WINDOW SHOPPER | Walking through WIl Tower Mall

Text and photos by Ana Valenzuela | Lifestyle Section, InterAksyon.com · Saturday, September 21, 2013 · 9:48 am

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The WBR Bar and Restaurant, owned by Willie Revillame, carries the same menu as Wil’s Steak Town, another establishment owned by the TV host. Photo by Ana Valenzuela, InterAksyon.com.

Even though construction is still underway for the WIl Tower Mall, a 42 storey twin tower complex, the mall area opened its doors, welcoming guests to the first four levels of the commercial establishments of the Wil Tower Mall at the Eugenio Lopez Drive, Quezon City. Tower one, is set to turn over by 2014

The mall was formally launched in an exclusive party for VIPS last Sunday September 15. The opening was graced by Vista Land Chairman Manuel Villar, his wife Sen. Cynthia Villar, Imelda Marcos, Dra. Vicky Belo and daughter Cristalle Henares, Ogie Alcasid, and Randy Santiago, among others. The mall opened its door to the public a day after,

Willie Revillame’s Rolls Royce, reportedly the first to be purchased in the country since the British luxury car brand appointed its local dealer this year, is on display in the mall. Photo by Ana Valenzuela, InterAksyon.com.

Currently only two stores are operational, the WBR Bar and Restaurant owned by Willie Revillame and Beyond the Box, a premium Apple reseller. According to the staff, the WBR Bar and restaurant takes off the menu  of another Revillame-owned diner, Wil’s Steak Town. Some of the house specialty includes the Oxtail Kare Kare (for Php450), pizzas, and steaks.

Beyond the Box is another store that is open in the Wil Tower Mall. Photo by Ana Valenzuela, InterAksyon.com.

Other stores that will soon open are Bench, Fila, Bench Fix Salon, Fully Booked, Zapp Laser Skin Care, , Italianni’s, Krazy Garlik, Pho Hoa, My Thai, and Nail Spa. The condo brochure also promises a grocery store. According to our source, everything is set to open by the end of the year.

More stores opening soon. Photo by Ana Valenzuela, InterAksyon.com.

New color technology, more intense shades as Avon launches its Holiday Look 2013

Text by Ana Valenzuela | Photos by Rhoy Cobilla | Lifestyle Section, InterAksyon.com · Thursday, September 12, 2013 · 6:17 pm
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“Pick a feature and go with it—your eyes, your cheeks, just pick one and try to highlight it,” makeup artist Lauren Andersen (in photo, with microphone) said at the recent unveiling of Avon’s newest makeup collection. Photo by Rhoy Cobilla, Interaksyon.com.

A natural look, “blend-ability” and texture, consistency of color, and less need to retouch are some of the things women look for in a makeup. Avon, which has been in the country for 35 years now, thought of nothing but just that when it recently launched its newest campaign, You Make it Beautiful and a new product line that took three years to develop at the Mindanao Ballroom in the Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila.

The newest makeup line has been formulated with True Color Technology by Avon, which shows off the intensity of the shades, assuring the wearer of a longer lasting eyeshadow, lipstick or lip gloss.

The company for women invited makeup artist Lauren Andersen, who flew in from New York and stopped by the country amidst the monsoon rains. Andersen has been named as Avon’s Global Celebrity Makeup Artist with Hollywood A-listers like Jessica Alba, Madonna, Kate Beckinsale, and Nicole Richie as some of her clients.

Brand ambassador Anne Curtis was on hosting duties as she presented the newest Avon makeup collection. Photo by Rhoy Cobilla, Interaksyon.com.

Anne Curtis, an Avon brand ambassador, was on hosting duties for the night, and she got into a small chitchat with Andersen on how she came to love the brand. Apparently, the blonde beauty had grown up with the brand as her mother was an Avon lady. “Some of my earliest memories playing with makeup are with Avon products,” Andersen recalled. “My passion for beauty began with Avon and I’m excited to continue my journey with the brand as they debut an innovative Avon color collection.”

Joining the two on the couch was Lisa Lamberty, Director of Avon’s New Product Innovation Department, whose job is to put on and try all sorts of lipsticks and mascaras all day. Lamberty shared that this new collection of eye shadow, True Color Eyeshadow Quad has exactly what every woman is looking for, a shade that stays throughout the day.

Avon Makeup Collection’s latest line features True Color Technology, which took three years of research and development. Photo by Rhoy Cobilla, InterAksyon.com.

“We created a crystal-clear technology, with the base and the binder in the eye shadow and we incorporated polymers that help the color last through the day,” she disclosed.

Makeup artist to Hollywood A-listers Lisa Lamberty shows how to create the smokey eye makeup by slightly wetting the makeup brush and dipping it into the eyeshadow powder for more impact. Photo by Rhoy Cobilla, Interaksyon.com.

Yet, it is not only the powder that is innovative, as Andersen complimented the packaging with its step-by-step application education, “the numbers literally tells us which color goes where,” Andersen put in, “creating your looks is so easy and fun.” She demonstrated how simple it really is, as later on during the event, she dolled up a model with nothing but the True Color Eyeshadow quad with the Chocolate Sensation shade.

During the presentation, Curtis said she loved the look, and would love to try it on her noontime show, as she does her own makeup. But there is something that this TV host/actress loves more. The animated Curtis needed no cue cards in confessing how she adores lipstick “One thing you ladies know if you follow me on Instagram is that I am such a lipstick monster. My favorite color is Lava Love, I love red,” she revealed.

Avon Makeup Collection’s latest shades are made more intense with a new color technology. Photo by Rhoy Cobilla, InterAksyon.com.

With more than 50 sticks of different shades of red, pink and nude, the new Ultra Color lipstick minimizes chapped lips as it is infused with a lip nourishing formula. “We incorporated self-renewing pigments and Shea Butter to help with the moisturization,” Lamberty said. “We put ingredients such as Vitamin E, Omega oil and Arctic Berry.”

The Ultra Glazewear Lip Gloss has also been infused with Shea Butter, Vitamin E, Omega Oil, and Arctic Berry.

“I am a big lipstick junkie, I feel like it is the fastest way to dress up anything. If I am tired you will know it because I’ll wear the brightest loudest lip color, because I want everyone to think the opposite. It’s a great way to disguise it,” Andersen shared.

At the unveiling of Avon’s latest makeup collection, from left: Lauren Andersen, Avon’s Global Celebrity Makeup Artist; Lisa Lamberty, Director of Avon’s New Product Innovation Department; Bob Briddon, Avon’s SVP and President for Asia Pacific and Philippines and Anne Curtis share the stage together. Photo by Rhoy Cobilla, Interaksyon.com.

The night ended with Curtis showing off Avon’s newest TVC, part of the brand’s new You Make it Beautiful campaign. “Our products are designed to bring out what is naturally beautiful about you,” concluded Bob Briddon, Avon’s SVP and President for Asia Pacific and Philippines. “But ultimately, what we want to remind women through this campaign is that it’s their uniqueness that creates the impact that can’t be forgotten.”

Cant’ focus in school or at work? Could be Iron Deficiency Anemia

By Ana Valenzuela | Lifestyle Section, InterAksyon.com · Thursday, September 12, 2013 · 11:40 am

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Women who work long hours, lack sleep, and tend to bleed heavily during their menstrual periods could benefit from taking an iron supplement. Photo courtesy of Sangiobon.

Ever notice yourself shifting thoughts all of a sudden and forgetting words, your head throbbing hard with a headache, and already feeling tiredness even without exerting that much physical effort. Worse, you look pale and are short of breath. Chances are, the signs—lack of focus, pallor, fatigue, shortness of breath, and vertigo—all point to anemia.

Although there are many types of anemia, Dr. Corazon Zaida N. Gamilla, UST OB-GYN Department Chairman stressed in a recent press conference that, “Iron Defiance Anemia (IDA) is most existing, most changeable, and corrective.”

She added that our body needs iron as this vital mineral creates hemoglobin, found in red blood cells and myoglobin, found in muscles. Iron also transmits oxygen from the lungs throughout the rest of the body. When our body lacks iron functioning of certain organs will be affected.

Studies show that iron deficiency is prevalent in younger women, or those who have started with their menstrual period especially those who tend to bleed heavily, those who are in the reproductive age group—pregnant women and lactating women—and the elderly age group. This condition cannot be ignored by women. It weakens their physical ability, and if they are pregnant, it adds risk to the baby that they are carrying.

Women need 12 milligrams of iron per day, however Dr. Gamilla emphasized that women’s needs differ according to their lifestyles and needs. A career woman who keeps an erratic schedule and does not eat well and on time may need more iron in her body. A normal pregnant woman, who eats for two or three due to multiple pregnancies, will need twice the amount of her iron demand.

Dr. Gamilla also disclosed that one’s diet, sports or exercise habits, and genes may predispose development of IDA. The ob-gyn cites a vegan diet as an example, “When you go into a very strict vegan diet, for instance, you have to know that there is risk involved,” she says.

That is why one has to make up with iron-rich foods, and other vitamins and minerals that are lacking in your diet. She also mentioned that those who are into sports are the prototype of women who have IDA.

Iron supplements can help treat iron deficiency anemia or IDA.

Dr. Gamila said that IDA can be easily treated by adding iron in your diet, getting enough sleep and exercise, and taking an iron supplement. Iron can be found in everyday foods such as red meat, egg, liver, oatmeal, and nuts. Getting six hours of sleep is not only great for the body but it is a cure for IDA.

Dr. Gamilla warned that the norm of six hours should be during night time. She adds, “catnaps are powerhouses because it reinforces your body, but it does not take the place of the nocturnal sleep.”

Another booster for IDA is taking an iron supplement. One of the most potent reliefs for IDA, Sangobion can turn anyone into an “iron lady” as it helps restore the body’s lost iron reserves. This chocolate-scented capsule contains other vitamins and minerals such as Vitamin C, Folic Acid, Vitamin B12, Copper Sulfate and Manganese Sulfate.

“In order to cope, women need to pay attention to their health. When signs of fatigue, paleness, as well as lack of focus and energy start to show, it could be telling sigs of iron deficiency anemia,” Dr. Gamilla shares. “Iron and health is something that is not very abstract, taking the right amount of iron in one’s diet is something that one can easily strive for.”

City after dark: Manila Night Market opens for dry run

Text by Ana Valenzuela | Photos by Romsanne Ortiguero and Arman Clemente | Lifestyle Section, InterAksyon.com · Saturday, August 17, 2013 · 1:30 pm

As soon as the sun set on Friday, August 16, the crowd of shoppers and vendors on Recto Avenue corner Juan Luna street in Manila were already in pandemonium. It was the first night of the Manila Night Market, a solution created by Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada to decongest Divisoria and to continue giving opportunities to vendors who were displaced in the process of clearing out the sidewalks and streets during daytime. The night market is open everyday from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.

“Alis kayo dyan, para makalatag na sila! (Get out of the way so they can set up already!),” some volunteers and policemen were shouting, calling out to pedestrians so the fruits and vegetables vendors can set up their stalls. And as the surrounding malls and commercial centers were preparing to close their shops, almost a hundred vendors lined up their stalls along Recto Avenue and Juan Luna Street.

There was even news that Mayor Joseph Estrada will be there. True enough, at around 7 p.m Mayor Estrada arrived in a black SUV, creating more madness along Recto, the center of Tondo and Binondo.

Mayor Estrada made his way through the thick crowd of vendors and consumers who were calling out, “Mayor, Mayor!” trying to get a shot of him with their mobile phones. Others gave their complaints, expressing the less than expected number of shoppers at the night market. After a few minutes of shaking hands with a few purveyors, Estrada stayed for a few photo ops while some members of media got to interview him.

View of the Manila night market during its first evening, August 16, 2013. Photo by Arman Clemente, InterAksyon.com.

Experimental stage
Mayor Estrada articulated that this is all under dry run, and that the night market is still under observation. Vice Mayor Isko Moreno revealed that the area was chosen as the venue initially for a few weeks only so that the vendors will have access going to Juan Luna and Abad Santos Streets. “We would like to emulate the night market in Hong Kong, which has organized vending so that the likes of kotong, lagay, may mga patong sa mga manininda will be eliminated,” Moreno revealed. “This is all experimental, so that the government can recognize these sidewalk vendors as an industry, and so now we can start regulating them.”

When the mayor left, more goods started to come in, with trucks making their way on one end of Recto Avenue, where the drop-off point of the fruits and vegetables has been designated. Majority of the vendors at the night market were selling fruits and vegetables from Baguio. There were also vendors offering balut and other street foods. Only a few were selling dry goods such as kitchen wares and clothes.

Airconditioned malls like 168 Mall and New Divisoria Mall offer convenience but nothing compares to checking out Divisoria’s sidewalk vendors for a wide range of items. Juan Luna, for instance, has stalls selling everything from party favors, toys, t-shirts, underwear, to mobile gadget accessories. You can find fresh vegetables on the stalls along Sto. Cristo Street; and candies, candles, and baking equipment on Sto. Cristo Street; and hair accessories on Planas Street.

The Divisoria streetscape may soon change permanently with the Manila Night Market project of the city government.

A street vendor sells garments on the first evening of the Manila night market, August 16, 2013. Photo by Romsanne Ortiguero, InterAksyon.com.

Initial confusion
There was confusion during the first night since the old set-up along Juan Luna and Abad Santos Streets had two shifts followed by sidewalk vendors. Merchants during daytime used to vacate their area come night time to give way to the evening vendors. Now, with these streets cleared for traffic during daytime, the former daytime peddlers were caught in a quandary that had them figuring out how they can squeeze their stalls between the evening vendors.

A woman named Ressa, who has a t-shirt sidewalk stall in front of Tutuban Mall since 1974, revealed that she has only started selling at night time along with the other retailers due to the ordinance of Erap that there will be no street vendors during daytime. She is reluctant in moving to the new spot designated for the night market. She told InterAksyon.com. “Lahat ng stall may manininda na noon pa. Nagtitinda na ako sa Divisoria since 1974 tapos papalipatin pa kami. Hindi ko magagawa yon. Mahirap.” (“Each spot already has a designated retailer, I have been vending my goods here since 1974, and then someone asks me to vacate my spot. I just can’t do that. It’s difficult.”)

One of the hawkers that Ressa was talking about is Mary Ann Tupas, 22, who sells onions and has been in charge of the stall since she was 14. She shared that there are a different set of vendors from morning to night, making retailers fight for the same spot that they share. Still, with this new ordinance of Erap there have also been new improvements, “there were many things that changed all thanks to Mayor Estrada, the street lights here at Recto were implemented, plus it became cleaner.”

One shopper at the night market, Maricel from Marikina, bought artificial flowers. She shared that it has been some time since she has been to Divisoria and she was curious about the new night market. “It’s more spacious compared to the one in Divisoria,” she shared. “But, compared to the Marikina Christmas Bazaar, the one in Marikina is more organized. Plus, They are more strict there when it comes to implementing rules. Using plastic bags, for example, are not allowed and both the buyer and seller shall be fined if they violate this rule.”

Even though the night market is still on a dry run, the city government made sure security is visible as policemen from Manila Station 2 and Station 11 made the rounds.

“We have already set up our security deployment,” said Wilson Doromal, commander of Station 11 “This is to help the people and the vendors, and also to man the traffic. We have a tent where people can can report or air their concerns.”

Doromal shared that this is all experimental, and if the night market will be a regular stint, they will adjust their scheme. Hopefully, the beginning of the night market will kickstart a more organized Divisoria shopping district, especially when the “ber” months, the start of the holiday shopping season, begin next month.

One of the few vendors selling garments at the Manila Night Market. Photo by Romsanne Ortiguero, InterAksyon.com.

For more: http://www.interaksyon.com/lifestyle/slideshow-city-after-dark-manila-night-market-opens-for-dry-run

WINDOW SHOPPER | Stylish Toshiba laptops to go with your dressy look, geeky pursuits

Text by Ana Valenzuela | Lifestyle Section, InterAksyon.com · Thursday, July 18, 2013 · 1:26 pm

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Mr. Hairul Bin Ibrahim, Asst. Manager, Product Manager, Toshiba Singapore Pte Ltd; Mr. Tomoyasu Yamamoto, President, Toshiba (Philippines) Inc. holds the Portege Z10t. Photo by Ana Valenzuela, InterAksyon.com.

Still thinking which laptop best suits your taste and lifestyle? After results of numerous studies by Toshiba revealed that one thing users truly value is “elegant design,” the company wasted no time creating stylish new models that combine both aesthetics and functionality. Each new design was also tailor-made for particular lifestyles.

A thin detachable laptop, the Portege Z10 is also a tablet featuring a bright 11.6-inch full HD touch display. Photo courtesy of Toshiba Philippines.

Businessman’s delight: the Portégé Z10t
Just right for people on the go or those whose job requires a lot of presentation, impress your clients or boss with The Portege Z10t. It has a thin detachable laptop and tablet feature with a bright 11.6-inch full HD touch display, and is powered by Windows 8 Pro.

Enjoy the massive power of a full-fledged Ultrabook™ and the portability of a tablet weighing only 850 grams. With its combined laptop PC and tablet designs, the Portégé Z10t is ideal for executive and frequent travellers.

The Satellite S40 offers students an all-new sophisticated and significantly thinner design packed with high definition multimedia and entertainment-optimized features for greater everyday computing power. Photo courtesy of Toshiba.

Social media and the student: Satellite S40 series
Type away that midterm paper and, at the same time, stay connected with friends through your social media accounts with the Satellite S40 series, made up of the S40t and S40Dt.

These models with its 14.1-inch HD display, up to 750GB HDD storage, integrated Optical Disk Drive, DTS® Sound™ and built-in Onkyo speakers offers students an all-new sophisticated and significantly thinner design encased in an eye-catching brushed aluminium ice metallic silver finish, packed with high definition multimedia and entertainment-optimized features for greater everyday computing power.

The S40 features a 10-point touch display that makes navigating and controlling a laptop as convenient and intuitive as using a tablet or smartphone. The Satellite S40Dt is available for PhP31,990, while the Satellite S40t sells for PhP42,990.

The Satellite L40 lets everyday users enjoy high quality multimedia and content creation. Photo courtesy of Toshiba.

Everyday techies can get sleek: Satellite L40 and L50 Series
Toshiba’s Satellite L40 and L50 series is the way to go. These notebooks allow everyday users to effectively perform their daily computing tasks while providing them the power to enjoy high quality multimedia and content creation.

Noteworthy features of the Satellite L40 series include HD display with LED backlighting, NVIDIA® Optimus™ technology, integrated Optical Disk Drive, DTS® Sound™, built-in Onkyo speakers, and Toshiba Resolution+ technology. The Satellite L40D sells for PhP28,990 and the Satellite L40 for PhP37,990.

Movie geek and occasional gamers’ companion: Satellite P50 and P50t
Its big 15.6-inch full HD display  is enough to satisfy anyone enjoys watching their favorite movies or playing their usual games on their laptop. The Satellite P series, comprised of the Satellite P50 and P50t runs in a fourth-generation Haswell processor, GeForce GT 745M, a framebuffer of 4GB, and an optical drive.

Aside from that, both the P50 and P50t come equipped with, an enlarged click touchpad and two Harman Kardon® speakers, making your viewing and gaming experience quite an adventure. The Satellite P50t sells for PhP49,990 and the Satellite P50 for PhP62,990.

Gamers will enjoy red-colored Qosmio X70′s powerful graphics and sound features. Photo courtesy of Toshiba.

Seriously, for gamers: Qosmio X70
Gamers want the best performance, speed, graphics, sound quality, and connectivity. That is why this laptop with its 17.3-inch full HD display with an 8-millisecond response time will blow them away.

With a gaming hardware under its hood, the Qosmio X70 is powered by a fourth-generation Intel Core processor and comes equipped with 16GB of RAM. Its dedicated GeForce GTX 770M graphics card comes with up to 3GB of GDDR5 video RAM, and is NVIDIA®’s second most powerful mobile GPU to date.

Plus, let the sounds excite you with this computer’s four integrated Harman Kardon® stereo speakers that handle the X70’s sound, with a 6-watt output of DTS Studio Sound. The Qosmio X70 comes in an attractive and distinct red aluminium color. All this and more for a selling price of PhP129,990.

All Toshiba PCs and tablets are backed by Toshiba’s extensive service and support. The company’s SelectServ Program allows users to customize their notebook’s warranty coverage, depending on their budget and needs. For more information, visit Toshiba’s webiste.