Halloween at SM Makati (10.31.09)

Late Post. gah.
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Okay. So its Halloween and there were a lot of cosplay events. Wah! I wouldn’t be able to attend because (1) its Saturday. Have work. Ugh.

Happy Halloween!

Orange and Spots

Anyway, there was an activity for the back office. They don’t normally have this, but this year they decided to have one. The office was instructed to dress up their departments for Halloween and winner will receive a cash price of 2000. There will also be a trick or treat event for the kids of the back office managers and supervisors so each department is required to at least prepare loot bags for the children. I wanted something different so I suggested to my boss that instead of candies, we’ll be giving apples. Hehe. Snow White’s poison apples (the truth is I don’t have the time to re-pack the candies and I am too lazy to do it. HAHA).

wah! my table is in chaos!

cheetahs

SCO Dept.

HR Dept.

FAS

EDD/Display

OBM

Aside from the area decoration contest, back office personnel were also encouraged to at least don a costume so that when the kids go trick or treating they will be able to see something different. I didn’t need to be told but I informed them I will be bringing my wings (the one I used for my Guilty Gear-Dizzy cosplay) but I won’t be wearing the matching cos (too sexy.lol). I just mixed and matched an ensemble from my closet and came up with a dark angel theme. Well, that was what people think anyway as they will not recognize the character.

SM normally has a set-up activity for the customers. And this is simultaneously implemented to all SM stores especially during these kinds of occasions. In SM Makati though, they required the business units to get representatives and put them in costumes to add to the attraction in the selling area. And the group with the best costume wins 3000 pesos. In short, not only is the activity for the customers but also for the employees. And I think it is good that activities like this are done. It lets the employees explore their creativity and have fun while working.

Sailor Moons

Fairies

Street Fighters

Powerpuff Girls

Princesses

Bratz

Women Heroes

After lunch, I already changed into a gear (dizzy-remember?) and decided to walk around the store during my lunch break (cosplay mode.lol). There were a lot of kids and people and the initial reaction I get is complete amazement because of my wings.

The wings are quite huge. Arms wide when flattened. I had it specifically made when I decided to do Dizzy’s costume for Guilty Gear. I don’t know. I guess I fell in love with the wings when I saw it and it seemed that there isn’t a lot of cosplayers that do costumes with huge wings. I paid for it (a bit expensive for my frugality record) and had it made because I didn’t have the time to do it (though I can). But after contemplating much, it was well worth it. A lot of people appreciated it and complimented me for it.

joining the pep talk

People often ask me if its real and they normally try to find out how I put it on because it’s not that obvious. Well, it is real-made of real chicken feathers.lol. One is black and one is white because that is how Dizzy’s wings are. The white one is Undine and the black one is Necro. (Read about Dizzy here). It is not heavy as most people think and it can be folded for storage. Hehe. People also ask why the colors are different and normally presume that it’s the balance of good and evil or that it’s a dual-personality angel.LOL. I just say yes to these assumptions because it’ll be very hard to explain in truthful detail the reason behind it.

After my lunch break, I had to go back to the office since it is still a working day and we are still required to work. But the funny thing was, our branch manager requested me to just hang around the lobby area as I proved to be a crowd favorite among children and I became an attraction all by myself.HAHA. She actually asked permission from my boss that I be allowed to just “cosplay” for that day. LOL. Well, my boss agreed and so that is how I technically “cosplayed” for SM Makati. So even if I didn’t get to attend the other cosplay events, I had a whole event and mall for myself. HAHAHA!

I also walked around Glorietta and they have their own Halloween activity there. People had called me Alwina, Aviona, Mulawin, Angel, etc. and had asked me to have a picture taken with them. Even foreigners come up and ask where did I get my wings and sometimes just to tell me that my costume was nice and good and that they really appreciate it. It’s actually nice to hear that somehow people do appreciate the effort you’ve put for your costume.

Later that night, two of my new-found friends dropped by and we decided to go to Greenbelt and have coffee in Starbucks. And since it was Halloween, it was all the reason to walk around in costume. So it was a dare to go have coffee with me wearing my wings which I did. LOL. After coffee, we hanged around Café Havana and saw some people in costumes too (mostly foreigners).

I went home 4am (of course I took the wings off as I will not fit into the taxi.lol), slept a bit and woke up 6am because I’m going to meet my friends – Vance and Tina. It’s November 1 and they’re taking me to Cavite to visit Vance’s parents. Details of this will be on the next blog. LOL.

P.S. I wasn't part of the contest for the MBU's because (1) my boss was the judge.LOL. But if there was a category of "Crowd Favorite" I would have won for it. HAHA.

face painting at Toy Kingdom

Trick or Treat

There was a promo for baicapture. For every 1000 peso worth of purchase, you can have your photos taken for free at the baicapture booth. It's an instant photo booth allowing you to have 4 shots. But you'll have to pose fast as it only gives you 4 seconds for the next shot. hehe. And you get to get your printed copy less than 20 seconds! 'twas a lot of fun. They have ready accessories you can put on. They also upload activity photos in their galleries so you may get a copy of your photo.This is a great attraction to any activity or event that you will have. You may want to check their website. Photos below were taken with my officemates before the store closed.

Other photos are uploaded in Facebook and Multiply.

UP Diliman Fun Shoot 08.30.09

In relation to my previous post (actually this is the pre-quel of it), we had a fun shoot in UP Diliman last August 30 with my cosplay friend Kat Escolar and her photog friend Marlene Hsu. It was Kat's idea because as she had blogged about it, her boyfriend was requesting for photos of her. And since Mars was here to visit, she scheduled a photoshoot and just invited me.

I'm no model (I'm not that pretty to be one. nyahaha). I just like pictures and dressing up , i guess. I'm a photo enthusiast also and as most people describe me, uber kikay and partly narcissistic. LOL. And since I'm into cosplay right now, maybe I just wanted to have fun and grab the oppurtunity to have good pictures while there's an oppurtunity for it.

It was a fun shoot. At first we were thinking of a theme and I thought I wanted to use those items I have bought from a thrift shop. Yup, ukay-ukay in short. And lately, I am in the knack of acquiring animal-printed pieces. LOL. (I love cats so it also applies to big ones such as lions, tigers, jaguars and leopards. Hehe.) I have a fur coat and a silk skirt, which I turned into a dress instead (Ingenuity.hehe). I'm creative and people have complimented my ability to pick out interesting and quite good stuff from the thrift shop which doesn't really look it came from there. I guess, it also helps that I have a weird sense about fashion and that most people wouldn't really have the guts to wear those kind of stuff (which is actually much better for me because then I wouldn't have too much competition around). I often ask people how much they think stuff that I wear cost and they're quite amaze when I tell them and where I got them. I normally roam around the Metro and go in ukayans I pass by just to see if there's anything that would entice me to buy. What I often look for in thrift shops are:

(1) jackets - I LOVE jackets! All my jackets and coats come from UK;

(2) skirts - I LOVE skirts! It's my staple wear. I don't wear jeans too much - only in special occassions.haha. (Shouldn't it be the other way around? LOL). I don't know. I'm just more comfortable in skirts - not that I also have the legs to boot - woot! That is why I really liked our uniform because it's skirt. I'd rather wear skirts than slacks for office; and

(3) boots - I LOVE boots! (did you just notice that I had the same reactions for all 3 items?LOL.) - I've always loved shoes and I don't really care if the Philippines is a tropical country. When there's an oppurtunity to wear boots I wear them. I normally use them during gimiks and other parties and often, people have complimented me for wearing one. Although, boots are now growing in popularity and more and more people are wearing them nowadays. hehe.

Anyways, I've deviated from the subject of this blog (nyahahaha) and most probably I would just have to write another entry about my fashion preferences. Haha. In the end, we just decided to bring anything and everything we can. LOL.

And voila! Here are some of the photos that Mars has already given us.

More photos can be found HERE or HERE.

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mood: I hate it when your thigh-high stockings just keeps on going down, down, down, down, down. argh!

34th Branch Anniversary

Last  September 22, we celebrated SM Makati’s 34th anniversary. And I am very much happy to be part of it.

I designed the stage backdrop. I was also the designer for the branch anniversary shirt. I was the creative photographer. And I was the fashion adviser for one candidate who apparently won the contest. LOL. People here are now recognizing me as me – the weird girl who is into graphics, photography , cosplay, ukay-ukay and all the kakikayanan there is to be.

It had been a long day actually because my Tuesday started at 4am when we had to go to GMA 7’s Unang Hirit for a cosplay stint. Lol. I was with my friends and we had fun. (I’ll discuss this in another blog.) Anyway, after UH, I was dropped off in Ayala and I literally had to run even if I knew there is no point because I was 20 minutes late already. T_T. Uh-oh, there goes my record. Oh well. Just once. LOL.

The day had an exuberant feeling and everybody was excited for the upcoming program. For this year, they decided to make the theme “Hot Momma’s” wherein they featured employees who were 50 & above to be candidates for the beauty pageant. Yup. 50 & above. (Don’t be surprised because stability-wise, SM would really make you stay).

Incorporated in the program was the awarding of employees for their dedication & loyalty. Counting from 5 years up to 25 years. Whoa! That long? Yup. That long. You will be amazed when you get a chance to see these people because you will see in their eyes that they really love their job. And somehow, it would make you admire them more.

There was also a short endearing moment during the awarding when those who have availed of the ERP (Early Retirement Program) were called and given recognition. It’s a sad moment. The awardees were a bit teary-eyed because they will be leaving the company they have given their life to. You can still see the passion in their eyes, how they loved their job, how they cared for the people they have worked with and that alone is enough to touch a heart. You will also see how their co-workers loved them and would truly miss them after. They have contributed well to the success of the branch and of the company and it was truly appropriate that they be given proper recognition for their hard work & perseverance.

Anyway, after the awarding, the main event – that everybody was waiting for – was up. Hot Momma’s in the house! LOL. It was a fun event because the candidates were game. They had a sports wear category, talent portion, evening gown competition and of course a question & answer portion. I just watched until the talent portion as I had to come down every now & then because after all, there was still work to do. LOL. The candidate I lent my clothes to won! Yay! She had been ever thankful to me and called me and my so-called kikay stuff lucky. Haha. She won 10,000 pesos just by strutting. Hehe.

There was food (OVERFLOWING), a lot of photo ops and just pure fun even if at the same time everybody was on duty. That’s one way to celebrate the hardwork that everybody has pitched in for the branch. (Okay, I pigged out and now I’m on crash diet T_T.lol.) I am very happy and thankful to be part of it. I found a second home and a family. Who would have thought I would end up here?

Here are a few more photos during the event. The rest will be uploaded in my Facebook, Multiply & probably Flickr so do check it out.

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mood: yay! i designed that shirt y'all! weee!