Shopping, Shops

Find Some Secret Treasures

Whoops, sorry, we here at Southbound have been busy with all sorts of things (the usual work, of course, but then there are trips to plan, parties to organize, gifts to buy, and all sorts of fun but really hectic things to take care of), so this post is a bit late. We expect you’ve got your share of holiday chores to take care of, so in keeping with the got-no-time-to-shop mood, we’d like to share a little place in BF we discovered recently, which you can explore with the excuse of finding some gift items for friends and family, or which you can pop into on your way to a holiday gathering (incidentally, another BF favorite, O’Smile (I think it’s called something else now, though it will always be O’Smile to me) is a great place to drop by for a last minute gift, especially if you’re heading to a children’s party).

Anyway, the shop we came upon is a tiny place called Secret Treasures, and it sells small knick knacks, glass miniatures, Persian ceramics, and jade and crystal trinkets, the sort of things that make good gifts for collectors and those who enjoy items tinged with the charm and mystery of other lands.

It feels like the sort of store you’d find tucked away somewhere in Manila, or maybe in UP Diliman’s Shopping Center, and appropriately enough, the owner, lovely Nouri Agulto, is a classic UP sort (to non-UP people, that’s a compliment of the highest form, just in case it wasn’t obvious, hehehe).

The display up front is geared towards Christmas, with small inexpensive gift items and some angel ornaments. What makes the store a real find is in deeper: imported items from Jordan, Turkey, and Israel, things like mini carpets, painted ceramic plates, mosaic tiles, and blue evil eye trinkets.

There are also items of a Chinese bent: mini terracotta warriors, lotus incense holders, and jade bracelets.

In a glass case sit many small figurines that strongly remind me of my grandmother’s house: miniature animals, bowls of fruit, and blue and white mini windmills and clogs.

The items are very reasonably priced: jade rings and pendants go for around P150, bracelets for P300; even the slightly expensive ones, like the mini carpets (around P750), and the terracotta warriors (P5,500 for a set), are authentic imported pieces, and so are well worth the cost.

The store is unassumingly tucked away between a bar and a local parlor, right across Cardinal Ceramics, another excellent source of gift items (these of Indian flavor). It’s worth a look, and will fascinate those who like finding pretty packages in unexpected places.

Nouri’s Secret Treasures
H-8 MR Realty Building,
Elsie Gaches St., BF Commercial Center,
Phase 1, BF Homes, Parañaque
809-5883

« Previous Post: The Southbound Seven - In memory of places that have passed away

Next Post: Surprising Discoveries at China Castle »