Hindi pa tiyak kung may partisipasyon si Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach sa 67th edition ng Miss Universe, na gaganapin sa Thailand sa December 17, 2018.
Pero sigurado na ang pagrampa niya bilang special guest model ng L.A.-based at international Filipino fashion designer na si Oliver Tolentino.
Magkakaroon si Oliver ng fashion show sa Central World, Bangkok, sa December 2.
Nang sumali si Pia sa Miss Universe 2015 pageant noong December 2015, si Oliver ang kanyang “knight in shining armor” dahil ito ang nagpahiram ng red gown na ginamit ni Pia sa preliminary competition.
Nagkaroon kasi ng problema si Pia sa off-the-rack gown na ipinapasuot sa kanya ng organizer, kaya si Oliver ang hiningan niya ng tulong.
“I know Pia really appreciated how we helped her.
"Fortunately, she had someone in Los Angeles who could drive my off-the-rack gowns to her in Las Vegas that same day.
“She advanced in the preliminaries the next day, and then immediately after winning, Pia recorded a video greeting thanking me... anyone can still view it on YouTube,” pagbabalik-tanaw ni Oliver tungkol sa pagliligtas niya kay Pia.
Ang mga organizer ng 1st Thai Silk International Fashion Week ang nag-imbita kay Oliver, na nakasali rin sa 7th Celebration of Thai Silk na special project ni Queen Sirikit ng Thailand noong nakaraang taon.
Ito ang kuwento ni Oliver tungkol sa fashion show na lalahukan nila ni Pia:
“Last year, Thailand invited me to be a guest at their 7th Celebration of Thai Silk event, which is the special project of the Queen Mother Sirikit.
“Last year was also the first year any international designers were invited to be a part of it, so I was the first Filipino designer to represent the Philippines and I created a gown for the Philippine Ambassador to Thailand, Mary Jo A. Bernardo-Aragon, to wear to walk down the runway before 1,000 invited Thai royals, dignitaries, and international diplomats.
“Last year, twenty-five ambassadors walked in creations by each country's invited designer. Before each ambassador walked, their country had some type of presentation showcasing the beauty or talent of the country.
“Last year, the organizers commented that with all of us designers in Bangkok, we really should have done our own fashion shows.
“From this idea, the organizers decided to host the '1st Thai Silk International Fashion Week' this year, and I'm honored they invited me back to put on a fashion show on behalf of the Philippines.
“In honor of Thai silk, the organizers provided me with almost 150 yards of silk from the Queen Mother's own factory.
“They want the foreign designers to create about a dozen piece capsule collection within the main collection of the show.
“The fabric is so luxurious that I couldn't top at a dozen, so I've created 18 looks. The rest of the show is a mix of regular fabrics with some piña pieces, of course. I've tried to show piña all over the world at my shows.
“With Bangkok hosting the Miss Universe pageant later in the month, they mentioned to us they wanted to have beauty queens walk for each country's designer.
“I had just had Pia over for a private dinner in Los Angeles the month before, so we asked if Thailand would prefer to have an actual Miss Universe walk for me, thinking it would be exciting for them as well, so close to the Miss Universe pageant.
“My team helped facilitate the coordination, and so Thailand is flying me from Los Angeles and Pia from Manila for my show.”
Para kay Oliver, isang pangarap na natupad ang magdaos siya ng fashion show sa Bangkok na isa sa kanyang mga favorite destination.
“I consider this to be my first real fashion show in Thailand. I've always loved going to Bangkok.
"On my many trips there, whenever I've walked into Central World mall from the skyway, there usually was a fashion show going on down below or in one of the mall's atriums.
“Bangkok is so fashionable and they're always having nice shows there so it became a dream of mine to do a show in Bangkok, and I'm thrilled to be doing one on the Eden Zone ground floor of the iconic Central World as an honored guest of the kingdom of Thailand.”
Dahil sa kanyang husay bilang fashion designer, nagbigay at patuloy na nagbibigay si Oliver ng karangalan sa Pilipinas.
Katuparan pa ito ng kanyang pangarap na nag-umpisa noong bata pa siya sa kanilang bayan sa Orani, Bataan.
“Anyone born in the province has a strong appreciation for getting the opportunity to represent the country around the world.
“I've worked hard and have been honored to [be] the first Filipino designer to show as an invited guest of the official fashion week of the Bahamas, Barbados, and Thailand.
“I also have shown in Bali, Indonesia, Hong Kong, and was the first Filipino ‘Designer of the Week’ at the prestigious Fashion Week El Paseo in Palm Springs, California.
“It will be a great honor for Pia and me to represent us in Thailand just weeks before Bangkok's Miss Universe competition,” sagot ni Oliver sa mga katanungang ipinadala sa kanya ng Cabinet Files sa pamamagitan ng email.