While the entire Philippines was sleeping, pictures of Miss Universe-Philippines Pia Wurztbach wearing Filipino designer Albert Andrada’s royal blue gown had already exploded on cyberspace. It was the red carpet event in Las Vegas prior to the Miss Universe telecast.
It was Wurztbach’s first time to wear the figure-hugging, strapless serpentina gown in public. Based on initial public reaction, the long wait was worth it.
What is the gown made of and what was Andrada’s inspiration behind it? What went into its creation? The designer, who’s now in Las Vegas with the rest of Team Philippines, shares with us his thoughts in this exclusive online interview.
“My inspiration for Pia’s costume and evening gown is all about ‘The Pearl of the Orient.‘ The mermaid gown has a very simple front because I want Pia’s beautiful face to shine. The back reveals opulent details of sun rays made of beads, sequins and crystals, which represent the sun rising in the middle of a serene blue sea.
“Tiny sapphire colored crystals are mixed with the beadwork and cascade towards the front of the gown, representing beautiful sands of our beaches. Made of silk gazaar, the gown has a hem of draped multiple folds at the back, which are like fins of the different beautiful fishes found in Philippine waters.
“The color blue represents the tranquility of the deep blue Philippine seas as well as a tribute to Pia’s queenly beauty. Blue was also her choice of color to wear to Miss Universe.
“I received a call from Binibining Pilipinas last Dec. 9, informing me to make gowns for Pia. I was told that it was strictly confidential. I was also asked to bring around five more gowns for her to choose from. They asked me to bring the gown for the finals with me since I’ll be watching the Miss Universe pageant.
“The original schedule of my departure to the US was Dec. 18, but I thought it would be better if I leave early so Pia had ample time to choose and do some alterations if there are any.
“I didn‘t intend to watch the preliminaries at first mainly because I didn’t have tickets for the show. Just to clarify, the gown assigned to me is for the finals and not for the prelims.
“Madame Stella Marquez-Araneta (chair of Binibining Pilpinas Charities, Inc.) is very strict with time. Do you think she would allow the gown to be flown in just a day before the prelims? We did the fittings (for the blue gown) two days after my arrival in Las Vegas. Thank God everything was perfect!”
And with your realtime votes during the actual pageant, everything is bound to turn divine for Pia Wurztbach—probably the country’s third Miss Universe in 42 years. Register now and watch the live telecast on StarWorld—December 21, 8 a.m., Manila time.
