It is what it is!
xx,
Issa G.
Storytime: The Worst Influencer Event Ever + Hair Routine
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Italian Dining in Cebu: Trattoria Da Gianni, Crossroads
Stepping into Trattoria Da Gianni felt like I was walking into someone’s home. It was as if I was transported into some Italian family’s dining room that would soon be filled with lots of laughs and chatter. It was cozy, welcoming and familiar.
For someone like me who is often conscious about not knowing what to eat or order at new restaurants, I was surprised at how “accommodating” their menu was. Initially, I had envisioned offerings that were too hard to pronounce, much more for my palate to comprehend but I was sweetly surprised at how familiar I was with their dishes. The descriptions also really helped. lol!
It also helped that their staff was extremely accommodating and if I ever had any questions about any of the dishes, they were quick to explain and share insights making the process a lot easier and more interesting.
Here’s what we had:
Quatro Formagi, Parma Ham & Mozzarella and Garden Basil Bruschette
(P 140.00 each)
Polpo Salad – Steam Octopus, Arugula, Potatoes, Cherry Tomatoes, Parsley and Lemon Vinaigrette @ P 275.00
Spaghetti with Scallops – Seared Scallops, Shrimps, Black Olives, Capers & Parsley @ P 390.00
Osso Buco – Slow Cooked Beef Shank with Potatoes @ P 800.00 (for sharing)
Tiramisu Espresso (For sharing) – Layers of Savoiardi Ladyfingers, Coffee, Mascarpone and Cacao prepared at your table – P 360.00
There’s a misconception that Italian food is bland but if you do your research and talk to the right people, you’ll learn that Italian cuisine is more about the quality of the ingredients they use rather than grandeur preparations and theatrics.
Yes, I will admit that there wasn’t an explosion of flavors in my mouth and that I wish the servings were a tad more but eating their food felt like my tongue was getting a warm embrace. It felt like a meal that you could have everyday without ever getting sick of and as subtle and simple as some of the dishes were- it was a meal I wanted to share (again) with someone I love.
I would definitely recommend this place especially to friends who are interested in foreign cuisines. It’s definitely one of those places that stays true to their history and flavors- which if I’m not trying to beat around the bush means: it doesn’t try too much to appeal to the Filipino taste. I’m definitely not saying that it’s a bad thing, I really respect that, but it’s definitely something that your extremely Pinoy lola probably wouldn’t appreciate.
Trattoria Da Gianni
Crossroads, Banilad
For reservations: +63 9778422786
xx,
Issa G.
p.s. It’s never too early for wine! ❤
SRP’s Rising Township Offers Open Spaces for Rest & Play
Filinvest’s City di Mare (CDM), a 50 hectare master planned township in South Road Properties (SRP) recently brought together the Cebuano community in a weekend full of arts, eats and beats through one of the most exciting outdoor events in the city, Summer Pop-up at City di Mare. True to its character as a township that aspires to seamlessly integrate the beauty of the great outdoors into modern city living, the event was held in a pleasing park setting, the open park near its visitors’ center. By encouraging everyone to step out and appreciate the green open spaces through events like this, CDM provides a venue for the community to come together and make meaningful memories.
Featured in The Summer Pop-up at City di Mare were musical performances by electronic artist Wicked Adobo, and talented homegrown acts Vincent Eco and the Wonggoys. Another highlight of the event was the live art activity by commissioned Cebu based artists where the 21x6meter wall near the Open Park has been transformed into a colorful mural and portions of the two-lane roads now have street arts perfect for snaps. City di Mare also launched its life-sized game installations which are available every day for kids and kids at heart to play for free. This park, along with the events grounds, is a testament to CDM’s desire to create functional green spaces.
“Summer Pop-up at City di Mare aims to bring the community together in this park where everyone can chill and enjoy. At City di Mare, we would want to redefine city living by introducing a live-work-play lifestyle all with nature as the backdrop,” Filinvest Alabang Inc Vice President for Townships Don Ubaldo shared. “We at City di Mare would want to provide the residents, locators and visitors not only a progressive, master-planned township set in relaxed setting, but one that enriches lives as well,” Ubaldo furthered.
“The Summer Pop-up event is just the beginning to a more dynamic and inclusive community. In the years to come, we intend for people to expect more life, more spaces and more choices here in City di Mare.”
Bridal Diaries: Our Wedding Vows
Hi Everyone! Sharing with everyone our wedding vows/ SDE.
If you’ll notice, there are two videos- the first one (Our Wedding Video) is by our videographer, James Jayson Ty. Since we were not allowed to exchange our personal vows at the church, I requested that James include them in our SDE. But actually, I had something else up my sleeve… I had secretly made my own vows, compiling old videos that I had kept of me and Paolo.
I wrote my vows a day before the wedding because the typical overthinking self of mine overthought the vows until it sucked the life out me! But luckily I remembered a blog post I had written was I was younger and I couldn’t help but share it on our wedding day.
I hope you like it and that it gives you inspiration if you’re a bride to be, as well!
xx,
Issa G.
[VLOG] Washing Machine Beauty Blender Cleaner?!
Don’t forget to like, subscribe and follow!
xx,
Issa G.
[VLOG] He Said The Wrong Name At The Wedding?!
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[VLOG] My Last Week of Being Single
ENJOY MY LAST WEEK OF BEING SINGLE, EVERYONE!
Don’t forget to like, subscribe and follow!! ❤
xx,
Issa P. NOW A G.!
[VLOG] How I Lost 10 Lbs Before My Wedding
Hi everyone! I wanted to share this with all of you who wanted to know more about how I lost weight before we got married.
Coincidentally, today is our 1st month anniversary as husband and wife and I couldn’t be happier!
I hope that you like this video enough to like, subscribe and follow me on Youtube.
xx,
Issa P.
Bridal Diaries: Our Cebu Wedding Details (Bridal, Entourage, Set up & Suppliers)
Paolo & I wed last April 27, 2019, officially making me a Mrs. (lol. what? I still can’t believe it!) We were engaged for a year and 4 months which gave us more than enough time to explore all of our options, suppliers and ideas. While we didn’t initially have a theme, looking back at what had come into fruition, I would like to believe that it was somewhere between the lines of “Sprinkles & Sparkles” or you know, just fun colors.
I look back at our wedding with such joy and contentment knowing that was everything I had wanted it to be. It was more of a personal experience for me more than it was a visual because what we lack in decorations (flowers), we made up for with bright spirits and CRAZY stories to tell after.
But while those stories will just have to wait for their time to shine, I wanted to share other stories of the wonderful bodies that made this wedding come together and hopefully they can help any and every couple out there!
Bride
Bridal Robe: Bree Esplanada & Hoarder’s Closet
I’ll be doing a separate blog just for my dress alone. Sorry, I can’t help it! I just love it SO SO MUCH!
Customised Bedroom Slippers: Cheeky Chic
Fun fact: These were gifted to me by the owner of Cheeky Chic and I loved them so much, I brought them with me to the reception area and spent the entire night dancing in them!
HMUA: Shyra Qyumbi
Shoes: Maggie’s Box
These shoes were custom made for me for only P 1,500.00 (plus shipping)! I got to choose to add platforms, the color and the height of my heels. It was perfect because I have size 4 1/2- 5 feet. lol
Hair, Nails, Body & Face: Mira Beauty by Design
Flowers: Blush Flower Creations & Events
Groom
Suit: Infini (Ground floor of Gaisano Country Mall)
Fun fact: Paolo burnt his suit from deciding to iron it the night before. CANNOT. UNSEE!
Shoes: Mendrez| Socks: Zara
Grooming: TUF Barbershop
Rings: MyDiamond
Engagement ring: Royal Gem
Bridesmaids
Bridesmaid giveaways: tote bags, robe, pajama set – H&S Clothing
Bridesmaid dresses H&S Clothing
Groomsmen
Groomsmen boutonniere : Lazada (link)
I really think this is the best alternative if you’re trying to stay away from flowers!!
Groomsmen giveaways: Lazada
Their goody bags came with a wallet & a rubber belt. We opted to keep the belts though cuz they were… rubber.
Godparents
Tokens – Cheekychic
I super love the gifts we had custom made for our Godparents because we were able to customize them to our liking. Inside the side table notepad contains different sheets of paper that says thank you in different languages in printed paper that matched our theme! It was soo special!!
Flower girls
Dresses & Hair piece: H&S Clothing
I went back and forth with the possible alternatives for my flower ladies. I felt like head dresses were a bit too feminine and I couldn’t succumb to letting them carrying flowers so I really had to rack my brain for an alternative. Luckily, my friend Banisa gave me an idea after playing around with scarves that were given out during an event and thus, the floral wrap arounds!
Bearers
Geometric candle holders: Lazada (link)
Our Wedding Set Up
The Inspiration
Backdrop
I made the backdrop myself with the help of my staff and Alyssa! Unfortunately I wasn’t around during set up so I wasn’t able to even out the fringes so it’s a bit bulky on the top and thin in the middle. I was too meh to care anyways.
Center pieces
Host: Ryan Uybengkee
If you’re reading this, thank you so much for everything, bro! You really brought so much life to the wedding and your games were BOMB!! ALSO, THAT PLAYLIST! FTW!!!
Cake: D&M Cafe
My brother and sister in law are pastry chefs from the States and I am so happy that they decided to make our cake for us! My sister in law was soo adorable because she was literally stressing out because our actual cake didn’t quite come out the way we had initially planned it. I had first asked for a naked cake with the sprinkles showing and buttercream in the middle but things changed and they opted for a buttercream cake with cookie dough filling instead. In my most honest opinion, I think it turned out so much better (especially in photos) and it tasted even better than it looks! Seriously, I LOVED IT!
On the day coordinator/ Event Styling/ Flowers: Karen Go
Sounds & Lights: Matte Box Productions
Hope this helps!!
xx,
Issa G. (!)
(ALL PHOTOS BY JAMES JAYSON TY)
Bridal Diaries: Our Studio Pre Nup with James Jayson Ty
It’s been a wonderful 2 weeks and a half since the wedding and now that all my family members’ have peacefully returned to their homes and Paolo & I have slowly settled into the married life (which isn’t quite different from our bf-gf life, btw), here I am getting back into the rhythm of blogging.
So let’s start with our PRE NUP!
Paolo & I had a total of 3 pre nup shoots for our wedding- the first because it was a gift from my aunt, second because I wanted my good friend to shoot us in our natural state at home (photos to follow!) and third, because we chose it to be a part of our wedding photography package.
By the third pre nup, and with this shoot being so close to the wedding, you can only imagine how little Paolo (and I) actually cared about it. But I tried my best to make the most out of it and while I’m not surprised, the photos came out great!
I’m really happy that I chose to have a studio shoot because it really allowed James, our photographer, to focus on Paolo and I as a couple. We got to experiment with a lot of different moods, lighting and props which include our eldest son, Cody; confetti and fairy lights. You will also see by the end of this bridal series that I also opted to have most of our post nup photos back inside James’ studio because I just couldn’t be bothered with the heat and having to travel to locations.
Here are my favorite shots:
SET 1
SET 2
SET 3
SET 4
As it is in my core being to over think and over analyse everything, I also really took the time to question why Paolo & I even agreed to having a bunch of photo shoots anyways. I obviously either love, or am used to photoshoots but it’s not necessarily something Paolo would jump at the idea to so why force him into something he’s not excited about?
But a friend of mine told me that photos are a nice way to look back and things and remember the fun, silly or whatever moments that happened in between. While Paolo may not have thought this was the best experience, we definitely had fun playing with Cody, just being ourselves, it got us in the wedding-y mood and hey- I have tons of blackmail photos for him now. hihihi.
What do you think of our set? 🙂
Photography: James Jayson Ty
Venue: James Jayson Ty Studio
HMUA: Shaira Qyumbi
Grooming: No Strips Waxing Salon
Hair: Mira Beauty by Design
xx,
Issa NOW A G!
Issa Talks... Alot 