Quite biased here because she made my wedding gown, but Richie Ortega-Torres is THE BEST when it…read morecomes to bridal gowns (and evening other gowns and dresses). Based on my personal experience, I loved her from my first appointment with her for my wedding gown. I didn't even bother looking elsewhere because I knew that she would make the perfect dress for me. Richie listened to what I said, browsed through my pegs and listened to my concerns about my gown. She had a few suggestions for me, but she never pushed for anything that I wasn't so sure about. Just from her sketch alone, I knew I had made the right decision of getting her, and as my first fitting came along, I was even more thrilled. There were only some minor changes to be done with my gown, all of which she and her girls handled immediately. With just 3 fittings, I was a happy bride-to-be and I can definitely say that I slept peacefully the night before my wedding as the gown was already set-up in my hotel room. Until this day, 1 and a half year later, I still look at my gown from time to time to admire how well-made it was. She lacing, the beading and the stitches were made to perfection and I can only hope that I can someday give it to my future daughter to wear on her wedding day.

At first Richie suggested me to look around here in CA.. I went to five bridal shops and I found a…read morefew dresses I like, but I wanted more of a Filipino design.. She was very responsive to my texts, concerns,questions, and pictures which I sent via cellphone. She was very honest. I love her responses. Then I told her that one dress I really love it and it has a very LOW back dress which wasn't my type at all. She quickly offered to make a similar dress with a covered back! She saved my life! Once she made a baseline fitting, she sent it to my cousin who flew here in CA and then my cousin brought it back to her in Makati. Then my ninang brought my final dress over here on time. Thank you Richie for making my beautiful dress! I'll never forget it!

The moment I saw this boutique, I wished I could transport the whole store inside my bedroom. Oh,…read morehow much I wanted that all the pieces in Nava were in my own wardrobe and that the accessories and decorations of the store were my own as well. Overall, the store exudes a mix of modern and vintage and its collection is equal parts girly and edgy. Lending an image of strength and modernity to the store are the black bars and straight lines formed by tables and panels. Red bricks and antique-looking wood items lend some vintage feel to the place and feminine details such as flowers and cursive handwriting soften the otherwise structured arrangement of the store. This theme extends to their clothes. You can find sexy blouses, flowing skirts, fitted pants, soft-toned cardigans, dark-colored jackets, checkered-printed tops, floral printed blouses, colorful shoes, and animal skin bags. Girly and edgy, modern and vintage may initially sound contradicting but they all achieve harmony in Nava Boutique. Wearing Nava could just give me the chance to show my secret sassy side while also maintaining the girly image that my friends already know and love.

I chanced upon NAVA exploring a bazaar held by one of my friends in UP Town. They had such a nice…read morecollection of clothing, and I was unfortunately very, very broke (ah, the college life!), so the moment I received my measly tutor's salary that month, I dropped by their outlet in Market! Market! to have a proper look around. Their store is very brightly lit and vintage-looking, and they had an assortment of accessories and bits-and-bobs on display, such as sunglasses and notebooks and little trinkets like compact mirrors and card-holding tins. It was very charming. The clothes are beautiful, and on the vintage side, but not exactly cheap. Not very expensive either, but great nontheless. I ended up leaving the store with a very pretty floral-designed backpack for P650! A floral backpack in Forever21 would have cost me P1750, so I was pretty pleased. Want to shop for your own vintage pieces? NAVA, thankfully, has an Facebook page where you can browse some of their items: https://www.facebook.com/navashop. Happy shopping!

Cecilio Abad has been around for a while, but has only recently gained waves of new clients for…read morewedding entourage gowns. My girlfriend is part of a friend's entourage, and was asked to go to his store to get measured for her gown. I, of course, was assigned the role of her designated driver. We had a bit of difficulty looking for the place as they didn't have any notable signage outside. We got there at 9AM; the whole ride from her house to the place, I kept complaining about how it was too early to be up for a fitting on a Saturday morning. I really should learn that my girlfriend is always right. After around 5 minutes of getting inside, a parade of clients arrived. My girlfriend, being there early, was assisted first by the very friendly staff and they kept joking and talking her through her fitting. We were in and out in 20 minutes. My girlfriend was quite happy with her design and couldn't stop rubbing in my face, making sure that I knew that we needed to arrive early.

Being someone who loves weddings and used to write for a popular wedding website, Cecilio Abad has…read morebeen a name I have been hearing for the longest time. I've seen his work but I have never really seen him working in action. So I excitedly accompanied my mom to her first fitting for her gown for my sister's wedding. And yes, my mom was the only one who had a Cecilio Abad gown on. We treat her like a queen. Cecilio Abad's shop was very unassuming from the outside. Once inside, you'll soon realize how masterpieces are really made. 'Cecil' was on top of every little detail that is made inside his shop, he designs, cuts, tucks, stretches and sews himself. He is really the master of his pieces of art and I was amused by his work. My mom used to rave over and over again how comfortable his gowns were compared to other gowns she's used to wearing in the past Can't wait to have my own Cecilio Abad gown made.

The Trunk Show is the little store that could, because it's really tiny--easy to miss actually…read moreamong everything else that's in Trinoma--but when you do notice it it's hard to resist taking a peek at what they have to offer, since their display really does seem like a plethora of beautiful things you'd fish out of your lola's baul. Given that, a lot of the things here do have a bohemian vibe to them, which is nice and refreshing to see a boutique a little more defined in style. The style may come off a little mature, but they always have things that are a little more youthful and hip, so they have a nice mix of things that would attract the more discerning customer. They also always have sale items out by their entrance, which is sure to hook any passerby in the hallway. I was looking for something to get my mom and my sister in the US, and I glad I found them as I found these great, big, patterned tote bags that aren't too wild, but just showy enough--perfect for my mom and sis--that I got for two hundred apiece. Not bad at all.

Here's another vintage shopping store that I absolutely adore: Trunk Show!…read more Normally, it is quite hidden from sight, and quite unusual in that floor, because beside this wonder store are comic stores, gadgets and toys, even some food stalls. However, once you notice it, be sure to enter and navigate the vintage store well! They sell vintage blouses, shoes, accessories, bags, and other items that fall under the same theme. It may be small in area, but it's big on quality and beauty!

Ludo is one of the most popular board game cafes in the metro, and I can totally see why. It has…read moredone so well with always ensuring a delightful time. I love this place to bits, it's almost like a portal to many magical worlds. At Ludo, there's a form of amusement for everyone, whether your gaming style screams Scrabble or Pathfinder. Playing the boardgames are absolutely free, but you DO have to order something from Ludo's menu. While the food isn't so remarkable, Ludo excels in many other aspects. Its board game collection is massive and you are guaranteed to never be bored no matter how many times you visit. The space is comfortable, nice and homey. Enlarged Dixit cards adorn the walls. The place seems to capture the feeling of playing in a gaming room at home. (Also, for some reason I feel like I'm in a foreign country when I'm inside Ludo.) The staff is impressively well trained; all of them are proficient at explaining the rules of the board games available for use, and they're also extremely attentive and friendly. However, I find that Ludo's most excellent offering is its awesome events. It always seems to be churning out different interactive geeky games every month. There are bi-monthly roleplaying murder mysteries which require you to play a character and dress up in costume, a backstabbing Valentines speed-dating dinner where the objective is to build your tablemate up just to bring them down, an audience-driven Choose Your Own Adventure performed by improv actors for which Ludo even developed its own app, and so much more. Join in the endless, delightfully creative, intelligent fun and immerse yourself even deeper into all sorts of worlds over at Ludo.

If you're looking for a place where you can spend hours bonding with your friends while having a…read moredrink or two, instead of hitting the typical bars or clubs, might I suggest you hit a boardgame bar instead? :D Sure, you might think "Boardgames? Like Monopoly, right?" Nope. Ludo's boardgame library holds about 600 games, and there's something for everyone! From newbie gamers to hardcore elitists, anyone can borrow any game in the café! (Just not Monopoly. Come on guys, seriously?) The rental for the games? Free! And in return, you only have to order at least one dish and/or one specialty drink from the menu. Their menu is mostly katsus with some side dishes like gyoza, and chips with dip. The price range is about P150-250 per dish/drink. Any geek would enjoy looking at their drinks list, where every alcoholic drink is inspired by some sci-fi, fantasy or pop culture reference. I've tried their Jack Sparrow, Queen's Gambit, Millenium Falcon, and Coffee of Cthulu (a particularly crazy mix of alcohol and coffee that got me wanting to cartwheel around the place in madness). My personal favorite, however, is their 10th Sonic Screwdriver (oh yes, they did!), with a very appetizing shade of TARDIS blue. (The 11th Sonic Screwdriver isn't bad either!) To play the games, just ask the owners or any member of the staff to assist you; they've been trained well. They also have games for sale, just in case you've had so much fun playing a game the entire day and you simply MUST have it to share it with your friends. Just check with the staff for prices and availability. Ludo also hosts some special geeky events throughout the year, like Murder Mystery parties, gaming marathons, movie/TV screenings, geek holidays (Hobbit Day, Talk Like A Pirate Day) and many more! Definitely a place worth visiting again and again and again and AGAIN! :D

My sister-in-law and her daughter were part of our wedding entourage. The problem was they live in…read moreEurope and would only arrive here five days before our big day. My wife's mom searched high and low to find a designer who would be willing to accept the challenge of making two gowns in less than a week. The designer who accepted the challenge was Ching Santos. Although he accepts walk-ins, I still suggest you make an appointment before you go to the shop because he has a lot of clients. My mother-in-law was so happy that she decided to let Ching Santos design and make the gowns for all the female members of our wedding entourage, including a pink gown that my wife used at the reception. The gowns were delivered on time and they fit fantastically. My wife and I were so relieved that even the gowns for her sister and niece were beautifully made and didn't look like they have been worked on in haste. All the female members of our entourage looked stunning and beautiful in their colorful and tastefully designed long gowns. I would recommend Ching Santos because he's a professional designer who fulfills his promise. I can't begin to imagine what would have happened had he accepted our very challenging case only to fail to deliver the gowns on time. Sure enough, our wedding would have been a disaster! Ching Santos's shop is open from Monday to Saturday, from 9:00am to 6:00pm.

Being the designated driver of my girlfriend on Friday nights, she dragged me to go to the…read moreApartment 8 Design House, because she heard from a friend that they really had good deals for off-the-rack dresses. Without having any other choice, I went with her to look for this place. It wasn't difficult to find the place because of our familiarity with the area, and the house that greeted us was pretty impressive. We had to ring the doorbell to be let in, and the place really felt like a design house (I don't exactly know what to expect, coming from a guy, but I guess in my head, this is what a design house should look like). The dresses on the walls were arranged well, and even the dressing rooms were fashioned after something you would see in fitting scenes on TV. In the back room, you could see the design staff was working hard, looking through the latest trends and coming up with fresh designs for dresses. I still couldn't tell the differences between most designs, or what was or wasn't trending, but I'm pretty sure that Apartment 8 deserves a lot more recognition.

I've seen a lot of Apartment 8 Clothing with their very active Instagram account…read more Not only do they make unique pieces od clothing, they also the dress with Kim Chiu being their favorite star to dress. While I've visited their Greenhills branch, I was told that their main store along Scout Borromeo offered a better selection of choices. Since I was looking for a gown to wear as a wedding guest, I decided to check them out. It was a quite Thursday afternoon and I was pretty sure they we're expecting any guests. The lights were closed, the aircon was turned off and the guard was a little shocked to see me there. But everyone hurriedly went to their places and accommodated me well. Unfortunately, they offer limited sizes which meant dresses were a lot snug on me. If I wanted a particular design, I had to ask for them to custom make if which was out of my budget. Anyhow, they do really good designs with unique patterns and nice tela.

Before I became a wife and a mother, I used to be kinda cool. YRYS was the store of choice during…read moremy high school days and even throughout college. I hated wearing plain shirts over jeans. I wanted something unique. I was more into the punk-rocker chick look that you'd see in US stores like Hot Topic. The different stores from the Gozum sisters really made my heart flutter when they first launched in the Philippines. Of the three brands they have, YRYS was my favorite. Everything there is so stylish and fashion-forward. Before them, finding a short plaid skirt here was next to impossible. They broke boundaries in an ultra-conservative country and revolutionized the way women dressed. And it's not just the clothes that I really love, it's all the little accessories, too! Suspenders, hats, finger gloves, belts and cool jewelry were available for really affordable prices. Even now that I do dress more conservatively for the sake of my daughter, I often find myself still looking through their display window, reminiscing the old days when I was able to fit in those super short skirts that I loved so much. Here's a tip: watch out for sales, especially when it's midnight madness at the mall. They often slash their prices by more than half. They have racks of clothes marked down to P200 and P300.

I love this store! Their clothes and accessories are a mix of styles - kitchy, rocker, punk, trendy…read moreand tumblr-esque. When I was still a youngin at school, I'd always buy from this store for their great price point and fashion. I love their accessories the best. They sell some really cool jewelry, finger gloves, hats, flash tattoos, suspenders and even corsets (I have 2 from them). I always feel like I'm in the streets of Hong Kong when I entire the store and look around...like I'm checking out those affordable and fashionable fashion stalls or stores at the night market. This store is perfect for high school students and hip college students and the prices won't break the bank. Look out for sales too because who doesn't love a sale? As you can see from my photo, you can even buy items for P99! Now that's a steal!