By Lavinia Otilla
There are a lot of
beautiful costumes paraded by the candidates of Miss Universe 2012 in Las
Vegas. We get the feeling that most the girls’ costumes are patterned with the
Las Vegas costumes. Most of the costumes look very carnival in character and
thus the few real traditional costumes that adhered to what a national costume
is were drowned in this dissonance.
What does a national
costume signify? It refers to the clothes traditionally worn by some belonging
to a particular nation. In other words, it is an outfit that identifies a
geographical region. Before going to this treatise again, I took pains in going
through research on what is the national costume of the countries.
1.
BRAZIL – Colorful hand painting
depicting the amazon forest and the people.
2.
CHINA – this is a modernized cheongsam.
With the cloth that appears to have the decorations of the porcelains of the
Ming Dynasty, one can still feel the Chinese influence in the costume. It is
very creative and it tried to project the cheongsam in a new and fashion
forward look.
3.
ECUADOR - the costume is made-up of a
colorful hand-painted tilma-like cloth which depicts the biodiversity of the
country. It is ornately decorated and it is very attractive.
4.
GHANA –The Ghanaian national dress is
intricately patterned, brightly colored kente cloth, which is hand woven. With
the cloth, they are further adorned with necklaces made of beads. Such ornately
adorned kente cloth are usually worn by women and men.
5.
INDIA – India presented a modernized
sari. It is made up of silk ornately designed.
6.
JAPAN – She presented a modernized
kimono intricately and colorfully designed with fans. The fan designs are very
significant as the kimono was originated by a fan painter. What makes this
costume interesting is that it blended western and eastern influences. Western
in the sense that the dress showed flesh (shoulders, bustier type of cut) while
it still adhered to the original concept of the kimono.
7.
KOREA – Miss Korea used the traditional
hanbok. It was colorfully designed and Miss Korea’s hair adhered to what the
traditional Korean woman should wear.
8.
MEXICO – Miss Mexico presented a costume
reminiscent of the Mayan influences. It is very colorful, vivid and beautifully
crafted.
9.
NICARAGUA – The Nicaraguan costume is a
modern rendition of the traditional dress used in folkloric festivities of the
country. It is an intricately designed dress in which the historical imprints
are placed in the dress.
10.PANAMA
– Although Miss Panama presented a very beautiful and intricately made, it has
the trappings of an Aztec inspired costume. But based on research, the national
costume is the Pollera. The pollera has a wide skirt and is commonly used in
weddings and in festivities.
11. PERU
– Although Peru presented a very colorful and well-designed dress, I do not
know what to make of it. In a recent reading it states that the Peruvian
costume is made up of vibrant and colorful designs of traditional Peruvian
clothing and the bright, geometric patterns seen in ponchos continue to blend thousands
of years of Peruvian style mixed with traditional Spanish and modern
influences. My take on the
costume? It has nothing to do with the culture of Peru. It is a costume that is
apt to blend with the Las Vegas.
12. PHILIPPINES
– The costume that Miss Philippines has worn is derived from the costumes of
the Muslim royalty in the south. The Maranao’s in Mindanao use this type of
dress and they are usually colorful. The use of a crown depicts royalty. The
sash or the band signifies also the status of the wearer. She could have used a
fan or an umbrella for more effects.
13. ST.
LUCIA – Miss St. Lucia’s costume is reminiscent of the creative costumes that
represent the products of the place. The costume truly depicts a Caribbean
paradise like St. Lucia.
14.USA
– Miss USA’s interpretation of the Statue of Liberty is truly worth praising. I
like the creative mind behind it although I feel the creator should have used
brighter color to add more excitement and attention to the costume.
15.VIETNAM
– Miss Vietnam presented a beautiful and colorful rendition of the áo dài .
So in
effect, who are my personal choices in the Top 5 in the National Costume?
Ecuador, Japan, Korea, Philippines and
Vietnam.
My best in National Costume is Japan for
being true to form and yet fashion forward.
Photo Courtesy: MissUniverse.com
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