What if the Philippine bet to Miss Universe made it as far as the Top 10. Would designer Furne One’s masterpiece wow enough judges for them to give her a ticket to the Final 5? Your guess is as good as ours.
By Alex Y. Vergara
A day after the entire country’s hopes were dashed after Miss Universe Philippines Rabiya Mateo failed to advance beyond the Top 21 in the recently concluded 69th edition of Miss Universe in Florida, conspiracy theories, alternative scenarios and a series of blame game from sour-graping Filipino fans have sprouted overnight.
What if Rabiya was given the chance to issue an opening statement just like in years past? Would she have gone further in the competition? Instead of Rabiya, what if Gazini Ganados, last year’s Miss Universe Philippines, competed this year? While Gazini, some say, isn’t the best public speaker, she can easily out-walk and out-perform some of the best bikini bodies on the planet.
There’s even one conspiracy theory we heard that Latin American network Telemundo, one of the pageant’s major sponsors, wanted Rabiya taken out early from the competition to prevent her from stealing the thunder from the Latinas during the final make-or-break question and answer portion. While Rabiya may not be a natural when it comes to strutting her stuff on stage, she is, they say, a monster in front of the microphone.
We even came across a rather absurd accusation that a sleepy and confused Olivia Culpo, Miss Universe 2012 and one of the evening’s hosts, misread her cue cards by leaving the Philippines out and mentioning another country instead.
Of course, as far as we’re concerned, none of these are true!
While citizens of other countries would probably be jumping with joy or lulled into indifference by their girl’s Top 21 finish, Filipinos are a passionate and hard-to-please bunch who can’t seem to let go of the setback and move on. Nearly deprived of world-class athletes we can root for, it seems that we’ve focused almost all our hopes and attention on our beauty queens to make us feel good about ourselves and stir up national pride.
We can speculate and blame everyone, including Rabiya and her team, until the cows come home, but we can never change the outcome of a beauty contest that’s for the most part highly subjective and dependent on timing and the whims of judges and organizers.
What’s definite and a subject of legitimate speculation in itself, if there’s such a thing, is, with Rabiya’s early defeat, the world was deprived of taking a longer, closer look at Dubai-based Filipino designer Furne One’s (pronounced as O-ne) second gown, a body-hugging dusty orange number, for the Philippine bet.
PeopleAsia contacted Furne, creative director of the fashion house Amato, to get from him firsthand what his second gown, one of four, actually, which he made for Rabiya for Miss Universe, was all about. Eagle-eyed netizens caught glimpses of Rabiya wearing the gown from afar during final rehearsals and soon after Mexico’s Andrea Meza was crowned. Here’s what the designer says.
“It’s inspired by the Sarimanok, a mythical bird of the Maranao people of Mindanao. It symbolizes good fortune and abundance. The closed-neck haltered gown is hand-embroidered with hyacinth Swarovski crystals, glass beads and paillettes. The hourglass silhouette celebrates confidence and pays homage to the feminine form.
“Laser-cut fabrics, some of which mimicked the Sarimanok’s feathers, were delicately attached on the tulle-based gown’s hem to give it a softer look. I chose orange because it expresses freedom and success, which best describes Rabiya and the women of today.
“As an homage to Rabiya’s hometown, the gown also celebrates the festivals of Iloilo City, which is also known as the city of love. Orange symbolizes joy, happiness and creativity. The gown is also embroidered with thousands of precious components, which represents the heartbeat of the people of Iloilo.
“Hyacinth Swarovski crystals, glass beads and paillettes scream, albeit subtlety, opulence. Laser-cut fabrics that crawl near and on the hem, apart from giving the gown a softer touch, add drama to the entire look, as they’re cut in the shape not only of feathers, but also of flowers, masks and headpieces, which are evident during Iloilo’s traditional celebrations.”
What if the 24-year-old Ilonggo beauty queen made it as far as the Top 10. Would Furne’s masterpiece wow enough judges for them to give Rabiya a ticket to the Top 5 and a possible crack at the country’s fifth Miss Universe crown? Your guess is as good as ours.
