Philipp Tampus of Cebu City designed the terno for kababayan Rogelie Catacutan for her campaign for the Miss Supranational crown in Poland on December 4 (won by Paraguay’s Stephanie Vasquez Stegman). “I describe it as ‘Perlas Ng Silanganan.’ It’s made of laser-studded materials, partly traced in different sizes of pearls wrapped in soft tulle. Silhouette is modern, clean and soft. Headpiece is made by my very good friend, accessories designer here in Cebu Mark Shandar, who accentuated and coordinated it with the gown’s pearl details,” Tampus explained.
I’ve always been a vocal advocate of Filipino designers dressing up our beauty queens, harking back to the years when the national costumes and evening gown were created by the legendary likes of Pitoy Moreno, Ben Farrales, Christian Espiritu, Auggie Cordero and Renee Salud.
Thankfully, the clamor for such a change was heard, especially by Binibining Pilipinas Charities Inc.’s Stella Marquez de Araneta, to bring back the honor to Filipino designers. Her decision has paid off. Big time.
The winning streak started at Miss Grand International held in Thailand. Our country’s bet, Parul Shah, won Best in National Costume in a Muslim princess-inspired creation designed by Edwin Uy. She eventually won as third runner-up. Anea Garcia of Dominican Republic was crowned on October 25.