Nifty Nails with Caronia!

There's a side of me that loves nail polish. I love it because it's an easy way to elevate your look, even a simple coat of paint can level up your entire ensemble or outfit. There was a time when I even reviewed nail polish on the blog, I called the posts "Nifty Nails".

I have to admit I'm no Nail Art Master and there's a lot to be said about my manicure skills and most of them aren't good, which is a shame since my sister-in-law is really good at it too. :( 

Despite my lack of talent in applying nail polish I still love the art and I try to get my nails painted although my busy schedule (weekends are usually devoted to events and blogging) I haven't been able to paint my nails lately (booooo!)

Caronia's Blue Moon Collection 

When we attended Blogapalooza though I think my love for nail Polish was renewed when we visited the Caronia booth- I mean the brand Caronia is almost synonymous to nails. They've been at it for so long that everyone probably knows that famous jingle: 

"Caronia...Caronia...Your beauty shines with Caronia!" 

If you don't remember that jingle then you were probably too young then..and I hate you for it (kidding!)

Yes-it was worth mentioning that 90's jingle - but going back to 2014 I had fun at the Caronia booth, there was even this HUGE Nail Polosh you can take a selfie with ;> 

I think it's also worth mentioning that portion of purchase of Caronia's Blue Moon Collection goes to building the dreams of young dancers, as they have a partnership with Ballet Philippines. ^_^ 

You can find out more about helping supporting Ballet Philippine Foundation by visiting their social media sites www.facebook.com/CaroniaPH and @caroniaph on Twitter and Instagram. 

Who knows I might be back to doing some Nifty Nails posts again and this time with Caronia's help. :) 

Looking Back with Imagine Nation Photography and Wang Videography

Three Years Later: December 10 2011, Shot by Alex Ruelo for Imagine Nation Photography- Cheng-Hontiveros Nuptials
October 11, 2014, Shot by Betty Uy for Imagine Nation Photography, Blogapalooza

When Paul and I were preparing for our wedding back in 2011, I remember reading something (among the hundreds of wedding articles that I've read) that in budgeting for your wedding, you would have to prioritize and to think about what aspects of the wedding are more important for you. This is so you can plan your budget and set it aside for the things that really matter to you and for Paul and I, the photos and the videography are a must. 

Among the many Wedding Photographers and Videographers (and trust me there are a lot) we decided to go with Imagine Nation Photography and Wang Videography who were able to cater to our needs and helped make our Wedding extra special and memorable.

Now- almost three years later, we continue following their work, not only of our Wedding Photographers Arlene Briones and Alex Ruelo but we've also run into Imagine Nation photographer Betty Uy while covering an event. Not only that but we've also met the man behind both Imagine Nation and Wang Videography- none other than John Mateos Ong himself (his talented daughter Jazz) sings in bands and we have had the honor of covering a couple of her gigs.

December 10, 2011- Shot by Arlene Briones for Imagine Nation Photography 

It's funny how we've kept running I to each other but I was definitely more than glad to see that Imagine Nation and Wang Videography had a booth at Blogapalooza. It was nice chatting up with Alex and Betty and even sying hello to Alex's cutie pie baby ^_^ 

Looking back at that piece of advice I read so long ago in a forgotten Wedding magazine, I can say that we really made the right decision with booking Imagine Nation Photography and Wang Videography for our wedding-the blog is named PCheng Photography and I think we know a thing or two when it comes to photos. ^___^

You can check out our Wedding SDE from Wang Videography here :) 

October 11. 2014 - Shot by Betty Uy for Imagine Nation, Blogapalooza

Blogapalooza 2014: Our Very First!

The Blogapalooza Stage where Sponsors where  given an opportunity to present their company and products.

For the originally slated September 20, 2014 Blogapalooza, Paul and I filed leaves on the 19th so that we would be rested for the event. There have been (far too many) times where in we would head on to a Saturday Morning event straight from work (we both work the night shift). This hasn't been a good idea since we would go through a sleepy-cranky then zombie transformation by lunch time. Many a cup of coffee and bottles of energy drink have been drunk for the sake of staying awake and sane through the particular event.

Another reason for filing our leaves on the 19th was so we could celebrate our 9th anniversary as a couple (which falls on the 20th of September), I even had a whole draft before of how Blogapalooza was right in time for our Anniversary; since I have often told people that our blog is our second child, (the first being the car) since we spend all our time on it (writing blog posts for me and taking photos for Paul). The running joke is that hopefully the third child will come with a birth certificate. 

So it is with this back story that I begin this blog post on our first ever Blogapalooza experience. Fresh out from work, we headed to SM Aura on October 11 after the original event was rescheduled because of Tropical Storm Mario. 

This was actually our first time to go to Blogapalooza so we didn't know what to expect.

There was so much to see and so much to do and check out at Blogapalooza it was literally an overload and explosion of senses. You get to eat food, drink drinks, discover and try new products and companies and you also get to share your love (again) for companies and products you've tried, tested and just absolutely love! There were even games so there was a lot of chances to move and stretch those muscles. :)

Participants enjoying a fun game at the Chooks-to-Go-Booth

Each booth had their own gimmick, from posting selfies mechanics as well as games! I actually won a cap from Korean Restaurant after being able to toss a ping ping ball in a cup - ala Beer Pong minus the beer though :p 

Although I did discover that I suck at shuriken throwing at the Authority Hoodie booth (there goes my Ninja dreams, shattered in a million pieces T_T) 

One thing I did realiza though that blogging (seriously) for over a year now has led us to meet a lot of people who we saw at Blogapalooza and it was nice to give them hugs and say 'Hi' :) 

Unfortunately we got tired (cranky for Paul) by 4:00 PM and we had to call it quits, we were both awake for 24 hours by then and if we didn't head on home we would have fainted right then and there and collapsing from exhaustion in a place where everyone has a camera and practically is online 24/7 isn't a good idea. 

Our Blogapalooza Haul: Press Kits, Freebies and Calling Cards! :) 

In hindsight we weren't able to fully optimize our Blogapalooza experience (unfortunately) next year, we'll definitely file for a leave the day before and maybe even book a stay in a hotel to avoid the awful traffic, which by way we were also stuck in on the way home. We both regret not being able to go through all the booths but like I always say- we definitely made the most of what we were able to experience so I suggest you guys visit the blog in the next few days as we will definitely be posting more on each of the products and companies we got to see at Blogapalooza 2014! Already excited for next year! :)