Backyard of the Universe at Heima

November 26, 2011. It was like hitting four birds with one stone…

Met my close friend Ryssa after a long time.
Finally visited a Heima store & saw their beautiful items.
Saw Valerie Chua’s artworks up close.
Met Valerie in person!

You may have no idea how giddy I can get when my dreams come true. I found out that Valerie Chua will have her solo exhibit starting November 23rd, & since I really love her artworks, I totally swore that I will go see it. Coincidentally, I planned to meet up with my friend, Ryssa, whom I’ve never seen in a long time. So I decided to invite her to join me & view the exhibit. Since Ryssa’s fond of beautiful artsy stuff, she also got excited.

So yesterday, Ryssa & I went to Heima to view the exhibit. When we got to the LRI Design Plaza, I couldn’t hide my excitement & was half scared to meet Val (because I’m scared of crowds/celebs/people I admire). When we got in front of the Heima store, the store was closed (the sign said “closed”) & I was kind of disappointed that I travelled all the way from Rizal just to see the exhibit from outside the window. Lol.

Good thing, Mr. Bong, Heima’s ‘Marketing Man’/owner, saw us & opened the door. I asked if Val was around, he said ‘not yet’ but we can come inside & view the exhibit. I was amazed with everything I saw—from the paintings, to frames, to furniture. Everything was so pretty! I have been dying to see Heima’s furniture up close for so long, but I never had the chance to visit their store before. I only get to see their furniture through their site & blog posts from people. We looked around while I share some info about Heima & Val to Ryssa. I totally sounded like a geeky tour guide.

While we were taking snaps of all the beautiful items, I saw someone at the door. OMG IT’S VALERIE CHUA, OMG! And of course, being a little dorky girl, I couldn’t stop myself from looking so awkward. Haha fail.

I introduced myself to Val, since she only know me from my comments on her blog. Emphasis on me being so awkward. I’ve never ever introduced myself in person, to someone from the internet, especially someone who I totally admire. Val said she’s glad “ako nagbinyag”. Haha! Also, I regret not wearing heels, I looked like a house elf beside her. Hihi I was so happy that day! :D

Valerie Chua is a self-taught illustrator from Manila, Philippines who has completed a Bachelor of Arts in the Humanities at the University of Asia and the Pacific last 2010. Valerie started painting halfway through college and has never let go of the brush since then. She specializes in traditional media such as watercolor, gouache and acrylic and is also skilled in traditional and digital collage work.

One of my favorite artworks by Val. <3

Me taking a picture of Ryssa, taking a picture of me.

The L-O-V-E letters that I have in my room were inspired by those from Heima. Since I haven’t visited Heima before this, I had mine customized at a craft store.

Ryssa told me that my dress is so “bagay” with the place, since it’s floral & the colors are shades of peach & brown.

Harruuu Ryssa! :D One of my bestest friends in the entire universe. She’s getting married soon, & we agreed that I’d be her creative director (something) for he wedding. :>

Waaah, see, I totally looked awkward beside Val. She’s so tall & cute! I loooooooooove her newly-dyed hair.

Val & Ryssa. Ryssa actually pushed me to take photos with Val, “minsan lang to no!”

Heima was scheduled to have a launch party for their newest collection 8PM that night. That explains why the store was closed & there were manongs around fixing the store & sound system.