Her sewing machine, his nonstick pan

By Raoul J. Chee Kee Inquirer.net

LONG-TIME partners

Marina Benipayo and Ricardo “Richard” Cepeda have a full and creative life outside show biz. When they aren’t in front of the camera, they’re meeting up with friends and family, indulging in their hobbies, fostering pets or simply chilling together at home.

Veteran fashion model Marina can still give the younger models a run for their money and is sometimes tapped by designers to take a twirl down the runway. Her favorite thing? Still fashionrelated.

“Sewing is my therapy, so my favorite thing is my sewing machine. It’s my best stress reliever and gives me the chance to stay productive. I used to work on my mother’s machine, but then she needed it back. Richard got me a new one para hindi ko siya kulitin kapag bored ako (laughs).”

When she was growing up, she recalled seeing her mother sewing. “She was very skilled at it and I always wished I could be as skilled as her. It never happened (laughs), but I never want to stop using my sewing machine because a lot of my fondest memories of my mom are of watching her sew.”

Interspersed among her recent Facebook posts of get-togethers with friends and pictures of stray cats are some of her newly sewn creations. There’s an upcycled black tote made with fabric scraps “para walang sayang at walang tapon” and a denim bag that she crafted out of a pair of Richard’s old jeans.

Marina has had the white Brother sewing machine for eight years now and said it’s the “star” of her work table at home.

Richard is a known foodie and sometimes makes a big batch of lip-smacking pork adobo that he sells to friends with Marina’s help. His favorite thing is a 30-inch Tefal pan for deep frying. n