I missed last week’s vlog so this one is quite long. We went to Manila over the weekend so I wasn’t able to work on this since I had to finish a lot of errands and other things too.

I’m trying to be as productive as I can but right now, I’m just convincing myself not to fight it anymore and just do whatever I can.

Last week, I did another journal spread for Sahin Designs, it’s called I Got My Wish. You can find out about it more on here.

And after months and weeks of planning to finish it… it’s already done! my Artisan Paperie Planner Kit is up and posted it on Shopee.

The planner took me a while because of my being meticulous in paper and printing. I still cannot use my ever trustee laser printer, so I have to make use of what I have and re-adjust the print sizes. For now, I’m using Canon G3000 and glossy sticker.

After, I had to style and photo shoot the Artisan Paperie planner kit. Phew! It’s quite hard to do a one man show when it comes to the creative process.

The shelves I designed also arrived so I took time to clean up the things on the floor so Nicolas can crawl around the studio while I’m working. But there still much to do and clean.

But here’s what I’m very much excited about… The Big Bad Wolf opening day. Wacky and I were part of the media so we got to be there to experience it on the first day. Wooohoo!

We also get to meet the executive director of Gawad Kalinga, Jose Luis Oquinena and co-founder of Big Bad Wolf, Andrew Yap.

I am truly moved with the advocacy of Big Bad Wolf. During the media launch, we met the other half of the founders, Jacqueline Yap and she mentioned how they wanted to bring english books in Malaysia and made sure it’s very affordable so everyone can afford thus encouraging everyone to read.

They also partnered with Gawad Kalinga in the Philippines because the GK also wanted to encourage Filipinos to read. As part of their partnership, BBW is giving 500 books to GK communities in every city that they go to here in the Philippines. This is very much needed especially here in Mindanao now that we are experiencing earthquakes. Children can truly be distracted from being scared.

When Jacqueline was talking about her passion for reading and how she wanted to spread it that’s how BBW was founded, I was reminded why I love books even before.

I remember, back when we were still young, we couldn’t afford to buy books. But our parents made sure to get us a set of encyclopedia and almanac even it was so expensive. Then our Papa would let us read few topics every week and we will share it to him what we’ve read.

We also found a local shop back then where you can rent books. So, every after class, my sister and I would go there to rent our favourite books, Sweet Valley High and Archie comics.

Those were truly a very fond memory I had with books.

When I was in college, I remember, I will always keep some of my “baon” so I can buy books. When I already had a job, most of my money were spent on books. I was able to create my own library. Until last year, when we renovated my studio and cleaned up all my things, I realised I have bought almost Php60-80,000 of books already. That was a lot!

So, yeah! Books are very expensive especially the arts and crafts ones. But Big Bad Wolf book sale made a big change and it became more accessible to everyone. That alone has a great impact already. As Luis from GK said, our greatest gift to our kids are the books. So when those kids grow up, not only they can build their creativity but knowledge is really power.

Anyway, as part of the media, we had the privilege to get 5 books of our choice. It was so hard, lol. But you’d be surprise I didn’t get much craft “how to” books this time.

I really wanted to share more about my book story. Because I have so many good memories with it. It also helped me get through whenever I feel bad, anxious or sad. Most especially, it gave me so much inspiration as well. The reason why I bought books is because this is where I get ideas especially when I feel the creative block. I tend to read more than using my gadgets and it truly helps.

Unfortunately though, I have so many house chores today, lol. While Nicolas is asleep, we try to be productive and clean as much as we can.

For now, you can watch the video and see what we got from the Big Bad Wolf. If you’re from Davao or nearby cities, you can visit the book sale at Enderun Tent, Azuela Cove until December 2. They are open 24 hours.

You may also check my very first Big Bad Wolf experience last year.