MANILA, Philippines?A Tuesday and Thursday high-tea club of stylish folks is fast forming at the Lobby Lounge of the Makati Shangri-La Hotel. Last week, fashion writers and editors plus a bevy of well-dressed women were there to witness the first showing of Fashion Watch Quartet featuring the collection of Rhett Eala.

This week, all eyes were on Patrice Ramos-Diaz and her 32-piece collection of darkly romantic gowns and dresses. The event marked the first solo show for the designer who got her break when she placed first runner-up in the Mega Young Designers Competition in 1997.

Ramos-Diaz presented a coherent, somewhat somber and restrained collection characterized by muted colors, minimal accents, and the use of indigenous materials such as abaca and piña juxtaposed with jersey and tulle.

Asked where she drew her inspiration for this body of work, Ramos-Diaz said she had no particular theme in mind. ?The thing about my work is I try to express abstract concepts like moods and emotions, nothing literal. It was more about achieving a certain mood and feel?romantic, nostalgic, poetic, subtle drama. I wanted the viewer to feel, aside from just see things,? said the designer.

Choice of music

As such, her choice of music?Chicane?s ?No Ordinary Morning??help set the tone as models with flowing hair and barely-there makeup paraded in her quietly elegant pieces. Deep hues such as plum or non-colors like pewter and black dominated the collection while accents like Swarovski crystals, chunky acrylic components from Bulgaria and treatments such as flower cutouts, beaded buttons, and ball fringes expressed the designer?s aesthetics.

?The ball fringe is a visual element taken from my childhood. They?re scaled up versions of the rosary, which remind me of my Lola?s rosary collection in all sizes,? explained Ramos-Diaz.

The designer played around with various silhouettes to avoid monotony. Short and flirty cocktail dresses were followed by long and lean jersey numbers, flowing and diaphanous gowns, and finally, voluminous, structured pieces. ?It?s my first time to do a 30-piece collection so I felt there was a need to have enough varieties of silhouettes to make the show more interesting,? Ramos-Diaz said.

In spite of the use of different shapes, the transition from one piece to the next was seamless and effortless. Perhaps the only thing that jarred the whole mood of quiet reverie was the abrupt change in styling marked by theatrically done hair and makeup that didn?t quite reflect the designer?s identity, and seemed out of place in such an intimate venue.

Nevertheless, Ramos-Diaz?s pieces were a hit with the well-heeled audience. ?I?m opening a store in Greenbelt 5 soon so my consciousness was about wearability and getting to know my market. This collection was simply a proposed look?clothes I feel my clients would like to wear. Thankfully, I got orders after the show and pieces were also reserved right after,? she said.

Join the club at the Lobby Lounge next week. Designer Gian Romano is up next.

E-mail the author at afashion@inquirer.com.ph