The fun and bonding continues, and this time around, Louise delos Reyes keeps our spirits up with her engaging stories and fruitful insights about life and love. Louise just couldn’t hide her cravings for real summer vibes as she goes for a beach backdrop in her Kapamilya Chat live interview. But, even if she’s dying to end this unfamiliar and quite scary season in our lives, the Kapamilya actress asserts the need to follow the rules and be more patient in the coming days.
Louise has long earned her wings, moving out of the family home and living independently since 2013. And in 2019, the actress confirmed living under one roof with her non-showbiz boyfriend, Jino. Despite being miles away from her siblings based in Cavite, Louise never fails to keep in touch with them amid the crisis. All thanks to the internet and digital applications.
While most celebrities remain active on social media during the ECQ, Louise surprisingly veered away from too much Instagram usage, spending her idle time on playing video games instead. “As much as I want you to be updated sa lahat ng bagay, but lessen your time online kasi maka-clutter ‘yung isip mo. Parang hindi siya nakakatulong,” her number one tip on coping with the quarantine period. Instead, she advises pinning one legit news site as the only source of information. She also condemns internet users signing up as trolls, as how millennial slang describes fake news and bad vibes spreaders. Lastly, de-clutter every corner of your home. “Nabaliktad ko na nga ‘yung bahay namin,” quipped Louise, a self-confessed OC (Obsessive Compulsive).
House Tour
For the first time, Louise gives us receipts of her OC-ness and simplicity by opening her doors for a mini house tour. She starts with her bedroom, a cozy minimalist sanctuary that looks straight out of a Pinterest Board. The walls are coated in plain white. And to spice up one corner, Louise placed a chic display rack surrounded by green blooms like snake plant and pothos. Apart from adding beauty, the great thing about these potted decors is they also purify the air, helping ease Louise’s morning allergies in the process. Other key elements are the essential oil and air purifier resting on one layer of the rack. Louise is into citrus scented oils while peppermint and lavender are her best choices for inducing better sleep.
Her boyfriend Jino catches our attention as Louise welcomes us to the living room. But the guy is on the shy side and besides, he’s too focused on playing video games. The small sala breathes the same low-maintenance minimalist vibes. Adding pizzas to the simple space are another display rack adorned with cute decors and Louise’ pet dog named Cloud. Her furry buddy is from the breed called Coton de Tulear from Madagascar. Louise fell in love with Cloud even before they met five years ago; just the thought of having Cloud around has already tickled her excitement.
Next stop is the kitchen. It is not surprising to see the cooking area dominated by white colors. The OC gal makes sure that her kitchen cabinets are properly organized and she memorized all their content by heart. Louise takes advantage of the ECQ to explore new recipes. Thankfully, though, Jino can survive eating just hotdogs, bacon, and all things fried his entire life.
The office room holds more stuff than the bedroom and living room. Louise decorated the wall with a memory board pinned with photos of her favorite people, events, and memories. At night time, Christmas lights add more drama to this space. The area holds her workstation as well. The office room used to be her favorite hangout place around the house until the displayed Funko Pop collection looked like chaos and ended up stored in boxes. After the ECQ though Louise plans to revamp the room and let the Funko Pops serve their decorative purpose.
Louise believes that maintaining a minimalist house offers a wide range of pros such as less time spent cleaning around because “mahirap mag-ipon ng alikabok” and it is practically inexpensive. Louise prioritizes functionality over mere aesthetics when choosing furniture and other materials, a trait she honed with Jino’s help.
Relationship with Jino
Louise is aware that living with Jino would stir debates and other spectators’ judgment. And while she treats opposing views with respect and diplomacy, she also knows herself better than anyone else. She holds the key to what exactly will make her happy.
Besides, the setup was inspired by practical reasons such as having someone to help you manage the house, do the grocery, and pay the bills; and knowing the other partner to the core which may help avoid the more complicated, and not to mention expensive, annulment process later on. “Ako kasi ‘yung tipo ng tao na hindi makampante hangga’t hindi ko alam kung paano ka sa loob ng bahay. Kasi hindi mo naman ‘yun makikita kung magde-date lang kayo. Ito ‘yung pwedeng maiwasan kung alam mo lang sa simula kung anong pinapasok mo.”
“Marami nang nabago sa mundo at kailangan rin mag-adapt ng tao sa mga nangyayari,” she asserts. Yet, sharing a home with Jino isn’t just all about play or a trial-and-error test. “Hindi naman ‘to laro. Hindi ganu’n kadali kasi marami kang igigive-up like your privacy. Ibang mundo ang ihahain mo kapag may kasama ka na sa iisang bahay.” They make sure to still respect one another’s alone time.
It was Jino who helped her grow into a practical and financially wise woman especially these days when jobs turned temporary and she has nothing else to run to but her savings. She is no longer the type who takes the day as it comes, for she’s not getting any younger, after all. In return, Louise taught Jino how to look at challenges from a more relaxed perspective. She is the jolly clown who lightens up his load and casts a smile on his face amid problems. Theirs is a give and take relationship.
How to Make Dalgona Coffee
Stuck at home during this quarantine period, Louise and partner Jino divide the household load as fair as possible although, she’s more domesticated between them, just as how we expect women to behave in relationships.
Louise loves experimenting in the kitchen like a typical millennial taking inspiration from online cooking tutorials and trend. Sharing one of her recent discoveries, Louise demonstrates the procedures in making the now-viral Dalgona Coffee.
The Instagram-worthy drink is a three-ingredient coffee-based froth that when placed on top of iced milk creates a lovely gradient of white and pale caramel. All it would take is equal parts (usually two tablespoons) of instant coffee, sugar, and hot water all poured in a bowl. Mix them all together until it mimics the texture of melted marshmallows. Louise does it manually using a whisking tool.
Louise wasn’t a coffee lover until she fell in love at first sip with Spanish Latte. Other varieties satisfying her coffee fix are Caramel Macchiato and Iced Latte because of her love for milk, although she can also consume black coffee when in the mood. In fact, she has a stock of Batangas Kapeng Barako at home.
Louise starts the morning with her usual coffee fix until she consumes two or three more cups all throughout the day. The craving knocks at random hours, even in the middle of the night, so it is just perfect that Louise prefers making her own drink than purchasing one over the counters. Besides, she considers coffee shops as luxury than need, demonstrating once again how practical she has grown over the years.
In her younger days, Louise was fond of hanging out with friends in cafes around the scenic Tagaytay City, thus, the teenage dream of operating her own coffee shop someday. Sharing an interesting anecdote witnessed by the four walls of a café, Louise recalls a moment when she and her barkada giggled like high school girls over a cute barista in the counter. Pretty Louise was tasked to take a peek on the crew’s nameplate!
There was a time when Louise was also diagnosed with milk tea obsession to the point of bringing a pregnant companion just to be able to purchase beyond closing hours. But, when feeling ill, Louise’s go-to remedy is a self-prepared concoction of tea, honey, and ginger.