Jag Origins: Inside the Creative Mind of Nina Garcia

International fashion icon, an elite authority in the fashion industry as well as Project Runway and Marie Claire’s creative director Nina Garcia headlined the JAG ORIGINS show last night for the 2013 Philippine Fashion Week at the SMX Hall 2 Convention Center. The event was hosted by Sarah Meier-Albano while the fashion forum was moderated by TV host Boy Abunda.

The renowned fashion journalist and style icon was the inaugural speaker of JAG ORIGINS, a series of talks on fashion, marketing and creative thinking that targets the industry and art/fashion students. This is the first forum in the 22 seasons of Philippine Fashion Week.

Nina brings to the fore her over two decades of experience in the fashion industry, whose highlights include being fashion director at Elle magazine for 17 years, and at Marie Claire for four years.

The country’s most promising designers Jerome Salaya Ang, Norman Noriega, and Jeffrey Rogador showcased a special collection at the event to inspire budding creatives. Then, JAG ORIGINS also launched its Holiday 2013 collection, in a fashion show that features Ankle Cut Jeans for women and Stretch Denim for men.

Here's a photo of the runway show:

Photo credit: Jag Jeans' Facebook page

With style, every fashion designer tells the world a story. Timeless and universal,  Jerome Salaya Ang's creation reminds me of Lana del Rey's Haunting, combining a lot of tulles, lace and embellishment for a more dramatic and classic look. On the other hand, Jeffrey Rogador is a real jean-ius leading the audience through the colorful palette that is fashion. It is hip, urban and funky. He obviously played with the texture and fabric yet it came out really nice. Norman Noriega's creation is more of beautiful flowing pieces with feminine silhouettes in deep red, black and white with models looking a bit scary. Seriously. LOL

I personally love the ankle cropped leather pants though. It creates an illusion of height. And of course, it will definitely show off your killer pumps! Halfway between cropped & full length, ankle cut jeans are the new way to show off cute pumps.

Of course, cropped pants look best with some form of heel. For short women (like me) it's our fashion bestie. With a cropped denim, wearing flats can make you look, well, stubby, chubby and a wee bit shortier so a little heel height is a perfect solution, yes?

Boy Abunda interviewed Nina Garcia at the fashion forum at the first Jag Origins event.

Check out the following videos for some words of wisdom and ultimate rules of style from the style icon herself:


On Philippine fashion and young Filipino fashion designers
“I was blown away. They were all phenomenal. They have a very distinct point of view. Bravo, Jeffrey! Bravo, Norman! Bravo, Jerome! They have very different aesthetics, but very well put together.”


On bloggers:
Competition is good! I like the bloggers. It's giving the editors a little bit of a run for the money. We do two very different things but it's interesting. But I appreciate what they do. It's a different perspective.

 The Stylish Women for Nina Garcia:
"Coco Chanel, Kate Moss, Diana Vreeland.  Women of character, from Frida Kahlo, Georgia O’Keeffe; women who have a distinct point of view. Not necessarily beautiful women. I don’t think style has anything to do with beauty. Style has nothing to do with beauty."

Would you rather be beautiful or stylish?
"I’d rather be stylish. Beauty is overrated." says Nina.

Boy Abunda said he'd rather be beautiful though. How about you, would you rather be beautiful or stylish? Get real and let me know. :)