Havaianas Filipinas Collection Perfect for Independence Day

Fashion has become an avenue to express love for one’s country. As nationalism meets style, the Philippine archipelago, faces of former presidents, heroes, and other national icons are now widely used as designs to convey patriotic statements. And with more Filipinos around the world giving us reason to banner national pride, Havaianas is giving Havaianaticos another trendy option to showcase Philippine pride.

Since 2006, Havaianas has honored the Philippines’ rich and colorful culture with designs that embody the spirit of Filipino pride. This June, Havaianas joins the country as it celebrates its 113th year of independence with the release of this year’s Limited Edition Havaianas Filipinas Collection.

“This year’s Limited Edition Havaianas Filipinas Collection hopes to reflect happiness, carefree fashion, and good memories with the playful use of color and inventive patterns. These attitudes truly match the Filipino culture and even the brand’s cheery personality,” says Anne Gonzalez, Managing Director of Havaianas Philippines.

The Limited Edition 2011 Havaianas Filipinas Collection chose to play with the colors of the national flag. With the dazzling shades of blue, red, yellow, and white, fused with contemporary, street-graffiti prints, the result is a modern yet decidedly nationalistic fashion statement, letting all fashionable Havaianaticos walk as one.

Filipinos from Luzon can literally wear their heritage at their feet with Havaianas Filipinas Yellow, with the name “Luz” imprinted on its soles amid artistic splashes of red and blue. Meanwhile, Visayans can flaunt their nationalism loud and proud with Havaianas Filipinas Red. With intense red straps adorned with the same engraved flag and Havaianas logo, the name “Vis” is printed across its red soles, complemented with vibrant shades of blue and yellow. Those hailing from Mindanao can walk patriotically in Havaianas Filipinas Blue, with lively cobalt soles that feature the name “Min” accented with bright colors of red and yellow.

Each pair’s well-crafted strap carries a unique rendition of the Philippine flag engraved with “Pinas” next to the distinctive Havaianas logo.

Refreshing, stylish, and artistically crafted for all proud and fashionable Filipino Havaianaticos, this year’s Limited Edition 2011 Havaianas Filipinas Collection will arrive in stores on June 12, 2011.

Get your hands on all 3 designs of the Limited Edition 2011 Havaianas Filipinas Collection, available in All Flip-Flops, Celio, Complex, Duty Free Philippines Fiesta Mall, Gas, KidSports, Manila Polo Club, Moana, ROX, Rustan's, Stoked, Tick Tock Flip Flop NAIA Terminal 3, and Urban Athletics. For provincial outlets, visit www.havaianas.com

Empty Promises

Image courtesy of www.crosspoint.tv

Before you read this story, I must warn you that I only used the pronouns “he” and “she” to refer to the two main characters in this highly controversial story. It might be confusing for some of you but I could not think of a better way to refer to them. Please bear with me.

When she started hanging out with him, he told her that he has been physically separated from his wife for nearly four months. According to him, his wife left him to be with someone else in another city. The only reason why she agreed to continue seeing him was because he repeatedly assured her that his marriage was over. He even told her that while his wife was far away from him, he would only receive SMS messages from her asking about the details for the legal separation.

One day while he was spending some time in the North, the wife arrived to hand him the separation papers for him to sign. When the wife left, he showed the documents to her and told her to be patient because rather than focusing on the separation, he had to set his mind on a very important upcoming event. She did not want to get in his way so she told him that it was best that they stop seeing each other. He refused and told her that she did not care enough for him. He wanted her present wherever he went and when she mentioned that she was not comfortable being seen with him, he would question her love for him.

He was a very possessive lover and that's why he instructed her to quit show business. He would send text messages to guys who are interested with her telling them to back off. He wanted their relationship to be out in the open but she protested.

He promised her everything. He told her that as soon as the separation has been finalized, he would eventually marry her. He would even tell her not to feel guilty because that it was his wife who initiated the separation to begin with.

The day when event was over, he went to her very upset telling her that his wife was crying because the cameras were all over. He also told her that his wife’s confidants have been advising his wife to stay in marriage to get more money out of him. In so doing the wife will be able to prevent him from legally being with her. The whole thing took a different turn when the media noticed her presence in his life. After the news exploded, she asked him again about the separation and he told her that he will just attend to the matter after the election.

After the election was over, she finally accepted that no separation was going to happen between him and his wife. He was shocked when she decided to stop seeing him. He tried asking her back but there was nothing that he could have done. She could no longer take all his empty promises. To add insult to injury, she later found out that he was also dating a Mexican girl from the USA while they were still together.

Since she is completely out of the picture, he and his wife continued to paint a picture perfect family to the public. What the public does not know is that he recently got another young mestiza girl pregnant. She is expected to have his baby in the next few months. He also has another son that is currently residing in the USA with his mother who used to be a hotel receptionist.

Do you know who are the characters involved in this story? Follow micsylim on twitter to get additional clues. Please continue to email your stories to michaelsylim@gmail.com.

The Twitter Revelation

Image courtesy of blog.umass.edu

They fell in love with each other on the set of a reality singing competition of a major network that was hosted by a veteran singer. Since the network was grooming her to become the next big singing star, she was advised by the network not to enter into any serious relationship. She keept her relationship with this male singer as a secret. They were not allowed to be seen in public so the guy would just visit her in their house.

One day, the male singer was devastated when he read a tweet from a Filipino-Canadian guy who informed him that the female singer was two-timing them. According to his tweets, she has the same term of endearment for the two of them and even sends them identical BBM messages and photos. When the male singer found out about this, he immediately broke up with her and twitted her “I hope you are happy with what you did!” Since then, they stopped seeing each other and “unfollowed” each other on twitter.

Do you know who these two new singers are? The male singer already moved to a competing network and appeared in the Pinoy version of a Korean telenovela. Follow micsylim on twitter to get additional clues. Please continue to email your stories to michaelsylim@gmail.com.

Letter from a Reader: The Swatch Complaint

Image courtesy of www.topnews.in

Dear Fashion PULIS,

I thought of sending you this story while I was reading your blog. The post where you showed the SM price tag scam inspired me to write my frustration regarding the customer service of Swatch.

It has been a week of feeling frustrated over the after-sales service of Swatch for me. I am from Iloilo, a province from the Visayas. I bought a Swatch March of last year when I went to Cebu. After a few months of use, I observed that gave me the wrong time from time to time.

When I went back to Cebu October last year, I had the watch check by the store. The lady checked the battery and it was fine. She advised me to leave it for 3 weeks for observation. I did not agree because I had to go back to Iloilo and they refused send the watch via LBC after the 3 week observation period.

The watch got permanently busted last February 2011. By busted I mean no movement for the second’s hand. I called the Manila Swatch service center about it. They said they will check the watch provided that the three conditions will be met:

1. Hand in the watch personally or through someone I know.
2. Leave the watch for 2-3 weeks for "proper" observation.
3. Pick up the watch from them after the 2-3 week "proper" observation period.

Since I had no way of going to Manila and I do not know of someone I could ask to help me fulfill the 3 condition, I felt no reason to despair because I had another full year left of warranty.

The lady who took my call also gave me hope when she told me that she understood that I could stay longer than 3-5 days if ever I go to Manila. I believe she said that she could bypass the rules and give me special consideration. After the phone call, I was still hopeful and decided that I would just wait for the time when I have a scheduled trip to Manila.

I was happy when I heard that my tita was scheduled to fly to Manila on May 28, but she will just stay there for just 3 days. Before she flew to Manila and go to Swatch, I made sure to call the service center. I informed them about my situation and the fact that I can't leave my watch for 2-3 weeks. I just did not want to leave the Swatch there in Manila and get it from them after a year or so.

After the phone call, I got the impression that Swatch will accommodate my request. So when May 28 came, my tita personally hand in my Swatch to the Glorietta store. They discovered that the battery was busted but since they ran out of battery that morning, my Tita had to leave the watch. They also told her that after they replace the battery, they need to observe it for 3 days, in time for my tita's flight to Iloilo.

Three days later at 5 PM, my Swatch was released. They told my tita that just by replacing the battery my Swatch will now work fine. The Swatch was set at 5:15 pm. It was placed inside a case before it was handed to my Tita.

Believe it or not, I got the watch at 5:15 PM the following day. I was thrilled because it gave me the correct time after months of frustration! However, I noticed that although the time was right, the seconds hand did not move one nanometer. What are the chances that the watch was ok the 3 days while it was under the custody of Swatch and it just got busted again when it was handed to me?

Once again I called the Glorietta branch and they did not know how it could happen. As far as they know, it was working perfectly when they gave it back to my tita. They spent the whole 30 minutes of NDD call explaining the policies of Swatch to me. The lady I was speaking to asked their head office if they could offer a solution. She told me minutes later that there was nothing they could do unless the 3 conditions they told me before were met.

I let the weekend pass, and decided to spend another NDD call to their head office. The Swatch guy (I know his name, but I doubt if it's important to refer to it) told me that they couldn't do anything unless I complied with their policy. As far as he is concerned, I am no longer entitled to feel frustrated or think of them as anti-consumer since necessity left me with no choice but to pull out the unit only after 3 days. Also, as per policy and SOP, they have fulfilled the correct after sales support. He did give me an email address though where I can send my letter of complaint. I have sent the letter for quite some time but I have received no reply from Swatch.

It's just so frustrating and this is why I decided to write to you, hoping to get my story published and circulated online. The Swatch that I bought might not be expensive, I may not have connections. I have no value to them, so I do not matter? I know that they have all the money to get celebrity endorsers, do some CSR and charity works to show an image of an upright, credible, community-oriented company, but they have forgotten to offer good after sales service to a loyal customer.

I had my first Swatch 18 years ago when I was in grade 1. When it got busted, I bought a different brand of watch since Swatch was not available in Iloilo. I wore the watch from Grade 6 till last year when I finally bought my first Swatch using my own money. When it was still working properly last year, I couldn't think of buying any other brand of watch but Swatch. I have a total of 4 Swatch (only one left working properly), and each has a sentimental value to me. I never buy anything if it does not have value to me. This is why I going through great lengths to voice my frustrations.

I know I am just one person. And my cause is hardly anything significant or controversial. But here I am, attempting to help improve the quality of customer service we have here in the Philippines.

Yours truly,
Maria Frances Anne Lorena

P.S. Calling on Swatch, please feel free to email your side of the story to michaelsylim@gmail.com. I will publish it as soon as I receive it.

Commercial Liaison

Image courtesy of www.annaghabane.com

A friend of mine tweeted a few days ago, "Believe what you would like to believe and you will never succeed. If you want to succeed then do not believe."

By now, many of you are aware of the highly controversial romance between this actress and this model who blossomed from a one-liner pick up line on Twitter. The whole nation has already been captivated by the romantic bravado of this model declaring his undying affection for this actress.

However, all is not what it seems. Showbiz insiders report that the two are set to launch an endorsement soon and their contract requires them to have a very public affair to generate buzz and word-of-mouth promotion for the brand. This is after all similar to a closet actor and his heiress actress girlfriend.

Apparently this actress is also just using the model for her own personal vendetta. This is no validation that the two are really together as she is not over the heartbreak caused by her equally popular former boyfriend who is the son of a veteran actress. Add to that, she has her eyes set on someone else who does not belong to the business.

The actress is also very much wary of the model as she has heard rumors about his past. After all, she is surrounded by dear friends who are looking after her welfare and giving her notes about this model's history. 

Do you need additional clues to identify the characters in this story? Follow micsylim on twitter to get the latest update on Fashion PULIS. Please remember the guidelines before posting your comments. Kindly email your stories to michaelsylim@gmail.com.

Letter from a Reader: The Missing Hermes Herbag

Photo of RDV that appeared on Look Magazine

carrying the missing Hermes Herbag 

Dear Fashion PULIS,

This unfortunate incident took place more than a year ago but I was waiting for this fashion stylist and host of a lifestyle show, RDV, to settle amicably before spreading this story. Since I see that he shows no effort to settle, I have decided to share the blow by blow account of what he did to me with your many avid readers.

RDV was introduced to me and my friends three years ago by a friend of mine, RC, who was his officemate at that time. RDV started hanging out with us since then we liked him instantly because of his wit and humor. He told us many cool stories about him and his family which we later found out to be all lies.

Sometime in mid 2009, he told me that he was interested to buy my used Louis Vuitton Keepall that I was selling at that time. Since we have been friends for quite some time, I sold the LV bag to him on a 6 month installment basis. There were times that the payments were delayed but never the less, he was able to finish the payments.

In early 2010, he fell in love with this Hermes Herbag that I was selling for 75,000 Php. Since he has once shared with us that he was earning 120,000 Php a month, I told myself that I will not have any problem with this guy for sure. Months passed and I have not received any payments. All I got from him were apologies and excuses for his inability to pay. Wanting to save our friendship, I patiently waited but his excuses became more and more illogical each time. It was also around that time, when me my friends and I began to discovered his web of lies. His friends in Facebook were also witnesses to his lies. We thought that more than an Hermes Herbag, what he needed was professional psychological help.

Months later in September 2010, I asked him nicely if he could just return the bag to me if he could not pay for it. He told me to give him a few days to look for it because they were moving houses during that time. After a few days later, I was shocked to receive a message from him informing me that he misplaced the bag. I asked myself “How the hell could he have lost such a huge bag?” I told him to just pay for it since he lost it. He asked for more time but when I got no word from him, I decided to request my lawyer to take care of it.

It is now June 2011 and I have not been able to collect the 75,000 PhP he owes me. My question is “Isn't RDV supposed to pay for the item because he lost it while it was in his possession?” If he were a dignified person with good morals as he claims, he should have at least showed his willingness to pay for it even if it will take some time.

Thank you very much Fashion PULIS for posting my story. I hope he reads this story and gets in touch with me. More power to your blog.

Yours truly,
Denis Robles

P.S. Fashion PULIS has agreed to post the initials of the person involved in the story because the letter sender has allowed his real name to be published. Calling on Mr. RDV, Fashion PULIS will be waiting for your side of the story. Please send it to through michaelsylim@gmail.com.

A Workplace Romance

Image courtesy of www.hubpages.com

Romance in the workplace is inevitable because when you are spending too much time with someone, you tend to develop a physically and emotionally attraction to each other. This happens because you are spending more and more time at work and you do not have the time to socialize with other people outside of work. It is also possible that you are attracted to people you work with because you can easily relate with each other's situations.

While filming for a television series, this actor who was still single at that time, developed a physical and emotional connection to his married co star. Since they practically saw each other every day because of their shooting schedule, this actress felt very comfortable around his company. She started opening up to him, sharing her marital problems concerning her husband who is a singer. He, on the other hand, was always very willing to lend an ear. The level of connection that they had for each other eventually led to a secret affair.

Employees of a hotel situated near the network have seen this actor getting a room with this actress. Some even shared stories about overhearing the actress passionately screaming the name of the actor repeatedly from the hallway. When the employees learned that the actor was finally settling down, they thought that they will never see the two of them together again. Apparently, this did not happen. Despite the fact that the actor was married earlier this year, he still visits this hotel with this actress from time to time.

Do you need additional clues to know who they are? Follow micsylim on twitter to get the latest update on Fashion PULIS. Please remember the guidelines before posting your comments. Kindly email your stories to michaelsylim@gmail.com.

I am very excited that we are reaching 2M pageviews very soon. Thank you very much for loving Fashion PULIS! 

Spotted: Holding Hands While Walking

Can you guess who is this actor and this actress? They were spotted at the Big Dome attending a concert a few nights ago.

Behind the Scenes: Ed Westwick aka Chuck Bass in Manila Exclusive Press Conference

Golden ABC President Bernie Liu and VP Alice Liu gave

Ed Westwick a custom made Penshoppe jacket as a thank you gift

Publicist vs. Eventologist

Tongues are wagging as to who should really be credited for assisting Penshoppe in bringing the Gossip Girl star to Manila? While the deal was being negotiated by the Publicist overseas, one Eventologist kept on bragging in his twitter account that he is the one who will be bringing the star to Manila. When the Publicist tweeted photos of her at the NAIA with the Gossip Girl star in her arm, the Eventologist had to explain to his legions of followers as to what the chuck happened? Despite the fact that the Eventologist was not invited to the press conference because of what he did, he still came.

The Snub of the Year 

Twitterverse (Twitter Universe) is full of revelations as the private party hosted for Mr. Bass by Penshoppe invited top tier media personalities only and perhaps creating the biggest snob ever by not inviting some of Manila's top party people and socialites. The security was so tight that even mobile phones and personal cameras were not allowed in the posh Salon De Ning of The Peninsula Manila and security IDs and stickers were required for identification.

As If

Apparently one model/socialite who was not even in the guest list tweeted that she could not come because of "conflicting endorsements" leaving the organizers to comment: "What the...? She's not even invited!" A few days prior to the exclusive event, the same girl tried to contact the Australian fashion photographer who shot the campaign but he ignored her thinking "As If!"

Too Hungry 

When the wanna be Queen writer spotted this tall, handsome, Caucasian cameraman of CNN positioned near his/her where he/she was seated, he/she started chatting with him and tried asking him out after the press conference. I supposed he/she was just too hungry for white meat because only finger foods and cocktails were served at the party.

Anyway, thank you Penshoppe and Publicity Asia for bringing Mr. Bass to the Philippines. We hope to see him again soon!

You know you love me.....

xoxo 

FP

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