Filipino talent sure has a way of reaching international heights, and fashion designer Jian Lasala is the latest in a long line of living proof. We sit down for a quick chat with Jian, the mastermind behind both Miss Universe-Sierra Leone Hawa Kamara's Governor's Ball and coronation night gowns!
How did you get in touch with Miss Sierra Leone?
"I saw her photos on Facebook when she was crowned last July 2016 and I immediately fell in love with her. I sent a personal message to the Facebook page account of Sierra Leone's Ministry of Tourism office, and two weeks after, they responded. They then endorsed me to Hawa Kamara and then she connected me to her National Director Natasha Beckley who was a former Miss World Sierra Leone in 2011."
IMAGE Courtesy of Jian Lasala
What's your plan for the evening look?
"I designed a gown that would look and feel like it's second skin. It is very feminine and elegant—hourglass in shape. To make it more special, it was encrusted with with 35,500 rhinestones! The design is actually very simple and straightforward and will highlight Hawa Kamara's beautiful chocolate skin."
IMAGE Courtesy of Jian Lasala
What's the inspiration behind the Governor's Ball gown and Miss Universe finals night gown?
"Generally speaking, I wanted Hawa to look extremely expensive, beautiful, classy, and elegant. I also wanted Hawa to look like a celebrity that is way ahead of her time and a woman that exudes timeless beauty.
"For the governor's ball, I came up with a simple red carpet-inspired, fully-sequined midnight blue serpentine cut gown with a long train and high slit; for the finals night gown, I came up with a design that is on trend and goes beyond my usual aesthetic."
IMAGE Courtesy of Jian Lasala
Did Hawa have any specific requests on her evening dresses?
"To be honest, there was none, and the National Director only asked if I could come up with something white. As usual, I did something different but still within the color palette that they requested. I am very grateful because they trusted me and the other designers so much that they just let us be!"
IMAGE Courtesy of Jian Lasala
How long did the dresses take to finish?
"For the finals night evening gown, it took us at least four and a half weeks to finish the embellishments and two weeks for construction because it went back and forth to our production team for a few corrections. The other gown took a week, while the rest of the designers' dresses took a month and a half to be collected. All in all, we were able to come up with 30 or so different looks for Hawa from 15 different designers—accessories included."
IMAGE Courtesy of Jian Lasala
Why are all of her looks made by the Filipino designers?
"Actually, not all but a quarter of her important wardrobes are from established Filipino designers such as Yves Camingue, Arnold Galang, Mikee Andrei, Jaggy Glarino, Manny Halasan, and emerging designers such as Rau Uson, Devonette Tanada, Jeff Silvestre, and Celine Borromeo, to name a few. Some of her accessories were from Christopher Munar and Shandar. All of these were donated as part of their contribution to the GoFundMe campaign that they launched last November when their organization asked for monetary donations so that Hawa could fly to the Philippines. Since most of us could not give money, we donated by making her a new wardrobe instead."
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