Sunday, June 10, 2012

Fancy Friday: A Visit at The First Korean Fancy Shop in the Country--- C.N.A Philippines


Being a Kpop freak enthusiast that I am, I was a little flabbergasted to know that a popular Korean fancy shop opened their first branch in the country just a few weeks ago. That’s why I invited some of my Kpoppin’ girlies to check out the store right on the first weekend of our first week of school (we need our allowances okay?)

Yeah but that didn’t happen because we went there earlier than expected.  The little visit was sure an untimely one. A friend of us ditched her 6:30pm class for this (talk about B.I. friends ) and we have this org meeting to run after. Plus, it’s a Friday and we’re just so clever to go there during the peek hours in all mighty Malate.

But then I would say that there are no regrets whatsoever because C.N.A Philippines just sucked the living kikay souls out of us. There are moments we, 21 yr. old adults literally spazz on a random item just because it’s cute, it’s girly, it’s sparkly, it’s unique and yeah… it’s Korean!

credits to: C.N.A. Philippines  

(pls. forgive me for the bad lightingT_T. Credits to my dear friend Carissa who took this on the last minute before we ran on the streets of Malate. We only have 10 minutes to get back to school!)


C.NA. Philippines opened their first branch in the country last May 19, 2012 at the ground floor of University Tower in Malate Manila. The shop sells practically every girl’s kikayssentials from jewelries, accessories, stickers, cosmetics, beauty products and the rest and all are 100% made in Korea.

Oh and did I mention that this store is such a Kpop haven? It's like the currently hibernating omnipotent soul of fangirl-ness in me was suddenly unleashed.

See that guy near the entrance (besides manong na naka-blue?) That's Mr. Jimmy Kim, gingerly eyeing his store:) Such a hands-on owner (and very friendly too!)

The store was actually very spacious, and since they have a lot of patrons from all over the city, the space is enough for quite a handful of crowd to roam around the store without bumping on each other. The lighting is also very pleasant, plus Kpop music (and MV's) were playing nonstop that gives off this lively vibe inside the store.  

The staff were also very friendly and accommodating. I didn't have any worries while covering their shop because they all attentively welcomed our queries about the store and their products. 

Oh---speaking of which, let's start with the earrings. 
Two seconds of my life was wasted gawking from afar in sheer amazement. There were a lot of earrings. And I mean,  A LOT.

These were( I think) the pricier earrings that is made of 92.5% silver + 14k platinum plating(whew, that's a mouthful) They have a lot of unique styles to choose from plus these earrings do not tarnish easily. 


This is my favorite pair! This reminds me of EXO-K Bacon's (Baekhyun) symbol in Mama :)  There are more unique pairs like this one so you better check every single one out!
There are about 3 to  4 sections dedicated  just for earrings. Mind you, we have less than an hour to shop. Oh the joy -_-

These pairs are definitely lookers! I actually am not fond of wearing bold and colorful earrings but these cuties converted the conservative lola in me. (That banana and apple pair was also a stand out)


If you guys have multiple ear piercings, you get to choose the cooler designs! Ah, we so envy these people that on our way back, we even talked about having our ears pierced!

Next stop are the bracelets. These... these I love!


There are so many styles to choose from! 
These bracelets are the winner for me. I've been ogling on these thin-strapped bracelets since who-knows-when. I was lucky to find it here and I already have plans of buying another one on my next visit.

Cube rings and cube bracelets. These are found right beside the cashier table.




RINGS. There are also a wide range of designs for the rings.

These are just lovely!


C.N.A. also have a wide range of styles for piercings. (Okay now I'm so totally up for a pierce and mother's gonna kill me for sure.)




If you are the type who have a lust for blings, check out C.N.A's assortment of necklaces.  

I just love the pop of color on that rose pendant!
You wouldn't get to see a lot of these around. I think this one is from their new arrivals list.
These cross pendants remind me of JYJ's Jaejoong and Super Junior's Yesung. IDEKW.

Perfect for couples <3
Oooh I also love these cube pendants! They are Blingtastic!

This collection have finer, shorter laces with cute, small pendants ---perfect for girls who's into a more toned- down, sophisticated style.




Of course my trip to downtown Kpop haven will not be complete without checking on their makeup and beauty products.
I wasn't able to get a good whiff on all of the colognes but  a hundred bucks is pretty affordable for a decent cologne. Aside from Korean scents, there are lippies and cheek and lip tints as well (that I failed to take a picture because my damn phone wasn't even barely surviving that time.)

I noticed that Darkness is the name of the makeup line they are selling. I really wanted to try those but no haz time!! I'm planning to buy on my next trip to C.N.A and make reviews out of those.
BB CREAMS! I actually came for these but unfortunately, I wasn't able to buy one.  I couldn't decide what to buy between these two (although Bio-Bee's packaging looks kawaii!) so I've decided to just go back when I have longer time to choose.

Look how pretty and sparkly these BB pacts are! 
Hot items. Need I say more? Facial masks, nail polishes and makeup removers are abundant.
Lots of facial masks to choose from:)
They also have a corner for all the Beauty tools you might need. From hair care/styling tools, nail care tools, shavers, the infamous flamingo eyebrow shaver, scissors, tweezers, sponges and many many more!

 


And for those of you who's fond of wearing falsies, you might want to check these babies out :)

Such a brilliant idea from the Krimmy couple to actually put up a corner for all our Kpop needs! There are calendars, posters, mini organizers, badges and all other merch that were only normally sold during Kpop conventions and events. Now you can have them anytime you want!
SJ <3
KPOP ALBUMS! I wish more SJ and EXO next time:))



K-Idol SOCKS: They actually have a whole rack for these cuties! I hope they have SJ the next time  I visit and I might purchase all 15 pairs :p

2NE1. I think I'll buy me a Minzy sock next time:)
Big Bang
SHINee

Err girl groups I couldn't even recognize (I'm sorry!!)
For those of you who love hair accessories or just a plain hair trinket junkie, C.N.A. Philippines is the perfect stop for you. I haven't seen any fancy shop that sell hair accessories this mad! 

170 bucks for this pretty hair clip. Perfect if you wanna look all-dolled up:)
These hair accessories are just adorable! They look like candies:)

Various clips with the right amount of sparkle you'll need:)
Sparklies!:)
More sparklies!!
Ribbons:)
 Ribbons!:)
More ribbons!!
Cute and colorful but these are not your ordinary hair clips:))
See what I mean? hehehehe...

C.N.A. also sell cellphone charms and accessories. Too bad most of the cellphone charms on sale are made for couples. 




Bitter much? Not really! These earphone cap/jack/plug now became an absolute favorite cellphone accessory of mine! 

Sprout Plug

Bunny Ears Plug
Apple, Bunny and Angel Wings (?) Plug
Mickey Mouse plugs. I actually was gonna get that red Mickey plug for my Chocolate phone but the kind sales lady suggested their best seller instead.
And this is the best seller she was talking about. At first glance it was kinda off for me, idkw but once  I placed it on my phone, gosh was it pretty!

Putting stylish plugs like this on your phone makes a huge difference! Plus it protects your earphone jack as well. 


STICKERS: These are actually one of C.N.A.'s bestsellers. I wasn't able to browse the entire rack unfortunately but on my next visit I'll definitely hog on these and might as well buy for my sister who's btw a huge sucker for stickers.

CLUTCH BAGS/PURSES: I love how the clutch bags and purses look chic and colorful! These are great for storage and I'm planning to buy one for my makeup.


Colorful and chic! These bags have this gold, mini Eiffel Tower plates as an embellishment. 


For less than an hour of panic-filled shopping, here's all we've got:

That was one quick haul you girls, whew!
So chic! Eiffel Tower necklace. 

Earrings. I got my self that letter "A"  pair of earrings. Surprisingly my friend bought the Bacon earrings pala :P
 Apparently, one of my friends is one hell of a Big Bang fan, hence the crown earplugs (one's mine) and a crown clip.
Ribbons. Don't they look nice?:)

Here's the bracelet and the ring that I bought. 
Meet ze friends with Mr. Jimmy Kim and ze haggard face over there.


I was very shy to ask Mr. Jimmy Kim for a picture so I asked one of my friends who is actually a Krimmy couple fan to ask him instead. Good thing Mr. Kim was kind enough to take a picture with us. I wish miss Kring was also there para happy family ,kumpleto ang barkada!

C.N.A. Philippines is one of those stores I wouldn’t mind spending a few bucks for my inner Kikay needs. It’s also one of those stores I won’t get tired of. Students from St. Paul and U.P. Manila are so lucky that C.N.A. is just around the corner. T_T I hope they open another branch in Mendiola too. It’s going to be packed for sure.

So for those who love cutesy Korean jewelries, accessories, beauty products and all those stuff, C.N.A. Philippines is open Monday to Sunday from 10 am to 10 pm. The store is located at the ground floor of University Tower in Malate, right across U.P. College of Medicine building.  

For more information, like their facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/CNAphils


Til next time:)

ARBE

2 comments:

  1. Wow! I love the accessories and ribbons! Bring me there, Arbe!!

    Arra
    theprincessonthebrink.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for posting this! Felt like I was there! We need one of these in the states!

    ReplyDelete