style sidelights manila

10:23 AM

Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine the spectacle and the fun that was our short stint in Manila. What I thought was a simple gig behind the scenes of Oj's Fashion Watch show turned out to be 4 days of great events, meeting a few industry insiders, bonding with some of Manila's favorite fashion bloggers, and seeing old friends. It was truly a humbling and incomparable experience like no other and I'm left wanting more, more, more.

On top of what I actually went for, here are some of my favorite sidelights during my trip:

MEGA and Members Only Prive show for Vero

Vero designer and proprietor Gladys Young in Jun Escario

We met the lovely Cebuana jewelry designer Gladys Young the day before the Fashion Watch show. She was kind enough to invite us to her own show the next day where Mega Magazine and Members Only showcased her line, Vero, in their Prive 2011 series. Vero is a line of nothing but the most exquisite, fully-customized fine jewelry. A piece from Vero would be the perfect piece de resistance for life's most precious moments.

M Barretto Fashion Show at Seventh High (Travelife Magazine June-July Issue Launch)

sheer polo top from Yves Identify, Bimbim Haws studded shorts, Gold Dot Bertha wedges

with one of the Philippines' most talented designers, Puey Quinones. nice enough to agree to a photo op. thank you!

There were just so many things going on at the time that it was impossible to be at everything. One of the events I was lucky enough to go to was this one. My frequent collaborator/good friend Prem Ananda was out partying with his good friend, designer Puey Quinones, and was nice enough to ask us to tag along and party. Unfortunately, I didn't know I was invited to an actual event, as opposed to just hanging out, so I arrived pretty late :(

Catching up and shopping with Jian Lasala

Couldn't have asked for a more fantastic shopping tour guide than our old friend, designer Jian Lasala. Catching up with him is definitely one of my top favorite Manila moments. With an incomparable career working for some of the country's top retail brands (SM Accessories, Bench, Stoked), as well as critically-acclaimed Fashion Week shows under his belt, he is one to watch in the local fashion scene. It's amazing to note that he's still very much the same humbler and jovial person that we've always known despite all that. Love ya, Ji!

I'm so backlogged, it's ridiculous. Thanks for dropping by xx