Archive for the ‘Blog’ Category

This is not in any way related to my work, but I just had to post this. It’s still handmade… or handpainted, at least!

Last year, I was introduced to Re-ment figures by way of Cla’s Flickr photostream. They’re miniature plastic toys sold by a Japanese company called Re-ment in blind boxes (you won’t know what you’re going to get until you open the box). They’re available mostly in Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and a few other Asian countries. I got my first few boxes last year, courtesy of globe-trotting friends (hi Kate, Gail) who brought them back to me from their travels.

My first set of minis!

This was my first set of minis coming from five blind boxes. Most of those are no bigger than a coin, and those little Oreo cookies inside the box are no bigger than the fingernail on my pinkie! Check out the detail; it’s amazing.

I thought I was content with just those figures above, but my friends kept adding a few more boxes to my collection. Also, when my family and I traveled to Macau last January, I kept my eyes peeled for a couple more boxes of Re-ment miniatures. We were three days into the trip when I finally spotted them:

Here are some of the Re-ment sets I’ve acquired recently:


Re-ment partnered with Disney to produce Disney-themed miniatures. My friend gave me a Stitch set knowing how huge a fan I am of Lilo and Stitch. I went through a phase when I watched the movie on DVD every single day for a few months.


I like this chemistry set– very unique as most miniature sets are often food-related.


I bought this in Macau. I am not a fan of Hello Kitty but I bought it anyway as I didn’t find a wide range of Re-ment boxes to choose from while I was there. Nevertheless, this is one of my favorite sets because of the “animated” syrup suspended in mid-air!


Another Stitch set I got in Macau. I’m not too crazy about this one but the Scrump doll straw is adorable!


The cupcakes from the first Stitch set above. I love these! Don’t they remind you of my Cupcake Bears?

Cupcake Bears

I love Re-ment minis! I get asked what I do with them and my answer is, “Nothing!” I just like taking them out every now and then and looking at/playing with them. Sometimes certain pieces make their way onto my product shots on my shop. But that’s really just an excuse for me to acquire more. In a way, I’m glad they’re not readily available here in the Philippines, or else I’d lose a fortune buying them!

Thought I’d give you a peek at my sketchbook. I draw a lot of random stuff.

Sketchbook doodles

Sketchbook doodles

Sketchbook doodles

Sketchbook doodles

Sketchbook doodles

Sketchbook doodles
Anyone on Tumblr? I don’t know how long I can keep this up as I have too many online accounts, but I have a sketch blog/dump on Tumblr. Follow me!

So sorry for the lack of new posts! The last update on this blog was more than a month ago! The holiday rush was exactly that– a rush. Afterwards, things slowed down and mellowed in January. I think the whole world gets a little lazy in January. I know I did… hence, the lack of updates.

I’ve just returned from almost a week-long vacation in Macau (which was wonderful) with my family. I have to ease out of my extended vacation mode fast… as I START A NEW FULLTIME JOB TOMORROW. It’s totally unexpected and this job offer just came out of the blue, when I wasn’t even looking for a job. Remember my article How I Quit My Job to Follow My Dream? Saying yes to a fulltime job seems contradictory after everything I’ve said, but I said yes to the job after finding out it’s not as much of a 15-18 hours/day time-suck like my previous job (where all my free time was spent catching up on sleep) so that means I still have time to maintain my Etsy shop on the side.

Memo pads and to do lists available on Notebooks, Etc.

I may have to let go of my freelance design/illustration projects in the meantime, but nothing’s set in stone yet. For now I’m turning down freelance projects until April 2010 to get a feel of how I can balance a fulltime job and my Etsy shop.

I still have a backlog of new things and recent projects to post– I’m looking to churn out another post in a week or so!

The Christmas Carnivale bazaar organized by the Zonta Club of Alabang last December 5 & 6 was a success!

Booth setup at the Zonta Alabang Christmas Carnivale bazaarOur booth setup

The bazaar was well-organized with various activities like a dog show, fire dance, an impersonator show, a fun run, and all other things I didn’t get to see/attend– we were busy attending to our booth as we had a good amount of people buying Christmas gifts from us! I didn’t even get to go around much to visit the other booths, all of which selling unique items unlike some bazaars which tend to have just clothes and not much else.

Booth setup at the Zonta Alabang Christmas Carnivale bazaar

For those coming to this website from one of the cards we handed out, thank you for dropping by and/or buying from us! For Notebooks, Etc. (handmade notebooks, illustrated tumblers, memo pads/to do lists, and button pins), our items are available at our local reseller’s Multiply site, The Fundamentals: http://thefundamentals.multiply.com.

I’ll also be uploading/listing a few new items to the shop (both on Multiply and on Etsy, our online store for international customers) within the next week including a new batch of notepads fresh off the press (literally– we got them from the printing press the day of the bazaar) so watch out for that.

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For those interested in King Beans Coffee (short name: King’s Coffee), our Batangas-sourced Barako/Liberica coffee, check out this Multiply album for details on how to order. We’re accepting local orders and we are looking to have a proper website created for King’s Coffee hopefully in the first quarter of 2010. Stay tuned!

Just a quick post to let you know two things. First, I have a feature on the just-relaunched Pixelbureau! Click here to read it. Thank you, Errol, for the invitation!

Second, Notebooks, Etc. and King’s Coffee will be at the Zonta Christmas Carnivale bazaar on December 5 and 6!

Zonta Christmas Carnival Bazaar

We’ll be selling our handmade paper goods and Barako coffee. For all the Southeners in the area, come check us out! I’ve temporarily closed my Etsy shop in preparation for the bazaar. We will reopen after December 6. Thank you!