The moment I saw this boutique, I wished I could transport the whole store inside my bedroom. Oh,…read morehow much I wanted that all the pieces in Nava were in my own wardrobe and that the accessories and decorations of the store were my own as well. Overall, the store exudes a mix of modern and vintage and its collection is equal parts girly and edgy. Lending an image of strength and modernity to the store are the black bars and straight lines formed by tables and panels. Red bricks and antique-looking wood items lend some vintage feel to the place and feminine details such as flowers and cursive handwriting soften the otherwise structured arrangement of the store. This theme extends to their clothes. You can find sexy blouses, flowing skirts, fitted pants, soft-toned cardigans, dark-colored jackets, checkered-printed tops, floral printed blouses, colorful shoes, and animal skin bags. Girly and edgy, modern and vintage may initially sound contradicting but they all achieve harmony in Nava Boutique. Wearing Nava could just give me the chance to show my secret sassy side while also maintaining the girly image that my friends already know and love.

I chanced upon NAVA exploring a bazaar held by one of my friends in UP Town. They had such a nice…read morecollection of clothing, and I was unfortunately very, very broke (ah, the college life!), so the moment I received my measly tutor's salary that month, I dropped by their outlet in Market! Market! to have a proper look around. Their store is very brightly lit and vintage-looking, and they had an assortment of accessories and bits-and-bobs on display, such as sunglasses and notebooks and little trinkets like compact mirrors and card-holding tins. It was very charming. The clothes are beautiful, and on the vintage side, but not exactly cheap. Not very expensive either, but great nontheless. I ended up leaving the store with a very pretty floral-designed backpack for P650! A floral backpack in Forever21 would have cost me P1750, so I was pretty pleased. Want to shop for your own vintage pieces? NAVA, thankfully, has an Facebook page where you can browse some of their items: https://www.facebook.com/navashop. Happy shopping!

Need to update your wardrobe this year? Want a new swimwear? Or do you just want to shop till you…read moredrop without burying your wallet alive? Then this discreet yet stunning local clothing line could do the trick for you. Apartment 8, with branches in Trinoma, Greenhills and Glorietta, have been around for some time and has been creating quite a stir because of their trendy collections. Endorsed by famous fashion bloggers, Apartment 8 offers clothes for women, mostly for teenagers and young adults. But hey, their clothing line is for everybody, as long as you wear the dress, and not let the dress wear you. From casual to formal, from summer to winter, from vintage to modern - Apartment 8 surely has them all.

Remember when you were in highschool and you had no idea what to wear for Prom? Well back then, we…read moreonly had beepers and tamagochis and the internet had almost nothing in it. There were no smart phones, no Instagram, Facebook or Pinterest to help us figure out what kind of dress was best. Even more, most of our stores back then were local. No Zara or Mango stores at the time and if we needed something formal, a trip to the local mananahi with our mothers who usually decide on everything was our only option. Nowadays, kids have it easy. They can easily just go to Se La Vi Clothing and walk away worry-free, clutching a new gown that fits like a glove. It's no wonder so many ladies trust this shop- they can create a custom dress from scratch, working with little as a sketch and create something beautiful in a short amount of time. For students in need of a prom dress, I suggest you get in touch with Angelie Sevilla, the owner at least 2 months before your prom. Best to get ahead of everyone.

Jellybean offers women's clothing for all occasions: be it formal, semi-formal, casual, for a…read morenight's out, or simply being fashionable at the malls. Divided by color in their store, you wouldn't have a hard time looking for what you want (because you may basically want them all) and would be tempted to mix and match all day long. Their clothes are of quality, although some may complain it's too thin, but if you take good care of it, it would last long. They offer hip, fabulous and updated dresses, shirts, blouses, skirts, jumpsuits, shorts and what have you! Also, their shoes are also beautiful! I always choose Jellybean if I want new heels or clogs (they specialize in those kinds of shoes), and even flats. They also sell teen style bathing suits, accessories and sunglasses.

I remember being in college and making it a point to enter Jellybean everytime i shop. They carry a…read morelot of cute and trendy clothes and sell it at very affordable prices making it the perfect store for college students who need to look smart everyday. When they go on sale, you will be surprised at ho much you can buy without shelling out much. Back when the shopping meccas like Forever 21, Uniqlo, and H&M were still overseas, this is where i would go to shop for everyday clothes like blouses, skirts, and even shoes. They have small stores but the variety of styles is impressive. They have clothes that match different personalities and preferences. Even hipsters would find something nice in this store. What i like about this store is how they organize their clothes by color so mixing and matching becomes easier and fun.

I.Candy is a clothing line which has always been one of my favorite stores. Not only do they sell…read morecolorful, updated and retro style clothes, they also offer dresses that suit for almost any occasion. You can work their dresses up as a semi-formal outfit with high heels or wedges, but you can also style it casually, with sneakers of your favorite Keds. With these, you know that one dress can rule almost any outfit, you just have to style it right! Regarding quality, I like the fact that some of their dresses can be easily altered without major cuts and re-linings. They're manageable, especially if you know how to sew. Thankfully, I do! So I.Candy is one of my dress shop bffs. Btw, they also have cropped tops and other blouses, if you're not big in dresses.

Just the place to get some bargain knock offs! Yep, I'm cheap. Everyone's respectful and no one…read morepushes their stuff on to you. Just check them out and get only what you want.

Over the years, Tumblr users have skyrocketed. It's so popular that a lot of kids, teens and hip…read moreyuppies get inspiration from Tumblr blogs. May it be photography, quotes, memes, gifs, art, pop culture, style and most especially fashion. My friend actually introduced my sister and I to Fashion Market. After learning about it, we go there every time were at this mall. Fashion Market is split into 2 sides on the mall - the left and the right. I suggest going through all stores. It can take hours though, haha, but you won't regret it. They have every style and trend you'd typically see on Tumblr, fashion blogs, Youtube beauty channels and fashion week! Inside, you'll also find spas, salons, money changers and ATM's. The prices range from super inexpensive to normal clothing price rates. A lot of stores sell super hip shoes, clothes, hats, shades and even prom dresses and traditional Filipino costumes. Definitely check out these stores I frequent when you're there - (right side) Push Thru, Mastermind Chase and Muradito, (left side) Nava, Berca and Ballow. Happy shopping! :)

Nice bright store with beautiful clothing in bright colors for the Summer. Clothes are reasonably…read morepriced and well made. The styles are simple, have a good fit and the fabrics they use are of good quality. Dressing rooms are bright and clean, with full length mirrors inside each stall and one outside in the hallway. The stalls have stools to sit down on or rest your purse on. Sales people are stone faced but helpful. Sales prices are great! I came out of here with a beautiful emerald green wrap around top with lace shoulders, and a black fitted sheath dress 70% less than any other store in the mall. I'm a hard core thrifter so I won't be back here often; but I will be back, especially when they are having a sale. FYI - they carry XXL for guys!

I come by The Ramp all the time because even though I rarely ever buy anything, I think their…read moreclothes are always plenty eye-catching and intriguing without having to be so on trend all the time. I'm especially a big fan of their Yhansy line of accessories, which used to have its own stall in Shangri-La I've had to say goodbye to. Their stuff can be a little odd sometimes, which I like, and they're not all that expensive either. Their men's clothes can also be quite interesting, especially the Mundo line, which is always out there, with the prices to match. The shoes can be good though, and are much more affordable. There are a lot more stores in the place for sure, but I guess the problem is the whole area can get a little muddled and confusing, with their home line being hidden in the corner, covered by children's clothing, and all the women's clothes overlapping each other. It's honestly a bit cluttered, which is why they don't get as much traffic as they'd want from what I can tell.

I am easy to impress when it comes to fashion, since I'm no expert and I couldn't really tell a…read morestylish look from a boring one. Like I could really like this dress, but I wouldn't know that it's not uso anymore or that it's drab or boring. It's like fashion-blindness. Everything looks good on a hanger or a mannequin. So imagine me in a place with lots of good clothes like The Ramp Crossings in Trinoma. PROS: The place is just so classy and beautiful, like a #ladyboss type of store with crisp shirts and stylish dresses. There is a huge variety of styles - from the trendy and edgy, to the girly florals and flowy fabrics, to the classic LBDs and killer heels. The Ramp has it all. I can't help but get lost in the beauty of all these clothes I think I'd never get to pull off; They have shoes, accessories, even some pieces of furniture and décor at their Crossings Home brand. CONS: When you buy clothes from Crossings, you're dressed to kill. And it kills the budget too because their apparels are fairly expensive. It's on the mid- to high-range pricing, which I think is justifiable given the good clothes that they sell. TL;DR: The Ramp Crossings offers stylish pieces and classy accessories for the Manila fashionista.

After living in Thailand for a month years ago, I've always been on the lookout for stuff from that…read morecountry. I was so happy when I found out that A'postrophe had some stuff, specifically bags, from Thailand. They don't just have stuff from Thailand, they also have items from other countries sold at a relatively cheap price. Exactly what do they have at the shop? Oh my. It's pretty hard to explain what they have because it's an eclectic kind of place. They have clothes you can wear every day, costumes for parties or just because you wanna dress up, jewelry to make you stand out, shoes that are so pretty, items for your house that can be considered art and on and on and on. Just know that whatever you're style or taste is, you'll fall in love with this shop.

The fact that A'postrophe caters to my not-so-hidden hippie chick aesthetic is not lost on me. The…read moremoment I stumbled upon this kitschy, colorful beauty of a store in Glorietta, I was hooked. So many things I wanted to buy! The Hmong floral bags from Thailand! The brass skull paper weights! The seed bead earrings! The Nepalese brightly colored keychains! Whoever is in charge of A'postrophe is doing a damn good job at curating the products, because I love everything they sell here. Of course, not everything they sell is aimed towards pleasing the granola girls out there. There are products that are more trendy, but still really gorgeous. Their selection of costume jewelry is also really well-curated. I remember purchasing a gaudy gold plated ring in the shape of a jaguar's head, with green gemstones for eyes, and a large red gemstone in its mouth. You'll have to see this store to believe it, but I love going in here even just to window shop and to take my mind off the ugliness of the city.

It's undeniable that as you grow older, taste really changes. When it comes to clothing and the…read morestyles that I prefer, what I liked before is light years away from what I like now. Before, when I was much younger, I used to be quite a trendwhore, blindly loving and wearing any new trend in sight. Now that I'm much older (and wiser), I've come to appreciate simplicity and comfort. But of course simple doesn't need to be boring, and comfort doesn't necessarily mean unstylish. One local brand that's got the whole easy, breezy stylish look down pat is Facile, a newcomer in the local fashion scene. Only two collections young, Facile is all about comfort and ease of wear, without sacrificing style. The brand usually comes out with a small capsule collection of tops and dresses that capitalize on the slouchy, effortless way of dressing. I'm such a big fan and if you see their clothes, you will be too. The brand doesn't have a physical store yet but they do have an online shop and pop-up in bazaars from time to time.