In ancient Greek mythology, muses of art, dance and song descended upon mortals to endow them creativity. These muses were fickle and most of the time had to be coaxed with drink and persuasion.
Fast forward today: It is the age of the fashion muse, the new tag for image model. The fashion muse represents the brand, hopefully inspiring buyers to purchase anything from a couture frock to lip gloss.
Josie Natori’s bridgeline called Josie was launched last week at a house party at Forbes Park, presenting four fashion muses: Katrina Tantoco-Lobregat (infanticipating), Stephanie Zubiri, Rosanna Ocampo Rodriguez and Stephanie Kienle-Gonzales.
These fashion plates have multi-careers and were sent garments from the Josie line for them to style on their own. The designs include sleep and lounge wear that may be taken from bedroom to bistro. The items are from the Vietnam colored synthetic silk line, which needs no ironing when traveling.
Here are some interesting details about what these four muses do in their regular lives.
Like Josie Natori, Rosanna Ocampo, 37, is a fabulous fashion designer. Like Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli before them, women designers are the best models of their designs.
What sets Rosanna apart from her peers is that she went to school for exactly what she wanted to do, taking courses at both Istituto Europeo di Design (IED) and the Paris American Academy before securing her Masters in Fashion PR at Istituto Marangoni.
Rosanna loves the YSL colors, vivid and spicy palettes, clashing hues of fuchsia and orange, such as what she is wearing for her portrait today.
Newlywed Stephanie Kienle-Gonzales is 25 and marketing manager of Philux Inc., a family business in the furniture industry for over 30 years now. Mahogany, our native hardwood, is their current collection, and she is quick to add that they buy from private growers of this beautiful reddish wood.
Katrina Tantoco-Lobregat is 35 and excitedly talking about how Rustan’s has secured, through SSI, the entire Natori line, which is Natori Couture, Natori Ready-to-Wear, and Josie, the lounge wear that may be worn from bedroom to the bistro. She remembers seeing the Natori Boutique in Saks Fifth Avenue, when she was a teenager, and is so proud of this coup de couture for Rustan’s. Katrina is five months pregnant and loves that Josie still chose her as a muse so it will empower infanticipating mothers to still be fashionable.
Stephanie Zubiri’s new resto, Atelier 317, is a best-kept secret among her foodie fans. It’s in an exclusive village, so it is best to make a reservation. The place can seat 20 people, so it is as exclusive as it is deliciously bite-sized. She is executive chef and managing director. Professionally trained at Le Cordon Bleu Paris in culinary and oenological arts, she worked previously with Restaurant 12 as one of the guests chefs. She lived in Paris for over five years and has traveled all over Europe, seeking different foodie adventures and experiences.
These four amazing, amusing muses work and play hard, but what sets them apart is that they are truly inspiring.