The blushing bride

Photos courtesy of Kate Plata-Miciano. This photo (above) taken by Noel Salazar of Imagine Nation Photography

As has been pointed out in a past post, a formal occasion is no excuse to show more skin--in fact, it's a call to look even more dignified than ever! While it's true that some dress styles/cuts (for example, venus cut and tube tops) may seem decent if the wearer is thin or is not well-endowed, their ability to place the person first may still be wanting. Let's forget about debut balls or prom nights for a moment and consider the grande dame of all formal occasions: the wedding day.

On this day, the bride wears white, not merely because all the brides in the past have worn white, but more importantly, to symbolize purity! She is beautiful, pure, modest, and maybe a little bashful... a lady on all counts. Doesn't that mean a woman's wedding day is a day on which she must be most dignified?

I'm not saying that wedding gowns should all be like Grace Kelly's (left). (Remember, we mean "dignified" also in the practical sense--a lady must be able to move with poise and comfort in the gown. How could she do that in a heavily embroidered long-sleeved number when it's 33 degrees outside?)

In this wonderful climate of ours, a bride can instead choose shorter sleeves that give the right coverage to shoulders. That is why the terno style is so becoming of a Filipina bride!

Now, there is really no reason to feel boxed, trapped or cramped in the "conservative" mindset because in all truth, it's not about being conservative, but about respecting the "whiteness"--the purity--of the occasion and valuing that very beautiful gift of the self when one exchanges marriage vows. It's really love, not rules, that moves the bride to wrap her delicate gift carefully! (Why do I use "gift"? A friend once likened a person's body to a special gift: if the gift is something worthless, there's no point in wrapping it well; just toss it in a bag and give it to whoever. But a precious gift you wrap in the best tissue wrappers, box, and ribbons; and you take special care of it until it reaches your recipient.)

Here's why we love copywriter Kate Plata-Miciano's wedding gown: while the basic dress is a strapless number, it fits her perfectly and doesn't show cleavage. To cover her shoulders, she wears a 3/4 sleeve cover-up that is light enough not to be too hot, but heavy enough not to be too exposed. In choosing that design, Kate followed her own sense of style. Kate writes:


"The real scoop about that gown is it's a second choice. The first one I wanted was also decent; only, one week before the wedding, my first modista, Loida Hunter, completely screwed it up. Everything about the gown she made was wrong, it had low neckline when we asked her to put it up a bit. The back was very plunging when we asked her to put more cloth, and the whole thing made me look fat. All that after 3 months of waiting! To make things worse, she wasn't so open about our observations about the gown so we had to find someone else to make it.

"So we went to my mom's modista, Vilma Orticio. She was able to make my second gown in a week and at such an affordable price! I chose the mermaid cut design because it's always slimming. And since I like to have lace on my gown, we used it as design of the body and as bolero. I've always loved the mermaid cut with lacey bolero so that's what I chose as design."


See, dignified dressing is not about sticking to rules, but knowing what makes a lady truly beautiful--the value of her whole person!--and expressing that through her elegant (and appropriate) style choices. Congratulations, Kate!

Photo taken by Bob Guerrero.

Teacher Outfits (Part 1)

Every girl should dress like a teacher. Let me explain why.

1. Teachers primarily dress for comfort and practicality. The good teacher outfit is commute-proof, and is good for 12 hour work days (8 of which involve standing up and pacing up and down a classroom or hallway).

2. Teachers dress up in a timeless manner. And no, not timeless as in "panahon-ng-lola-mo" timeless, but Audrey Hepburn/Grace Kelly-timeless. The clothes you purchase in your early twenties will still be useful even when you're in your 60's and 70's.

3. Teachers dress professionally. We get treated deferentially because we show by our polished manner of dress that we respect ourselves and expect to be treated with respect, in turn.

Here's a quote from this blog that I completely agree with:

"We live in a shallow world where we judge people by their looks. So image does matter if you want to get a head start in life."

4. The way teachers dress highlight their brains and capabilities. Isn't it rather insulting if you were to be remembered not by what you said or did, but only by what you wore? (Aside: I know that I will always remember the girl I saw riding the escalator last night in a mall... she wore such a short denim skirt that when I glanced up, I saw her b*tt and underwear!!!)

In the weeks to come, I will be posting stylish teacher outfits that girls of all ages and professions can get ideas from. Stylish comfort is for everyone, after all!

If you disagree or have some violent reactions, feel free to post a comment! I'd better warn you, gentle reader, that I AM a teacher... and TEACHER ALWAYS KNOWS BEST! :)

GUTSY Q&A: It's a tie

Dear GUTSY,

I came across dozens of my dad's old neckties from the 60's to the late 90's. We're giving them away but one caught my eye--I think it's just awesome! I'm keeping it. Any suggestions on how I can turn it to an accessory? Like a scarf or even a "ladies' tie" or something. It's yellow-green, grass green, with a touch of orange and damask(?)-like prints. Thanks!


What an interesting question! While a necktie is specifically made for men to wear around their neck, we women can make this fashion piece "our own," too. How? Here are a few tips from GUTSY girls:

Photo from mycherrymagazine.com

"Why not wear the tie as a belt? [According to Katherine Swan for the article 'Ties for Women: Ways to Accessorize' for Neckties.com] 'Accessorizing with a tie doesn’t have to mean wearing it around your neck. You can wear a tie in all of the same ways that you might wear a skinny scarf: not just around the neck, but also as a belt or in your hair. These looks best accessorize a casual outfit, so be sure that you are dressing appropriately for the occasion. The idea here is to hit just the right note: funky, without going over the top.'"
-Gabi

"She can use the tie as a belt if the length of the tie can cinch her waist."
-Kathy

Photo from etsy.com

"Some suggestions:

• use it as belt,
• combine it with an obi belt,
• use it as ribbon tie, or
• make a rose brooch out of it."

-Lani

Photo from etsy.com

"She can use it as a decor for her bag--tie it around the bag or roll it up and pin it. Better not to use it as is (i.e. as neck tie)--so punky! She can combine it with other belts and make a belt. Another option is to use it as a headband. Just add a ribbon or any brooch to spice it up. That's all."
-Pia Lor

Photo from etsy.com

"She can wear it as a scarf, ladies tie, bracelet or belt. If she wants her dad's necktie to stand out, she should wear it with the monochromatic colors of black and white. What I mean is, she'll wear full colors so that the necktie will be the first thing noticeable because it's the only one with the prints."
-Lennor

If you have a style question, send it to us by leaving a comment in this blog!

GUTSY Fashion Spotlight: An Interview with Pia Lizares of DESEO Clothing

Classy. Smart. Timeless.

The outfits above are just a few of the fabulous pieces from designer Pia Lizares' clothing brand, DESEO. The GUTSY team was able to interview this extremely talented Filipina.

GUTSY: You describe DESEO as being "Fashion conscious without being a slave to fashion." Just how different are your clothes compared to the other brands out there?

Pia: It means you choose the trends you adapt to. As for my clothing line, it’s trendy in the sense that it’s not old fashioned, but it still has that classic touch in a way that it will still look good and current even 15 or more years from now. I’d like to believe that my clothes are timeless, therefore, there is no such thing as an “end of season sale” for DESEO.

GUTSY: What makes it different from other brands of its price point?

Pia: My prices are pretty reasonable 995-1800 (as of this interview) for RTW items, but you get the exclusivity of couture, since I produce my designs in limited quantities (thus lessening the chances of you going to an event and having someone else wear the same dress/top). You can also have the items custom-fitted to your specific measurements for a reasonable additional charge, a service other brands of the same price point usually don’t offer. Lastly, the quality of my clothes is undeniable, since I design the pieces myself and supervise the manufacturing process (unlike most RTW brands that are made in China or other countries with cheap labor).

GUTSY: What inspired you to start your own clothing brand?

Pia: My mom has been in the garments business for the past 30 years. Her brand, L&M, is being sold in Landmark Department store and several Gaisano malls in the provinces, so having my own clothing line will make the transition seamless.

I look up to my mom, especially in the way that she is almost always impeccably dressed, never looking "losyang" given the numerous roles she plays in her life.

Lastly, I love Beauty and everything that has to do with it. I knew from the start that what I wanted to do has to do with everything that is girly (Fashion, Makeup, etc.). Vain as it may sound, ayoko pumangit. And having a clothing line can help me feed my desire to be beautiful and create beautiful things, while earning a living without having to start from scratch, since I already know some suppliers for raw materials, as well as a couple of [tailors].

As opposed to L&M, however, DESEO has more complicated patterns, smaller sizes and a slightly higher price point that caters to a different demographic. I wouldn’t say to a younger demographic, but more of a more experimental and sophisticated customer base.

GUTSY: How do you make your designs?

Pia: There is the basic observing of trends, but also studying how to make them timeless and in tune with my brand’s aesthetic.

As for the design process itself, many times a manipulated pattern comes before the drawing. (As opposed to other designers who draw first). I see to it first that certain elements of the garment are feasible to do, and then I piece them together into one design. The design only comes to mind completely once I know that it is possible to execute the individual parts of the garment first.

After this, I draw a flat 2D drawing of the garment itself (not a fancy designer sketch) on a paper called the JOB TICKET, and submit it to the tailors for them to create a sample, usually made in my size, which I fit. Once I know it looks good and falls well, and [considering] the number of compliments I receive while wearing the sample, [I] determine whether or not the design gets mass produced into different colors and complete sizes.

GUTSY: Describe the target market of DESEO clothing.

Pia: DESEO specializes in clothes that can be worn from the office and straight to a night out/business cocktail. Therefore it is usually targeted to working women. My designs are serious enough to be worn in the office, without being too stiff you can still wear it to a night in the town afterwards. Here's a description of the kind of woman I want to dress, taken from my blog: "She is sophisticated, self sufficient, does not crave for attention but can effortlessly make heads turn. She loves to receive gifts, but has enough money to buy things she likes. She is accomplished, well-respected and she can be sexy without exposing a lot of skin. Although she loves shopping for bargains, she does not mind spending more as long as the product has good workmanship and has an excellent fit. She follows her own taste level first before following trends and believes that fashion is only as good as how it looks on her. She knows what she wants and is possibly from the A-B and upper C class. She is a career woman, an excellent student, or possibly a housewife that refuses to look losyang."

Basically, this goes to say that my customers usually have spending power (my clothes are not exactly tiangge-cheap) and a taste level sophisticated enough to go beyond basic jeans and t-shirt as I love unique details in clothes.

GUTSY: Where do you get your ideas?

Pia: Magazines, Origami (I like complicated collars and sleeves) and the color wheel (as to which colors look “cohesive” when displayed). International designers whose design aesthetic I want to emulate are Victoria Beckham (check her website http://www.victoriabeckham.com/ for classic shifts, simple yet sharp designs in neutral colors), Roland Mouret (He is a master when it comes to origami details in clothes) and Karl Lagerfeld for Fendi and YSL.

GUTSY: What do you think is wanting in today's fashion culture? How do you try to address that with DESEO?

Pia: In regards to today’s fashion culture, I would like to believe that as with everything, ‘recessionistas’ (translation: recession-proof fashionistas) want to get more bang for their buck. I address this by making pieces that can be worn either as tops or as dresses (depending on the height of the person and on the occasion), can be worn from day through night, can be worn repeatedly, and can be easily integrated with items one already owns in her closet. I believe that value for money is not equal to the price of the garment alone, but the price divided by how many times you’ll wear it (a P500 blouse worn once is more expensive than a P1500 blouse worn 20 times), where you’ll wear it (if you’re wearing it to a special occasion, it automatically adds to the value of the item), and how you feel in your clothes (cheap clothes that are badly made and don’t fit well are not worth the money).



GUTSY: What do you think of the words "conservative" or "modest"? How do you reconcile freedom of fashion with the seemingly "stiff" rules that these words suggest?

Pia: My aesthetic has always been modest from the very beginning, and not exactly because my parents taught me so, or that the school outlawed wearing revealing clothes. CONSERVATIVE and MODEST can speak to everyone with common sense. Being small framed, [I find it impossible] to wear a strapless bra without the danger of it falling. So, when spaghetti straps were all the rage when I was a teen, I couldn’t wear it. From then on, I've learned to be conscious of choosing clothes that fit my body type and that excludes anything strapless.

As a designer and given my obsession with unique details. I believe that more conservative clothes have more generous cuts, thus giving me more FREEDOM to experiment. I love high collars, detailed sleeves, pleats and pintucks, details that are easy to execute on more conservative styles since they have more fabric (again which explains why my designs are pricey, since the yardage of the cloth is big).

I don’t let the woman drown in the details, however. Im still conscious of emphasizing the female form, my clothes are never shapeless. I do this through waist and bust darts. CONSERVATIVE AND MODEST ACTUALLY EQUAL FREEDOM IN FASHION.

Why? Imagine having the freedom of not worrying whether or not you’ll have a wardrobe malfunction during a special occasion. Or being able to move freely without worrying if anyone can see your underwear. Or staying comfortably warm in an airconditioned ballroom without worrying if you’ll catch a cold with your back fully exposed. Bottomline, if you’re comfortable in what you’re wearing, you’ll look good and feel good in it.

As a designer, my definition of clothes is to be able to protect you from elements, cover private parts, suit your body type and reflect your personality. If you follow these four correctly, you can easily carry yourself well, thus look more dignified. Aside from these four, there are no hard and fast rules in what’s modest and what’s not, since we have different body types to consider, but I put my foot down on anything that requires tape to secure to prevent private parts from being exposed.

For more DESEO, visit the website at http://deseoclothing.multiply.com, or contact Pia Lizares
Cellphone: 0920-9234593
Email: pia_lizares@yahoo.com
Photos from DESEO.

* Would YOU like to have your favorite go-to clothing brand featured at the blog? E-mail us your suggestions or post a comment!