Celebrate Christmas in Style: Free Gift Wrapping Workshop at Anko at TriNoma, Quezon City

Image from
Anko Philippines
Facebook Page

Anko, a home and lifestyle Australian brand, has now reached Philippine shores and has quickly gained popularity, all thanks to their products of good quality and a celebrity endorsement by actress and host Anne Curtis. 

Recently, Anko opened its third, and by far biggest, branch at the bustling TriNoma Mall in Quezon City.

As soon as you walk into Anko's colossal branch, their carefully curated display of home and lifestyle essentials will pull you in.

Anko is hardly a hodgepodge or dump of items or stuff for the home or everyday living, thrown together without cohesion. They have a section for essentials in pastel shades, while several shelves offer a display of home decor in neutral colors. 

When you're hard pressed to find practical yet chic and decorative items, Anko can soon be your go-to store for pleasant shopping experiences for your home.

Seasonal decorations and costumes for Halloween and Christmas have also found their way onto Anko's aisles. You can don different head gear like headbands and witch's hats, and accessories like earrings and nail extensions. Complete your Halloween get-up by toting plastic pumpkins for trick or treating. 

You can also choose among varying sizes of fir trees and decorations that appeal to your taste. You can deck a coffee table or your workspace at home with miniatures and an advent calendar.

At this day and age when numerous Filipinos are tightening their belts, Anko prides itself not as a cheap alternative to other well-known home and lifestyle stores, but as a brand that "makes great home design accessible to everyone." 

And as preparation for the holiday season, two consecutive workshops were held at the Anko store at TriNoma, Quezon City on October 11 and 12, 2025.

The first class was a Christmas Decorating Workshop, facilitated by Home Buddies founder Frances Lim Cabatuando, a former advertising creative director. 

Out of sheer passion for home improvement, Cabatuando turned into a community founder/content creator. She firmly believes that every Filipino deserves a comfortable home, regardless of socioeconomic status or level of income. 

Image from
Anko Philippines
Facebook Page

The second class was a Gift Wrapping Workshop, hosted by Mariel San Agustin, founder of Domesticity. 

Domesticity is a handicrafts company that started on a sugar farm in San Carlos City, Negros Occidental. 

Initially, San Agustin worked with only a handful of weavers, utilizing indigenous raw materials such as pandan, jute, and sack.

Borne out of San Agustin's advocacy to support weavers in nearby towns, Domesticity has since went on to incorporate other materials like leather, wrought iron, and wicker.

Today, Domesticity supplies room amenities to hotels and resorts around the country, giveaways and packaging to companies and weddings, and private levels to department stores and boutiques.

Domesticity founder
Mariel San Agustin
facilitating Anko's free
gift wrapping workshop

My sister went shopping at Anko's last October 12 to stock up on presents to give to her friends and colleagues, and we were fortunate to be invited to the free gift wrapping workshop. 

Using a few items from Anko, Mariel San Agustin demonstrated three different ways to wrap gifts, which can be modified and personalized accordingly: 

Gift wrapping an oddly shaped object with a kitchen cloth towel 

Kitchen cloth towels with festive or bright prints can be bought from Anko, and can be an inexpensive, unique way to wrap a saucepan. 

Place a rectangular kitchen towel wrong side up on a table in a diamond position, and put a saucepan above. 

And then, wrap the head of the saucepan until part of the handle is left hidden. Secure with a colorful ribbon. 

Gift wrapping with a DIY paper bag

The cost of ready-made gift bags can get pricey, and sometimes, you can hardly find the right size of gift bags for your presents.

Cutting tools, tape, gift tags,
and colorful ribbons -- those
essentials that add gifts
that much-needed "oomph!"

To solve this problem, San Agustin advises using rolls of Anko's wrapping paper to create your own gift bags.

A strip of ribbon can be used to create a handle, while attaching a gift tag in a color that's a stark contrast to the wrapping paper paper's color, can brighten up the present in an instant. 

An alternative to creating a handle is leaving the paper bag open, but lining the inside with tissue or Japanese paper, and filling the excess space with store-bought paper filler. 

Using pleating as a technique

The most festive gift wrapping technique San Agustin showed had to do with pleating, which is an excellent way to wrap cylindrical-shaped items.

A variety of scented candles were lined up on a table as samples of cylindrical-shaped items. San Agustin took a roll of wrapping paper, measured, and cut an adequate enough portion that left 2" margins at the top and bottom of the candle. 

Proudly showing off
the finished products

Next, she covered the candle entirely with the wrapper and secured it with tape. Using a pair of scissors, San Agustin proceeded to cut approximately 1" strips along the 2" margins at the top and bottom of the candle's wrapper.

Finally, applying pleating as a technique, she folded each 1" strip around the top and bottom of the candle, until everything is covered, and taped it up.

Decorating the Gift 

Next comes in adding a personal touch to the gift by decorating it. 

Gift tags and satin ribbons can be used in plain, solid colors like red, gold, and green, or printed ribbons. 

Small ornaments like miniature Christmas balls in gold, silver, green, or red can also be tied to the ribbon.

Aside from TriNoma at Quezon City, you can find Anko's other branches at Glorietta 2, Makati and Alabang Town Center.