Elevated Tulle

blogger's sketh of cary's gown

The most beautiful gown worn by a candidate at Ms. Cebu this year was the serpentine number designed by Cary Santiago. The silhouette was especially flattering on Rizini Gomez.

The bodice was intricately textured with hand-sewn fine pleats that undulated seamlessly around the body. What’s considered a feat in construction skills is the daring décolletage, a Santiago signature that has been widely and, sadly, unskillfully copied by both established and young designers in Manila and Cebu. Cary did not hold back either on couture skills with the floating off-shoulder ruffles sleeves and a flouncy skirt that flared out in perfect cones.

“I boned the sleeves and used crin to shape the skirt,” he revealed. Crin a synthetic fibre used in couture houses gives body to garments and embellishments such as bows and collars without adding too much weight. Because of its stiff quality, perfection of pattern and subtlety of technique is required to achieve a refined shape.

cary santiago

Among the couture savvy, it is common knowledge that other than the fabric, neckline and the hemline are the two most obvious indicators of a gown’s quality. These two areas easily reveal the workmanship and care that goes into its creation and should therefore be no less than perfect.

A neckline that’s an inch too high or too low, a centimeter too tight or too loose will say more about the wearer than a fabulously large collar of white diamonds. A hemline that ‘s too long or too short, unintentionally crooked or haphazardly defined and finished will say more than her million dollars Stuart Weizman shoes.

With above-mentioned gown, Cary exhibited an eye and hand for perfection in both areas but what’s most amusing is his use of hard tulle instead of his usual Marco Lagatola “couture” tulle. Couture skills can indeed elevate any fabric. In this case, Cary’s couture elevated hard tulle, all 250 meters of it.