When you’re passionate about something, you’ll do anything in your means to achieve your dreams. And that’s exactly how it was for fashion designer Chynna Mamawal.
Starting a clothing line fresh off college, she then moved on to become the head of SM Woman and GTWbySM’s marketing team. From there, she decided to further pursue her love for fashion at the Institute of Creative Entrepreneurship: Fashion Arts Design (ICEFAD) where she honed her designing skills. The fashion industry seemed to have welcomed her with open arms, as her success only continued to grow from there.
Apart from gracing the covers of several publications, Chynna's creations have been worn by stars such as Gabbi Garcia, Andrea Brillantes, Kim Chiu, Pia Wurtzbach, Belle Mariano, and more. Her most recent fashion endeavor? Representing Filipino talent through her Fall/Winter 2023 collection at Vancouver Fashion Week, which she successfully conceptualized, sketched, fabricated, and flew to Canada in under three months!
In an exclusive interview with Preview, Chynna delved into the inspiration behind her designs and told us about her journey to Vancouver Fashion Week. Keep reading below!
Preview Exclusive: Chynna Mamawal on Showcasing Her Fall/Winter 2023 Collection at Vancouver Fashion Week
Can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you got into fashion design?
"I grew [up] in an environment where everyone is super stylish, [especially] my mom and my aunties. I am also the youngest girl in our whole family (both father and [mother's] side) and every Christmas, we would have [a] reunion and my relatives from different parts of the world would always give me nice bags, clothes, shoes, and accessories and I would be their doll and they would dress me up. So, that’s how my interest in fashion sparked. As young as six years old, I [knew] I wanted to be a fashion designer."
How did you end up showcasing your designs at Vancouver Fashion Week?
"Vancouver Fashion Week sent me an invite to showcase my pieces there. They actually invited me years ago when I was only six months in the fashion industry, but during that time I felt like I wasn’t ready yet so I had to decline [the invite]. A year and a half later, they invited me again [and] I finally said yes. I was so excited but [the] pandemic happened. So last year, when [the] pandemic was over, we finally did it and I am so happy and thankful that it was super successful!"
What was your inspiration for the collection that you showed at the Vancouver Fashion Week? Can you tell us more about your creative process?
"After [the] pandemic, I promised myself to travel more within the Philippines to support tourism and see more of our beautiful country, so that’s what I did. My collection was inspired by my travels [to] our beautiful beaches and landscapes. Every time I look at the stars at night by the beach, it’s even more beautiful. As you can see my opening pieces during VFW were color black, shiny, and sparkly. I saw how beautiful our country is and the views are so serene. My black pieces were inspired by the stars and galaxy at night."
"The beadings of my silver and white pieces were inspired by the leaves of our trees, as you can see one piece is full of laser [cuts] that [are] shaped like leaves. The leaves were all handmade. I was also inspired by the local gems and pearls from our local vendors, so I decided to put gems and pearls [on] our clothes. There’s even a suit where the fabric I used is a faux crocodile skin fabric because we also went [on] a safari in the Philippines and saw crocodiles."
"And lastly, for my finale looks, I was inspired by the color of cocktails and dragon fruit that I was able to try during my travels. It’s also the color of the year. It’s as if I am showcasing [the] Philippines [through] my own eyes and perspective. I just really wanted to show the beauty of our country in the global fashion scene. I also wanted to showcase our strength as a team. We’re very proud of our beading and tailoring skills. My play of texture and combinations of colors."
What can we expect to see from your brand in the future?
"I've [always] been ambitious and I always give my 100% in everything that I do. My dream is to give more livelihood to Filipinos, showcase my art in the fashion global scene, and hopefully, for my brand to be known internationally."
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