Criselda's sells a lot of perfumes and scents…read more Coming from the escalator in Shoppesville, you'll spot this shop right away. It's filled from floor to ceiling with different perfumes, colored bottles and some bins of vitamins. To save time and also so that you don't buy out the entire store, know before hand what perfume you want to buy. Better if you know the name, know how the bottle looks like and are kind of familiar with the scent. Don't be afraid to ask for a discount especially if you're buying a lot of perfume. The last time I bought perfume from this shop, Miss Guada helped me choose. I hope she's still there. Ask for her just in case.

I had accidentally placed an order online noticing that their prices were double of what I could…read morefind on Amazon. I contacted them immediately to cancel my order and they refused to refund it to my original payment method and only to store credit even though the item was literally just purchased and no processing or shipping was done. I told them I'd refuse the package as well but they shipped it regardless. Extremely shady business practice.

This was the High End Mall, before all the other High End Malls appeared. And to this day, it…read moreretains a lot of the class and style that defined it as THE mall of choice of Manila's elite. Rustans is special because they were handpicking and curating the vendors and suppliers for a sensible, classy experience even before curation became a thing. And that's probably why Rustans has remained relevant. While other malls and department stores are content with featuring whoever and whatever, stepping inside Rustans was an experience in itself. If you had the scratch to spend on a place like this, you could step out of there in style. The men's section in particular gives you the whole "Manly and Classy" vibe that is just almost impossible to find nowadays. An amazing, amazing place.

The cash and carry mall is a small shopping location in Manila, Philippines. Since I had some…read moreminor business there, we decided to eat at the food circle. As my pictures show there are several choices of food in this area. But none really jumped out at me. I chose to have the grilled marlin in spicy sauce with vegetables and rice. The fish is pregrilled and sitting out there. When ordered, they reheat the fish and pour the sauce over it. Their vegetables is from a frozen mixed vegetable bag. The dish was non appetizing and had a bland taste. Problem here is that the food here lacks freshness, flavor and taste.

At this point, I can't even be surprised. The number of bad reviews about the guards here is…read morethrough the roof, yet the mall management does NOTHING. It's as if they couldn't care less about their customers, especially the younger ones. I'm 16, and apparently, that means I'm not allowed in the mall without a guardian--on a weekend! How many times do people have to complain about the unprofessional behavior of the guards before something changes? The security staff act like they're on a power trip, treating teenagers like criminals just for showing up. News flash: we're not asking for much--just basic respect and fair treatment. It's 2024, and this mall still hasn't figured out how to treat its customers properly. If management can't be bothered to fix their security issues despite countless complaints, maybe they should rethink if they even deserve their customers at all

I'm not really a perfume connoisseur nor am I the type to experiment with my scent every so often…read more I'd like to think I've found my signature scent (or scents because I have three favorites) already. But I like perfume. I like that every interestingly designed bottle is a gateway to a whole different world, a world made up of all these different notes - patchouli! Vetiver! Tuscan leather! Basil! Art of Scent ushers you into these wonderful, wonderful worlds. It feels like you've stepped into Willy Wonka's swanky-fied factory but instead of chocolates, you get scents! Scents of all kinds, brands and combinations, laid out in an enticing way that even the most anti-perfume person will somehow want to spritz on everything on display!

Tucked away in the innermost crevices of the second floor of Shopwise Cubao is Fragrance Factory…read more Passing by its posters near the walkalators, you'd hardly notice it walking through the Shopwise-SM bridgeway, and would unlikely bother to even really give the place a look, but it does have hidden gems for the more astute shopper. If you have the chutzpah to make your own scents or cologne, then surely this is a place you should visit. They have all the necessary ingredients for you to concoct your own fragrance (or approximate those of more recognizable brands ;) ) to use in perfume, hand sanitizers or whatever else you can come up with, to give as presents or giveaways. But to those who don't have such lofty goals, they have stuff like liquid dispensers or spray bottles that have their own everyday purposes, or essential oils to use for your own linen spray, diffusers, or air fresheners.

I would never have noticed this place in Quiapo since there is so much going on around you--stalls…read moreof fresh vegetables and fruit and steelware and dried fish and watch your bag! and beads and chains and Wellmanson--and then you just step onto the actual sidewalk for a breather and a break from the beating afternoon sun, look away from the other stalls in the place selling more jewelry and sight the "ukay inside" sign inviting you to come into the 88 Shopping Center. Entering the surprisingly cool, unnervingly perfumed inner caverns of the building you'll find stalls of secondhand clothes of every make and kind, from pants and shirts to shorts and blouses, and all at probably the cheapest price you could get them. A lot of it went for fifty bucks, and some for lower even, and the clothes didn't look half-bad. You have to delve into clothes at ukay every time, and there were a lot of keepers there going for a lot less than you would expect to pay for them! Although the pants went for a little more than they should, I think--P200 and above for denim, though maybe it's because they were men's pants? And because I had to ask for the price instead of seeing it on a sign? Sometimes my somewhat alta facade betrays my desire for cheap things, sadly.

I can't remember how many times I've been to the Landmark since I moved to Manila. I guess it was…read morethe first store my husband showed me. I remember that entering there was like a baptism, a début. I could almost hear the voice over: "Welcome, Danyella! This is the one and only Landmark! Here you'll find EVERYTHING you may need from now on. And for a cheaper price!". Did I say EVERYTHING? Yes, because that's exactly the feeling you have when you enter the Landmark. I just cannot decide where to look at. All products catch my attention. It's crazy. I'll give you a short list of what I already bought there, so you can feel the vibe: a Hello Kitty towel as a monito monita gift; a beautiful tea pot; maternity clothes; comfortable shoes; baby onesies; underwear; step ladders to reach high shelves; cute notebooks; toiletries; Instax instant film; scarfs; bags; a wallet; table linens and much more items. Oh, and I can't forget to mention the grocery. It's cheaper than Rustan's and even SM and you can find great variety. TIP: They sell Santis's meats and cold cuts at Landmark! I highly recommend it because of the quality. It's great to have this facility, so I don't have to split my grocery list anymore and go to Santis Deli at Rockwell.

So many cutesy butingting, so little room in the house…read more There is a section at the Landmark Department Store that can be considered a haven for hipsters - in that it features products that are shabby chic, and full of typography and graphic designed travel stuff. As you enter from the walkway that connects it to Greenbelt, you'll see the area on travel-inspired designs of notebooks and planners. And then there's the tin-can containers reminiscent of the things we used in the 80s as kids but the design is more English rose country and shabby chic. Still some of the home decor items are of prints and typography that would fit any room occupied by a hipster. Not that I'm a hipster, lol. But they are soooo cute!

Someone once told me that you can buy practically anything wholesale in Binondo.This store must be…read moreliving proof of that. You have to wonder how a store can survive selling only one type of merchandise. In the case of Big Time Candle Trading, it's all about candles, candles, nothing but candles. I would think that a store like this can only make hay on the one day in the year when Filipinos pay respects to their departed relatives by lighting candles at their graves, which would be All Saints' Day. But no. This store is surviving and has been in business for many years, according to the lady behind the desk. She said she is not sure how long the business has been operating, but she does know that the owner is not the first generation owner of the establishment.