I don’t wear makeup but I understand how empowering it can feel. The transformative power of putting on something that can highlight your features is something I experience when I wear something nice. When you look your best, you feel like you can face anything in this world. For me, it’s good clothes. For some women, it’s makeup.

The New York Times also reported on a study that revealed that women feel more confident with makeup and that they are perceived as likable, competent, and attractive with it. Of course, personality, actual competence, and inner beauty play a more important role, but the power of makeup is undeniable.

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Christmas is just around the corner and I love going around the metro attending the many holiday bazaars. One of the new additions to the bunch is Pop Up Town, a bazaar by Ayala Land featuring fashion, food, and art, and I’m looking forward to going!

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Daiso is that one store where I come in looking for one item and end up leaving with a bagful of stuff I didn’t know I needed. I go to Daiso a lot because it’s so therapeutic and I discover so many unique items. Who knew I would need a cactus candle (More on this later)?

Recently, Daiso opened its 60th store in the Philippines, setting roots in U.P. Town Center in Quezon City. The new concept store is redesigned, and takes its inspiration from stores in Japan. Here, the products are front and center, tastefully arranged in a clean, bright, and airy environment.

Daiso is known for selling quality products from Japan starting at P88. The items are categorized by Fashion, Arts and Crafts, Food and Beverages, and Home. In fact, there are 10,000 estimated items in each store, with new additions each month!

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I absolutely love local products. Many of them are made with quality in mind, and yet are still affordable because they don’t need to spend on importing and marketing. However, it can be a hassle to buy because not many are distributed in major department stores or shops. You have to go to artisan fairs or specialty stores (many of which are in the north) to buy them.

Luckily, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has partnered with retail stores for Go Lokal!, a partnership that promotes products made by micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Their first partner is Robinsons Department Store, and the first concept store is open now in Robinsons Place Manila!

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Lazada is a lifesaver for busybees who don’t have time to go out and buy things. Through the years, I’ve relied on the website to shop and have my goods delivered. Just recently, I bought a Fitbit, a digital weighing scale, and a smartphone. Lazada is a website I trust when I want to buy something and I don’t have the time to go out.

To reward all of Lazada’s loyal customers through its five years in the Philippines, the website is celebrating its birthday with the Lazada 5th Birthday Surprise, the biggest shopping event of the season with sitewide discounts of up to 90%, peso sales, time-based flash sales, exclusive offers from popular brands, and raffle prizes like vacation packages. Make sure to mark your calendars for March 21 to 23!

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Christmas is only a few days away, and we’re all feeling the holiday spirit, both good and bad. Good, because we’re seeing friends and family we haven’t seen in a while, and bad because we have to deal with last-minute Christmas shopping and the horrible traffic.

Globe is making our Christmas special by giving subscribers 12 gifts this December. From freebies to discounts, new partnerships, content, and ways to show our love, the network is creating opportunities to be merry this 2016:

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Christmas in the Philippines is the most exciting and stressful time of the year. People crowd in malls and bazaars to find gifts, and because of this, I usually do my shopping months ahead. I kept putting it off this year, until I realized we’re less than a month away from Christmas. It looks like I have to join the holiday madness.

That may not be the case because I found my savior: the Digimall Online Bazaar. It’s a partnership between Globe MyBusiness and Shopify, an e-commerce platform that supports small and medium enterprises (SMEs). This is perfect for me as I love supporting local brands.

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Yesterday, I was in Escolta for the monthly Saturday Future Market @ Escolta. It’s 98B COLLABoratory’s monthly initiative to bring back the glory days of Escolta’s heritage and invite independent sellers to sell their wares. In short, it’s a hipster market for books, records, prints, art, zines, trinkets, and all the things you don’t normally find in regular bazaars.

It’s funny how I’ve written about Saturday Future Market @ Escolta countless times in my column for The Philippine Star but I’ve never gone to one. Sometimes I have plans on the days they hold it, sometimes I feel lazy because it’s too far.

I finally decided to go because my friend Tyang has a booth with her team, the Cavity Collective. We agreed for me to be her publicist and I went to support her work. Tyang and I have known each other since college.

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