Thursday Brownies: Light up my life

@ mirandablue

As any interior designer would tell you, nothing complements a room like lighting.  The brown tones of this capiz chandelier evoke a mood, engage the senses, and create an ambiance.  And it's proudly Philippine-made.

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Red Topiaries [Ruby Tuesday]

I hope you're not taking down your Christmas decor yet. In the Philippines, we usually remove the Christmas decor on the night of January 5th (Three Kings or Epiphany), or the Twelfth Night. In some cultures, it is believed to be bad luck to take down Christmas decor before the Twelfth Night.

Because my family has no Christmas traditions, I just enjoy myself getting creative with Christmas decor. When you're too lazy to put up a tree, or your apartment is too small to accommodate a real Christmas tree, then these pearly capiz cone-shaped topiaries would make a festive table accent.

Posted for Ruby Tuesday

" Always leave something to wish for; otherwise, you will be miserable from your very happiness."

~ Baltasar Gracian

Ruby Tuesday: Captivating capiz

Everything in this photo is made from capiz shell---from the chandelier, to the vases and bowls, the plates at the background to the pedestal where the red vase and bowls are displayed. Capiz or windowpane oyster is a bivalve shell of a mollusk with smooth translucent and shiny interior. The meat is eaten and the shells are turned into these captivating pieces of home accessories.

Posted for Ruby Tuesday

Photo-Hunt: painted capiz

These decorative figurines were crafted from tin, laminated with capiz shell and hand-painted. Exquisitely painted, these semi-flat figurines were mounted on MDF base and stand approximately 12 inches tall. Designed by a Filipino designer, these have been exported to US and Europe. I have been working with this medium for so long but I wasn't aware until recently that tin figurines are some of the most precious and hard-to-find collectibles. Reproductions are easily found in tourist souvenir shops and flea markets, but the originals are highly prized.

a Geisha

Bull-fighters

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Photo-Hunter: Stripes

Photo hunting for week's theme has yielded all kinds of stripes from my archive. I hope you'd agree that this quirky accent chair is a stripe. The egg-shaped body is a metal frame wrapped in black-dyed abaca fiber. It's quite comfy for somebody my size, but definitely not for a tall person.

shabby chic decorative wood jars
can be used as a rolling pin or a deadly weapon

laminated capiz shell plates
lead-free and food-safe

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Ruby Tuesday: homegrown

I'm busy as a bee, up to my eyeballs with work. Fortunately, I have some photos in my archive for Ruby Tuesday. Above is a red capiz vase from a showroom I visited, and below is a bunch of pale red anthurium in a bone china vase. Capiz, also called windowpane oyster (or lampirong in Ilonggo), is a marine mollusk found in shallow coastal waters in the Philippines. Its meat is edible, and the shells are semi-transparent, pearlized flat disks that can be molded into almost anything---from home decor to light fixtures, fashion accessories, bathroom panels and furniture. It is a versatile material and essentially, its design possibilities are virtually limitless.

Anthuriums are grown throughout the country, mostly in greenhouses with computerized fertigation facilities. The floriculture industry is rapidly growing and the increasing demand in the domestic market has attracted hobbyists to turn their hobbies into profitable business.

Posted for Ruby Tuesday