Changing in the car, I headed straight to the Bench Fashion Week (BFW), now on its third year. For Spring/Summer 2019, Bench brought out the big guns with a highly anticipated three-day celebration of style featuring the best of the local and global fashion scene.
Day 1 kicked off with designer-on-the-rise Seph Bagasao and equally promising Bench Design Awards 2018 winners Renz Reyes and Ched Dalogaog, whose respective pieces were strong and sophisticated in their own right.
For casual wear, global brand Cotton On’s ’90s-inspired collection and Suyen Corp.’s very own alternative clothing brand Human’s indie pop flavor spelled summer fashion fun.
New York-based Filipino designer Rafe Totengco and his Siargao-inspired collection, Rafe x Bench, was the finale.
Day 2 was all about the ladies, with the show starting off with Bench’s own luxury multibrand concept Assembly. Making appearances on the runway were brands such as Pucci, Minki, Mint Designs, Mihara Yasuhiro, Christopher Kane, Fratelli Rosetti, Rupert Sanderson and Casadei. Day 2 also featured Kashieca and Mark Bumgarner.
Day 3 was a fitting finale to BFW 2019, with a solid mix of style and star power. First up was JC Buendia, who delivered strong blacks and whites and surprised the crowd with bright yellows.
This was followed by American Eagle, whose segment was a celebration of individuality and self-expression, and showcased pieces that are fun, fresh and ready for more adventures.
Back-to-back extravaganza
Closing BFW was Bench’s back-to-back extravaganza: the first from Bench Active, whose segment featured several Bench endorsers such as Max Collins and Pancho Magno, Ruru Madrid, Kiko Estrada and Jacob Ejercito, and ended with the reveal of Brazilian artistic gymnast and Olympic medalist Arthur Nory.
The last segment, Bench Swim, was the ultimate summer spectacle, with Bench bodies such as Winwyn Marquez, Katarina Rodriguez, Beauty Gonzalez, Sanya Lopez, David Licauco and Solenn Heussaff rocking the brand’s hottest swimwear pieces.
For the ultimate ender, swimmer and two-time Olympic gold medalist Conor Dwyer made his way down the BFW runway, with supermodel girlfriend Kelsey Merritt gushing in the front row.
Between the fashion show and the special dinner hosted by Bench king Ben Chan for the two Olympians, I was able to make it to the baptism and grand celebration of the fourth set of twins of Aficionado big boss Joel Cruz.
Baby boom
Joel Cruz, hailed as the Lord of Scents, mounted quite an event with the christening ceremonies for his seventh and eighth kids. The new baby boys were born four months apart last year. Zaid, whose Arabic name means “to prosper,” was born on June 23, while Ziv, whose Jewish name means “charm” or “brilliance,” followed on Nov. 6.
Joel’s eight IVF children all have the same mother. His own mom Milagros and family members, together with a battalion of caregivers, all dote on the lovely children.
On a bright, sunny Sunday afternoon, the kids’ baptism at the Santuario de San Antonio Parish in Forbes Park had 94 godparents, all of whom did a processional like in a wedding march. After the festivities, the godparents and guests were treated to cocktails and dinner at Makati Shangri-La.
There seems to be a baby boom, with the many baptisms that I have been attending. Another recent christening was for baby Amos, the newest bundle of joy of Michelle Garcia and Ariel Arce. Marriott’s cluster director of marketing communications and the big guy of Arce Dairy ice cream pulled out all the stops for a memorable and one-of-a-kind event for their 3-month-old son.
The ceremony was held at the St. Therese Church in Pasay City and afterward, family members and guests proceeded to the adjacent Marriott Grand Ballroom, where its Diplomatic Hall was transformed into a blue-and-white wonderland straight out of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory.
Michelle entrusted the venue styling to Teddy Manuel, who combined Old-World elegance and sophistication with childlike whimsy. The space was covered in flowing white strips of silk fabric gathered around a stunning spherical chandelier.
Guests including 1973 Miss Universe Margie Moran, Annabelle Rama and many more were treated to music performed live by the band Spirit of ’67.
World Sleep Day
After all the activities, I was so ready to hit my bed. Thanks to my Uratex Premium, I always have quality sleep. In celebration of World Sleep Day, Uratex Premium, in partnership with Our Home, recently held a series of informative activities at SM Mall of Asia to promote proper sleep for wellbeing.
Part of the event was the launch of Uratex Premium’s “Sleep Hive,” the ideal space to get the best sleep experience. It featured Uratex Premium’s collection of luxurious mattresses, including Orthocare, Sensory Memory and Premium Touch. The first is made of orthopedic foam material with biorhythmic technology to reduce stress and provide the best back support.
World Sleep Day culminated with “Healthy Slumber, Healthy You,” an afternoon of talks about beauty, wellness and the importance of good sleep. Sharing their expertise were Happy Skin CEO Rissa Mananquil-Trillo and sleep specialist Dr. Keith Aguilera.
Uratex Premium’s top executives—CEO Natividad Cheng, trade marketing director Dindo Medina, sales director Stephen Lee, marketing director Cherry Wong-Tan—graced the event. Uratex Premium promotes World Sleep Day by sharing its mission of celebrating sleep. I’ll zzzzz to that!
See more pics on Instagram @seaprincess888.