Featured

Dear Paper: A Whimsy Design Story

Being halfway the year still means that there are more seasons to come—seasons of giving and celebrations. Katrina Paray’s personalized gift wrapping paper and cards are perfect for these occasions.

Being halfway the year still means that there are more seasons to come—seasons of giving and celebrations.

Before the social media’s electronic greetings, we had stationeries and we all received birthday cards when we were younger. But beyond this, we were most fond of writing our greetings in cards and wrapping our gifts.

This hobby and interest didn’t just stop during childhood for a local graphic designer, Katrina Paray or Kat, as she’s called.

Kat has been in love with papers and typography since her younger years. “I’ve always been into pretty papers… the holidays were also coming up and I wanted to try my hand at wrapping paper, learning and making patterns in school,” she shares.

Her hobby sprouted a start-up business that encompasses papers and personalized greetings.

“After some brainstorming of names, I launched Dear Paper around October 2017. I chose the name ‘Dear’ because I wanted something short and memorable,” she adds.

Gift wrapping papers come with different designs that range from Php to Php 200 per sheet.

According to her, the name of her paper design brand was inspired from the word ‘dear’ that we usually refer to someone or something we love.

“It was also one of the first few words we learn when writing letters, so it seemed apt for the business,” she says.

Kat shared that she had the same business years before as well. “I had closed it down to study abroad for a few years. When I came back last year, I knew I wanted to restart the business but all of my old designs didn’t resonate with me anymore,” she adds.

Gift tags’ minimalist designs are personally made by Kat herself.

Prior to starting up Dear Paper, she decided to create more mature designs. “I decided to rename and create whimsy designs until I had enough to launch,” she states.

Kat’s designs touch her customers’ souls through personalized stationeries and other paper products. Her interest in pretty papers also gave birth to minimalist designs. According to her, Dear Paper’s edge is its twist of “whimsy and good typography”.

Currently, her products include gift wrapping paper, prints, note cards, gift tags, and money envelopes. These products can be personalized and customized as well.

Wrappers and note cards range from Php 100 to Php 200 only. Prints and gift tags range from Php 25 to Php 100 only. Lastly, money envelopes can be bought for at least Php 100 only.

Kat admits being a perfectionist. “I have to get out of my own way otherwise things would never be ready. I went through an artist’s block as well but as with most challenges, patience and not giving up always helps, and to take a deep breath and to trust that problems are learning opportunities and that solutions always present themselves,” she adds.

She envisions her designs to go beyond the limits. “I’ll be opening a shop soon in Bonifacio District and will slowly be introducing more design services publicly – things like invitations for parties and weddings,” she plans.

According to Kat, money envelopes that fit cheques aren’t easily available. Her money envelopes range from Php 100 to Php 125 only.

Minimalist designs are trendy, but to Kat, her inspiration is still based on the people’s desires. “A lot of my designs depend on my mood and requests from family and friends,” she says.

The advances of technology sometimes hinder personalized and written thoughts to flow. But just like Kat, the advances also aided her to know more of her creativity.

The combination of the old and the new creates more. Kat’s interest in minimalism and graphic design aids to flourish more of the tradition that aims to help people ponder more on personalized thoughts written on empty sheets of her dear papers.

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Featured

Bringing businesses together: Lalamove paves way for SMEs across the globe to “Make a Winning Move”

The local episode #LalamoveItToWinIt to support MSMEs across PH

To inspire businesses around Asia and Latin America, Lalamove has launched a regional branding campaign “Make a Winning Move” to showcase its various B2B services, strong driver-partner network, and wide-ranging fleet for fast and reliable delivery solutions. Locally, the on-demand delivery platform has kicked off the campaign by inviting its patrons, old and new, to #LalamoveItToWinIt.

Now more than ever, businesses are focusing their efforts on an experience-led customer journey. With deliveries as undeniably crucial for businesses to fulfill their services and win over customers, the central creative idea behind the regional campaign revolves around such scenarios where Lalamove’s services and B2B features help entrepreneurs stay ahead of the intense competition.

Lalamove, as the trusted delivery partner, has been servicing businesses of all sizes in the Philippines. Lalamove’s corporate clients can enjoy the on-demand delivery platform’s variety of business solutions, such as multi-stop delivery, API integration, real-time GPS tracking, a wide variety of fleet for on-demand, same-day, long distance, and last-mile delivery, and a dedicated account manager.

“The Philippines has more than 900,000 businesses, over 99% of which are MSMEs. What Lalamove offers businesses of all sizes is faster, easier, and a more seamless delivery experience to help them save time and costs. Our dedicated partner drivers, the economic frontliners of today, are here to deliver to an even wider reach across Luzon and in Cebu. This campaign is the visualization of what we can do to help businesses jump over hurdles – simply put, just ‘Lalamove It to Win It!’” remarked Dannah Majarocon, Lalamove Philippines Managing Director.

First-time users of the Lalamove mobile delivery app can get up to Php 150 off when they sign up and use the code LALAWINIT. New corporate clients, on the other hand, can also receive a welcome bonus of up to Php 1,200 when they sign up and top-up their Lalamove corporate wallet. Moreover, with Lalamove Rewards recently launched, each delivery for every user is now made even more rewarding.

Find out more about what Lalamove offers by visiting www.lalamove.com/lalamoveittowinit, or follow the official Lalamove Facebook page, Instagram account, and TikTok account for more information.

***

ABOUT LALAMOVE

Launched in the Philippines in late 2016, Lalamove is an on-demand logistics company that matches drivers with customers and SME businesses to fulfill same-day deliveries. Lalamove’s mission of making local deliveries faster and simpler across North, Central, and South Luzon, and in Cebu is achieved through innovations such as instant order matching, real-time GPS vehicle tracking, 24/7 services, and a driver rating system. Lalamove also allows businesses to scale their deliveries and operations at an accelerated rate. Lalamove now operates in over 30 markets across Asia and Latin America. Visit Lalamove’s website: http://lalamove.com

Featured

King-size Treats Await Dad this Father’s Day at Seda Central Bloc

Misto Restaurant at Seda Central Bloc

King-size Treats for the King!

by Ryan Daniel R. Dablo

Seda Central Bloc celebrates the hardworking hero and steadfast lynchpin of the home with its offerings for Father’s Day weekend.

At the Misto, Seda’s restaurant, Dad gets to sample the delicious international cuisine for free when dining with five full-paying adults. If an evening dine-out is more the family’s speed, the Straight Up bar offers a dinner buffet with a continental menu and mocktails, all enjoyed amid a backdrop of excellent cityscape views from the rooftop. Staycation at the hotel comes packed with perks for the weekend as well, such as complimentary lunch at the Misto, drinks at the Straight Up bar, and breakfast for two.

Honor your number one hero and highlight the love you have for him this Father’s Day weekend. Celebrate at Seda Central Bloc!

For more information, please call (032) 411 5800. Follow their Facebook page or visit their website at www.sedahotels.com.

Fashion

37 Years of High Fashion; Arcy Gayatin leaves a Legacy of Edginess and Elegance

Arcy Gayatin: A Legacy of Luxury in Fabrication

By: Allain Dumon Fonte

The brand Arcy Gayatin gave the Queen City of the South a distinct reputation in the fashion industry. The fashion line of Arcy Gayatin sets the bar higher each year for clothing luxury and fabrication techniques.

April Duenas, Nikki Gayatin and Arielle Gayatin for Arcy Gayatin—Photos by John Paul Autor from Lifestyle Inquirer.net

Araceli “Arcy” Ancajas Gayatin is the daughter Galileo Ancajas and Remedios Zanoria Ancajas who founded Cebu’s home brand, Gal’s Bakery. Arcy went to the University of San Carlos and studied Political Science. And just like Dr. Muccia Prada, who completed her Ph.D. in Political Science and established the luxury line of Prada, Arcy also got in touch with her artistic side and started her own fashion line. However, it was not Prada that influenced Arcy. Arcy was introduced to fashion and tailoring at a very young age by her mother, Madame Remedios Anacajas whom they dearly call Mama Eme. Mama Eme was running a tailoring business back then. It was called Arabel; named after Arcy and her sister Belma. Ara from Araceli and Bel from Belma. In those years, Arcy was fascinated by fabrics and was intrigued by how to manipulate the fabrics to come up with fashion-forward designs without compromising comfort and taste.

Arcy Gayatin (photo grabbed from Space Philippines Blog Spot)

After 37 years of creating haute couture pieces for the most fashionable personalities in the Philippines, Arcy Gayatin is now laying down her sketchpads and pens to rest. As she enjoys her retirement, may be on a cruise to the Bahamas or a holiday to the Swiss Alps, Arcy Gayatin has left the fashion industry a legacy of elegant and edgy clothing ensembles that understand and define the shape of women; without compromising comfort and good taste.

Arcy Gayatin’s Pink Flamingo collection Arcy Gayatin’s Sketch on a Terno

To salute the lady who brought Cebu fashion to the world, a retrospective exhibition of Arcy’s incomparable masterpieces can be seen today at Ayala Center Cebu’s The Gallery; curated by fashion editor and writer, Clint Holton Potestas, and interior and fashion designer, Jul Oliva.

BALANCE. Arcy Gayatin is known for her perfect symmetrical lines when fabricating. She knows how to balance edginess and class; understanding well the strength and the finesse of a woman.

RHYTHM. Arcy’s expertise in draping and fabric manipulation can be seen in how she achieves rhythm between architectural lines and soft fabrics like silk and cashmere.

TEXTURE. With her thorough knowledge on fabrics, Arcy Gayatin has achieved the perfection of fabrication by working on different types of fabrics and creating a single piece of art out of them.

HARMONY. The simplicity of the silhouette plus the intricacy of the details create a wonderful harmony, making Arcy Gayatin’s design a one-of-a-kind masterpiece.

The photos below show an up-close look at the intricacy and the exquisite craftsmanship of Arcy Gayatin’s fabrication techniques:

THE SPIDER WEB: one of Arcy’s genius fabrication techniques.

MATCH and PATCH: Arcy’s unique fabrication craft by patching layers of different types of lace and lace patterns

PLEATS: The perfection of symmetry in pleats on silk.

LA ROSE BLEUE: U.P. student, Danielle Alessandra Deutsch, inspired by the artistry of Arcy Gayatin, designed this midnight blue dress. The cabbage rose made from layers of silk organdy gave this evening ensemble a romantic appeal.