Dubai designers open Fashion Week with a bang (and lots of skin)

MANILA, Philippines - Embellishment on sheer fabric and opulent metallic sheen featured heavily in the collections of Dubai-based designers Albert Andrada and Ezra Santos for the L’Oreal Paris segment of Philippine Fashion Week.

Sheer opulence

Cotton candy hues marked by a certain frothy, ethereal litheness in movement characterize the spring/summer collection of Albert Andrada. Gone were the structured and heavily-beaded gowns of the season past, and out came pastel hues that range from light lavender, baby blue, sea foam green, and cotton candy pink paired with caramel and ivory. The key look is sheer embellishment: Shift dresses with a sheer overlay dotted by portions of beadwork, sheer tops with effective restraint on embellishment paired with ample opacity brought about by the embellished and laced trousers and along with the flowing skirts. In this edited collection, we now see Andrada’s strength as a designer: Mastery of feminine forms and knowledge of how the swell and sway of the body’s natural movement.

Metallic Age

Ezra Santos, Albert Andrada Photos by CELWYN ABASOLO

There’s something magical, almost effervescent about the way Dubai-based Ezra Santos concocted his collection, making each piece from the metallic series seem as if for the finale. The exaggerated proportions of the shoulders produced an armor-like effect that, with the introduction of scale-like iridescent plating, project far into the future, where clothing serve more than the purpose of just providing covering. He remains consistent with the shape, providing the V-emphasis (from the shoulders to the middle of the waist, and then radiating outwards at the hip) even when he delivers the sleeveless numbers. Despite starting off with a show-stopping iridescent piece, he proceeds to demonstrate how the motif can then be interpreted in quite feminine, yet wearable numbers, once it is combined with sheer lace, or at times, draped fabric.   green, and cotton candy pink paired with caramel and ivory. The key look is sheer embellishment: shift dresses with a sheer overlay dotted by portions of beadwork, sheer tops with effective restraint on embellishment paired with ample opacity brought about by the embellished lace trousers along with flowing skirts. In this edited collection, we now see Andrada’s strength as a designer: mastery of feminine forms and knowledge of the swell and sway of the body’s natural movement.

Metallic Age

There’s something magical, almost effervescent about the way Dubai-based Ezra Santos concocted his collection, making each piece from the metallic series seem as though it was made for the finale. The exaggerated proportions of the shoulders produced an armor-like effect that, with the introduction of scale-like iridescent plating, project far into the future, where clothing serves more than the purpose of just providing covering. He remains consistent with the shape, providing the V-emphasis (from the shoulders to the middle of the waist, and then radiating outwards at the hip) even when he delivers the sleeveless numbers. Despite starting off with a show-stopping iridescent piece, he proceeded to demonstrate how the motif can be interpreted in quite feminine, yet wearable numbers, once combined with sheer lace, or at times, draped fabric.

Fashion gild: Golden numbers proved the hero of Ezra Santos’ collection.