Flores de Mayo 2013 pays tribute to fashion great Ben Farrales
MANILA, Philippines - Flores de Mayo 2013, the annual grand parade of beauty, was held recently at the grounds of SM Mall of Asia. Featuring the creations of 30 of the country’s top fashion designers, the event was headed by the Dean of Philippine Fashion Ben Farrales.
To welcome the first Sunday of the month, 31 beautiful sagalas paraded around SM Mall of Asia grounds in the late afternoon for fashion enthusiasts to admire and religious onlookers to celebrate. Each of them wore intricately designed gowns while being escorted by handsome gentlemen.
Flores de Mayo (Flowers of May) is a religio-historical event that dates back to the 1800s when little girls offered flowers to the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is usually culminated with a santacruzan (procession) and a sagala (beauty pageant) depicting the finding of the Holy Cross by Queen Helena.
This annual event is spearheaded by Congregacion del Santisimo Nombre del Niño Jesus, a group founded by Farrales as part of his devotion to the Sto. Niño or the Holy Child Jesus.
Congregacion’s annual Flores de Mayo has become one of the major tourist attractions in Manila that both religious observers and fashion enthusiasts look forward to during the summer season.
Since 1979, Congregacion has been holding activities to honor the Holy Child as well as to attract more devotees. “Cream Silk and Unilever Philippines have been staunch supporters of the event for more than a decade now,†said Chito Macapagal, Unilever Philippines vice president for corporate affairs.
Colors of Mindanao
The creations of the fashion designers tapped to participate this year celebrated the theme of “Colors of Mindanao†–– as a way to feature their evocations of the exotic lands down south of the Philippines and as a tribute to Farrales’ signature design motif.
Farrales is known to have transformed the humble malong into a must-have fashion item, establishing his name as synonymous with Mindanao-inspired designs. He is respected for spearheading the preservation of Filipino culture through his significant contributions to the fashion industry for almost 60 years.
Prior to the Flores de Mayo, a mini-fashion show featuring the works of Farrales was held at Casino Español in Manila hosted by Unilever Philippines and Cream Silk. Apples Aberin, recognized figure in the fashion industry and Unilever’s very own PR head for personal care, was one of the models, wearing a gold terno with floral alampay.
Hosted by Boots Anson-Roa, an awards ceremony revealed the winners of the five celebrated awards. The judging panel included several individuals from contemporary Filipino arts and culture industry, representatives from Unilever Philippines and the Pasay Tourism Council.
Creamsilk’s Magandang Filipina award was given to sagala Liza Soberano who wore an original gown by Edwin Tan and was escorted by Kit Thompson.
The La Flor de Pasay was awarded to Rey Lazaro (sagala April Love Jordan escorted by Ric Carlo Perez) and the La Flor de Manila to Edgar San Diego (sagala Ramona Yamat escorted by Jon Jeoffrey Junio). Rholand Roxas (sagala Hannah Katya Delgado escorted by Edwinson Inog) received the Reinas delas Flores award.
The coveted prize of Rosa Mystica was awarded to Leslie Rivera for his exquisitely colorful and embellished gown.
The 26 other designers whose fashion interpretations were featured in this year’s Flores de Mayo include Ivan dela Cruz, Buddy Reyes, Obet Orajay, Fanny Serrano, Edgar Allan, Pepe Quitco, Jon Fernando, Danilo Franco, Arielle Agasang, Johnny Abad, Renee Salud, Ole Morabe, Edwin Uy, Steve de Leon, Christopher Quejano, Richard Papa, Frederick Peralta, Edgar Madamba, Leslie Rivera, Pencil Diestra, Rikko Escaro, Pepsi Herrera, Jontie Martinez, Francis Calaquian, Gener Gozum and Lito Perez.
