Dressing up the Miss Cebu Beauties

CEBU, Philippines - The search for the 32nd Miss Cebu culminated last Wednesday, highlighting the creations of local couturiers. The pageant night, held at the Pacific Grand Ballroom of Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino, was a playground for the ever-evolving creative ideas of Cebu’s fashion designers. It was an interesting showcase of the talent that has since captured the attention the world.

Also featured in the pageant were segments on the province’s rich history and cultural heritage,  as well as landmarks and tourist spots. Everything came together by the new Cebu tagline: “Cebu: Where the Heart Sings.”

Feminine  Barong Tagalog

 The Barong Tagalog was the inspiration of the designs by Edwin Ao, Brian Aloquin, Valerie Alvez and Yvonne Quisumbing. The pieces seemed to support the fashion forecast that 2016 is going to be a year when the penchant for personal expression would break traditional design conventions.  The feminine contextualization of the Barong Tagalog – the Filipino formalwear traditionally worn by men – graciously embraced the designers’ novel approaches.

Glimpses of Old Cebu

Designs by Cebu’s Albert Arriba, Jun Escario, Arcy Gayatin, Oj Hofer, Dino Lloren, Ren Manabat, William Manahan, Wendell Quisio, Ditas Rodriguez, Harley Ruedas, Marichu Tan and Philipp Tampus glowed in the evening gown segment of the Miss Cebu finals.

Dominant design motif consisted of swathes of organza, lace and tulle – in a color base of sepia and dabs of burnt umber.  The pieces drew inspiration from sepia-filtered photographs of old Cebu, interpreted in the individual styles of the couturiers.