I caught a glimpse of Solo’s billboard along Edsa near Rockwell, featuring the works of late cartoonist and illustrator Larry Alcala on their clothing.  How timely!  I was just researching for a proposed article on Visual Arts in Fashion for The Philippine Online Chronicles, and I had so hoped I’d have something local to feature aside from Freeway (who is also under Elite Garments Inc., like Solo) and their National Artist Collection.

Love the simple styling, as always. They look sharp and sassy in black and white.  If you want to be one of the lucky models for Solo this year, check out the details of their Online Model Search in the latter part of this entry.

Let me just say that this is my favorite way of expressing nationalism through fashion.  We’ve had a slew of them recently, by brands like Bench, Collezione and of course, Team Manila’s always been there.  But the visual arts will always hold a special place in my heart, which is why Solo’s Pinoy Cartoonist Memorabilia collection featuring Larry Alcala immediately captured my interest.  But it’s not just for that reason alone.

I grew up reading Larry Alcala’s Slice of Life in the back of Sunday’s Panorama magazine.  They were funny comics about unique aspects of Philippine life, with some subtle depth to them that I may not have immediately grasped as a kid.  When he passed away in 2002, it felt strange that I no longer saw his drawings, that other cartoons now occupied his usual spots in the papers and magazines.  I felt a piece of my childhood pass away with him; had I stopped to think about it, of course it would’ve made sense that he would have to retire some time and also, he must have already been an old man even at the time I started reading his works.  But he was so prolific, and so consistent with his comics (they were the only things that I read on the Sunday magazine as a little girl) that it perhaps never occurred to me that the guy’s only mortal, too, and that someday Slice of Life would have to come to an end.

Fortunately for us nostalgic people who grew up in the 90s seeing Larry Alcala’s comics, we get another opportunity to relive Slice of Life.  Arguably the best way of doing it of course: by wearing it!  Here are some of the pieces that have caught my eye.  Just click on the thumbnails found at the bottom of this post to view the other photos and larger ones.

Non-aparel

Tote bag, P595. It goes with all your casual get-ups!

Bangles. While I’m a fan of the classic black and white mix, I still like this one even if the material isn’t stark white.

I like how simple this unisex watch is!  It retails for P1195.

Clothes

I like the bright yellow color of this boyfriend shirt. (P1795)  If I had to wear it with another piece from the collection, it’d probably be this:

Leggings, P795.

Ladies’ Slub Dress, P1595.

My favorite, though, is this:

Simple, sexy, crisp, classic white boyfriend shirt. P1795.  I’d probably wear it with some patterned tights, cut-offs, boots and some hairpiece since the shirt itself is already so simple.  Love it!

And now for their Online Model Search this year…

Check out www.solo.com.ph/modelsearch for contest details. To join, just wear one of Larry Alcala’s items in your submission entry with the creative use of graphic elements available in the contest website and submit it. Anyone registering on the site can vote. Have fun looking at all the entries and the comments posted about each entry while voting and commenting on entries you like, too.

The winners win cash and product prizes and will grace the walls of all Solo stores in the next campaign shoot.  This should be a fun shoot to have with your friends who are budding models, stylists, photographers and make-up artists! Contest starts August 22 until November 15. Join now!

For more details about Solo, its contest and its newest collections, you can connect with them at these sites:

Solo Official Website

twitter.com/mySoloOnline

Solo Facebook

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