Old Hollywood made new - SHOPSIFTED By Ana G. Kalaw

Tag : Organza Fabric

Ito Curata is, no doubt, comfortable with eveningwear. Thedesigner, who, at one point in his career was based in San Francisco and was designing for the likes of Sharon Stone, clearly showedoff to fruition his element in his turn for the third installmentof Fashion Watch at the Makati Shangri-La’s lobby. Long andslinky evening gowns in fabric meant to really show off awoman’s figure — silk organza, jersey, jacquard —were the highlights of a collection reminiscent of Old Hollywoodglamour. “That’s really my signature,” says thegracious designer, who is incidentally celebrating his 20th year inthe fashion industry. “I love the glamour of Hollywood during the ‘50s and the ‘60s, but I, of course, try tokeep my silhouettes updated and modern.” By modern, he isreferring to the low sexy backs, geometric cuts and sheer chiffontops that just relied on exquisite beading to detract from theshowing of too much skin.
Curata’s excellent use of detail also manifests hiscompetency as a designer attuned to the times. Details such asintricate ruching, ruffle multi-layers and petal-style bundlescomplete evening dresses that would easily cross over from GraceKelly to Gwyneth Paltrow. Plus, his abundant use of the sleekserpentine or fishtail silhouette would have done any of thesestyle icons’ figures proud. “The serpentine styleenhances the woman’s body. It’s a timeless silhouettethat you still see a lot of now,” says the designer.Although, if you ask him, his timely use of predominantly aubergineand gunmetal shades was just coincidental.
Curata’s use of purple, one of the colors very much presentin the fall collections this season, and its familial shades— plum, mulberry, eggplant — was actually inspired by awatch ad. He loved the color so much he decided to create acollection out of it. “Aubergine is my new black,” hequips. He also injects more fun with the use of hot pink, actuallystarting the show with the shocking shade on button-heavystructured peacoats and cinch-waist jackets that act as the perfectcomplements to black sparkly cocktail dresses and gray poufyskirts. He also ended with fuchsia, on a sleek,beautifully-constructed, high-neck gown with a profusion of petaldetails and a long train. That was actually Curata’s cheekyversion of the bridal gown. “It worked anyway, right?”
The biggest buzz of the afternoon, apart from the clothesthemselves, was the presence of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.Curata is one of the designers who habitually dresses up thePresident. He’s been providing formal wear and suits for GMAfor nearly three and a half years. In fact, the dresses she wore tothe State of the Nation Address in 2005 and 2006 were hiscreations. “I wasn’t really expecting her to come. Ijust sent her an invite,” shares the designer, “So itwas really, really sweet of her to come.”
After 20 years in the business and for his very first solo show inthe Philippines , Ito Curata deserves no less than the most prestigious attendance.
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For inquiries on the Fashion Watch Quartet series, call MakatiShangri-La at tel. 840-0884 or 813-8888 ext. 7588/7599.
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E-mail comments to ana_kalaw@pl-dtdsl.net .