for yourself.

J and I managed to catch the last day of the Digital Walker Madness Sale at the SM Megamall Megatrade Hall 3 yesterday and snagged a LOT of deals! Christmas came early, indeed!

It was my first time to go to one of these and ohmygollygoodness everything was at 70% to 90% off!

There was still a long line outside when we got there but it being the last day already it was not as crowded inside and we didn't have to wait in line that long to pay as compared to the previous days. But then a lot of the premium items were sold out already so I guess if you really plan to hoard and shop it still pays to be there early.

Still, we are very pleased with our loot!

I wasn't able to take a photo of everything I got as I gave J's sisters the iPhone cases I got them the moment we got home, but here's the rest of my haul:


I would've spent P10,370 for these but because of the massive discounts, I only paid P1,090 FOR EVERYTHING! There were a lot of powerbanks and speakers available but I only got cases (from Odoyo, Laut, Native Touch, and Incipio) and a pair of Motorola In-Ear Headphones to replace the Urbanears one I have that gave up after two years of everyday use, heh.

Meanwhile, here's J's loot for the weekend including a NECA 18" Arkham Knight Batman and Justice League Gods and Monsters Kirk Batman.


He only paid P1,250 for his Digital Walker haul amounting to P9,485!

I was hoping to get straps for my Fitbit Alta HR, but I think I'll just check out the stuff from the Digital Walker stores. Were you able to shop from the Digital Walker Madness Sale? I've been checking the #DWChristmasComesEarly to check everyone's hauls. ^_^ Now I'm looking forward to next year's Madness Sale!

PS: Speacial thanks to Tin and Marco of Digits!