MANILA, Philippines — Actress Lala Vinzon is determined to make a name for herself in the pageant world.
Foregoing her screen name, Lala is Binibini 18 Ma. Isabel David and she showed off how she can pull off a character at the Binibining Pilipinas 2022 National Costume show held last Saturday in New Frontier Theater in Araneta City, Cubao.
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Projecting Hanan, the Goddess of Dawn in Philippine mythology, seemed not a hard task for Ma. Isabel.
She looked formidable in her hand-woven outfit made of talahib and cogon fiber as she wielded her kampilan. She looked every inch the demi-god daughter of Bathala in the ensemble designed by Chris Igne.
Her fellow candidates also took the stage as their own.
Tacloban City bet Chelsea Lovely Fernandez carried the San Juanico Bridge — literally — on her back that forms an arch. The famous bridge nicknamed the "Bridge of Love" is one of the three references of Chelsea's costume designed by Nick Guarino. The Sto. Nino's image is displayed prominently on her staff while her ensemble is made of woven materials from Eastern Visayas.
Quezon lass Ira Patricia Malaluan also gave a show to the audience with her all-white ensemble that pays homage to Mount Banahaw.
Related: Exploring Quezon province: Relaxing places to visit around Mt. Banahaw
Donned in a Jojo Alidio design, Ira paused in the middle of her catwalk while the stage turned dark and her ball-topped staff lit blue, looking like a mountain deity ready to bestow cure for illnesses and charm against bad spirits.
Gracia Elizabetta Mendoza's Filipiniana gown is undoubtedly a handiwork of Chico Estiva. It is one of the few pieces at this year's costume show that is actually wearable as it featured rose and pink rosettes, embroidered appliquès over knits, and was studded with thousands of beads, rhinestones and glass crystals.
The Lipa City representative's costume is inspired by the miraculous rose petal shower that took place in Mt. Carmel Church in the 1940s.
Another Davao lass wore a Mark Joseph Sayad creation. Joanna Ricci Alajar's costume is an homage to the goddess of the sun and to her hometown, Caraga in Davao Oriental, where the sun rises first as the Eastern most tip of the Philippine archipelago.
Paying homage to the saints, Philippine goddesses and religious icons, Cebu's bet Nicole Borromeo surprisingly chose to highlight the "perya" (fair). Borromeo wore Axel Que's design that reminds onlookers of a jester with its red and blue color scheme.
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