Philippine Fashion Week Holiday 2013: Happy V. Andrada

Philippine Fashion Week Holiday 2013 proved to be another exciting showcase for Filipino designers.  One such designer that I always look forward to seeing a new collection is Happy V. Andrada and this season didn’t disappoint as models sashayed on the runway wearing tops, bottoms, jackets and dresses in fine woven fabrics with interesting architectural details.

PFW Holiday 2013 Happy V. Andrada Collection

Happy’s new collection highlights creations that promote eco-ethical fashion – using natural dyes in 100% organic woven fabrics indigenous to the Philippines – which enable her to help support local skilled artisans from various communities that produced the fabrics.  Happy muses, “I used environment friendly resources to create a collection that supports the Filipino artisan worker. Everything is 100% Philippine made.” In muted color palette of lilac, gray, red and black, Happy worked her magic using Abaca, Pineapple, Pineapple Silk, Pineapple Crepe, Philippine Dupioni, Jusi, Bamboo and Waterlily.  “I plan to use other colors that would fit other seasons for future collections.”

When asked what inspired her to come out with such patriotic collection, Happy shares, “I got invited to showcase my designs in Czechoslovakia, United States of America and Japan and so I decided to highlight Philippine made fabrics to say I am a proud Filipino and at the same time, these fabrics are saving the earth because they are eco-friendly materials and ethical in the sense of production, labor, etc.”

And does the collection have a name? “To be honest this Philippine Fashion Week Holiday 2013 collection doesn’t have a title, it’s just babies of my winning entry from FDCP Weaving the Future Smart Choice Award, where my collection was called Barong Reinvented. From there, my designs just evolved,” Happy volunteers. “I also played around with shapes like triangles, so I could call it Triangular Evolution, too.” 

With her wearable art ready for the market, she’ll definitely be on top of the list of fashionistas who are advocates of a healthy earth and giving back to society.

Designer Happy V. Andrada (extreme right)
with models at the PFW Holiday 2013 at SMX

About the Designer

Happy took fashion courses at Central Saint Martins in London. A dynamic young designer, she has been joining and winning shows and contests here and abroad – won as Emerging Designer at the 2012 Miami International Fashion Week International; won two major awards in the last 3rd Asian Weddings and Arts Competition in Hong Kong; won grand prize at the Swatch’s My Rabbit Story and Smart Choice Winner in the Weaving the Future competition by the Fashion Design Council of the Philippines, among others.

The creative lady behind her own fashion label is also an entrepreneur who co-owns F*ART Fashion ART with her equally talented and beautiful sister, book author Viva V. Andrada.

Want to wear her designs and be absolutely happy? Check out Happy V. Andrada’s Ready to Wear line at www.shop.happyandrada.com and you may also try out her creations at her store, F*ART Fashion ART.


As published in BusinessWorld's HerWord.com:
http://herword.com/fashion/happy_andrada_2013/index.php

Happy Thoughts for the Week

SWAP: the New Kid on the Fashion Watch Block

In my lifetime, two of the most memorable affordable fashion watches to me are Alba (early 80s) and Swatch (late 80s) and I remember gawking at them on some friends’ wrists back in school. Both brands produced funky and colorful timepieces that are fun to wear.  My parents did not get me an Alba back in grade school but they gifted me with my very first Swatch in high school.  I think this is where my love and addiction for watches started and up to today, I haven’t stopped collecting them. 

To date, I own 24 timepieces, not counting those that I handed down to my mom because in reality, I couldn’t use them all. And even though I have moved on to buying branded/pricier ones, I still got excited when I learned about the new kid on the fashion watch block called SWAP.  

My eyes lit up as I gazed at the colorful array of interchangeable watch faces and straps of SWAP at its launch last month at the Glorietta Activity Center.  The stage and showcases were dressed up with the colorful theme of the watches and guest celebrities joined in the fun.  Rainbow and neutral colored straps were all over the place, not to mention the equally colorful watch faces from its plain/classic variant to the graphic collection.

The SWAP launch event stage in Glorietta

Displays at the SWAP launch

SWAP watches currently has 30 colors of straps and 22 watches faces (9 plain and 13 graphic) you can choose from and wear depending on your mood and fashion statement for the day.  All SWAP watches have stainless steel case back, are 3atm water resistant, hypoallergenic silicone strap and come with a one year warranty on its Japan made mechanism.

SWAP Classic and Solid watch faces

SWAP Graphic watch faces and colored silicone straps

A SWAP watch face costs P500 each while the silicone strap costs P350 but they have a Starter Kit that comes with 2 silicone straps and a watch face of your choice for only P1,000.

SWAP Starter Kit

At the launch, SWAP announced that every month, a new theme of exciting graphic watch face designs such as sports, movies, characters, superheroes, places and even fashion patterns and trends will be made available.  For the straps, a new batch of colors will be introduced quarterly.

SWAP campaign hashtag

All SWAP watches are now available in Tomato Stores and SWAP exhibits in various malls in Metro Manila.  You may also order through the Tomato Online Store at www.tomato.ph, which by the way has a Customer Service Live Chat Application that you can use to inquire or complain about their products.  I’ve tried this when I discovered at home that the watch face I got from the event has a scratch on it and their customer service representative was friendly and efficient that I was able to have the replacement the following day from one of their stores.

My SWAP purple strap plus Mirror and Instagram watch faces

Finally, if you wish to decide on which colored strap and watch face to buy before going to their store or exhibits, visit their online visualizer at http://www.tomato.ph/SwapMeBaby. Mag #SWAPkana!

International Museum Day for Ayala Museum

It is International Museum Day on May 18, Saturday, and as a member of the International Council of Museums and part of the World Museum Community,  the Ayala Museum will have FREE admission that day for everyone to enjoy the ongoing exhibits. 

This special day has been celebrated since 1977 to raise awareness on the importance of museums in society development, not to mention preservation of history and legacy. 

For more details, visit the websites of the International Council of Museums (www.icom.museum) and Ayala Museum (www.ayalamuseum.org).

Quote Post - 3

Here's my quote post for the week:

The Great Women Brand

I first encountered the Great Women Brand at the Women in Media Session hosted by the Enabling Communities with Hope and Opportunities Sustainable Initiatives (ECHOsi) Foundation and the Women’s Business Council of the Philippines (WBCP) back in February. In the program, there was a talk by Jeannie Javelosa, president of ECHOsi and a presentation of the Great Women Brand. This is new and it got my attention.

The Great Women Brand products

It turns out that the Great Women Brand was created through the partnership of ECHOsi Foundation, ECHOstore Sustainable Lifestyle's non-profit arm, and the Philippine Commission on Women under a grant from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)with the goal of elevating the quality of both food and non-food products by women micro entrepreneurs from different regions of the Philippines.  

The brand is the result of the year-long Great Women Project, which had designers and product developers working with women microenterprises in Quezon, Leyte, Bohol, Iloilo, and Naga -- fashion designer Lulu Tan Gan, awarded designers and Movement 8 co-founders Tes Pasola and Ann Pamintuan, bag designer and exporter Renee Patron of Banago Bags (whose bags are in elite stores in the US like Nordstroms and Bloomingdales), Lenora Cabili of Filip+Inna (private trunk show to New York), product merchandiser Rambie Lim of Habi and rurungan Foundation, architect and designer Dan Lichauco, artist-designer-curator and ECHOsi Foundation president Jeannie Javelosa, product merchandise designer and graphic artist Reena Francisco and coffee product specialist Chit Juan, both of ECHOstore.  

Fashion designer Lulu Tan Gan with Miagao weavers

Designer Len Cabili in Davao

Charged with women empowerment, this program is focused on women helping women up the value chain, developing product variants and packaging, providing tools for smooth business operations, and opening new markets for their products.  

The trio behind the Great Women Brand (l-r):
Jeannie Javelosa, Chit Juan and Reena Franciso

The Great Women brand was launched recently at the Yuchengco Museum and was well received by the guests. On exhibit were food products, home textile accessories, couture and fashion accessories and home décor pieces.

Some products on display at the Great Women Brand launch

Currently, the Great Women brand products are available at ECHOstore Serendra, ECHOstore Podium, ECHOstore Centris, as well as in Tesoro's Handicrafts and Milkyway Café in Pasay Road, Makati City.

Sa Wakas, a New Pinoy Rock Musical Featuring the Songs of Sugarfree

Following the footsteps of Mama Mia (play and movie which featured the songs of ABBA), Across the Universe (movie which feature the songs of The Beatles) and the local film I Do Bi Doo Bi Doo (which featured the songs of Apo Hiking Society), a new musical that weaves together the songs of one of the country’s most beloved rock bands, Sugarfree.

Sa Wakas, a New Pinoy Rock Musical featuring the songs of Sugarfree, co-written by Andrei Nikolai Pamintuan and Mariane Abuan with the music beautifully arranged by Ejay Yatco, promises to bring together the world of pop rock and musical theatre.The show will feature Sugarfree's hit songs such as "Mariposa," "Burnout," "Wag Ka Nang Umiyak," "Makita Kang Muli," and "Hari ng Sablay," among others. "Sa Wakas" cast members are young, talented and no strangers to the stage: Fred Lo, Vic Robinson, Caisa Borromeo, Laura Cabocha, Justine Peña, Kyla Rivera and many more.

Sa Wakas will be staged on April 13, 14, 19, 20, 21, 26, 27 and 28, 2013 at PETA Theater Center at 5 Eymard Drive, New Manila, Quezon City.  Ticket Prices are Php 500, Php 700 and Php 1000.

Tickets to Sa Wakas, A New Pinoy Rock Musical featuring the songs of Sugarfree will be available at any Ticketnet outlets located at SM Department Customer Care Service Area or visit www.ticketnet.com.ph or you may call 911-5555.For more information about the musical show, visit its website www.sawakas.com.