Luxe

CEBU, Philippines - The Gallery of the Ayala Center Cebu was in full color with activity last November 27 - where the holiday collections of the members of the Fashion Council of Cebu were presented to the public.

The show, which was titled "Luxe," presented the holiday collections of designers Mia Arcenas, Arcy Gayatin, Yvonne Quisumbing, Edwin Ao, Albert Arriba, Oj Hoffer, Jun Escario, Philipp Tampus, Cary Santiago and Philip Rodriguez - the designers putting forward their distinct individual styles.

From chic cardigan-inspired ensembles to elegantly cinched-at-the-waist pieces, the overall tone of the fashion presentation was the merging of art nouveau with deco - guided, certainly, by the standards of classic elegance for exuding sensuality, and delineated by sleek lines.

The show was a variegated set of design themes, communicating the awareness of Cebu's couturiers that there's more to "luxe" than heady hues blended with trappings of neutrals and vantablack.

As terms like "constantly evolving," "future-forward" and "haute couture" may have become perennial buzzwords used to refer to most fashion presentations nowadays, these are truly factual descriptions of the state of Cebu's fashion scene, as evidenced by the holiday collections of the Fashion Council of Cebu presented in the recent "Luxe" show.