“In the silence of my design space, I create and push fashion boundaries and aim for respect from my peers, from the fashion industry.” —Ivarluski Aseron

Emotions ran high at the Red Charity Gala as it staged its 12th edition after three years of hiatus. The successful comeback was held for the first time at The Peninsula Manila in multiple venues to keep the energy exciting throughout the highly awaited fashion and charity event.

After months of preparation, our featured designer Ivarluski Aseron presented a stunning 54-piece collection in calming and warm colors that included gray, black, navy, dusty blue and burnt orange. RCG co-chair Kaye Tinga looked radiant in her orange woven tube gown, while Ivar made me a light gray and blush pink woven gown with a delicate cape.

This collection has been in the pipeline since three years ago, when Ivar was unanimously chosen as our next RCG designer before the pandemic. Early this year, Kaye and I decided to continue our charity project in the promotion of Philippine fashion and for the benefit of several charities including Philippine Red Cross, Assumption HS ‘81 Foundation, Save Palawan Seas Foundation and this year, Hope for Lupus Foundation.

 

Passionate about his craft, Ivar is a fashion genius in manipulating fabric and intertwining materials to create movement and emotion. He shared in a special video made by our main sponsor Bench, “I draw inspiration from everything—architecture, objects, fabrics, even emotions!”

During the cocktails, we presented the silent auction items, where guests could bid for the different packages. The bigger packages were auctioned at the live auction at the main lobby before the highlight of the night, the fashion show. We managed to raise a total of P7.5 million during the night’s auction benefiting various non-government foundations.

For auction

The items for auction ranged from beautiful artworks by Patrick Coard and Jigger Cruz, intricate jewelry pieces by JMA Jewelry, Diagold and Jewelmer, and an Omega watch, to luxurious vacation stays at Balesin, Crimson Resort & Spa Boracay, Anantara Vacation Club in Phuket, Thailand, A2A Safaris’ Royal Chundu River Lodge in Zambia, and The Peninsula in Manila, Bangkok, Istanbul, and London. Home and living packages from Crate & Barrel, Genteel Home, and Serta, and beauty and wellness packages from Luminisce, Rhodium Regenerative Institute and Spectrumed’s Sofwave completed the selection.

 

Special thanks to good friend Sunny Ku who helped us keep our guests’ happy, bubbly vibes with Remy Martin and The Botanist. We were able to get our guests to bid more for charity. They also danced the night away at the After Party with The Plug Band from Pardon My French. Many thanks to Jun Sy for the band!

Every year, Red Charity Gala features beautiful collections from famed local fashion designers such as Rajo Laurel, Joey Samson, Chito Vijandre, Lesley Mobo, Jojie Lloren, Ezra Santos, Cary Santiago, Michael Cinco, Furne One and Dennis Lustico.

This year, we continued the tradition in our new home to signify a new chapter, but keeping the essential components of our charity gala. We put the spotlight on Ivar, who showcased a collection that linked his past designs and techniques with the new ones he has explored and developed over the years.

Through the years, the biggest and most awaited fashion and charity event has built two children’s libraries in Eastern Samar, and provided two-year senior high school scholarships for 20 deserving students in Passi, Iloilo.

 

This project has also contributed to training youth volunteers for first aid, emergency and disaster readiness. Relief operations during fire incidents and calamities were also a priority, providing aid when it is needed most. During the pandemic, both foundations extended support to front-liners, providing them with hot meals and fresh produce. During those trying times, resources were also allocated to isolation facilities, vaccination sites and RT-PCR saliva collection sites in Makati.

Long list

This year, Red Charity Gala 2023 partnered with Hope for Lupus Foundation to build awareness of the disease and provide support and guidance for those suffering from Lupus.

The Red Charity Gala 2023 was presented by Bench and Angkas, together with our generous partners A2A Safaris, Jewelmer, Peninsula Manila and Luminisce, with the participation of Diagold, Emirates Airlines, Genteel Home, Remy Martin, Rhodium Regenerative Institute, Serta and Spectrumed, and with additional support from Anantara Vacation Club, Avignon Clinic, The Botanist, Crate & Barrel, Crimson Resort & Spa Boracay, JMA Jewelry, Omega and Adworks Manila, Fuentes Manila, Henri Calayag Salon, Mint College, Moss Manila, Robert Blancaflor Group,18th.ph.

 

Our media partners: Philippine Daily Inquirer and Philippine Star. Special thanks to Estée Lauder, Global Views, Midas Hotel, MX Studio, Gardenia, LG, and Organique.

The list of people to thank is so long, we need another week to highlight all, so let this column be just Part 1. Our RCG team, with the most generous Kaye Tinga and our team leader Maggie Gineta, is grateful for everyone who shared their time and talent and special rates just to mount this year’s gala. Our amazing director Robby Carmona did an outstanding and brilliant show that everyone was raving to be the best edition yet.

For more updates, follow Red Charity Gala on Instagram (@redcharitygala).

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