I admit, I’ve been bitten by the Oscars bug this year. So far I’ve only managed to watch “Dallas Buyers Club”, “Gravity”, “American Hustle”, “The Wolf of Wall Street” & “Blue Jasmine” and have yet to see “12 Years a Slave”, “Her”, “Nebraska” or “Philomena”. I really enjoyed the films this year, particularly “Dallas Buyers Club”, and very early on placed all my bets on Matthew McConaughey & Jared Leto to win for best actor & best supporting actor (if you’d like to participate in Lifestyle Network’s Oscars promo & get a chance to win & watch the Oscars 2015 live, click & join here http://www.lifestylenetwork.com.ph).
As a fashion designer, however, I find that it’s really the stunning ladies who have been stealing the limelight this awards season…and not just with their red carpet style. It’s been lovely to watch so many talented actresses flesh-out such interesting, complex, non-cliché roles this year that when Lifestyle Network invited me to design an ‘Oscar worthy’ gown for my favorite actress, I couldn’t easily decide on one favorite and sketched out four.
Modern Filipiniana designs for the red carpet
One of my favorite actresses (since her role as a young nurse with a mouthful of braces in “Catch Me If You Can”, followed by her role in “Enchanted”), five-time nominee Amy Adams is both wide-eyed and worldly, so I designed a gown for her that mixed embroidered & textured gold lace appliqués (and some piña) with some modern sexiness.
Having only seen Lupita Nyong’o in clips of “12 Years a Slave” and her interview on Actresses Roundtable on the Hollywood Reporter, she easily blew me away! I designed her gown as a wink to Hollywood royalty, mixing raw silks & piña with hand embroidery.
Who doesn’t loooove Jennifer Lawrence? She’s a gorgeous, talented, irreverent goofball on the red carpet and off. And whether she’s playing a bow-and-arrow wielding teen or an unpredictable housewife with a strange updo, she never fails to draw me in. For her gown, I designed a gown embellished with mother-of-pearl.
The great Cate (Blanchett) hardly ever strikes a wrong note, acting-wise or style-wise. From her turn as Queen Elizabeth to her uncomfortably tragic portrayal of a New York socialite in deep denial, she is always stunning. For her gown I designed a white silk organza & jusi gown with black embroidery & beadwork inspired by a Barong Tagalog.
Catch the exclusive live telecast of the 86th Academy Awards on March 3, 2014 only on the Lifestyle Network.
“Not By the Book” makes a pilgrimage…
…and finds a home in the cozy second floor library…
…of this little haven and book lover’s shrine.
For me pajama dressing is perfect for loooong weekends or relaxed work-to-play days (printed satin pajama bottoms of my own design–circa 2004, black Chanel uniform pullover, black YSL heels).
A bust with the famous Ben-Day dots treatment stands beside Lichtenstein’s flat, comic-inspired paintings
Over a hundred of his works were on display
An ingenious 2-D version of a bust sculpture made from metal
Lichtenstein’s take on the classic nudes but given a Pop Art twist
Classic meets pop culture–this bust is both comic-inspired and looks like a mannequin head
A sculptural rendition of his flat paintings shows a mix of Lichtenstein’s lesser known influences
Vastly different, but equally stylish
Trend-savvy, hip AND very functional
Gotta love a man who knows how to accessorize!
Casual but still polished
The everyday suit, from the modern classic to the more flamboyant
The ultimate in fashionable, functional cool
Haute couture hits the sidewalks
Keeping warm, having a café & people watching!
Just one of the many beautiful islands in Cebu
The five centuries old St. Peter & Paul Church in Bantayan Island, one of the islands hit hard by the typhoon
Fishing communities, like those in Malapascua, need environmentally sound and sustainable structures to weather future storms
Starting with a clean slate and respecting Mother Nature as we redevelop, restructure & redesign our coastal communities
Designing for a cause. Backstage snapshot with my model Patch Magtanong at last December’s “Filipino Para sa Filipino”, a fashion fundraiser to help raise money for the rehabilitation of the Visayas
View of Monet’s garden from inside his house (unfortunately, no photos were allowed inside)
Stepping into a painting–the very picturesque lily pond featured in many of Monet’s famous works
Claude Monet’s “Water Lilies” (image from the Google Art Project)
Vibrant fall foliage covered the stone walls & pretty houses in Giverny
The Hotel Baudy became a favorite hang-out & residence of numerous artists who followed Monet to Giverny
Artist’s studios line the streets of Giverny and on some days you can see the current crop of artists at work
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