Manila Mail Issue #7B

Page 1

B1

YEAR 26/ ISSUE 7 • 18-24, FEBRUARY 18-24, 2015 FEBRUARY 2015

Furne One dresses up Beyonce for her Grammy performance LOS ANGELES --- When superstar Beyonce, 34, sang “Take My Hand, Precious Lord” at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards show at the Staples Center, she wore a luminous and glittering cape made by Filipino fashion designer and Dubai-based Furne Amato. The Amato cape made the Queen B look more ethereal especially after the flood of stage lights beamed on her. Furne (short for Fernando, his real name is Fernando Barrios), who was born in Cebu and went to the University of San Carlos, told us in an email interview that he was very glad to work with the superstar again. He said, “I am very glad to work with Beyonce for the third time now. The first time I worked with her was during the opening video for her 'Mrs. Carter' tour and book. The second time was for 'On The Run' tour. Now, for the third time, it was for her performance at this year's Grammy Awards! I am very

thankful for to have such a wonderful relationship with Beyonce and her stylist. I'm definitely looking forward to see another collaboration in the horizon.” We asked the soft-spoken and humble designer how he got the gig. “I received an email from Beyonce’s stylist who saw my latest collection from Fashion Forward 4,” he revealed. “She then chose a few pieces and had them sent to L.A. as soon as possible for the Queen B to wear for her performance at the 2015 Grammy Awards.” Furne, who has dressed up other Hollywood celebrities like Jennifer Lopez, Shakira, Nicole Scherzinger, and Nicki Minaj, among others, described his experi-

JANET NEPALES AND FURNE ONE ence of dressing up the Queen B at the popular music awards show, “Beyonce is such an icon and being able to dress her up more than once, is every designer’s dream. Not only did she look amazing in the design, but she also embodies the Amato woman --- a woman who is not afraid to defy the rules and dictates of fashion.” Furne’s Beyonce coup actually followed after he just dressed up six-time Grammy Award winner songstress, Carrie Underwood for her pre-kick off Super Bowl performance where she sang a remix of her song, “Waiting All Day for the Super Bowl Fight” and she wore a stunning eggshell beaded mini dress by Furne Amato. Furne said of that experience, “I actually have a couple of dresses in a showroom in Los Angeles for buyers and stylists to browse through. Carrie Underwood’s stylist then coordinated with my L.A. team Mikey and Alexis, to use one of my designs for her Super Bowl performance.” Furne, who got his big break in 1994 when he joined the 1st Mega Magazine Young Designers Competition where he bagged the first prize that was a trip to Paris and New York and trained with no less than New York-based Filipino fashion de-

signer, Josie Natori, is also doing the finale for this month’s Mercedes Benz New York Fashion Week. He confessed, “To be honest, I was quite reluctant to join the New York Fashion Week this time around. I just have my hands full at the moment.” His second time at the said event, Furne will be showcasing his 17-piece collection in the biggest fashion event in the country. Known for his theatrical and dramatic pieces, Furne explained his style, “Everyone who has seen my shows knows that I love making dramatic and theatrical pieces. It is what the brand stands for. If I were to choose a different career, I would like to design costumes for theatre and movies.” He added that he would love to work with some of Hollywood’s fashion icons on the red carpet. He said, “I would love to work with my muses --- Cate Blanchett, Tilda Swinton and Nicole Kidman--- preferably in a fantasy or period film.” So what is he busy working on now, we asked. “In between developing my next collection for Autumn/Winter 2015 and creating a brand new prêt-a-porter line, we are working on rebranding the Amato label as well as opening a new atelier,” he revealed. “So definitely, expect greater things from Amato.”

BEYONCE IN AMATO COUTURE

FURNE ONE

BEYONCE CAPE BY AMATO AT THE RECENT GRAMMY’S

(PHOTO BY JANET R. NEPALES)

CARRIE UNDERWOOD


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