FROM LEFT: Lady Grey Quartz Drop Pendant, Grakatak custom Munny by JP Cuison, Bang & Olufsen BeoSound 8. ILLUSTRATION: AJ Omandac

“All I want for Christmas is
to kick it with my family A Charlie Brown Christmas style.”
- GABBY CANTERO, Art Director

“When one starts having a grown-up wish list,
the work of Christmas begins.”
- NANTE SANTAMARIA, Contributing Editor

“Although it’s been said many times, many ways,
I’m just thankful for another feast.”
- CHOLO DELA VEGA, Creative Director

FROM TOP: Thom Browne x DITA Round Tortoiseshell Sunglasses with Leather Side Cups, SMEG 50′s Style Refrigerator-Freezer, ZIKMU Parrot by Philippe Starck. ILLUSTRATION: Paulina Ortega

“Although it’s been said many times, many ways,
it’s called diet, not die, so make sure to treat yourself during the holidays.”
- RAYMOND GUTIERREZ
Esquire Philippines Style Director, TV Host, The Philippine Star Columnist

On his signature design element:

“I would think it’s whimsical… It could be sleek, but then, I would be playing around with shapes… I’m not really a red carpet designer. I can do that as well, but then, it will have some element of surprise, a little bit of a twist here, a quirky detail.”

On his design philosophy:

“I’m into dark, minimalist design. It’s really simple. I’m into dark looks, so I always use black and white in my color palette. It’s like a black and white photograph that lets you capture something [immediately]. It’s very pure.”

On his muse:

“I have a model muse. Her name is Krystal Espiritu. Every time I have a show, I always make it a point that she’s going to open and close it. I think this girl really captures my vision perfectly.”

On his earliest fashion memory:

“When I was in grade 5, we had this class, and we had to make this pair of shorts, or pants, I can’t remember, but it was just a basic pattern… That’s how I started off making a garment.”

On his mentor:

“It was probably my teacher when I was in the university… He passed away already. He taught me a lot about menswear tailoring. That’s what I specialized in when I was studying in Toronto.”

On his definitive fashion memory:

“It was the shoot for Ms. Cecile Zamora for Manila Street Style. What struck me were the people. It was in Cubao Expo. Everyone’s wearing an outrageous outfit, like this jacket full of safety pins, this person’s color blocking, which was more wild. I was so inspired by that moment that I wanted to create something like it or something that people can actually wear.”

On his signature design element:

“I think that would be the cut, and there’s going to be hardware, very futuristic. There’s always going to be the shiny part in the clothes.”

On his muse:

“There’s no particular person for me. I’m inspired by strong women like Wonder Woman, Barbarella. I like women who are comfortable with themselves. I don’t like sweet and romantic. I want fierce, Amazonian, insane, kind of Catwoman…”

On the difficult part in making his Spring-Summer 2012 collection:

“Normally, I base my collection on what materials I find… The sources of materials here are limited, so as a designer, it’s really difficult… Sometimes, what you use to embellish is the same as what the other designers use…so given that I’m an Interior Design graduate of University of Santo Tomas, I incorporate the finishing techniques I’ve learned there to my production process.”

On his earliest fashion memory:

“I was looking at Mama Mary when I was this small, and I was on the table and was putting flowers. I was inspired by the drapes.”

On his signature design element:

“Grecian draping, anything fluid and drapey, breathable, easy-to-wear, relaxed, nothing complicated.”

Interview with Earl Semitara, Senior Designer

On today’s LEE youth:

“They have passion for anything and everything. They are passionate about music, sports, art…clothing of course, and they find a way to declare their passion through many, many ways.”

On the difficult part in making LEE’s Spring-Summer 2012 collection:

“We have students coming in to help us stage the show…so we have to balance our time between our LEE line and then mentoring the kids…”

On LEE’s signature design element:

“It may be 10, 20 years, 50 years from now, and it will still be denim… Maybe we’ll just make them in different washes, in different silhouettes, but it will still be about denim.”