This is the third candy buffet project I'm sharing here. The first was given for free. The second was our first paid and earning project. This third project was only half paid? Let me explain how it happened.  

Our business became one of the casualties of Typhoon Mario. The heavy rains prevented us to finish our project. The main casualty is our chocolate fountain. C planned to buy the ingredients for the chocolate fountain on Friday. Unfortunately, the strong winds and rain brought some flooding to C's place. The event was scheduled on Saturday morning and there's no way for us to purchase the ingredients before 7 am. Instead of offering full refund, we agreed to offer partial refund to our client. Good thing, our client understood our predicament. So despite the little misfortune, we were able to push through with our project.

Client wanted a Barbie inspired theme. In my mind then, the theme may not be suitable for a Christening event. :)  Instead of offering the typical and very feminine Barbie style, I played with the design. I opted for a garden inspired theme. After weeks of preparation, here's the final design we were able to make.


The grass mats became a useful investment for us. It helped a lot in creating that garden inspired theme.


A showcase of pinks :) Thanks to my Dad who made the improvised stand for the cute baby dress.


The other half of our candy buffet. We were forced divide our set up because of a minor problem we encountered. We were unfortunately not provided with the tables we requested. In effect, we were forced to use whatever table is available in the function hall. We were forced to adjoin two office tables of different height and size for our buffet.


My peg for the birdhouse was inspired by the movie Up. Unfortunately, I underestimated the balloons I purchased. I should have bought more packs.


And here's the star of the buffet!


The sugar lollipops, gummy bears and the mini chocolate kisses were a hit.


And the entire project with the mismatched tables :) 
Yay or nay?


The Candy Buffet Project : Evia's Christening

This is the third candy buffet project I'm sharing here. The first was given for free. The second was our first paid and earning project. This third project was only half paid? Let me explain how it happened.  

Our business became one of the casualties of Typhoon Mario. The heavy rains prevented us to finish our project. The main casualty is our chocolate fountain. C planned to buy the ingredients for the chocolate fountain on Friday. Unfortunately, the strong winds and rain brought some flooding to C's place. The event was scheduled on Saturday morning and there's no way for us to purchase the ingredients before 7 am. Instead of offering full refund, we agreed to offer partial refund to our client. Good thing, our client understood our predicament. So despite the little misfortune, we were able to push through with our project.

Client wanted a Barbie inspired theme. In my mind then, the theme may not be suitable for a Christening event. :)  Instead of offering the typical and very feminine Barbie style, I played with the design. I opted for a garden inspired theme. After weeks of preparation, here's the final design we were able to make.


The grass mats became a useful investment for us. It helped a lot in creating that garden inspired theme.


A showcase of pinks :) Thanks to my Dad who made the improvised stand for the cute baby dress.


The other half of our candy buffet. We were forced divide our set up because of a minor problem we encountered. We were unfortunately not provided with the tables we requested. In effect, we were forced to use whatever table is available in the function hall. We were forced to adjoin two office tables of different height and size for our buffet.


My peg for the birdhouse was inspired by the movie Up. Unfortunately, I underestimated the balloons I purchased. I should have bought more packs.


And here's the star of the buffet!


The sugar lollipops, gummy bears and the mini chocolate kisses were a hit.


And the entire project with the mismatched tables :) 
Yay or nay?


Finally, a decent post for my Sunday series. The documentation project at work is over. We have given our best effort.  The only thing we can do is to pray for positive results. I'm starting to feel half-hearted of its outcome. Part of me is saying, I should prepare for disappointment. But my heart remains hopeful. I have an emotional investment for this project. Just the same, I will hold on to my belief that the greatest Boss above hears prayers. He will not deprive anyone who has the purest and noblest intentions. :)

Setting aside the serious side of my life, here are the few beautiful things that made my week.


Thank you freelance clients! - My old trusted buddy finally laid to rest. I'm so thankful that some freelance works came in. Hence, I was able to secure another buddy that comes in color blue!! As much as I want to own a Mac, budget does not permit at this point. Likewise, some software I use for my freelance work is not available in OS Mavericks.

Someone cannot wait for the last quarter sale - Blame my exposure to eBay. I was able to find a UK based seller of authentic Cath Kidston items. After lobbying for some discounts, the seller gave in. I now have my first classic day bag.

The recent project - I was trying to test how our candy buffet would look like. We encountered some problems on the actual event. I will blog about this on my next post.

Chocolates, cookies and marshmallows in one - Define happiness!!


Flavored Silvanas - My first time to encounter these flavored silvanas from Marisa's. Best about everything, a piece costs only Php 20. 

Ice cream cake - What a deadly combination :) 

Mojos in Garlic Mayo Sauce - Happy Tummy but someone is whispering ... what about your widening belly?

Saturdate with Anne - I can't remember the last time I bought something from Starbucks. Thanks Anne for the free movie and coffee.. though I had Mango juice instead of coffee

Photo Sources: 1, 2 and 3
Thanks to my dearest friend Anne because I was able to watch some movies over the past weeks.

Thomas was the best, but I prefer Minho!!!

I can't wait for the sequel of Mia and Adam's story.

If this is the last from the Step up series, then I would like to say that they didn't disappoint. The film exceeded my expectations. 



And some unexpected and nice reminders from a recent purchase

Beautiful Sunday # 127 - Moving on

Finally, a decent post for my Sunday series. The documentation project at work is over. We have given our best effort.  The only thing we can do is to pray for positive results. I'm starting to feel half-hearted of its outcome. Part of me is saying, I should prepare for disappointment. But my heart remains hopeful. I have an emotional investment for this project. Just the same, I will hold on to my belief that the greatest Boss above hears prayers. He will not deprive anyone who has the purest and noblest intentions. :)

Setting aside the serious side of my life, here are the few beautiful things that made my week.


Thank you freelance clients! - My old trusted buddy finally laid to rest. I'm so thankful that some freelance works came in. Hence, I was able to secure another buddy that comes in color blue!! As much as I want to own a Mac, budget does not permit at this point. Likewise, some software I use for my freelance work is not available in OS Mavericks.

Someone cannot wait for the last quarter sale - Blame my exposure to eBay. I was able to find a UK based seller of authentic Cath Kidston items. After lobbying for some discounts, the seller gave in. I now have my first classic day bag.

The recent project - I was trying to test how our candy buffet would look like. We encountered some problems on the actual event. I will blog about this on my next post.

Chocolates, cookies and marshmallows in one - Define happiness!!


Flavored Silvanas - My first time to encounter these flavored silvanas from Marisa's. Best about everything, a piece costs only Php 20. 

Ice cream cake - What a deadly combination :) 

Mojos in Garlic Mayo Sauce - Happy Tummy but someone is whispering ... what about your widening belly?

Saturdate with Anne - I can't remember the last time I bought something from Starbucks. Thanks Anne for the free movie and coffee.. though I had Mango juice instead of coffee

Photo Sources: 1, 2 and 3
Thanks to my dearest friend Anne because I was able to watch some movies over the past weeks.

Thomas was the best, but I prefer Minho!!!

I can't wait for the sequel of Mia and Adam's story.

If this is the last from the Step up series, then I would like to say that they didn't disappoint. The film exceeded my expectations. 



And some unexpected and nice reminders from a recent purchase
I only registered four blog posts this month. I haven't visited my favorite blogs. The same goes for all my social media accounts. I almost went to an online hiatus over the past weeks. I didn't spend the past weeks for an out of town vacay. How I wish! In fact I'm still confined within my usual environment. Home-Work-Home-and the cycle goes on and on.... The reason for my absence is the culmination of my documentation project. My week started with the most awaited three-day assessment. After the short notice about our assessment schedule, we have to expedite the preparations. Meetings here, there and everywhere. It didn't help that work was suspended for two days because of all the weather disturbances. All the more that we were forced to move faster and render extended working hours. I have colleagues who volunteered to spend their weekends on work. I will forever be indebted to all the support and cooperation they have rendered. Big thanks to my documentation team!!! After all the preparations, we reported for work before 7 am and leave the earliest at 8pm. On the day of the actual accreditation, we somehow underestimated the bulk of workload. Dear God! I have never been that exhausted in my entire years of working.

Now that my documentation project is over, the next step entails months of waiting. But I'm hoping that the waiting will eventually be lessened.  As of now, I can only pray and hope for the best. 

I guess I have to end here. My body is still recovering and my eyelids are becoming heavier. I'll be back on Sunday :)

  • September 26, 2014

It's over

I only registered four blog posts this month. I haven't visited my favorite blogs. The same goes for all my social media accounts. I almost went to an online hiatus over the past weeks. I didn't spend the past weeks for an out of town vacay. How I wish! In fact I'm still confined within my usual environment. Home-Work-Home-and the cycle goes on and on.... The reason for my absence is the culmination of my documentation project. My week started with the most awaited three-day assessment. After the short notice about our assessment schedule, we have to expedite the preparations. Meetings here, there and everywhere. It didn't help that work was suspended for two days because of all the weather disturbances. All the more that we were forced to move faster and render extended working hours. I have colleagues who volunteered to spend their weekends on work. I will forever be indebted to all the support and cooperation they have rendered. Big thanks to my documentation team!!! After all the preparations, we reported for work before 7 am and leave the earliest at 8pm. On the day of the actual accreditation, we somehow underestimated the bulk of workload. Dear God! I have never been that exhausted in my entire years of working.

Now that my documentation project is over, the next step entails months of waiting. But I'm hoping that the waiting will eventually be lessened.  As of now, I can only pray and hope for the best. 

I guess I have to end here. My body is still recovering and my eyelids are becoming heavier. I'll be back on Sunday :)

I will use the same excuse I made last week. I'm still so occupied with work. I have been mentioning my documentation over the past months. The project slept for a while because we have been waiting for the screening committee's decision. When September started, we received the greatest news. Our documentation project surpassed the first screening. The second phase entails a site visit and interview from the accreditors. We were given less than two weeks to prepare and the recent suspension of office work as a result of all the weather disturbances didn't help. We reported for work since yesterday and I'm so thankful to all my colleagues who supported us. Tomorrow is judgment day for us. We will meet the assessors and accreditors. Everything has been prepared and hopefully, everything will go well.

Since I have nothing decent to blog today, let me share this short video that gave me some tears.

 

The thank you that makes us the happiest is the one with our name.

Beautiful Sunday # 126 - The happiest thank you

I will use the same excuse I made last week. I'm still so occupied with work. I have been mentioning my documentation over the past months. The project slept for a while because we have been waiting for the screening committee's decision. When September started, we received the greatest news. Our documentation project surpassed the first screening. The second phase entails a site visit and interview from the accreditors. We were given less than two weeks to prepare and the recent suspension of office work as a result of all the weather disturbances didn't help. We reported for work since yesterday and I'm so thankful to all my colleagues who supported us. Tomorrow is judgment day for us. We will meet the assessors and accreditors. Everything has been prepared and hopefully, everything will go well.

Since I have nothing decent to blog today, let me share this short video that gave me some tears.

 

The thank you that makes us the happiest is the one with our name.

My posts are decreasing. I haven't been doing my regular blog hopping routine. The workload is so overwhelming. Despite the endless work coming, I'm happy to report that the past months have been giving me good news and blessings. I mentioned in a previous post that my trusted laptop is nearing its farewell. The Boss above is so good because I was given freelance works to finance the acquisition of another trusted buddy. I bid goodbye to my very old Windows XP. Hello Windows 8.1! You appear so different but give me some more weeks and I'll finally get used to everything.

The upcoming week entails more meetings, preparations, papers to check and lectures to review. Before I face another week, let me recount the few beautiful things I encountered.



Lunch and movie date with dearest friend A - Thanks for the recent movie treats A! Movie, food overload in the company of a great friend in one weekend is the best.

Korean Vegetable Dumpling - How often do I appreciate vegetables? Thank you SM for offering my favorite vegetable dumpling.

Ground beef, spaghetti sauce and chips - It's a party! Unfortunately, there's no party or gathering. This was just a product of my "mood cravings."

Sweet Potato made sweeter - Mashed sweet potato, caramel and marshmallow, yum! Thank you FM kiddies.




I can live with this kind of food - Beef, veggies and carbs to end a long and tiring day

Confessions of a shopaholic - Read more about my new leather bag in my previous post.

It's a birdhouse - Excited for our next project which will happen next week

Basket of Pink - I may not be the biggest fan of this color but I need to appreciate it for our next project.

Beautiful Sunday # 125 - Busy Di!

My posts are decreasing. I haven't been doing my regular blog hopping routine. The workload is so overwhelming. Despite the endless work coming, I'm happy to report that the past months have been giving me good news and blessings. I mentioned in a previous post that my trusted laptop is nearing its farewell. The Boss above is so good because I was given freelance works to finance the acquisition of another trusted buddy. I bid goodbye to my very old Windows XP. Hello Windows 8.1! You appear so different but give me some more weeks and I'll finally get used to everything.

The upcoming week entails more meetings, preparations, papers to check and lectures to review. Before I face another week, let me recount the few beautiful things I encountered.



Lunch and movie date with dearest friend A - Thanks for the recent movie treats A! Movie, food overload in the company of a great friend in one weekend is the best.

Korean Vegetable Dumpling - How often do I appreciate vegetables? Thank you SM for offering my favorite vegetable dumpling.

Ground beef, spaghetti sauce and chips - It's a party! Unfortunately, there's no party or gathering. This was just a product of my "mood cravings."

Sweet Potato made sweeter - Mashed sweet potato, caramel and marshmallow, yum! Thank you FM kiddies.




I can live with this kind of food - Beef, veggies and carbs to end a long and tiring day

Confessions of a shopaholic - Read more about my new leather bag in my previous post.

It's a birdhouse - Excited for our next project which will happen next week

Basket of Pink - I may not be the biggest fan of this color but I need to appreciate it for our next project.

The shopaholic hormones attacked me again. Because I have been drowning with expected and unexpected work, I decided to unwind by doing some online window shopping. The online browsing turned to real shopping as evidenced by this post. :)

I discovered Ni-QUA from another low profile blogger. She purchased the same tote I will be reviewing and as expected, I fell in love with the classic and minimalistic style. Cliche as it may sound, I found beauty in the bag's simplicity. It took me restless hours to decide whether to purchase. I'm being held back because I've been excessively shopping for bags this year. I have another bag waiting to arrive and I have plans with Cath Kidston's last quarter sale. More importantly, the bag is quite expensive. Despite all the valid reasons that prevented me to purchase the bag, my shopaholic hormones overpowered me. :) Hence, as always, there's another "bag post" documented here.


I purchased Ni-QUA's medium sized Manico bag. Can I just say that the bag is so perfect! The bag is made of genuine cow leather that is so soft. It's way different from my other real and synthetic leather bags that are usually hard and heavy. The Manico bag is so light and the smell of the authentic leather is really intoxicating.


Proof of real leather! 

The bag has unfortunately no inner lining which I appreciate because I can always feel the real leather. The bag also comes with a hidden magnetic clasp.


Despite being made of soft material, the bag can stand on its own. I believe this is a sign of excellent design and craftsmanship.


Defining beauty in simplicity


The bag comes in a 5 -inches handle drop. The handle is also made of light yet sturdy material. 


The bag is perfect except for one minor area that somehow disappointed me. I had issues with the delayed shipping which wasn't Ni-QUA's fault. The not-so-famous shipping company took around 5 days to send the parcel. I'm counting weekends because I believe that courier companies are obliged to deliver even on weekends. The person at the workplace who received my bag also posted some inefficiency. More importantly, I'm not impressed with the packaging of the bag. The photo above shows the actual bag when it arrived. It was wrapped in transparent plastic and was forced to fit in a small felt paper bag. In my opinion, expensive and sensitive items should be likewise be treated with expensive and sophisticated packaging.

I was expecting a padded envelope, box or a dust bag that will protect the bag in the course of the delivery. I relayed my sentiments to Ni-QUA and I never received any reply at all. :) I apologize if I sound too demanding but my years in Corporate Planning gave me another perspective to complaints and suggestions. Nevertheless, the packaging is just a minor issue. The bag maybe expensive but I don't regret purchasing it. I'm looking forward to purchase another Manico bag that comes in red or orange. Hopefully, the packaging will improve and there will be no more shipping problems.
  • September 13, 2014

Reviewed! Ni-QUA's Manico Bag

The shopaholic hormones attacked me again. Because I have been drowning with expected and unexpected work, I decided to unwind by doing some online window shopping. The online browsing turned to real shopping as evidenced by this post. :)

I discovered Ni-QUA from another low profile blogger. She purchased the same tote I will be reviewing and as expected, I fell in love with the classic and minimalistic style. Cliche as it may sound, I found beauty in the bag's simplicity. It took me restless hours to decide whether to purchase. I'm being held back because I've been excessively shopping for bags this year. I have another bag waiting to arrive and I have plans with Cath Kidston's last quarter sale. More importantly, the bag is quite expensive. Despite all the valid reasons that prevented me to purchase the bag, my shopaholic hormones overpowered me. :) Hence, as always, there's another "bag post" documented here.


I purchased Ni-QUA's medium sized Manico bag. Can I just say that the bag is so perfect! The bag is made of genuine cow leather that is so soft. It's way different from my other real and synthetic leather bags that are usually hard and heavy. The Manico bag is so light and the smell of the authentic leather is really intoxicating.


Proof of real leather! 

The bag has unfortunately no inner lining which I appreciate because I can always feel the real leather. The bag also comes with a hidden magnetic clasp.


Despite being made of soft material, the bag can stand on its own. I believe this is a sign of excellent design and craftsmanship.


Defining beauty in simplicity


The bag comes in a 5 -inches handle drop. The handle is also made of light yet sturdy material. 


The bag is perfect except for one minor area that somehow disappointed me. I had issues with the delayed shipping which wasn't Ni-QUA's fault. The not-so-famous shipping company took around 5 days to send the parcel. I'm counting weekends because I believe that courier companies are obliged to deliver even on weekends. The person at the workplace who received my bag also posted some inefficiency. More importantly, I'm not impressed with the packaging of the bag. The photo above shows the actual bag when it arrived. It was wrapped in transparent plastic and was forced to fit in a small felt paper bag. In my opinion, expensive and sensitive items should be likewise be treated with expensive and sophisticated packaging.

I was expecting a padded envelope, box or a dust bag that will protect the bag in the course of the delivery. I relayed my sentiments to Ni-QUA and I never received any reply at all. :) I apologize if I sound too demanding but my years in Corporate Planning gave me another perspective to complaints and suggestions. Nevertheless, the packaging is just a minor issue. The bag maybe expensive but I don't regret purchasing it. I'm looking forward to purchase another Manico bag that comes in red or orange. Hopefully, the packaging will improve and there will be no more shipping problems.
The bulk of my freelance works is finally over. There are still some unfinished tasks but I believe, I'm 90% done already. With all the work accomplished, I almost thought I would be having a more relaxing weekend.  Before I went home last Friday, I received some great news about my documentation project. The news is however coupled with more work ahead. The next two weeks would entail meetings, paper works and an endless list of preparations.

Before facing another work week, let me to recall the few good things that made my week. (Kim, yes I'm claiming it. I'm the queen of food porn. Hahaha) 


Snippets from the World Food Festival at the workplace - The perks of working for a school that offers culinary subjects, you sometimes get invited to activities that entail FOOD!



Mangosteen and Watermelon! - A break from the usual apples and bananas in my fruit box.

Define sinful happiness - Homemade burgers, potato and cheese sticks and the best Coke that landed on my hands. Yes, I'm claiming it Gwapa (beautiful) hahaha

Turning Korean - Spicy beef rice from Mr. Kimbob, sometimes happiness can be found in the cheap food stalls of food courts

Buko Juice and Paotsin - Classic favorite, all for less than Php 100

Encountered this video through my Facebook account



His first smile was priceless!

More reasons to love Ikea, even though we don't have it in the Philippines



Whoever created this idea is superb!! Hahahaha 

It's been a while since I watched a great movie


Beautful Sunday 124 - First of September

The bulk of my freelance works is finally over. There are still some unfinished tasks but I believe, I'm 90% done already. With all the work accomplished, I almost thought I would be having a more relaxing weekend.  Before I went home last Friday, I received some great news about my documentation project. The news is however coupled with more work ahead. The next two weeks would entail meetings, paper works and an endless list of preparations.

Before facing another work week, let me to recall the few good things that made my week. (Kim, yes I'm claiming it. I'm the queen of food porn. Hahaha) 


Snippets from the World Food Festival at the workplace - The perks of working for a school that offers culinary subjects, you sometimes get invited to activities that entail FOOD!



Mangosteen and Watermelon! - A break from the usual apples and bananas in my fruit box.

Define sinful happiness - Homemade burgers, potato and cheese sticks and the best Coke that landed on my hands. Yes, I'm claiming it Gwapa (beautiful) hahaha

Turning Korean - Spicy beef rice from Mr. Kimbob, sometimes happiness can be found in the cheap food stalls of food courts

Buko Juice and Paotsin - Classic favorite, all for less than Php 100

Encountered this video through my Facebook account



His first smile was priceless!

More reasons to love Ikea, even though we don't have it in the Philippines



Whoever created this idea is superb!! Hahahaha 

It's been a while since I watched a great movie


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Thank you for visiting :) My name is Diane and welcome to my home in the blogosphere. Please feel free to explore my posts and check my ABOUT ME page.

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