Pond's #BeautifulReunions

The holidays are just around the corner, which means its reunion season once again! I’m sure as early as now invitations are already pouring in for family gatherings, elementary/high school/college reunions, and work/office parties. Surely these are all loads of fun–catching up with old friends and family members are always a joy. But there are some of us who might disagree. For some, this is the dreaded “judging season”–a time when family, friends, and old acquaintances not only dish out compliments but harsh comments about our looks. I’m not sure how it is everywhere else in the world, but in the Philippines, people are pretty much allowed to tell you what they think of your general appearance and not be nice enough to sugarcoat their comments. You’ll hear things like, “tumaba ka”, “mashado ka namang pumayat”, or “you look tired” before you even hear a hello. (I know, its really rude, but this is commonplace in every reunion.) I usually just smile when I get comments like these, mostly because I don’t know what to answer. And as much as I try to brush it off, sadly, these stick and I end up thinking about it the entire night–or even the whole week. Of course, I just assume most of these lovely relatives and acquaintances of mine just aren’t aware of what they’re doing, so I always, always counter these with something positive. Or I simply say “thank you”, and try to move on to the next topic. But it is easier said than done.

The best solution: not to give them anything to comment about! Of course, we can’t help what other people say (we can’t control people, after all), but what we can control is ourselves. Taking steps to make sure we don’t look tired, haggard or worse, loshang will ensure we are happy and confident come “judging season”. After all, there’s nothing wrong with taking care of ourselves and making sure we look our best.

This is what Pond’s most recent event was all about. #BeautifulReunions is all about looking and feeling your best, with the help of Pond’s Beauty Council members/endorsers, who offered their expert advice on how to look great during the holidays. Among Pond’s esteemed council of experts are: Charlene Gonzales-Muhlach, celebrity, wife, and mother of tween twins, who spoke about entertaining during the holidays and managing family time; Cheska Garcia-Kramer, celebrity and wife, mom of three from #TeamKramer, who shared her favorite beauty tips and products; Hindy Weber-Tantoco, style maven, who gave tips on how to dress confidently for these reunions; Tweetie de Leon-Gonzalez, wellness enthusiast, celebrity, wife, and mother of four, who offered us invaluable fitness and nutrition advice, Rissa Mananquil-Trillo, beauty columnist, entrepreneur, wife, and mother of two, and myself. Rissa and I hosted the event–both of us shared our reunion experiences and what we usually do to prepare for these next few weeks.

It was a fun event overall, because everyone got to share their horror stories when they were judged (our family and friends are apparently the meanest people haha). But it was also very positive, because we each gave our tried-and-tested tips and advice on how to look and feel great, be confident, manage your time, and dress to the nines. It was all very helpful–towards the end, everyone there were practically best friends. Its really great when ladies stick together and help each other out!

Charlene Gonzales-Muhlach.

Chesca Garcia-Kramer.

Hindy Weber-Tantoco.

Rissa Mananquil-Trillo.

Tweetie de Leon-Gonzales.

Unilever Philippines Head of PR for Personal Care Apples Aberin.

Unilever Philippines VP for Personal Care Gina Lorenzana.

Pond’s Senior Brand Manager Cesca Silvestre.

Unilever Philippines Marketing Director for Skin Mian Datu-David.

I consulted Hindy on what to wear for a reunion. Her advice: you can’t go wrong with a LBD, but what’s even better–a LRD (little red dress).

Charlene Gonzales-Muhlach, Unilever Marketing Director for Skin Mian Datu-David, Unilever Philippines Head of PR for Personal Care Apples Aberin, Unilever Philippines VP for Personal Care Gina Lorenzana and Pond’s Senior Brand Manager Cesca Silvestre.

Clockwise from top: Unilever Philippines Head of PR for Personal Care Apples Aberin, Tweetie de Leon-Gonzales, Rissa Mananquil-Trillo, Charlene Gonzales-Muhlach, Kelly Misa-Fernandez, Cheska Garcia-Kramer, Pond’s Senior Brand Manager Cesca Silvestre, Unilever Philippines VP for Personal Care Gina Lorenzana, Unilever Marketing Director for Skin Mian Datu-David and Hindy Weber-Tantoco.

The Pond’s Beauty Council experts: Hindy Weber-Tantoco, Tweetie de Leon-Gonzales,Rissa Mananquil-Trillo, Charlene Gonzales-Muhlach, Kelly Misa-Fernandez and Cheska Garcia-Kramer.

Charlene and Apples.

The two Chescas.

Rissa and Gina.

BFFs Apples and Tweetie.

Me and Gina.

Apples, Charlene and Tweetie.

Joey Mead.

George de Fiesta Jr, Jigs Mayuga, Phoemela Barranda, and Jing Monis.

TO know more about Pond’s #BeautifulReunions: CLICK HERE.

HOW TO GET YOUR SCHOOL A BEAUTIFUL REUNION:

Click “Nominate Your School” on our homepage. Fill out the fields on the pop-out window to submit your school.
After submission, you should see a notification window indicating that your submission has been received. Pond’s will send you a new notification in two (2) working days should your school be chosen.
Pond’s will screen the schools based on the following criteria:
1. First come, first served basis will be honored for submissions.
2. A minimum guarantee of 80 female attendees must be confirmed by school organizer.
3. The nominee’s school reunion must be at least fifteen (15) working days after the date of nomination submission.
Sponsorship of Pond’s will be in the form of the following as available:
1. Pond’s gift packs and freebies
2. Pond’s Beauty Awards
3. Digital Photo with Printing option
During the reunion, Pond’s will also be offering free items for every purchase of Pond’s Age Miracle
1. Limited Edition POND’S by RAJO LAUREL BAG worth Php 1,000
2. Pond’s Age Miracle Day Cream 10g worth Php 99
3. Pond’s Age Miracle BB Cream 25g worth Php 499