If you were to tell me that I'll be teaching a workshop from months back, I'd probably respond with a...

Ows

... I would definitely not believe it. This is not because I am shy, or terrified of talking in front of people, but it's just that I don't think I am a master of my own craft. With that mindset, I figured I am not the best candidate to teach younglings about polymer clay or calligraphy.

HOWEVER, given that the universe has it's tricky way of playing you, I ended up giving in, then tried reaching out to well-known crafting communities in the Philippines.


CraftMNL is a community of artists, makers, creators. and many more, who provides an outlet for their co-artists, makers, creators, and many more to learn, teach, and basically appreciate art. With that, they actually host a bunch of workshops in different areas of art, for all ages- which makes it perfect for me to reach out for them for a collab.

It's nice that they were able to recognize me as soon as I sent them a proposal email, not because Class Act Ph is a big shot, but because they are also the brains behind Makers' Market, which on the other hand is a collaborative team who puts out bazaars that sell only handmade local goods. Last November, I had a tiny shelf laid out at a Makers' showcase, where I was able to sell some of Class Act Ph creations. I think with that, it was easy to persuade them in giving me a shot.

Exact depiction on how the agreement went between me and craft mnl

But of course, not all things went swimmingly well, despite having all the preps done, no one registered for my workshop with them *cue sad music*

Exact depiction of my feels

I guess I wasn't able to market it properly, or that people are just not that interested with unicorns? Hahaha! Oh well, rather than cry over it, I just learned better not to see this as a discouragement to push for a workshop, so I moved on...

It is completely understandable to not want to try out for another one after a failed attempt, but hey I am not called, 'matigas ang ulo' by my parents for nothing! Hahaha! So, I partnered with The Craft Central to put together a workshop at Ayala Vertis North 🤗

For those who are not yet acquainted with The Craft Central how dare you , a quick intro would be : It is a magical consignment store full of craftsy and artsy stuff, like calligraphy tools, fun stickers, and even succulent holders. Given that it's a safe haven for people who loves art, it comes no surprise that they also host workshops with different artists and makers, to further encourage people to try out a new hobby- despite having 0% skillzzz or talent in art.

Going back to the workshop, unlike with my failed attempt with CraftMNL, I got participants for my workshop at Ayala Vertis North!

Totally unrelatable to the topic, but hey cute gif 👏

My unicorn bebe

Elise's unicorn bb with an eksaheradang horn

Ana's masterpiece 💕👏

Aiza's pabibong Bangwinkon Unicorn

The husband and wife, Mark and Eunisse's work. Don't worry, di pa yan tapos hahahaha 👏👏👏👏☝

I love you po

Kute forevermore💕👍😚

This one's a really quick blog post, where I just show you a fashion illustration of mine 😍
I know summer is supposed to be over, but how come the heat is still excruciatingly scorching?! Anyhoo, I drew this lovely as an inspo of what I wanted to wear all summer, all year loooong-because Philippines has perpetual summer heat.

Love, Always 💕
Nicole

Yes guys, just when you thought my Japan travel is done, oh nope we are just in the middle! Hahahaha!

Beautiful Yokohama 👏 (Photo from Imman)

Aside from Tokyo proper, we ventured somewhere a little calmer compared to all the craziness of Tokyo, and that was Yokohama. Yokohama is 1 hour away from Tokyo via train. But before we really went there, we first head to this park which is...

Which is a bummer, because I was excited to see blooms that day! But oh well, we move on. Oh and I saw these:



Not sure if all train stations in Tokyo has this lovely little corner where you can try out this stamp, but I hope they all do! This is perfect for those who do Bu-Jo 👌

Anyhoo, rather than get sad and mushy about not getting into this pretty park, we proceed to Setagaya for some magical lunch, but first...






A quick look at the nearby Village Vanguard, where I spotted a new flavor of one of my favorite Japanese cookies, Country Ma'am. P.S., to those in Japan now, can you get me a pack of Country Ma'am cookies? I'll pay when you get back hahahaha!

I handcarried this in the airplane on our flight back home wahahahaha!

After wrecking havoc in Magic Spice (because we wolfed down to the very last morsel of food in our plates), we have finally reached the chill town of Yokohama. Unlike the busy streets of Tokyo, people are relatively chiller here. It somehow reminds me of Fukuoka's Marinoa Outlet, but that's probably because of the huge ferris wheels they both have. But before we proceed to the Yokohama Landmark tower, we head first to the Queen's Square mall to buy some knick knacks at Tokyo Hands, and Flying Tiger.