Happy New Year, Cebu! Best way to start the year right is to come up with this site’s first post. If you want to be on the loop for feng shui tips for 2010, this February’s event will be perfect for you. Speaking of events, the plethora I was bombarded with after New Year’s is overwhelming! Isn’t it lovely to have something to look forward to after the holidays? No – I’m not talking about Merry Happy Three Kings and getting more money but the festival of St. Niño! With Sinulog 2010 happening in the next few days, you can expect the city to be alive with buntings and human traffic.

To celebrate new beginnings this 2010, we are going to be releasing more local fashion/ art and fashion designer’s dossier. Expect live street fashion at its finest! We also came up with a Cebu Fashion Forecast 2010 just like what we did last year. Keep posted for that, too. Lately, I have been obssessed with health and makeup so perhaps this year will be gilded to several of those beauty and makeup review tips.

Now let me start off with this mini guide on how to pronounce your favorite fashion designer’s name. I find it particularly rude if someone corrects you in public for pronouncing a designer’s name wrong. Take for instance this New Year’s party that I’ve been to in Cagayan de Oro last week (yes, was out of town for two weeks, hence, the absence) and while she rattled off her favorites, I was stumped when she went, “Oh, and I love Balmane, too! How sad it is not even in the Philippines!” I thought I heard it wrong when the woman next to me teetered and said, “Girl, you mean Bal-mahn?” She turned pink under flourescent lights and decided to change the topic. It is bad enough to be corrected in public but it is worse if your favorite happens to be something you can’t even say it right. Hope this guide helps. This is heavily researched by the way.

Agnes B. – Anne-yes Bee (not Buh)
Alber Elbaz for Lanvin - al-BEAR el-BAHZ for lon-VAN
Alessandro Dell’Acqua: Ala-SAND-roe del-LA-kwa
Anais Anais – Aney-Aney
Andrew Gn – Ahn-drew Jen
Ann Demeulemeester - ann DEH-moo-lah-MEE-ster
Anna Sui – Anna Swee
Anya Hindmarch – Un-ya Hine-march
Aquascutum – Ah-kwa-skew-tum
Azzedine Alaia – Aze-DEEN Ah-lie-yah
Badgley Mischka : badge-lee meesh-ka
Balenciaga – Bah-len-see-AH-gah (not balenSHAga)
Bally – Ba-li
Balmain : bal-mahn
Bebe – Bee-Bee
Birkenstock - Bir-ken-schtock
Bottega Veneta: BO-teg-a VEN-eta
Boudicca: Boo-dih-ka
Bulgari : bull-ga-ree
Burberry Prorsum : bur-bur-ree por-some
Byblos – Bee-blow-s
Cacharel – Kare-sha-hell
Carolina Herrera : caro-leena Ay-reh-ra
Cartier - Car-ti-yey
Celio – Chel-yo
Chanel – Sha-nel
Charriol - Shar-ee-ol
Chicco (baby products) – Ki-ko
Chloe - Klo-ay
Christian Dior - Kree-styang/ Christiane – Krees-tyan Dee-yor
Christian Lacroix - Kree-styan la-KWA
Christian Louboutin – Kree-styan Loo-bi-TUHN (listen to JLo’s new single!)
Clarins – Clarans
Comme des Garçons: Comb day gar-SONG (flared nostrils for the French)
Diane von Furstenberg : pronounced like its spelled – Von for Vo(h)n
Dior Homme: dee-yoR-OM (french for MEN – silent “H”)
Dolce & Gabbana: DOLE-chay and gab-BON-a
Donna Karan – Donna Karen
Dries Van Noten: DREEZE van KNOW-ten
DSquared2: DEE squared
Emilio Pucci: EH-mee-lio Poo-chee
Empire - Um-pir
Estee Lauder – Es-tay Lo-der
Etienne Aigner : eh-tee-yen on-yay
Etro – Ay-tro
Fa:ge – Farge
Faconnable - Fa-so-nab
Furla – Foor-la
Gaultier – Go-tee-ay
Gianfranco Ferre – Jee-an-franco Fer-re’
Giorgio Armani – Gjyerjo-Ahrmanee
Girbaud – Jir-bow
Givenchy: Zshee-VON-she
Gucci: GOO-chi
Guerlain – Gher-lahn
Guy Laroche – Gai-La-rosh
Hedi Slimane: Eddy slim-MAHN
Hermès: AIR-mehz
Hervé Léger : air-vay lay-zjay
Issey Miyake: Ee-say Mih-yak-kee
James Perse : pronounced like “purse”
Jean Paul Gaultier : zhan paul go-tee-ay
John Varvatos: John var-VAY-toes
Junya Watanabe: JUNE-ya Wah-TAH-nah-bay
Lanvin : lon-vawn OR lon-vahn
Les Copains – Ley Copahn
LeSportsac – Leh-sport-sac
L’occitane – Lok-si-tan
Loewe – Low-ev-ay
Louis Vuitton : loo-wee vwe-tahn OR vhee-tawn
Lulu Castagnette – Loo-loo Kas-tan-yet
M)phosis – Em-fosis
Madame Gres : mah-dam gray
Maison Martin Margiela: MAZE-on Mar-TIN mar-GEL-a
Marchesa : mar-kay-sa
Martin Margiela - Maar-TEEN Mar-GEE-lah
Martine Sitbon – mar-teen-sih-bohn
Miu Miu – Mew-Mew
Monique Lhuillier – Mo-neek Lool-leeyay (hello, Cebu jewelry!)
Moschino: mo-SKEEN-o
Narciso Rodriguez : nar-si-so rod-ree-gus OR rod-ri-gez
Nicolas Ghesquière (NEE-ko-la guess-KYAIR).
Nike – Nay-ki
Oscar de la Renta: (Os-car deh-la Ren-ta)
Piaget – Pia-jhey
Pierre Cardin : pee-air car-dain
Plaid – Plad
Porsche – Por-sha
Prada – Pra-duh
Rodarte : row-dar-tay
Romeo Gigli – Ro-meoh gee-lee
Salvatore Ferragamo: Sal-va-TOH-reh Fair-a-GAH-moe
Shu Uemura – Shoe Ooh-eh-moorah
Skechers (Skeh-chers)
Sonia Rykiel : saun-ya ree-kee-eel
Tag Heuer – Tag Ho-yer
Thakoon : ta-koon
Thierry Mugler - Ti-ye-ri Mug-ley
Tibi : tbi (not Tee-bee – make it like “T” is silent)
Tocca : toe-ka
Trussardi – Troo-sahr-dee
Ungaro : oon-ga-ro
Vacheron Constantin (va-sha-RON con-ston-TAN).
Veronique Branquinho: Ve-ro-NEEK BRANG-kee-no
Versace : ver-sah-chee OR ver-saw-chay
Xoxo – So-So
Yohji Yamamoto: YO-jee ya-MA-moto
Yves Saint Laurent: EVE Sane-LOR-aunt
Zac Posen : poe-zen
Zegna: ZANE-ya

Oh, well. There you go! Jimmy Choo might have been missed by who doesn’t know how to say, “My favorite Choo-s are Jimmy Shoes!” Or Tory Burch for Birch Tree? Maybe in the future we might go local, yes?

Happy New Year again. Below is the group’s last photo for 2009 at the Millenium Party of Loft. [from L-R] Mayan, Yves, Aoi, Brylle, Moi, Faye and Aj.