Rania Turns One

Little Rania's whimsical floral birthday party was as adorable and pretty as Rania herself. I personally think the cake was so lovely, you wouldn't want to touch it while it sits on a swing adorned with flowers. There were giant floral decorations excellently crafted by talented mom Aleli of Engrande Events.

The kids looked very excited to see the surprise guest who loves warm hugs, Olaf! It was a joy to capture their reaction when Olaf revealed himself. One little girl in particular happily stared at him while he was dancing and giving the guests some high fives.

Children may require a little more patience when it comes to taking pictures but when you catch a priceless moment, like when they make goofy faces, stare in awe at something, giggle, laugh or even just crack a toothless smile, it's all worth it. I especially adored Rania's wide eyes and cute pink pursed lips. It was truly a simple but lovely celebration for this precious baby girl.

Styling and coordination by Engrande Events
Cake Pop Tower : Isabel Pinili Of Sans Rival Cakes And Pastries
Cupcakes : Paula Celdran Montenegro
Cookies : Liv Vilar
Meringue Tower: Au Miranda
Mascots : Engrande Events

Oh Merry Merry Gift Tags!

After months of the idea of these little gift tags sitting in my head, I finally got the time to make them! I'm thinking of re-opening my Etsy shop (which has been closed for about two years now) and put these things up, just in case anyone out there is looking for some Christmas tags that would match their gift-wrapping ideas. I've done them all using a fine brush, watercolor and some gouache.

I'm still choosing what other kinds of twine or ribbons to match. I will be packing these by sets of ten in various styles and give you the option to add the recipient's name at the back handwritten by yours truly! I like making effort in wrapping my presents because I think the wrapping is as important as the present itself so I always make them look good down to the gift tags.

Looking at these green and red text makes me feel a bit of Christmas already! I forgot to come up with Halloween ideas though. Well, maybe next year.

Alex Turns One

There must be something about one year olds that make them so irresistable to hugs and kisses and the occasional pinching of their chubby cheeks. It's probably because when they look at you, so wide-eyed and innocent, you can't help but smile. For me, children hold that kind of magic.

Alex was one of those I truly adored. The moment I saw him, I simply can't help but stare. And it's wonderful he's such a behaved little munchkin he hardly cried during his first birthday party. It was fun to be around children, although it could get a bit exhausting chasing them around running and wrestling each other. But I'm not complaining. It was nevertheless enjoyable.

It was a small themed birthday party that was wonderfully set up by Engrande Events. The venue was well-lit and everything was in place and the food was delicious. Shout-out to mommy Sheena for letting me be a part of it!

Cake, Cake pops, Cupcakes by Isabel Pinili of Sans Rival Cakes and Pastries
Cookies by Liv Vilar
Mascots styling and coordination by Engrande Events
Venue at One Bethany Function Hall

Moving on to brush lettering

I'm starting to really love doing botanical elements when painting. Please excuse how very rough the things I've done here. I'm not truly attentive to details half of the time and I'm almost always really just in a rush to finish and see the final outcome of what I'm doing.

I'm currently revisiting thoughts of opening my etsy shop again because well, holiday season is just around the corner, and I'm always trying out new subjects to paint. I need to be seriously done with postponing ideas (or I could just accept the fact that I'm just plain lazy). I already got a new computer so there is no more excuse.

I thought I needed to learn brush lettering (on my own) because the amazing work I'm seeing on Instagram from super talented lettering artists are truly inspiring. You know that feeling when you see something so beautiful and you think you could do it too, you get all the supplies you need and do it yourself and then you realize... you can't. Haha. But hey, I always think they never became so good the first time they tried. So I'm hoping to be better after a million tries. As long as the fire doesn't die out, I'm willing to do a million tries to be better.

Anyway, here are a few snaps from recent attempts. I'm liking the colors but the details, not so much. I also tried putting up on an acrylic board some artworks I've done in the past. It looked good the first few days but I took it down again because I got sick of looking at them all the time.

Thoughts Wander

Trying out something I've always wanted to capture as a photograph but couldn't seem to get right. 

Practice never ends and I never seem to be 100% satisfied with any photo or artwork I've done.