After several weeks of succumbing to my reclusive tendencies, I finally decided to abandon my journal, primetime TV shows and growing pile of local fashion magazines for something more substantial and exciting. The summer heat finally arrived in full force and while I couldn’t just abandon the office to frolic maniacally on the beach, I still wanted to make the most of my absolute favorite season. I decided right then to forego my life as a hermit and give my weekend life the Pulp Fiction-style adrenaline shot to the heart that it so desperately needed. Naturally, the mischief and mayhem weren’t that difficult to find.
The Piedra party kicked off promptly as guests kissed each other hello and clamored to the open bar. The guest list included Edsel’s close friends, including ETC’s darling host Sam Oh; one of Mega’s 10 Most Beautiful, Solenn Heussaff; designer sweetheart Kate Torralba; and Miss Mossimo ’05 Denise Montecillo. Rivermaya’s Rico Blanco even swung by to greet the happy bachelor, even if it was his birthday, too! Not a bad jumpstart for the weekend. The unusual mix of movers and shakers happily clinked their glasses and grooved to the deep house music till the wee hours of the morning. I think Edsel will agree with me when I say that the only thing better than having your cake and eating it too is sharing it with good friends and beautiful women. Party on, dude.
"ARTEESANS" glorifies the T-shirt as the eternal and immortal fashion staple, hence the emphasis given to the art of screen-printing. The festivities in the store began with a mini-fashion show directed by Mike Lavarez, which featured screen-printed T-shirt ensembles stylized by different members of the I Love You team. Models clad only in underwear and tights strutted out from behind a curtain and clawed through I Love You’s racks for the featured pieces, then proceeded to dress themselves amidst the camera flashes and audience banter. I was particularly impressed that the designers used the T-shirt, the epitome of mass-produced fashion, to create these exceptionally delicate and edgy outfits. After demonstrating how to wear each particular ensemble, the models sashayed to the other end of the store to unveil framed screens of the featured artists. The exhibit featured silkscreen art by Kiko Escora, Tim Yap, Ornusa Cadness, Carlo Eustaquio, Corinne Ching, Bianca Holganza, Maria Taniguchi, Marvin Tojos, Sharon Atillo and Aeon Barrameda. Each of the artworks have been used to screen-print on T-shirts that are now for sale in the I Love You store. Needless to say, I left the party with no money in my wallet and two shirts for my closet.