Outdoor Kitchen

Two days ago, we just hosted a BBQ party at home as per request of my son for his simple birthday party.  He wanted to get away with the traditional snack parties where we usually cook spaghetti, fried chicken, shanghai rolls, fried rice, salads and sandwiches.  This time, we tried to host a BBQ party where the guests would have the opportunity to cook their own foods.  We set up our outdoor space in the garage area for the small party.  We put up some tables and chairs plus a BBQ pit and we brought out our electric cooker for the "beef nilaga" wherein the beef cubes were already precooked minus the veggies.  We cut and prepare the veggies in a nice large tray so that the guests will help themselves to add up the veggies one at a time in the boiling broth.  We also prepared the rice wrapped in banana leaves ala "binalot" and the guests were thrilled to eat with their bare hands.  I was convinced that this kind of party will bring more fun so I gave in with the idea and we didn't regret it at all.  I was just thinking that should we have the chance, I would like to put up a more organized outdoor kitchen permanently in an outdoor space at home.

Three designs courtesy of hgtv had caught my attention and I found these designs so lovely:

But I prefer the simplicity of the first one. :)  The second one is cool and elegant but requires a larger space and would definitely be more costly.

But if you have the budget and a large space in your yard, why not try this one?

This one is beautiful but quite lavish.  If you can afford it, then go for it!  If not, then consider using your creative hands trying to design a simple yet functional outdoor kitchen.  Remember, it doesn't have to be costly.  You may be surprised that simple things can very well be converted into a wonderful work of art just by being creative. :) 

Personalized Shirts

It's nearly Christmas time and every employee gets excited thinking on what would be their company's annual Christmas Give Away.  I'm sure  a lot of companies had been very busy now preparing for their annual corporate give aways. The most common stuff that I used to see and receive as well are calendars, mugs, umbrellas, wall clocks and of course, customized t-shirts bearing the company logo.  Our company used to hire a graphic designer before to design the lay out and the logo for the t-shirts.  Of course, they wanted to have the best for their annual corporate give away.

Browsing online, I was surprised to see some custom t shirts here.  Now, having a customized t-shirt is just as easy as 1,2,3.  A plain and simple t-shirt can now be transformed into a wonderful work of art using an online t-shirt designer.  Even if you are not a professional t-shirt designer, designing your custom made shirts is now very easy and affordable, too.  This online designer is user friendly and very easy to navigate.  If you want to try designing some shirts for whatever event that you have at home or at school, you can log on to their website and try the online t-shirt designer.  You may also want to visit Shirtmagic on Facebook for more information.

Try designing your own personalized shirts now.  It's fun!

Done With Christmas Decors

We're officially done with our Christmas decors at home!  My kids and I decided to have these put up early since we are going for a week vacation in Bangkok.  By the time they come back home, it's the reopening of classes again so they wouldn't have the time to attend to this anymore.  Besides, it's more fun if we could do it together while I am still here at the house.  Next month, I would be going back to work and I don't want to miss the opportunity of doing it with my kids as this is one of the bonding activities that we used to do even before.

Anyway, we used to have simple decorations only.  We normally decorate our terrace only as this is the front of the house.  A simple Christmas tree plus some Christmas lights around the house completes the decorations.  This year, I would admit we had done this as simple as possible as I won't be home for Christmas.  So sad but it's a fact that I have to face.  But I would make sure that I would be home for Christmas next year.  Anyway, even if I won't be home comes December, at least I have felt the Christmas spirit by doing the simple Christmas decorations at home.  That would be enough for now. :(

Corporate Parties

Since Christmas season is fast approaching, the next thing that will make every one busy is holding Christmas Parties.  When I was still working in the Philippines before, this is the most awaited event of the year.  Our CEO would ask the top management to come up with ideas for the traditional Christmas Party.  Of course, aside from the usual raffle draws for the employees and the lavish food preparations, the most awaited event of the year is the inter department competitions in dance, song and production numbers.  As early as October, some department were already busy in conceptualizing what would be their contest entry for the upcoming celebration.  Our Human Resources Department had always been busy preparing the venue and the program for the event.  We used to rent a complete sound system but I think it would had been a lot better if we had a live band.  

Now a days, it's easy to have one in big parties as there are already drum samples which we can purchase online.  This can make our parties even more memorable.  It's being used on high end studios but can be used on home studios, too.  I'm getting amazed with the advancement in technology.  Everything is now made possible in just simple steps.

Asian Inspired Divider

When I was about to take my flight back to the Philippines last Oct 7 from Siem Riep Cambodia, I chanced upon this nicely decorated restaurant inside the airport. Having an eye for good interior designs and a great love for Asian inspired decors, I suddenly fell in love with this wonderful work of art! An improvised divider adorned with some pieces of bamboo sticks against a clear glass panel.  The nicely designed peach colored ceiling lamps complement the Asian inspired divider. Cool!

Whenever I choose a design especially if it's for my own house, I have a number of requirements:

 

• It should be unique.
• Can be modified.
• Made of readily available materials.
• With an Asian touch.
• Cool and appealing to the eyes.
• Affordable. 

How about you guys? What do like for your house decors? :) 

Why Do We Have To Buy A Property?

When I was chatting with my staff and colleagues at work a month ago, one of the topics we've discussed is about buying properties.  Some of my colleagues (non Filipinos) commented that there is no way for them to buy a house until that they get married unless that they would be able to marry a very rich man.  My eyes had grown wide in big astonishment? Why???

According to one of them, buying a home in their country is very hard to do if you are only an ordinary employee.  The price of the lot is really really high and nobody could afford to buy one at this time. They told me that in case they marry, they just have to stay with the parents of the guy. I was very surprised! I feel lucky that in the Philippines, buying a home could still be a reality.  In fact, even the ordinary employees could afford to buy one through in house financing such as PAG IBIG and SSS.  Some real estate developers are also offering reasonable payment terms.  

In buying a house, we have to choose the right location and the right price that could suit our budget.  It is also very important to consider the broker so that we could be assured that we are in good hands.  In other countries, it's not very hard to choose a reliable one.  Consider buying from reputable companies and you could be assured of a quality property and the best deal in town.

In the end buying a property is still a good investment to consider.  It is something that everybody should look forward to.  It is something that appreciates in value over the years.  I'm glad that I've made a good decision in the past. :)

Putting Up Christmas Decors

Have you already started with your Christmas decorations at home? Sad to say, we haven't yet!  I think we still need to do a lot of cleaning in the house before we can start to decorate.  According to my kids, our house is already clean, well...according to their standard (lol).  But my son commented that I have a higher standard when it comes to orderliness and cleanliness at home. :)  But what can I do? I love my home so much that I always wanted to keep it clean, pleasant and tidy.  Who wouldn't like to stay in a house which is so "homey" and a comfortable place to live in?  After all it's our permanent dwelling, isn't it?

Well.. blame it to "Habagat".  There's a lot of molds in the house especially in the ceiling so we really have to do a clean up first before we can start decorating.  Hopefully, we can start to put up some decorations before we left for our Bangkok vacation. :) 

Reviving Your Home Patio Furniture

I was very happy to see my home sweet home again after 6 months of staying abroad. However, I was a bit disappointed to what constant raining had done to our outdoor space. The used to be white ceiling in our patio has gone a little bit black because of the molds brought about by typhoon and heavy rains. Even our patio furniture looks awful now.  It disappoint me a bit knowing that Christmas is coming very soon.  I wanted to bring our patio back to life and I am thinking of doing some cleaning and repainting of our ceiling and patio furniture.

Actually, I didn't expect that our patio furniture will look like this.  I knew that it wouldn't be a s good as how it used to be when I left home last March but I also didn't expect that it would be worn out this much.  Well, knowing myself, I couldn't afford to neglect things in the house.  I always make sure that my humble home is always well kept and maintained.  I want to keep it looking good and tidy not only for the family visitors but for our own eyes, as well.  I used to say this and I wouldn't mind saying again, it's really relaxing when you stay in a clean, well organized and pleasant home.   It keeps me away from stress somehow and I feel more energized to work and write.  Well, I am thinking of just hiring the services of some experts on patio furniture repair.

My husband is not around at the moment and I don't want to mess up with the job.  Hiring a professional to do this kind of delicate job is far better as this can give us a great amount of satisfaction.  What do we get from hiring the experts?  

Well, we could be assured that our furniture will look like new, we can update our furniture design,  we can save 70% of the expenses in buying new set of furniture, it's convenient as the furniture will be picked up and delivered right in your door steps and lastly, it is good for the environment.  Another important consideration is that the workmanship comes with a warranty.  This can make us relaxed as we are assured that our furniture will be handled by highly qualified and trained staff and that our furniture will be handled with much care and consideration.

Well, I'm certain that after I had done the much needed repair and repainting of our patio furniture, my little outdoor space will be back to life again.  Couldn't wait to see it back to "good shape".  

After all, it has been my favorite spot in the house! 

 

Lovely Garden Set

This is another cool design of garden set..  I took this photo during my recent visit to Chantaburi, Thailand. This garden set is situated on one part of the pool area of the hotel.  This is made of concrete cement carved to resemble huge rocks and tree branches.  Since this is made of concrete cement, it can withstand any kind of weather, so it's ideal for outdoors.