A dazzling night to remember

Last year, I dressed up nicely for our Modern Filipiniana-themed company-wide Christmas Gathering. I was happy with how my hair and make-up turned out last year but deep inside I knew I wanted to try something else. This year, I went out of my comfort zone and unleashed the sleeping lion within. When this year's team was announced, I knew I was not walking in a ballgown or a sleek body-hugging or flowy long gown in our Dazzling White Christmas Gala. There were two considerations I made before selecting my clothes, namely: (1) I'm willing to buy new clothes for our company gathering only if (2) I could use them as everyday wear elsewhere. Then an idea popped! I figured I wanted to confidently walk in the middle of a predictably busy crowd at Waterfront Cebu City Hotel & Casino and the only way to achieve this is with a long blazer paired with an elegantly sexy and silky white top and a pearly white waist-high pants to complete the look. I could easily find a pair in boutiques here in big malls in Cebu City but I am not agreeable to spending at least Php 5,000 ($90). Lo and behold upon checking a few malls, I found all the clothes I needed and managed to keep my spending below Php 2,000 for clothes alone.

In the morning, my team rushed to a hotel room one of my teammates booked and all the magic of make-up took place there. Ronzela, one of my teammates, is a make-up artist; last year, I entrusted her with my overall look, and this year, no better option than letting Ronzy perform the magic all over again. I haven't had any make-up peg to begin with but when a few seconds before she started doing my make-up, I exclaimed "I want to walk in that door and look like the badest bitch in town!" She pulled off my dream make-up for that day.

I used to think that it's costly to spend on new clothes, a new pair of shoes (that would match the theme), accessories, hair and make-up and everything else, but this year has been a tough one for me, might as well end the year with a bang!

Until now, I'm still on cloud nine, not from winning one of the raffle prizes in our gathering last night, but from the confidence that I got from yesterday's unbelievable makeover.

It's like silently screaming "Thank you 2023! I'm ready for you 2024!"