Yahoo, the Wedding Essentials team’s newest baby, Beautiful Weddings 2006, will be available at all leading bookstores and mag stands starting this week.

So, just what is Beautiful Weddings? It’s a collection of wonderfully inspiring stories celebrating beautiful beginnings by real brides and will be sold for only Php 120.00 – a real steal for something almost as good as love!
It’s been a little over two years now since our EIC Marbee called me to discuss the possibility of building¹ a wedding magazine together. From scratch! It’s been her wish to come out with something like it and I guess it took her by surprise that it was a dream project for me too. And whaddya know, since then, we’ve released four thick volumes and I can wholeheartedly say that yes, with equal parts passion and determination, and a whole lot of crazy logic, it can be done.
Every WE issue is as exciting to work on as the last one. How is that possible, you ask? I guess it’s because (1) both Marbee and I have a love affair with weddings (well you can tell by how I obsessively lovingly planned mine); (2) I can’t ask for a nicer team of girls to work with – Marbs, Charlene and Ria are always full of fresh ideas and are a ton of fun to be with. More importantly, we share the same vision about what we want to convey through the mag: that “beautiful weddings” are not restricted to celebrities and people in high society. That no matter what budget you have, you can have the wedding of your dreams.; and (3) I get to flex my dormant – now – that – I’m – out – of – advertising creative muscles. Planning the design and layout of 250+ pages ain’t no picnic, my friend, but it’s a great big challenge each time.
That said, I know you’ve heard this enough from me but please, please support Wedding Essentials and WE Beautiful Weddings. We may be novices in the field but you can be sure that everything we do comes straight from the heart.
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So how have you been? After I finished working on the magazines, I wanted to be away from the computer as much as possible so I took the chance to catch up on Veronica and the gang at Neptune² and it’s official: I’m hooked. The following video is for Lia and Neva and everyone else who loves the show: Go, watch, and sing-along.
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By the way, I’ve somewhat been busy at the Phlog and in Multiply.

1. Yep, the task daunted us very much since both of us are from advertising and have had no experience in the world of magazine publishing, ever.[ back]
2. I finished watching both seasons already! I want more! More, I tell you![ back]

Hip-hip-hurrah! Yes, there is reason to rejoice because the fourth issue of our magazine, Wedding Essentials (July-Dec 2006), is now available at all leading bookstores and magazine stands. Hope you can check it out (pretty please?) Marbee, Charlene, Ria, the staff, and I have been working on it since January this year.

In this issue, we celebrate sometihng close to home, the Filipiniana wedding.

Who says it has to be confined to pina, jusi, and barongs? Who says there is only one true Filipina? Wedding Essentials explores what Filipiniana is in this issue. Four beautiful brides, each representing a Filipina archetype (chinita, dusky, mestiza, and morena) grace the gorgeous fabric (yes, fabric!) cover of this constantly innovative magazine. Be inspired by over 250 pages containing gorgeous bouquets, top designers’ beautiful reflections on what Filipiniana is, picturesque setups and venues, and dream themes ranging from Victorian Elegance to Romantic Hacienda. Truly the quintessential guide for the modern bride, Wedding Essentials, as always, has happy stories from recent brides, tips from industry experts, and many ideas for every detail of your dream wedding…from the invitation to the honeymoon.
For those who’d like to experience the making of WE4, I’ve just uploaded a ton of behind the scenes photos.
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For the past few weeks, WE4, the Beautiful Weddings special, Veronica Mars¹ and life in general² has kept me away from this blog. Regular programming will resume as soon as time allows it.

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UPDATE: There are new pics in the phlog!

1. Thanks to Lia for giving me a copy of the entire first season of the series, I am now a devoted follower. Go pirates![ back]
2. Of course I’d rather spend my free time with Arn, Abbas and with friends and family rather than the computer, diba?[ back]

A couple of years ago, I made a mom-and-baby cat illustration for a book that never happened for some reason or other. I found it again while spring-cleaning my hard drive and thought, why not put it to good use?

So if you love cats, red tabbies in particular, and [a] you live in the US where Cafepress is based¹ or [b] you have tons of disposable cash anyway and want to contribute to a good cause², it would mean so much if you can support my latest entrepreneurial endeavor. 😀

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Our favorite fashion designer Tippi‘s Pret-a-Party and Lounge Lizard lines are now also available at Backstage, located at the 2/F, San Lorenzo Arcade, Pasay Road, Makati (behind New World Hotel), hope you can take a look sometime! Stay up to date with her collections and shows by visiting their respective sites as well as her journal.

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I’m quite pleased with the choice of judges for Philippine Idol. In the beginning I was afraid it was gonna be one of those Regine, Ogie -or worse, Kris-hosted affairs but the moment they announced that Mr. C was gonna be part of it, I was completely won over.³. If, like me, you’re curious about how the auditions are going, FrancisM just so happens to be chronicling the judging process in his journal.

1. ergo shipping won’t cost too much[ back]
2. our cat Abby‘s food and play fund[ back]
3. There’s just no one else who’s as credible. Pilita’s okay, I grew up seeing her all over TV and she’s definitely an icon. As for FrancisM, well I’ve been a fan since “Yo” came out hehe. [ back]