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Gal at Home® Design Studio
Gal at Home® Design Studio

Interior Design and Decoration | Manila, Philippines

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Did you know that the backbone of @gal_at_home Des Did you know that the backbone of @gal_at_home Design Studio is this one tough mama named Michelle? I met her way back in 2008, in my 3rd career as an editor with @summitmedia_ph's Special Publications Department. "Mother Mich," as everyone liked to call her (pero tawag ko sa kanya "Mashaaalll" kasi maarte ako) was our team's ever-so-dependable editorial assistant. She would file our expense reports, book our meeting rooms, photo shoots, and vehicle requests, schedule our team meetings, even work on the side as a fashion stylist and makeup artist---she basically helped run a 20(or so)-man ship and make sure we didn't sink. And oh, could she rock that denim jacket--and that pout!--like nobody else! More than 10 years later, we crossed paths again when I, a struggling solo designpreneur drowning in my work, asked her to help me run my one-woman show. Since then, @mich.acantilado has seen all sides of me--the good, the bad, the ugly, the headless chicken... and Gal at Home grew under her TLC. Back when WFH wasn't yet a thing, she WFH'd with me in my little home office. How I miss her alt-rock playlist (did you know she also used to work for PULP magazine?) sa umaga, na biglang magiging Mellow Touch sa hapon, then Kylie Minogue bago uwian! 🎶💃 Our tiny boat is far from the tightly run vessel she used to run a decade ago (mainly because I'm such forgetful bee 🐝), but things feel so much lighter, so much more bearable with her around. It was her birthday yesterday, and I'm beating myself up over forgetting something so important yet again. I even made her attend our weekly Monday team meeting, and I didn't even greet her on Zoom 😭😭😭 I KNOW, I KNOW. So yes, this is me, trying to make amends. But also, me trying to honor this super woman who already has to care for her own brood of four (+ grandkid!), tapos may Gal at Home pang kailangan asikasuhin! Thank you and a belated happy birthday to you, Mother Mich, Mashaalll, always, for sticking with me through thick and thin, feast and famine, peacetime and pandemic time. Loff yew!!! 💕
We're two weeks into 2022 and our team is finally We're two weeks into 2022 and our team is finally coming out of hiding...I mean, quarantine 😷😷😷 We're hoping you weren't hit (whether directly or peripherally) by the "new year surge" too, and I am really, really wishing everyone is safe, healthy, and well out of the woods. That said, I've been doing some quiet introspection into what #galathome really is for, and what it can still be. It'd been weighing heavily on my mind since late last year, as we were wrapping up our 2021 projects. Is Gal at Home really where I want it to go? I've long given up on new year goals and resolutions, but I do know that I want our little design studio/biz to be more authentic. Two years in a pandemic has shown me that much. We're already dealing with record levels of anxiety, and I don't want our homes to be another source of stress. The truth is, I want to continue helping the clueless and the confused in creating homes they love and enjoy living in, but I also want it to be a stress-free process. So I've just been planning, brainstorming, thinking of ideas...so many cool new ideas in my head that I'd love to workshop with my team as soon as we are all well and able to. But this is me, also throwing these ideas out into the universe. I'm thinking: ...better, more streamlined eDesign services (plus more monthly slots to accommodate all the inquiries we've been getting lately!) ...an on-demand, online vault of all the homestyling resources I've ever made (and will still be making) ...a collection (ebook? mini course?) of anxiety-free home management hacks for busy working moms (everything I've ever wanted to make my home cares magically disappear LOL) ...a real, honest-to-goodness, collection of PHYSICAL products in an online Gal at Home boutique??? eeeek ...and something I've been toying with for the last two years....a business mastermind for design professionals! These are all still just raw ideas, so if you want to add anything more in there, drop it in the comments or shoot me a PM! Would love to hear what you think, or what you really need that I could possibly help you with!
Today at Gal at Home Studio: picking out the right Today at Gal at Home Studio: picking out the right finishes for a project. Being an introvert, I prefer being left to my own devices so I could focus on the things I love doing. But it gets weird when you're being forced to stay put. Quarantine time again for us, due to exposure to positive cases. Seems like every other person I know is a positive case lately 😪 We've all tested negative, but as an extra precaution, we've been advised to continue quarantining until we're extra sure we aren't carrying that damn virus. Truth be told, our kids LOVE being holed up with us at home. There's just that heavy feeling when, at the back of your head, you know the real reason why you're staying put. I hope YOU are staying safe, and if you ARE isolating at home, I'm hoping you feel better soon. (Oh and can you guess that underneath that long, cream table cover are all my material samples and swatches? Hoping to be able to organize that this year, but given there's already so much to deal with from other things in our lives these days, I'm not pressuring myself at all.)
It's the end of another challenging year, but we a It's the end of another challenging year, but we at Gal at Home Design Studio are proud to have pulled off Remodel and eDesign projects in 2021—throughout lockdowns, surges, and community quarantines! Check out the Gal at Home 2021 portfolio in parts 1 and 2 of this year-ender blog post through the links in my bio. Then swipe right to view a gallery of BEFOREs and AFTERs of some of our projects! Couldn't have done this without my team (Thank you @ayanaalica, @mich.acantilado, @carieaguila, and @joelcristobaljr! 💙) and our partners: DMLorenzo Construction (@dmlbuilds, Arch. @whenjuantravels, @delmynherrera, @josephdiamante) Lux Builders and Lux Cabinets Manila (Idr. @jenncanada, @maebellgirl, @luxcabinetmanila, @luxbuildersph) Reverte Manila (@revertemanila) ...and of course all our clients who trusted us with their homes and spaces. Cheers and wishing you all a blessed and prosperous 2022! #mydomadesigners #mydomadesigner
May the spirit of Christmas dwell in your homes th May the spirit of Christmas dwell in your homes this day and always. Praying for all those who are in need at this time of the year, particularly our friends, family, and countrymen who were recently afflicted by the super-typhoon in the Visayas and Mindanao. Wishing you all joy, happiness, and an abundance of blessings. Merry Christmas to all!

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