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style shopping: dl design

Our photo shoot on Dr. Balisacan’s studio brought us to this fascinating lamp store in Kamuning. 

DL Design, short for its owner’s name Doy Lagos, is a small shop that’s home to interesting, one-of-a-kind lamps. Doy was the one who designed the Moses lamp, the wicker and steel droplight in Dr. Balisacan’s living area.

Doy’s designs are really interesting. Very unconventional, I must say. One thing I like about them is their sculptural form. They can make a statement in a room without looking too overpowering.

DL Design has lamps ranging from the classic contemporary Filipino pieces…

… to pieces that are rather playful and quirky.

In designing interior furnishings, it’s quite tricky to strike a balance between being sculptural and being able to blend harmoniously with the rest of the space. Probably Doy’s background as an architect gave him the kind of sensitivity for both aspects of design.

If you want to see more of Doy’s lamps, visit his website at www.dldesign.multiply.com.

His shop is located at 51 Kamuning Rd., Quezon City, but is open by appointment only. Better contact him before dropping by. He could be reached at 09205624075.

*photos are by Jerome Albrando for DL Design.

style shopping: the beadlady craft cafe

After our visit to Heima, we saw another quaint shop in Cubao X–The Beadlady Craft Cafe. Actually, what initially attracted us to this store is its bold red door.

I must say, it’s a unique take on the design concept of a craft store.

The ice cream parlor-/French cafe-inspired shop carries all sorts of materials for bead crafts: different types and sizes of beads, metal charms, chains, locks, etc. They refer to their merchandise display as the “bead bar”.  What’s better is that the items are priced very reasonably. Like Heima, another young entrepreneur is behind this concept store, who started her business making bead accessories and selling them to her classmates. Smart!

For those who are not so artsy-craftsy, the staff can assemble your chosen charms and beads to create a necklace or a bracelet. Ms. creative director and ms. cfo each got themselves a charmed necklace.

Miniature mannequins for holding necklaces, and interesting flats are also sold here.

The Beadlady Craft Cafe is located at Shop 54, Cubao X, Cubao, Quezon City.

style shopping: heima

Two weeks ago, the designgeng (me, ms. creative director, and ms. cfo) dropped by Cubao X to check the place for new finds. Cubao X, formerly Marikina Shoe Expo, is now a spot alive with a distinct creative indie culture. Apart from the shoe stores that Marikina Shoe Expo has been known for, there’s an addition of new shops, boutiques and art galleries that lend the area with a fresh upbeat spirit.

Among all the shops, one immediately popped because of its colorful storefront–Heima. At home in Icelandic, Heima is a design and lifestyle store by young interior designer Rossy Yabut and her partner Bong Rojales.

The store has a fun and youthful appearance. It sort of reminds me of the designer stores in Ann Siang Hill in Singapore. Although the store is filled with brilliantly colored merchandise, the interiors’ white, light gray, and cool charcoal walls and floors balanced off the palette.

I love their way of giving traditional furniture a quirky twist. Rossy calls their pieces “upcycled” furniture—old furniture made more contemporary by painting them with bold trendy colors plus adding whimsical fabrics for the upholstery. This look is a refreshing change from the modern/minimalist styles.

This wall even has a funky Betsey Johnson vibe.

Aside from their furniture, the store also carries lamps, mirrors, pillows, originally designed wall decals, and other small home accessories. For the fashionistas, they even have cool shoes, umbrellas, and eco bags.

Probably influenced by Bong’s passion for photography and lomography, Heima carries a range of lomo cameras as well.

The second floor is Heima’s Kolektib Shared Space, a venue for small classes and workshops. Unfortunately, there was an ongoing meeting upstairs so we were not able to check it out. Maybe next time, when we come back for their holiday collection

Visit their store at G/F Shop 33, Cubao X, Cubao, Quezon City or their website www.heimastore.com . They accept indent orders for furniture and lamps, especially helpful if you want the piece in a different color or fabric.