I can't begin to describe how cute The Paper Stone is. And no, I don't mean it's in any way ugly…read moreyet appealing. Appealing yes, but by no means is it ugly! I loved browsing the shop and asking about every single product they had. They offer a wide range of stationery, from magazine holders, to pens, to gift wrappers, to journals! They may be a bit pricey though, which breaks my heart because they all have such adorable designs! The stickers are my favorite. I remember spending around 15 minutes (or more) just looking at every sticker design they had, trying to choose which to purchase. (I settled with cute bunnies). For those, like me, who can't resist cute things, you'll probably spend the same amount of time I did browsing their collection. The Paper Stone is a good place to buy gift items for your girlfriends, or your nieces. Trust me, boys.

Cute items and this is the store I never fail to visit whenever I'm at UP Town Center but the sales…read moreassistants are too clingy! I wish they'd give shoppers more personal space.

Deovir is an artist's heaven…read more This could actually be my only statement and it would pretty much sum up Deovir. They have so many items available for use of artists which cannot be found in bookstores. Being the premiere art supply store, they have a wide range of products, from brushes, paints, paper, pencils, etcetera. This goes for even supporting materials such as thinners, binding mediums, and other art-related needs. Being not so familiar with and not comfortable in exploring painting mediums, I recently called them to ask for advice as to what I can use for an upcoming project. I needed to use a paint that would adhere well to textile, will be permanent despite washing, but needs to likewise have the correct consistency for brush calligraphy. With a short discussion of my options, I knew what I needed and even had my orders prepared already for payment and pick-up. Indeed, it pays to go to a specialized shop for, well, special art needs.

For me, a trip to Deovir is always entertaining. I've been known to stay for more than an hour…read moreinside the small space, just browsing through different art and craft materials without a specific agenda in mind and thinking about the creative possibilities. There are canvasses of all sizes ready to be spread with acrylics, oils, watercolors, pastels, etc. There are reasonably-priced, artist grade brushes. There are craft foams, polymer clays, charcoals, and a lot more. If there is something that I need for a craft or a project, I immediately look for it in Deovir. And I get a sinking feeling if I cannot find it in their shelves, because that means that I am unlikely to find it anywhere else locally. The staff are very helpful, and they know what they are talking about. There was this time when I was assembling a painting kit as a gift, and a friendly salesperson gladly discussed the comparative pros and cons of acrylic and oil, and why the former might be better suited for a novice than the latter. Seriously, I look for excuses to visit this store even though I know that it's not good for my wallet. They also have an online shop but sadly, the online inventory is very limited.

For artsy people who like to make things with their hands and like to support artsy people who make…read morethings with their hands, The Common Room is a very welcome addition to Katipunan. On the heels of the growing craft scene in the Philippines, The Common Room describes itself as "a place where makers gather." I love it because it's true! You'll find everything here from wallets made from old comic books, hand-sewn patches, pins, perfume, plushies and succulents! When you step inside, you'll wish you had money to buy everything in the store (or maybe I'm speaking only for myself). My favorite brand they carry is called Tweed and Twine, which makes pouches out of really beautiful fabric. It's also located right next to Go! Salads, so when I'm there for my daily green smoothie, I can't resist the call of all things handmade, pretty and shiny, and have to exercise great restraint not to come out with pretty new stationery, magnetic pins, and other lovingly handmade things I didn't think I needed. I love it!

This store has been around for over 15 years run by Arsenio & Marina San Juan, serving the offices…read moreand academic community of Rodriguez, Rizal with prices STILL much MUCH lower than National Book Store!

THE place for beginners and experienced crocheters and knitters alike! They have a wide selection…read moreof yarns to choose from and some that are hard to find even online. When you buy a skein they can spin it into a non-knotting ball (its helpful, trust me). Special orders are easy! Maybe because the crochet/knit crafting scene is small in Manila, there are too few local yarn shops. There are many online stores but, it is still good to have a feel of the yarn before you pruchase it. Also, having a shop that has a steady flow if the one particular yarn you need for projects is important. So, Dreams Yarnshoppe is my go-to yran shop! The shop carries a fine selection of designer yarn and brands not available at big box stores. The store is tiny but stocked and the employees are helpful and knowledgeable knitters. This store carries high-quality yarns made of natural fibers instead of mostly acrylic yarn. Cotton, bamboo, and all the new blends are here to feel. Sock yarn, striped yarn, and all the notions and patterns you could hope for. Even if you like to buy online, there is something about touching your materials that is helpful. Plus, they have lots of sample projects to inspire you!

I recently learned how to crochet, and I've since become obsessed with it. If you're surprised,…read moredon't be - I'm actually a billion years old, with the personality of a five year old. Plus, crocheting is great! I decided that this year, instead of hand-making my Christmas Cards, I'd make everyone scarves instead. Because really, who doesn't like a giant, fluffy scarf? If you said nobody, you'd be spot on. But to the point - after a ton of research, I found out that there were only three physical stores in Manila that sell yarn/crocheting needles: National Bookstore, Carolina's Lace and of course, Dreams Yarnshoppe. After having visited the first two and being thoroughly disappointed, I decided to venture out to Glorietta 5. And although Glorietta is a maze to navigate through, the Dreams Yarnshoppe made it well worth the effort! Although tiny, this store has most things you'd be looking for as an crafts person. If I had a cat (eww, but I've got a point, I swear), it would have had a field day because this store is basically catnip. SO MUCH YARN. SO MANY COLOURS. So many sizes! After being repeatedly met with sad, dull looking 4 ply yarn and tiny cotton crochet hooks, this store made it seem like I'd hit the jackpot. I ended up buying 4 skeins of yarn and 2 sets of Susan Bates crochet hooks (10 hooks in total) for PHP 2960 i.e. $65. Which, if you think about it, isn't cheap. Each skein of Lion Brand Homespun bulky yarn was PHP 495 ($11) which is about $4 more than it retails for in the US. The skeins of Big Wheel by Cascade Yarn were PHP 490 each, but that's approximately how much they retail for. The two sets of crochet hooks were marked up by $1 which, in the grand scheme of things, is negligible. Pros: + Yarns of all different plys (4, bulky, super bulky) + A ton of different yarn fibres (merino, cashmere, acrylic) + A great selection of colours + Crochet hooks that range from 1-11 mm, in a variety of materials (aluminum, wood and plastic) + The women working at the store were extra knowledgeable about the amount of yarn I would need to crochet a scarf and helped me buy yarn accordingly + Friendly service + They also sell DMC embroidery thread (although, if you really need some you should go to the dedicated store - DMC Creative World at SM MegaMall) Cons: - Expensive for Lion Brand yarn - Bright fluorescent lighting in the store. I really dislike fluorescent lights. - CASH ONLY Word to the wise: STAY AWAY FROM THE WOODEN CROCHET HOOKS! I was unsure about which kind of crochet hooks to buy, so the ladies working at the store let me try the different kinds of hooks with the yarn I was already buying. The yarn kept catching on the wood crochet hooks due to tiny splinters. They've also got a local/cheaper alternative to the Susan Bates aluminum crochet hooks; the prices aren't too different, but there's a world of difference in the quality, so I went with the Susan Bates ones. P.S. If you're considering making scarves for everyone this Christmas, you might want to reconsider because of the significant impact it's going to have on your wallet ($20 per scarf).

I took me quite a while to place the correct categories for this place, as there seems to be no…read morecategory called "CUTE THINGS YOU DON'T NEED BUT WILL BUY ANYWAY". Yelp, get on it! I'm a sucker for anything that has animals on it (NOT their skin! Ditch fur and leather, please!). Or polkadots. Or vegetables. Or fruits...Or all! This place is for every girl who likes "kawaii" things --BUT of course, that wouldn't be appropriate to say because this store hails from Korea, so instead, say "gwi-yeo-wo-yo"! Are you celebrating someone's birthday soon? If so, this place has the cutest little party hats (of course, with animals!) to top your dear celebrant's head with, greeting cards, party "gear", and other colorful festive things! If you're a sock collector, then this is the place to get cute silly socks! Pretty notebooks that are too cute to write on? Check! Mushroom lamp? Check! And if you have not outgrown your sticker addiction, they have soft, "pillow-y" ones that are just ~squeeee~! Koreans really know how to make things murderously cute! Take my money!

Finally, Korea's uber cute fashion is finally within reach! Artbox is full of adorable clothing,…read morestationery, mugs, and what-have-yous! I wanted to get so many things that I don't even need anyway. Like a blanket with a hood. Or an unnecessary number of socks. Or storage boxes. (Well, I may need those storage boxes.) If you're a complete sucker for things with cute animal faces, this place is a must-see for you!

Many stars of the 1920s-1970s have become icons of certain qualities. Elvis Presley for rock n'…read moreroll. The Beatles for revolutionary music and charm. Frank Sinatra for cool and suave music. Audrey Hepburn for chic. Marilyn Monroe for sexy. Grace Kelly for classy. Greta Garbo for femme fatale. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers for dancing. Now, you can capture the faces and poses of these icons, through the decorative framed pictures of Frame Plus. If you are like me who enjoys staring at iconic pictures for leisure, then you better start buying some items from Frame Plus. Already hanging on the walls of our home are Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley and The Beatles. Each one reminding us of a creative, glamorous period that, I am sure, many of us often look back to. The black and white color of the pictures, like the faces of the icons, lend a touch of class to an otherwise simple home.

Oh Typo, Typo... I want to love you so badly, I really do. Your designs are clever and cute. Your…read moreitems are practical and definitely look like something I might want-slash-need-in-the-definite-future. I love stores like you. Sketchpads, notebooks, pencils, ballpens... everything I could ever need for something light is in your shelves and then some. Heck, you'd definitely be the kind of store I'd want to go to since I can't get anything from Etsy. But we have a problem, you and I. A HUGE problem. A glaring dealbreaker of a problem. Your quality. I'm gonna be frank here. It sucks. Now now, I can't say everything's bad. Your mannequins are fine and I love the fact you actually have a jointed hand model. Your stickers and stamps are adorable and clever. Everything's so... Instagrammy. (No wonder why the kids love it, I guess?) But there are some MAJOR dealbreakers for me. Your notebooks for one. The covers are floppy. You'd think a notebook as big as the ones you offer would have covers that give a bit more support. I'd have better support from the cardboard backing of a pad of yellow paper. And the paper. It's... okay. Only okay. One notebook I felt had this really thin, really rough paper which (in my experience) doesn't hold heavier inks very well and one other notebook I felt has smoother, slippery paper that doesn't (again, in my experience with papers of that GSM) catch anything less than a felt pen. And your pens. My mom's friend bought her a Peanuts pen when they were at the store and no less than ten minutes after leaving the mall, Lucy's head came off. Yeah. You heard me. Thick plastic topper. Head came right off. It was just in her bag. And it wasn't even nicely painted either. I understand attempting to make it look like it was hand painted but this was just sloppy. For what that pen cost, I would have expected it to last longer than ten minutes. Your newly released colored pencil/watercolor pencil line rubs me the wrong way too. Maybe I was spoiled by Sakura and Faber Castel but that rough wood grain near the lead just reeks of flimsy lead. You know the kind: sharpen using any method and the lead ends up breaking when you think it's finally sharp? And the PRICE. I could get cheaper things with better quality at National Bookstore... heck, Diovir and Enriquez if I really wanted the good stuff. That ballpen was over 200php. And 250php for a birthday card? No thanks. Would I recommend Typo to anyone? Maybe if they were looking for cute things, yes, though I'd definitely steer them away from the stationery section. Maybe I'm just showing my age but if you want something you can really work with, something that will age with you and wear with you and work the way you want, you're better off picking your next journal from Fully Booked. Grab a ballpen from National while you're at it. If you want something with more style and less substance, go right ahead.

Ahh the smell of fresh and unsullied notebooks!…read more Okay, I have a confession to make. I love stationery. Papers, cards, letter sets, notepads - everything, as long as I could write on them. I would hoard so many notebooks and to this date, I have plenty of cute little journals that are gathering dust on my shelf but I can't stomach writing on them. Because OCD. They somehow lose their appeal when they have writing on them... But anyway, if you are like me and you grow weak in the knees by the thought of cute stationery, you will go crazy once you set foot in Typo. It is pretty easy to find, as it is near the entrance of the mall. Every square inch of space is crammed with stuff that you don't need but you want to buy anyway. Everything is so kitschy and cool, and their designs appeal to the young and hip (fine..Hipster) crowd. I was looking for cute stickers and I found plenty to paper every surface of my laptop with. They had an entire table of novelties related to pugs, from aprons to pillows. I also love their collection of really cute tumblers and water bottles that look like science laboratory equipment - flasks and beakers that you can use at home to spruce up your boring old kitchen. I ended up buying cute letter decals that I stuck to my wall. I also bought a set of twinkling fairy lights that are battery operated. The tiny lights look great on my vanity, and I use it now as a night light. I am really scared of electric Christmas lights, especially since substandard ones are known to burn entire houses down, so I'm glad that they have batter operated ones that are safe to use.