Updated on Feb. 24, 7:43 a.m.
The seamless transition of fashion week schedules from the Big Apple to the home of The Beatles might have left the chic crowd dizzy behind their Chanel frames. But for Filipino sartorial savants, London Fashion Week’s fall 2017 presentation gives us a reason to pay attention. This season, not one but two Filipino designers presented their collections. John Herrera and Happy Andrada both had the opportunity to present what Filipino fashion is all about to a group that included fashion buyers and members of the press.
John Herrera Wins the “Britain’s Top Designer” Competition
John Herrera might have won the London Emerging Designer (LED) competition last year with his Bioluminescence-themed collection, but that didn’t leave the designer resting on his laurels. John managed to bag another accolade by winning this year’s Britain’s Top Designer award. The competition that included editor-at-large of Hello Fashion Monthly Hilary Alexander in its judging panel saw the designer presenting his six-piece Agila collection. Following his win, the designer couldn’t help but be grateful for everything and even posted about how his collection is now featured on the website of British Vogue. Congratulations!
John partnered with Epson Philippines to produce pieces cut from heavy fabrication that had a kaleidoscope image of the Philippine Eagle printed using the latter’s textile dye-sublimation transfer printers. The designer’s well-honed creative philosophy of using local inspirations in creating progressive designs is seen through tribal accessories topping off voluminous dresses with modern silhouettes.
Happy Andrada Presents Fashion Scout
Ladies garbed in loose-cut lightweight dresses seemed to float, rather than walk, for Happy Andrada’s tribal-influenced collection for Fashion Scout’s LFW showcase. Happy’s collection, presented with Kryolan and Toni & Guy, began with a clean palette of white and neutral shades of beige either embellished with a gamut of trims like crystals, fringes, and feathers. The show was closed with jackets in dense textiles on top of tulle dresses in a dark palette.
Fashion Scout is an international showcase for emerging fashion designers. The organization’s website lists Peter Pilotto, David Koma, and Phoebe English as its former participants. Shows organized by the team are often frequented by fashion media honchos like Suzy Menkes, Lucinda Chambers, and sartorial doyenne Anna Wintour. It won’t be surprising to see pieces from Happy’s collection landing the pages of international fashion magazines.
Photos courtesy of Upcoming and John Herrera’s Twitter account
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