Month: October 2011

Time to Move Forward

(Image from Disovery News) What happens when you get that unmistakable feeling in your gut that things around you are evolving, and that you’ve moved on as well?  If there’s anything that I’ve learned in the past decade, it’s that the only constant in this world is change and that if you don’t move with it, you’re likely to get left behind.  Like fashion, nothing in life remains stagnant, and following our passions is the best compass to moving forward.  Three years ago, I wrote this entry on my journal that best summarizes my feelings about these fast-moving times… — It’s been nine years since my ‘sabbatical’, since the fork in the road that diverged my path down a parallel reality where no roads existed.  But before that came the restlessness, the inner rumblings that made its way outward, propelling the change. I’ve stood on shifting sands since then, learning to find my balance, discovering how to ride the movements of the ground like a wave.  Growth is inescapable, but in a world dead-set on predictability and stability, growth seems like the forebearer of chaos.  It shakes our foundations and erodes our ideas of ourselves, turning us, if momentarily, into shape-shifters. Rock-solid means nothing when the grounds decide to move, and the inevitability of this change is predictable–so ironically, there is stability in that.  Embracing change, and our emerging...

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Not By the Book: Inspirational Sketches

Some of my favorite sources of fashion inspiration stem from the ordinary, common scenes we see everyday.  Like our city’s sidestreets that are always teeming with chaotic activity and an overload of textures, colors and visual stimuli that influence me to create dresses and gowns with a collage of luxurious materials juxtaposed with a raw, unfinished feel. Inspiration is everywhere if we just take time to look around! This sketch that I did juxtaposed silk dresses with a collage of rough, unfinished textures Gowns & dresses that played with mixing luxurious fabrics with a more raw & deconstructed look “Not by the Book” is currently available in all Powerbooks outlets, select National Bookstores branches & all Best Sellers bookstores. It is now also available in Fully-Booked Bonifacio High Street, Greenbelt 5, Shangri-La Edsa, Greenhills, Eastwood, Trinoma & MOA. You may also order the book on-line.  For orders please email order@notbythebook.net (free delivery via 2GO within the Philippines). Bookmark on Delicious Digg this post Recommend on Facebook share via Reddit Share with Stumblers Tweet about it Subscribe to the comments on this...

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Not By the Book: Inspirational Sketches

Some of my favorite sources of fashion inspiration stem from the ordinary, common scenes we see everyday.  From ancestral homes adorned with wrought-iron grillwork & ornamental metal on beautiful windows and gates, to busy markets filled with homespun crafts.  These familiar scenes influence me to create dresses and gowns with an artisanal, handmade quality and a tongue-in-cheek visual play on the familiar. Inspiration is everywhere if we just take time to look around! This sketch that I did mixed lacy metalwork and homespun details into a ancestral home/market tableau Gowns & dresses with a tongue-in-cheek approach to incorporating ancestral home details “Not by the Book” is currently available through special order. Just drop a note in the comments section (along with your email address) and we will get back to you. Free delivery within Metro Manila. Bookmark on Delicious Digg this post Recommend on Facebook share via Reddit Share with Stumblers Tweet about it Subscribe to the comments on this...

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Filipino Designers are World Class

Okay, I may be stating the obvious, but sometimes we need to really acknowledge this fact to allow it to sink in.  And not only are our designers world class, but so are our artists, our musicians, our entertainers, our writers…in fact, I think a sweeping statement would not be an exaggeration if I said that Filipinos are world class and it’s time we finally owned up to it and stepped up to the plate.  No more hemming and hawing, no more apologies, no more false humility. Yesterday, a Monday, was a very busy day for fashion with a slew of truly world-class designers presenting their collections–Ito Curata showed at Fashion Watch in Shangri-La, Michael Cinco showed at Philippine Fashion Week in SMX, and Oliver Tolentino showed for the first time in Manila at Metrowear Icon in Sofitel Philippine Plaza. I’m a big fan of both Ito Curata and Michael Cinco’s exemplary creations, but this was my first time to see Oliver Tolentino’s designs.  A throwback to a bygone era, his 75-piece collection had a nostalgic Filipino aesthetic combined with a touch of old Hollywood theatricality.  And with divas of the ramp, stage and social scene taking to the runway as models, the illusion of Philippine fashion’s grand past being brought into the present was complete. Some scenes from last night’s event… *Photos by Ito Ocampo Bookmark on Delicious...

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Not By the Book: Inspirational Sketches

Some of my favorite sources of fashion inspiration stem from the ordinary, common scenes we see everyday.  Like provincial gardens that are filled with random shrubs, makeshift fences, wildflowers, vegetables and insects, and that influence me to create dresses and gowns with a certain whimsy and naiveté (like a tulle ballgown butterfly aviary). Inspiration is everywhere if we just take time to look around! This sketch that I did mixed garden inspired dresses in a provincial garden tableau Bridal ballgown (exhibited with live butterflies underneath its skirt) “Not by the Book” is currently available in all Powerbooks outlets, select National Bookstores branches & all Best Sellers bookstores. It is now also available in Fully-Booked Bonifacio High Street, Greenbelt 5, Shangri-La Edsa, Greenhills, Eastwood, Trinoma & MOA. You may also order the book on-line.  For orders please email order@notbythebook.net (free delivery via 2GO within the Philippines). Bookmark on Delicious Digg this post Recommend on Facebook share via Reddit Share with Stumblers Tweet about it Subscribe to the comments on this...

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Gallery of Past Work

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