Celebrating our rich heritage

Rustan’s presented the Visayan Festival to highlight the products and abundant traditions of the Visayan region. 

The fourth floor of Rustan’s Makati was replete with displays of homegrown products that also highlighted the intricately made and finely woven banigs from Basey, Samar. Rustan Commercial Corp. EVP Anton Huang shared that the celebration was particularly “reflective of the colorful past that is the Visayan.”

To further create awareness on the origins of the banig, weavers were invited for demonstrations led by Eva Marie Adona-Yu from Samar. Adona-Yu has successfully turned the art into a lucrative business. This exhibition has placed emphasis on the labor placed into the creation of such pieces that have now evolved into house décors and beautiful accents.

Tribung Pilipino Foundation was also introduced to guests as an organization with the main goal of protecting and preserving Filipino art and culture. Founded by Danny Dolor, it was organized to propagate love for and interest in traditional Filipino music like the kundiman, harana, balitaw and danza especially among the youth. Tribung Pinoy members shared their talent in music with a performance of Visayan songs. Singers Gloria Dizon Coronel, Liza Cabahug and Conrado Ong, assisted by pianist Julie Mendoza, performed Visayan folk songs.

Rustan’s also had the Leyte Banig Exhibit that featured designs from the past to date with a workshop on Filipino cuisine by chef Him Uy de Baron, the Basey banig weavers from Samar were at the exhibit to demonstrate the stages of banig weaving, and a workshop on flower arrangement and table setting by Nena Tantoco and Tina Quiroz.

Through songs, demonstrations and diverse presentations, Rustan’s has truly celebrated our rich heritage and the Filipino way of life.

An organic line called Essensity

The planet is turning a deeper shade of green. The environmental consciousness that started in the ‘80s finally is causing product manufacturers and consumers to re-think and review how we all contribute to the ecological state of our planet.

Pioneering hair care brand Schwarzkopf, known for its breakthrough formulations and market-driven technologies that capture the Feel of the Times, responds to this global trend by introducing a line of professional hair-care products specially suited to the “green” mindset.

Essensity, a full-range hair-care line, was recently launched at the ASK Studio of exclusive distributor Topstyle Marketing Corp. Schwarzkopf Professional regional technical manager Robert Seah flew in from Malaysia to explain exactly how the organic collection does wonders for the hair by harnessing the power of naturally-derived ingredients.

Guests were given a chance to try out the new range and were pampered with cut and color treatments by Essensity salon ambassadors Nikki Bacay of Nikki Bacay Salon, Ino Amoyo of David’s Salon and Weng de Guzman of Fiz Salon.

Now, every woman’s dream of having beautiful hair that is truly healthy in every way possible has found an answer in Essensity. Schwarzkopf once again taps into the global psyche and gives us a solution to our most real and pressing hair concerns with products that allow us to be beautiful... and responsible to our planet.

Crabs and carbs

Vietnamese food has finally landed in Manila by way of Aquaknox Restaurant at 800 Arnaiz Ave. (formerly Pasay Road) in Makati. Featuring the unique flavors from a country full of culinary heritage, Aquaknox has brought over Vietnamese cuisine in a casual chic setting.

The sumptuous crab dishes in this restaurant, as prepared by Vietnamese chef Danny Vu, are reminiscent of the ones served by Than Long and Crustacean, those San Francisco and Los Angeles acclaimed Vietnamese restaurants. 

With Aquaknox, I no longer need to go to San Francisco or LA to satisfy my (constant) craving for my crabs and carbs, it’s right in the heart of Makati.

(Open daily for lunch and dinner. Call 894-3380 or 0928-5240218 for more inquiries or visit www.aquaknox.com.ph)

Breathing underwater

From the opening beats of Breathing Underwater, the listener encounters a bold new Marié Digby. “Everything was born right there in the moment,” says Digby.

Written, produced and recorded over a three-and-a-half-month period in a Los Angeles studio alongside renowned producers Brian Kennedy and Ezekiel “Zeke” Lewis for the Clutch and The Movement among others, Breathing Underwater marks Digby’s evolution from “the girl with the guitar” to a fully-emerged artist.

(Marié Digby Live in Manila is happening on Aug. 1 at the NBC Tent, Fort Bonifacio. Tickets are available at all Ticketnet outlets (911-555) or call Fearless Productions at 223-28906 or 706-1648.)