follow that unicorn

i got two early birthday presents last week:



one of my jackets from my rob the armory collection is featured in this month's issue of Preview magazine!



the Condo Living feature we worked on last march finally came out! it features several sofa professors (from both fashion and interior design) interpreting pantone 2011 colors as interior design set-ups. scans and full blog entry on this to follow!

grab a copy of both magazines!

ps: in less than 48 hours, i'm turning 24. eww, i'm old.

music fix: lady gaga's highway unicorn (road 2 love)

this feels like heaven

neon rave: kaye morales s/s 2011 collection
video campaign


video teaser


motion lookbook


behind the scenes video

shot my first ever motion look book for my friend and co-sofa graduate kaye morales. i also got to work with young photographer bjorn bedayo who shot the photos.



more photos can be found here.

ps: sorry for the hiatus. been very busy with teaching and other rackets (which i will blog about soon!).

videos fold canela
photography bjorn bedayo
clothes & styling kaye morales
make up anton patdu
hair mycke arcano
models
rodina luspo
mae bueta
maecon timbol
daryl morales
mark go
gerard go
music adventure's feels like heaven

roll kid, rock your body off

a few weeks back, i read about the oxygen x status magazine tee off contest. oxygen currently has a line of photographic tees and they were looking for four new designs which will be part of their summer collection. i decided to try my luck with the contest and sent in three entries.

1)


2)


3)


anyway, a few days after the contest deadline, i got a call from status magazine that one of my shirts was chosen to be part of the four designs that they are going to sell in april and will be featured in a status magazine editorial! i was super excited because i that's first time i won anything major, haha!



i took that photo when i was in new york. check it out on oxygen's tumblr!

so i won a sony ericsson x10 mini phone which i will claim tomorrow. awesome! thank you to oxygen and status magazine for this! i can't wait to see the final tee in april!

also, do check out sofa's official blog, fibre!



i'm one of their contributing students/faculty, haha i'm still not sure which category i belong to!



music fix: phenomena by yeah yeah yeahs

drums keep pounding a rhythm to the brain

last wednesday, i had my students submit their egyptian-inspired accessory as well as made them come to class in a roman toga.

i was actually very much impressed with all of their egyptian-inspired accessories but here are some of my favorites:



mabel's accessory was inspired by the beaded collars worn during ancient egypt. even though the reference is obvious, she managed to update the collar into a necklace that's definitely wearable by today's standards. the organization of the colors is interesting and i especially like how it sort of also looks like it was inspired by ethnic filipino accessories.



dondi made an awesome collar/neckpiece using various materials. he used capiz shells, which he spray painted bronze, as the base of the necklace and used copperwire (which he had to untangle from actual wires), pearls and beads as decoration. the neckstraps are gold and silver ribbons that he braided together.



i can't imagine how long it took him to make this! i really admire the fact that he was able to mix jewelry beads with unconventional materials.



eunice is actually one of my closest friends in sofa and i was really excited about having her as a student. her necklace is actually one of the most interesting pieces that was presented that day.



inspired by ancient egyptian architecture and decorative motifs, she carved that intricate design using soap and used it as her necklace's pendant. she mentioned that ancient egyptians placed a huge emphasis on personal hygiene and she used soap to reference that fact. i really like very conceptual designs and i like that she somehow managed to inject a little wit into her accessory.



using the nemes headdress as her inspiration, caroline made a tie-around belt with pleated details. i wasn't expecting a student to actually make a belt and i was really surprised and amazed with what she came up with. i had a chance to inspect her work up close and the construction is really amazing. she could really sell it right then and there!



last but definitely not the least, jezl redesigned a pair of shoes! jezl was actually a classmate of mine before and i remember her being interested in shoes, so it wasn't a surprise that she passed this. she referenced ancient egyptians' use of gold and animal/religious motifs in their jewelry.



she actually used glue gun to cover her shoes with that green and black ombre fabric. she also attached a black and gold ribbon around the heel and made a scarab-like decoration at the back of the shoes. she actually showed me the blisters she got from using glue gun! all that pain definitely paid off! she got one of the highest points for this activity.

we were actually tackling the costume of ancient rome that day and here are some of the students in their roman (or roman-inspired, since most of them deviated from the traditional ones) togas:



jireh and caroline, who both got the highest points as theirs looked the most accurate.



eunice and nino



karen and dondi

overall, i was really impressed by what everyone made and presented. i can't wait to see their next projects!

music fix: the beat goes on by the all seeing i

the fear and the yearing, it's gonna eat you alive

photo by the ever-amazing joseph pascual.

wore this last week when i met up with joseph and other friends at up film institute. i miss being in up.

what i wore:
stripes sweater | banana republic
carrot-fit trousers | topman
boat shoes-style sneakers | vans
aviator eyeglasses | gianfranco ferre

two things about that photo:
1. it summarizes the way i'm feeling right now - stressed. being stressed actually helps me function better. i tend to accomplish more things when i'm pressured. but right now, i can't seem to juggle preparing lectures, doing photography/video rackets and trying to set up a really small business. strugs.
2. i got that sweater during my last trip to the us. that was actually the first time i wore it and i really love how it's a little bit big on me and it felt so comfortable. it's perfect for the current cold, breezy weather in manila. i saw the sweater a few days later, after being washed, and it shrunk so much. sayang!

joseph featured this in the powersnet blog by john robert powers. check it out here!

music fix: positive tension by bloc party

when i heard the news i nearly lost my breath

last monday, sofa held an orientation for its new students.



there were, i think, more than 50 new students enrolled.







cassie and chamcham.



sofa's co-founder amina aranaz-alunan welcoming the new students.



sofa's marketing officers jamie and maina.



ms. benet, who just came back from milan, and ms. annaly.







oh yeah, by the way, i'm now an instructor at sofa. i'll be handling the clothing evolution class this term.



what i wore:
leather perforated bomber jacket | members only
studded tank | aaa by topman
skinny jeans | trf
bronze boots (with safety pins) | dr. martens
leather cuff bracelet | yves san laurent
aviator eyeglasses | gianfranco ferre





awesome studs detail on the aaa tank.

and i leave you with...



... a random tattoo.

music fix: cut the cake by the fiery furnaces

today my heart swings

yesterday marked a huge step in my friend kaye morales's career - the opening of her atelier.



kaye started her clothing line schizo while she was still studying at sofa. we were both part of sofa's first batch of graduates last may 2010. since her days as a fashion student, a lot of her clothes have been featured in local fashion magazines and tv shows. she's constantly being featured in local magazines as one of the young designers to watch out for.



i got there just a few minutes before the blessing started.



sofa owners, ms amina aranaz-alunan and ms loralee baron-soong, were there for the ribbon cutting.


(left to right: models leo miranda and ervin david, cai, chamcham, cassie, ms loralee, kaye, ms amina, gabbie, mel, nino, noelle, and eunice)

and of course, the whole gang was there to support her.







what i wore:
bomber jacket | maison martin margiela
wifebeaters | ziggy savella
skinny trousers | topman
wingtips | american eagle outfitters
dogtags | from a bazaar in maryland
watch | timex
zipper bracelets | noelle llave
duffel bag | prada



my friends all wanted a photo-op with bekimon. cassie and chamcham even played a game of paper-rock-scissors to determine who was gonna ask him for a photo.



our friend marchie tamayo arrived a little later and catered the event (we kid).



cai (who i see on a weekly basis), noelle, mel and marchie (all of whom i haven't seen since september!)



pieces from kaye's graduation collection entitled queen of the octopodes.





amazing wall art, which shows kaye's fascination with octopuses.



the most amazing bathroom sink in the universe!



gabbie and darr... dave!



the peg for this photo was korean telenovelas, but kaye didn't get the memo, haha!



caption this.



i leave you with kaye's most exquisite mannequin.

congratulations kaye! your atelier is truly amazing! this is just the beginning of what i'm sure is going to be a very fruitful career. we heart you!

visit kaye's atelier at 8862 madrid building, sampaloc street, san antonio village, makati.

music fix: interpol's the heinrich maneuver