Ed Simon
Kylie Verzosa, Catriona Gray, Megan Young, Pia Wurtzbach, and more all attended Vogue Philippines’ debut events.
Royalty descended upon the red carpet during the Vogue Philippines Gala with the country’s beauty queens attending the fashion-packed two-day debut. Pia Wurtzbach, Kylie Verzosa, Catriona Gray, Megan Young, and Celeste Cortesi all made it to the intimate gathering—and all of them reinterpreted the black-and-white theme in dresses befitting of queens.
Kylie Verzosa attended the gala in a Mark Bumgarner black co-ord, juxtaposed with a puffed white attaché and a train, bringing a light sense of drama to the evening. “I wanted to wear something classic—something natural, yet soft glam,” she tells us. “For my hair, I wanted it to look sleek and very ‘Old Hollywood.'” The Miss International 2016 winner also shares her sentiments about the launch saying, “I’m so happy that Vogue is finally in the Philippines. I can’t wait for you to finally showcase what we have. It’s about time.”
Among the queens, Pia Wurtzbach was the only one who opted for a different shade in a black and gold Gucci dress with cut-outs, paired with Yves Saint Laurent shoes. “They said the theme was black and white, but gold is not a color technically. So, I get away with it,” the 2015 Miss Universe winner says with a laugh. “[For my beauty look] I wanted to go for a Pinay beauty look, I opted out of the contact lenses tonight and I didn’t want to go too over-the-top with the lashes. I just wanted to highlight my pagka-Pinay, but in a chic way.” Shedding light on Filipino beauty and going against the grain of the black and white theme, Wurtzbach did not disappoint.
Meanwhile, Megan Young wore a bead-embellished black Marc Rancy cut-out dress. “We went for something very risqué and sexy because it’s not my usual [style]. I’m very conservative with my outfits, but we wanted to be a bit more daring,” Miss World 2013 tells Vogue Philippines. An unexpected twist on her conventional silhouette, risk-taking was a recurrent theme throughout the night from a handful of gala-goers. Young adds, “I feel like I’m more confident in my skin now, so I think this the perfect time to show that confidence.”
Sustainable fashion made its case with Jaggy Glarino’s creation, worn by Catriona Gray, who attended the event with actor Sam Milby. The rose-embellished dress comprised of handcrafted, recycled polyurethane plastic bottles—an eco-friendly take on stylish eveningwear. “We wanted to create something beautiful, but with depth because Jaggy as a designer also feels like sustainability is what we should be pushing to the forefront when discussing fashion,” Gray remarks. She continues, “It’s so exciting [to be here] because this is a huge milestone for Philippine fashion. It could really be a platform to elevate Filipino talent, whether that is in design, in makeup, or artistry.”
Celeste Cortesi, the country’s current reigning Miss Universe Philippines 2022, also attended the gala and opted for a sultry Gladi Echavarre velvet number that accentuated her toned bare midriff. The gala wasn’t the only Vogue Philippines event the pageant legends attended. Verzosa and Rabiya Mateo, Miss Universe Philippines 2020, also celebrated with Vogue Philippines the night before for the magazine’s party at Xylo. The royal visits from the reigning queens brought the noteworthy evenings to a close.
