…were to host dinner for other parents from my kids’ PTA, I wouldn’t brag about the cost of my Birkin. Especially if one of the parents know that I haven’t settled a million-peso debt with one of Cebu City’s high profile designers. Would some really just go broke for a Birkin?
What did Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany’s wear at the opening scene of said movie? This garment was designed by Hubert de Givenchy and accessorized with pearls. It is the Little Black Dress of course.
agnes heuttel, arcy gayatin
Wallis Warfield Simpson, Duchess of Windsor, was also known to own several and said much in praise of the dress declaring, “When a little black dress is right, there is nothing else to wear in its place.” Even the French folk icon, Edith Piaf, consistently performed in a black sheath dress throughout her career and was nicknamed “little black sparrow” for doing so. It was acknowledged that the dress made the audiences focus more on Piaf's singing and less on her appearance.
tess lampert, lani osmena
The Little Black Dress, an evening or cocktail dress, cut simply and often with a short skirt, was originally made popular in the 1920s by the fashion designer Coco Chanel when she published a picture of a short, simple black dress in Vogue. It was calf-length, straight, and decorated only by a few diagonal lines. Vogue called it “Chanel’s Ford.” It was intended by Chanel to be long lasting, versatile, affordable, and accessible to the widest market possible and in a neutral color. Its continued ubiquity is such that many refer to it by the abbreviation LBD.
june alegrado, luisa robinson
The Little Black Dress is considered essential to a complete wardrobe by many women and fashion observers: "rule of fashion" now is that every woman should own a simple, elegant black dress that can be dressed up or down depending on the occasion. A staple of the wardrobe for years, the style of the little black dress, ideally, is as simple as possible: a short black dress that is too clearly part of a trend would not qualify because it would soon appear dated.
this jotter, marco protacio
Appearing fashionably dated, one summer more, was your style jotter. Thus, when Marco Protacio, Waterfront Hotel’s style savvy General Manager, hosted impromptu dinner to celebrate friendship, I did not hesitate to call on my favorite girl friends for a night of gustatory fun and stylish, light chatter.
Everyone showed what's elegant and beautifully Filipino, most cohesive and memorable however, were the Spanish influenced clothes presented by Philip Rodriguez. There was a white toreador jacket in moiré embellished with black guipure lace appliqué that was so chic; a black gown with tasseled sleeves and red rose embroidery that reeked of romance and a silk organdy shirt with puffed and book-leaf sleeves worn with unmatched style by the elegant Fiona King.
toreador look
“I was thinking of Chinese/Spanish Mestizas of the past and how they would dress up today. The look is Hispanic, elaborated with fine details, which is a rich mixture east and west. And as you can see, they’re totally wearable for big parties and in tune with the global trends today,” Rodriguez reveals.
rose embroidered dress
your blogger worked with the chefs of waterfront cebu city hotel to come up with a course that will emulate the elegantly austere style of Balenciaga. Other participating designers are jun escario doing an yves saint laurent soup, arcy gayatin doing an interpretation of coco chanel purse as pie, philip Rodriguez doing a valentino sorbet, albert arriba doing the christian dior main course and cary santiago doing a christian lacroix inspired dessert.
Gil, designer Arcy Gayatin, Edwin Ao and Cybill
I just had breakfast with my peers at the Heat, EDSA Shangri-la. Had loads of fun with Metro Magazine's editor-in-chief Katrina Holigores and Metro Soceity’s Raul Manzano. How pleasant katrina is and how handsome raul is in the mornings. This was fun time for your blogger, tonight can be chaos.
...this is the proverbial lull before the storm
queen of knitwear, lulu tan gan
What is Manila Wear? “It’s contemporary, Filipino-inspired resort wear. L MANILA is set to create a global Filipino lifestyle brand which takes inspiration from Filipino costumes, art, motifs, history and heritage. Rather than following fashion dictates of the international catwalk, we come up with one-of-a-kind, original Filipino designs. We take on a global view with relevant, fun & functional approach to retail fashion,” Lulu says.
tan gan's soft knits
L Manila features the Manila Wear of both upcoming and established designers along with the beautiful knitwear of Lulu whose innovative design and uncompromising quality remains unequalled in her field today.
Established designers such as Gerry Katigbak, known for his unmistakable elegant mix of Asianic details, and Barge Ramos whose ingenious use of print and pattern on Jusi continues to fascinate both the local and foreign fashion enthusiasts, are recent additions. Also displayed are the upbeat clothes of Tippi Ocampo, the jersey innovations of Arcy Gayatin, Louie Claparols and this fashion blogger's pret-a-porter line .
puey's painted pineapple fabrics
Interesting and most saleable apart from Lulu’s cool knits are the Piña wraps of Puey Quiñones who simply cuts armholes into rectangular fabrics. This simplicity of pattern reveals his brilliance; no two wraps look exactly the same when worn. Adding novelty to his pieces are the hand-painted artworks rendered by inmates of The Muntinlupa Maximum Security Prison.
puey quiñones
“I hold weekly design workshops for the inmates, giving them a chance to express their creativity through my clothes. They give my work fresh meaning and renewed purpose. It’s not just about glamour and frivolity anymore, it’s about helping other human beings, “he reveals.