Out and About: Philippines International Furniture Show / Manila Fame, The Design and Lifestyle Event March 2014

I received an invitation from Mildred Manalastas of More Than A Chair last Sunday to come out and see the Philippines International Furniture Show/Manila Fame, The Design and Lifestyle Event, and of course, I couldn't say no! Thank you so much Mildred and More Than A Chair for our special invites! You know I'd go in a heartbeat to see the show!

Of course, the first booth I visited was that of More Than A Chair. If you would recall, we bought our special dining chairs from them at last year's Manila Fame Event. What I love about More Than A Chair's pieces is that they beautifully combine wood carving to both classic and modern pieces. I particularly like their chairs as accent pieces.

For this year's fair, taking center stage is their canopy chair in different versions. Like this one in solihiya, it's a hit because of its classic design.

Here's another version of the canopy chair, this time in one solid shade of blue. The wood framing extends to the back of this chair and is also fabric upholstered at the back in the same shade.

Here's one in a French-inspired design, with it's white frame and floral print.

Before going to the show, I actually saw this chair on instagram when somebody shared it in social media, isn't it lovely? The tufting at the back of the chair provides extra support and I absolutely love that I can just sit on this chair and feel like I'm in a cocoon (in a good way), haha! It's perfect for some me-time book reading, while listening to good music or simply just a beautiful chair to sit on while having a conversation over tea or coffee with someone special at home.

I really love this chair and couldn't help but take a photo, haha! There's another one on the rightmost side but the wood is in natural finish and with a different fabric too!

Of course, before buying furniture pieces, Mickey and I have three criterias: It should be comfortable, it should fit a specific area in our space and the design should be timeless. He gave his stamp of approval on the canopy chair (as I have)!

By the way, those light colored dainty chairs beside me are specially made for kids. Nice, right?

I also passed by furniture, lighting and accessories store, South Sea, who I found out is More Than A Chair's sister company. Though they are sister companies, their design aesthetic is different from each other. South Sea specializes in natural veneer lamination and wood furniture manufacturing. Their products range from simple to hand-made marquetry and parquetry designs for furniture and interior panel designs.

They also use a wide range of natural materials such as banana bark, reconstituted shell, lahar sand and mother of pearl in their designs.

I love these boxes in different shapes to keep special things in

I also had the chance to chat and meet Lieza Marie Bituin, C.O.O. of South Sea Veneer Corporation. It was nice meeting you Lieza!

I also passed by JB Woodcraft, a sister company of More Than A Chair and South Sea. The family is involved in the same furniture industry, but you'll find that they all have their different styles and strengths in terms of furniture design.

Of course, the first thing that catches your attention in JB Woodcraft's designs is that their furniture is intricately hand carved and are inspired by European design. Just look at the detailing on this mirror and console!

This settee is so beautiful and a bit Versace-esque don't you think? Just lovely.

I also had the chance to meet Leslie Mendiola, Associate Marketing Manager of JB Wood Craft. Thank you Leslie for sharing with us your company's story. Leslie is also the sister of Lieza Bituin of South Sea Veneer Corporation.

Just beside JB Wood Craft is the booth of their mother company, Betis Crafts, owned by Myrna Bituin, who happens to be the mom of Leslie Mendiola of JB Wood Craft, Lieza Bituin of South Sea Veneer Corporation and Allan Bituin of More Than A Chair. Betis Crafts is the leader in hand-carved and solid wood furniture and accessories and has a strong following in the Middle East, Europe, Australia and in the United Sates.

Their furniture pieces are upscale and usually end up in the homes of the rich, famous and the blue blooded. You'll also find their furniture in Hollywood movies such as Sex and The City.

One of the booths I also visited is Pampanga-based furniture and accessories maker, Maze.

I was in awe of this caged banquet seating with the chandelier hanging on top of the table. The gilded cage is huge, this photo cannot even show the enormity of the entire piece.

They also have different smaller versions of the huge gilded cage, such as this one, which also has it's own chandelier. There are also lamps in small gilded cages too, such as the one beside this chair.

Thank you Justin Manarang of Maze for the special tour!

Of course, you all know my fascination with Prizmic & Brill's luggage and trunk inspired furniture. At the show, we met no less than Matthew Brill! We told him about our recent purchase of his Kipling desk and Campaign chair, and he shares with us that no matter how many different types of tables he makes, the Kipling desk is still the design that is ordered in so many different leathers and colors. So, score! It's so worth the purchase! On my left side, you'll find the Kipling desk and the Campaign chair proudly displayed together.

At the show, there were also some beautiful lighting from Miguel Aguas' MCCA.
He also has a store in Greenbelt 5.

This beautiful lighting fixture is from Azcor Lighting Systems

Of course, one of the highlights of attending the show is meeting renowned industrial designer, Kenneth Cobonpue! Thank you Kenneth for this photo, I'm a fan! Haha!