When beauty queens do shoots with Inquirer Lifestyle or To be You, it doesn’t really feel like work for us, especially this one with Miss Philippines Catriona Gray.

Even coming from a hectic schedule, she enters the shoot bubbly, relaxed and laughing, basically just a ray of sunshine. She can take a breather now, after taking a huge risk of joining Bb. Pilipinas—she’s already represented the country in Miss World and thus had everything to lose.

But she defied the odds by winning, and is even more grateful.

“Life since the Bb. Pilipinas 2018 coronation night has never slowed down, and I couldn’t be more grateful for everything that I’ve had the opportunity to undertake,” she said in the interview during the shoot.

“Looking back on the journey that was, the decision to join, the personal fears I overcame, the support that flooded in—it’s all so overwhelming, and it really feels like a triumph.”

In Gray’s first fashion shoot with Lifestyle, just like with past queens, we made it a point to do the shoot far away from the world of pageantry, and focused more on fashion, which Gray loves to do since she is, after all, a model first.

This became apparent the moment the camera started clicking. She was in her element, and there was no shot wasted.

Her own course

Her independent spirit and creativity—she paints, writes poetry and sings—give Gray that unique flair that makes her personality shine.

This is why she has no regrets for not having joined any of the rival beauty pageant camps to prepare for Bb. Pilipinas. (Beauty titleholders are usually trained by these beauty camps.)

Instead, it was her close friends who helped her and gave her moral support—the rest was all her doing. “I love the creative process in preparing,” she says.

She has a mood board where she tacks on all her ideas and inspirations which will help her decide what gown, national costume, wardrobe she’ll wear in Miss Universe. (The pageant has no date or venue as of press time.)

“The mood board is very fluid right now,” she adds. “We’re still in the brainstorming phase so there’s a lot of ideas and concepts on rotation. I’m pulling inspiration from the Filipino culture, our textiles, our folklore, prominent figures.”

What is next for her in the coming months?

Even if Miss Universe 2018 has neither date nor venue yet, she has started preparing already.

“I’m training with a few different people, each specializing in different aspects: dance, theater, walk, speech, etc.”

In June she trains full time and she’s excited about it.

But for now, competition mode is still switched off, and we see a light and cheery Catriona Gray charming the camera.

Photography Dookie Ducay
Styling Luis Carlo San Juan
Makeup Jelly Eugenio
Hairstyle Kiel Otilla
Special thanks to Bb. Pilipinas Charities Inc. and Gines Enriquez