Fashion Reveries

Not too long ago, we shared a restaurant during lunch time with Tessa Prieto-Valdes and Kaye Tinga. Both mentioned they were working on a fundraising event, which turned out to be the annual Red Charity Gala, which was to raise funds for the Philippine Red Cross and the Assumption High School Batch 1981 Foundation.


When you have two very stylish organizers like Prieto and Tinga, it is no surprise that this year’s gala shouldn’t be missed. Dubai-based designer Michael Cinco graced the prestigious event this year as the featured designer, showcasing a 40-piece collection at the Makati Shangri-la hotel.

Cinco seeks his inspiration from his travels. The latest of which was a trip to Greece, including stops at Athens and Santorini. Most probably enamored with the wonderful sunsets of old Greece, Cinco started his collection in neutral hues such as light gray to bolder hues like yellow, orange, red, and brown. We love the extra detail that went with the collection, such as an overload of bangles and shoulder accents that seemed to look like body armor. A great contrast, if I may add, Cinco’s feminine silhouettes.


Pieces were designed to fall delicately on the body. Some were figure-hugging, others, voluminously flowing. All are delicately and intricately fabricated with Cinco’s trademarks of crystals, embroidery, and embellishments.

Cinco ended the show with a bridal set and his muse, Georgina Wilson, wearing a mermaid-cut gown with sheer lace-work sleeves that gave off an illusion of white embroidery on her arms. A triple layer of the hemline added delicate volumes for that dramatic entrance.

Michael Cinco is now preparing for World Fashion Week in New York as the Philippine representative this November. We’re pretty sure his collection will win the audience’s hearts as it did us and Dubai.

Last, but not the Least

Words are not enough to describe how fabulously breathtaking Michael Cinco’s Holiday 2010 collection is, which received the Producer’s Award for “Best Show of the Season,” from Philippine Fashion Week. Inspired by the opera Madama Butterfly, his latest collection transported the audience to another realm where Old-World Japanese glamour is infused with the creative mind of the Dubai-based designer.

From the moment Jo-Ann Bitagcol stepped out, we were mesmerized. The first set of all whites and nudes focused on the exquisite craftsmanship. Cinco has successfully created the powerful yet graceful mix of soft fabrics and structured bodycon silhouettes.

A bit more color was injected with a climactic convertible outfit by Ria Bolivar. Like a man watching a geisha as she does her moves of seduction on stage, my eyes were hooked on Bolivar. She took off the first layer of her cocktail dress and converted it into a kimono, giving it a totally different but equally jaw-dropping number.

A multitude of exquisitely beaded gowns came out after. Each, totally different from the former. Each, having its own distinct style and color combination. But all of them mirrored the designer’s basic principles and trademark work—amazing beadwork on the bodice.

Though quite known for making glamour gowns like that of Angel Locsin’s for the International Emmy Awards, Cinco has proven that he is also well adept in making cocktail dresses. With beaded bodices as his base, in either gradient tones or contrasting ones, these short dresses come with asymmetrical hemlines, full-skirt styles, even with floral appliqués that give them a more playful and youthful vibe.

It was a show that we secretly wished didn’t have to end. But we knew it was about to when the bridal collection followed. 

Jasmine Maierhofer looked every inch the dreamy bride in an off-white, beaded tube gown that had a voluminous skirt with cascading, beaded appliqués. No jewelry was on her, except on her coiffed hair that had tons of sparkling brooches, giving an aura of fantasy.

Such a grand finale, indeed, for Philippine Fashion Week.  

Thank you for sharing your talent and for making this memorable collection, Michael Cinco!