Psychedelic Sightings: SM North Skywalk Murals

It's the last day of October! 2 months to go and it's 2000-fureakin-14 already!

On my way to work this morning, I was contemplating on the little triumphs and failures of the past year. I think the little victories outweigh the setbacks, so I'm really really thankful. There are a lot of things that I still need to work on, but the pursuit for growth is still pretty much on track. Travel, work, cupcake business and creativity take the biggest portion of the achievement pie this year, while running and the band's album/EP has taken a back seat. Ah, so much to do and so much to learn still! I can't wait to reach new milestones this coming year.

Anyway, before you guys go out and proceed with your trick or treating, let me share a bunch of photos from an impromptu trip earlier this week to the North--as in SM North. Haha. I was walking along the skywalk when I chanced upon this awesome set of murals.

I was trying to figure out who the artist is, because I've seen the same style in one of the walls in Bonifacio High Street. Sadly, my world class stalking and google searching skills didn't serve me well this time, so I'll leave it up to you to check it out for yourself and admire the work.

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Watercolor Weekend: Mother Gypsy and the Wrinkled Folks

Finally, another painting! It's been a while since I had a proper sit down but things have been looking up with work and life in general, so I have more time for watercolor practice. I spent the entire afternoon yesterday at Cafe Mary Grace to get some sketching done. Whenever I feel like I need serious uninterrupted time for drawing/crafting, I go to a coffee shop and just spend the hours in solitude.

I've always wanted to draw this gypsy lady ever since I came across her in Paris. I've read stories of really aggressive beggars who take advantage of tourists in Paris, but I didn't get that vibe from her. The kindness in her face was just so beautiful, I wanted to draw a portrait of her.

I was walking outside the Notre Dame when I came across her. She was looking at me as I walked past and I just had the urge to drop a coin in her cup. She clasped her hands together as if to give thanks to an answered prayer. I didn't understand what she said but her eyes showed so much gratitude, and were welling up with tears. As I took out my camera, she gave me the warmest smile I've seen from a stranger that day. I took a photo of her and I headed off. That brief moment with her was remarkable.

I tried my best to copy her face and her features, but I always end up straying away from my original subject and just skew some things here and there. Usually when I do the pencil sketch, I  try to be as exact as possible, but when I start coloring, I refrain from looking at the photo reference so that I can make my own changes to the drawing. It's like getting lost in translation, only on paper.

Mother Gypsy
Watercolor on Paper

The most challenging part of this drawing is coloring her jacket. I've learned that mixing black with another dark hue is a good way of putting some dimension to the color. My own technique with watercolor is just really self taught, but I always just start with the skin and the lighter colors the follow with the darker shades. There's still so much to learn and I loved the challenge of doing this painting because of the creases of the subject's face and the draping of her shawl as well as the stitching of her jacket. I've never really mentioned it before, but I love to draw aging people. Their faces are more interesting to paint because their features help me to look into the details and allow me to practice seeing better. 

Here's a collection of past drawings of the beautiful, wrinkled folks:

Hope you had a great weekend!

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Ink Drawing: Heart In Chaos

Today has been really productive in the creativity front. The morning was spent frosting cupcakes for a client then drawing and inking all afternoon plus working on a design project with a photography studio's website. I finally re-made this doodle, digitalized it and properly edited it in Photoshop. I've been neglecting ink as a medium for my drawings, so I just thought I'd take a break from the watercolors and go back to basics. Oh if only all my Saturdays are as productive and as awesome as today!

Heart In Chaos
Ink on paper, digital

There's a lot going on in our lives and countless things keep us worried--deadlines and meetings, things to do's and chores, bills and responsibilities, traffic and oil price hikes, floods and earthquakes, zits and weight gain...the list goes on. I personally have a surplus of worries and it's easy to get lost in the chaos (the weight gain problem alone is really disconcerting) but I've learned that it's just a matter of putting things into perspective.

Last Sunday, Jim and I were walking home from a nearby diner when a kid came over and asked us to buy sampaguita from him. We initially dismissed him but he was persistent, so we decided to buy him food instead of giving him money. Right after ordering a burger for him, he asked if we could just have the food to go because he wanted to share it with his siblings. While waiting for the food to arrive, we asked the kid a few questions and got to know him a little. 

His name is Aries. He's 11 years old and the seventh among nine children. He doesn't know how to read, and he never went to school. He's been selling sampaguita since 3PM that day and would only go home at 12 midnight or until all the flowers were sold. His elder brothers are parking boys and his mom stays at home, taking care of his younger siblings. His dad had passed away already. He held coins in his hand because he didn't have any pockets. He had a shy way about him that was endearing, but the whole time that we were talking to him, I just saw sadness in his eyes. I asked how many flowers he's sold. "Isa pa lang ate.", he replied. It was already 10 pm and I ended up buying the whole bunch just so he can go home. The kid just broke my heart.  I'm hoping to chance upon him again and help him in some way, maybe give him books or buy another bunch of sampaguita from him again. 

That encounter with Aries was a wake up call that there are far more people who have bigger problems than I do. That boy is a reminder that we are very fortunate and that we should remain thankful for all our blessings instead of focusing on what's missing in our lives. Life isn't and will never be perfect but as long as our hearts are in the right place, I think we'll do just fine. 

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Art Stalking: Sara Blake of ZSO

These past couple of months have been quite unproductive for my creative sparks. I've been busy with work, so I needed to put on my I.T. hat and get lost in the world of logic and algorithms and business requirements and such. When I'm not working, I check out the usual blogs, then from one click to another, I chance upon really inspiring finds. I was checking out the Skillshare directory this past week, and I've been strategizing what courses to take first when I came across Sara Blake's class "Create Full Color Digital Illustration from A Handmade Drawing"

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To Tinfinity and Beyond - An Invitation Project

My sister Tetet has always been one of the people who believed in my artistic skills and creativity. I've done a lot of collaborations with her during her party planning stints that I'm the first person she goes to when it comes to making custom invitations. I was looking at my previous projects with her and saw these invitation designs that I made for her and her husband Noel's 10th Anniversary earlier this year.

*Insert awwwww here*

As per the list of traditional wedding anniversary gifts, tin or aluminum is the traditional gift to be exchanged between husband and wife who were celebrating their 10th anniversary. My sister then asked me to create an invitation for the intimate gathering. I started making hand painted elements such as a wreath with yellow, blue and purple flowers, then incorporated watercolored tin cans in the layout. I chose a sans serif font Pompiere--discovered via thefozzybook's Oh Hello Friday Font Series (thank you Fozzy!) for the text. This font has a rustic and handwritten feel to it that I think was perfect for the mood and the occasion. I gave Ate Tetet two options: one which had more tin cans and another which had more flowers, and this is the final invitation that she went with.

The invitation that didn't make the cut:

The event was an intimate gathering at the Hillsborough Aquapark with friends and family to celebrate the couple's milestone. Sadly, I was not there to join them at the time because I had to fly to the U.S. for work. I would have wanted to be involved in doing the flower arrangements, but I was happy to see in the photos that she was inspired to use yellow, purple and white flowers at the event to go with the water colored wreath on the invites.

I had tons of fun with this project and I'm especially proud of the fact that the decorative elements are hand painted. I'm currently working on another exciting design project (this time not with my sister) and I can't wait to share it to all of you once I finish. I'm not formally trained in graphic design and I still have a lot to learn, but I'm glad that there are people who trust me to work on these projects with them. :)

Congratulations again Ate Tetet and Kuya Weng for your 10 years of marriage! 

Good job on the awesome kids too! 

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Style File: Tomboy Chic

Many people who know me can attest that I'm not a girly girl. I grew up enjoying the outdoors, playing habulan (tag) or taguan (hide and seek) with other kids, riding my bike or even shooting some hoops. In college, I used to wear trainers and sneakers a lot and have only come to terms with heels when I started working in the office, with my first job being strict on business casual dress code.

I think the general style of most Filipinas is low maintenance and practical because of the weather that we have in the Philippines. We don't have the privilege of being able to do a lot of layering, so the most sensible thing to wear is a top and a pair of trousers. Personally, I'd still take comfort over fashion anytime. On most days, I commute around the metro, so it's really imperative for me to stay comfortable, else I risk killing my legs and holding a funeral for my toes.

My footwear essentials: a pair of black flats, sandals and my favorite canvas sneakers which I wear with almost anything.

My uniform usually includes a pair of jeans, a button down or a t-shirt and my converse chuck taylors. Sometimes, I'd wear a neck tie, vest or a beanie just to make things a bit interesting. Even if I work in a corporate environment, I always take advantage of being able to slip into more comfortable clothes on casual days. Of course, I still have a mood for dresses on special occasions, but my body isn't dress-friendly because of my muscular legs, so I prefer donning trousers. I've been looking for style inspiration and here are my picks for channeling tomboy chic.

Grey tee and white chucks

Stripes and vest 

White blazer and graphic tee

Easy button downs and black jeans

I'm always thrilled to see such simple yet put together outfits that don't come in designer brands or scream Fashion Week. There's a certain air of effortlessness to men's wear that I really love and I particularly love this last photo because of the all black ensemble and the high cut Chucks. Now if I had that awesome out of bed hair and cool nonchalance, I'm golden. 

Photo credit: Sincerely, Jules || Winterfashion || Quality Rivets || Polienne || Pinterest || Totokaelo

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Neon Love

Hello October!

Notice anything? I got bored with my layout all of a sudden, so I decided to change it into something more cheerful. I wanted something bright and happy, but still leaned towards the minimalist side. Because of the splash of neons, I switched to a sans serif font so as not to make things too overwhelming.

I think the layout overhaul was inspired by a recent project with my sister. My niece Sofia is turning 8 this month and I was asked to make an invite for a Spa Party. Imagine a bunch of 8-year-old girls in a salon having their nails done! Sounds like a lot of fun (and kind of a big deal) for a kid, right?

For the invites, I came up with 4 draft versions for her but revised eventually based on her specifications. I'm absolutely loving this border font set by Kimberly Geswein! Here are the ones that didn't make the cut.

My sister wanted a daintier feel to the invite and asked for more pinks than fuchsias. She also requested if I can do a chevron background. Hence the final design:

It's been a while since I last played with Photoshop, but everytime I make these personal projects with my sister, I really have tons of fun!

Also I'm on Bloglovin!

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A Different Aesthetic

There are things that visually, naturally draw me in and I find them mostly in patterns or bright colors, hence this blog's title: Psychedelandia and Other Stories. Embracing color has always been my thing (though it was never induced by drugs, just to be clear). I just think color makes things more interesting and it gives them character.Writing this, I realize that it's really not just color that influences my general taste in things. I like texture and volume. I adore patterns and have a thing for intricate designs. Variety is a word that comes to mind, and if you would ask me to draw a line, I'd probably make swirls and loops between point A and point B. I'm psychoanalyzing myself why I like such chaos, and why I hardly adopted my highschool Alma Mater's mantra, "Simplicity is beauty."

Maybe I felt so restricted while attending catholic school. We wore blue and white uniforms and were never even allowed to wear hair accoutrements in colors other than blue, white and black. Our socks had to be folded neatly to our ankles. The hem of our skirts had to be 2 inches below the knee--not shorter nor longer than that or else, we would either get a sewing kit to make it shorter, or they will make us unsew the hem to make it longer. I didn't want to be simple. Simple meant lack of variety and having to follow rules. I grew up thinking that simple equated to boring.

This love for variety translates to my habits of consuming. While I am not exactly a fashionista, I have to admit that I love shopping and adore clothes. At the risk of sounding superficial, I confess that I am one of those girls who has a closet full of clothes but still think that they have nothing to wear. One outfit change to another, I'd look myself in the mirror and feel unsatisfied. "I need a new pair of shoes to go with this", I'd think, or "If only I had this in maroon..." I was never one to get excited over the latest trends or the newest gadget, but I still bought what I fancied--sometimes to a fault because most of them, I don't really need. This year, I resolve develop a capsule wardrobe. Aside from the design of the piece, I would be paying attention to quality, fit and re-wearability. Lately, I've been drawn to classic pieces such as stripes, chambray and neutral colors. Something quite surprising and a bit conflicting with my general take on clothes, but nonetheless practical and suits my taste nowadays. 

With my apartment about to be turned over by March next year, I've been looking at pegs that lean towards a more minimalist aesthetic. Neutrals, clean lines, and functional pieces are the key words that I would make sure to stick to when I start decorating. I want to surround myself with just the essentials so that I don't have to worry about clutter (a perennial problem with my space at home). 

Perhaps the desire to live simply comes with age and responsibilities. I have bills to pay and I need to stay within budget. There's so many things to do that worrying about the next trend isn't a priority (unless of course, you're working in the fashion industry). Maybe my experiences in traveling helped me to have a more practical approach in consuming, because it's hard to pack light when you want to bring the whole roygbiv gang from your closet to your suitcase. I guess in adulthood, there comes a point wherein you think it's not about quantity anymore. It's not even about the brands, although some brands really live up to their promise of quality. These days, I have made a resolve to consume less but still pay attention to detail. In my cluttered life of being an I.T. consultant, an artist, a musician, a cupcake business owner and a traveler, I am a daughter, a sister, a girlfriend and a friend on top of it all. The choice to live simply doesn't mean my life will be boring. It just means I resolve to find happiness in the simple things. 

Photo credit: Vogue || Remain Simple

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Psychedelic Adventures: City of Lights, Paris

Oh the things I had to do to get to Paris.

I missed my train from Brussels, because I didn't have the mind to check the weekend bus schedules in Mechelen. The DeLijn bus stops at IJzerenleen Street every 30 minutes instead of every 15 like it does on weekdays, so I missed it by a couple of minutes. There I was at the bus stop, with a handful of geriatrics and patiently waited.

I was pretty comfortable with hopping on the train from Mechelen to Brussels because of my trip to Antwerp and Rotterdam the week before, but I was going to Brussels Zuid station for the first time and I had no idea how big the place was or how overwhelming it's all going to be when I arrived there. Then there was the mixup between  Bruxelles Midi and Brussels Zuid train stations. The names are different--one for French and one for Dutch, but it is one and the same so I was fumbling back and forth from one station to the next, without my glasses on, confused and squinting at every screen in the Station to check the schedules while contemplating on my next move. My train for Paris leaves at 9:17 from Brussels Zuid, and I arrived at the station by 9:23. Of course, I decided to buy another ticket, a flexible one this time and shrugged off my day's worth of per diem. That's 57 Euros down the drain for a Thalys one way ticket.

This was typical of Paris, I imagined. She was elusive, but I still couldn't resist her allure. Despite the setbacks, I was determined to arrive at Gare du Nord station. It felt like I was being rejected by Paris even before she got to know me. She was channeling her preemptive supalpal moves on me, I thought, but that came to pass later on.

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Psychedelic Adventures: The One About Antwerp

July 27, 2013, Antwerp Belgium

So, Antwerp. I've been reading the guide and figuring out the maps, but in the end they didn't matter because I just walked aimlessly in this city. I didn't have a plan. What I will see, I will see. I consider myself bad at directions, but whenever I get lost, I always find my way. Perhaps the universe is really guiding me, and what I discovered while traveling in Europe is that people almost always smile back when you smile at them. Contrary to what I originally thought about Europeans, people don't shut you out. A smile goes a long way in a foreign place, I suppose. 

I took a train going to Antwerp from Mechelen. From the Veermarkt bus station, Bus 1 stops every 15 minutes and goes to the Station Mechelen where 2 or 3 trains leave every 20-30 minutes to Antwerpen. A De Lijn bus ride goes for 2 EUR from the bus stop to the station and a two way train ride goes for about 4.80 EUR. It was the first time I ever took public transportation in Belgium, and I was terrified the same way I was scared of riding the subway in New York. After my first adventure, I felt like a rockstar with my newly discovered freedom. 

Arriving at noon in Antwerp didn't exactly give me many options for lunch because the restaurants are full and I found them intimidating. I opted for the next best thing--a belgian waffle with cream and cherries on top. It was legit and felt like a warm hug on a chilly day. The fella who sold the waffles was an old Flemish man. He spoke crooked English but he really tried hard to talk to me. He put extra whipped cream on my waffle.

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Psychedelic Adventures: Mechelen, Belgium

Goodness, it has been a week since I first arrived in Belgium! I've been busy with the things that I had to do at the office and exploring my area that I haven't had the time to blog. I've been writing a lot on my travel journal but I still wasn't able to dive into writing about my hosting city. I would be posting some tips and places to go and all the travel related stuff, but for the meantime, I'll just write about traveling thoughts. 

An excerpt from my travel journal, July 23, 2013:

Mechelen is a winding city with strange little corners and alleys. Everything is like a surprise entryway to something or other. I've been taking a cab going to the office in Duffel from Mechelen because buses don't pass by the client office. I don't mind, since everything has been arranged with the cab company. I've been meeting single serving friends in the form of cab drivers. We get into conversations about religion, our cultures, the cost of living, the opportunities that people have when they are born in Europe, the advantages and disadvantages of working abroad. We talk about food and what the traffic is like in Manila. I tell them it's horrible, but I miss it.

Not to sound TOO melancholy or anything, but there really is something about traveling alone that's both sad and empowering. You're forced to trust people. You rely on their goodness, in their helpfulness and the ability to adjust to the fact that you cannot understand a single word in French or Dutch. At the same time, you rely on your own intuition--figuring out how to order food without sounding so stupid, and how to get from point A to point B using public transportation without getting lost. You get into the routine of things, when you travel for work. It's so much different from Melbourne or New Jersey because it's the first time I've been deployed to a project alone. 

My street Vismarkt is right across the Kanaal Dijle is teeming with locals hanging out for a beer or coffee. The street name literally means "fish market" and there's always something happening in the summer. One evening I went out to withdraw some cash and a band was playing jazz and tango while locals danced to the music. On some nights I would open my hotel room window and I could smell the frites from the restaurants beside the hotel.

I see lavenders everywhere. I picked up some one afternoon and kept them in my travel journal as a book mark. It smells wonderful right now. 

Mechelen is beautiful with its cobblestones, brasseries and cathedrals. It has its own charm, the one that is not apparent when you mention Belgium or Europe. I'm glad that I chose to live in Mechelen. Of course, the choice was made out of convenience, because it's the nearest city to Duffel, but I feel as though this small city has its little place just for me. 

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I.T. and Business Travel

I love taking photos at airports. It is where I experience the anticipation of exploring distant places and the comfort of arrival and coming home.

Today I learned about the approval of my Schengen Visa application. While some people find this quite trivial, I was thrilled when I saw the confirmation email from the Belgian Embassy this morning, telling me that I must book my flight to Belgium and send them a copy of the e-ticket before they can release my passport. The prospect of travel always excites me, and the idea of traveling to Europe with all of my expenses paid makes me feel even more blessed. Some people scrimp and save to go to Europe, but the opportunity was easily given to me and I'm very thankful.

Of course, this is not entirely the universe's doing. I'd like to think I have a hand at landing these opportunities because of my skills and credibility as a systems analyst. My previous Senior Manager reached out to me recently and mentioned that she recommended me to this project--perhaps she liked my work ethic and my previous performance and thus believed in my ability to deliver another implementation. Despite the fact that I was only trained and did not have any project experience in Oracle On Demand, I told the interviewer that I can still leverage my 8 years of experience in Siebel Development on this project. I was vocal about my willingness to learn and be retooled even if it meant resetting my technical skills back to zero. Medyo pa bibo ako. Hahaha. Shortly after my interview, I got a deployment notice and was told that I was selected to fly to Belgium this July. The thought that I was going to learn about Cloud Computing to keep up with this emerging trend in CRM Applications excited me. I will also be undergoing further training with Oracle University in the next couple of weeks, so that's also something to look forward to. 

View from my hotel room during one of my business trips.

Throughout my I.T. career, all of my projects allowed me to travel and live in another country for more or less, two months each time. These business trips differ from my personal travels because I was given a chance to immerse myself in the culture of my host country for a longer period. My personal travels usually last about a week with with friends whom I'm completely comfortable with, so I tend to stick with my group and simply enjoy the novelty of my surroundings. With business travel, I'm forced to get out of my comfort zone because aside from the challenge of getting used to the environment, I also needed to adjust to the people I meet. Business travels require me to establish good working relationship with my colleagues and clients from my host country in order for me to perform my job as a consultant. I ended up being friends with my colleagues from the US and Australia, that we also spent time together outside office hours. They showed me around the city, taught me their slang, invited me to their homes, and one of them even spent Christmas with my family here in Manila! 

People in transit. I used a lomo camera for this. 

Prior to the news of my onshore deployment, I didn't know crap about Belgium aside from the fact that they have really good chocolates, beer and waffles. I did a bit of reading and now I know that they are also known for their diamonds, their fries, jazz music, and of course, their art. I'm writing down my bucket list and must see places in Belgium, so hopefully I get the chance to explore and tick them off one by one. 

Travel is one of the perks of being a consultant. Aside from the free airfare, lodging and daily allowance, what I like most about being an I.T.consultant is that I get to work in different projects to widen my knowledge in application development/project management and meet all sorts of people. Surely other jobs have more opportunities for travel, but hey, I'm thankful that I still get my own share of free boarding passes. :)

What are the perks of your day job?

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