The Philippine Online Chronicles

September marks the beginning of the fall season in the United States, and as the fashion industry opens yet another year, the glossy magazine covers become instrumental in setting trends and influencing our wardrobes. Our local magazines are not spared these changes too since they are also heavily influenced by American designers. Our fashion magazines tend to "glocalize" a trend from abroad and make it our own.

So let’s check out some local and foreign fashion magazines and look at the photographic spreads. Let’s stay ahead of this year’s fashion season. Let’s find out which trend has what it takes to make to the shop floor, and which ones are going to the bargain basement!

Preview Magazine goes golden

From singer, film sweetheart and now to cover girl, Sarah Geronimo never fails to surprise us with her ability to keep up with change. When we picked up a copy of Preview Magazine’s September issue, the first thing that registered in our heads was how Sarah successfully pulled off this rather hit-or-miss attire. For certain, she makes a glamorous and sexy C-3PO.

Pun aside, this month’s cover got its inspiration from the runway looks of Versace, Dries Van Noten, Balmain and Michael Kors. In the cover, Sarah’s donning a buttery yellow dress under a golden metallic corset.

We love how daring Sarah is in this number. It’s very foxy and fashion-forward and this really stands out amongst the sea of magazine covers.

Cosmopolitan sizzles

This month, upcoming teleserye actress Andi Eigenmann graces the cover of Cosmopolitan Philippines.  In this cover, the magazine displays and echoes the sex appeal of women and how readers can capture that sophisticated allure.

Andi looks like a young Mexican lady with her va va voom red dress.  Her cherry lips as well as her satiny, off-the-shoulder red dress did much of the talking, and jewelry was quite understated. Sexy as the outfit is, however, we find it too easy and predictable for a September cover.

Hats away for Mega

Hats are here to stay --- with wider brims! Mega features beauty queen, actress, and TV host Ruffa Gutierrez in an asymmetrical top paired with black wide-hemmed pants.

We’ve been going skinny for so long and harem pants have been unforgiving for wide hipped women, so for this new season designers have decided to go the opposite side of the spectrum. This season expect wide-leg pants and flares to make a comeback. They’re sophisticated, chic, and they make your waistline tinier.

Vogue takes on the royal look

We applaud Vogue’s diversity in this issue! The cover marks the first time a black person has been featured for September since Naomi Campbell in 1989. There were a few black cover stars over the years but none of them were on the September cover.

Fashion-wise, Vogue takes a laidback stance and steers away from trying to look flashy. In their cover, they showed the classy side of Ms. Berry with smoky eyes and elegant yet simple statement pieces.

Halle Berry looks stunning. Her new cropped bob definitely suits her face, and she looks younger and fresher in this cover (we suppose a divorce makes beauty wonders!).  Moreover, the black velvet dress with silver trim looks like royalty on her.  In fact, smooth and silky fabrics are actually this season’s latest trend. Velvet equals high class, refinement as well as blue-blooded allure.

Fleur for Elle

Julia Roberts, the star of Eat, Pray and Love, is looking lovely on Elle magazine’s September 2010 issue.  She’s wearing a deep brown dress accentuated with red floral prints. The dress is flirty and is a manifesto of feminity. 

Despite the dreary, rainy weather, there are still prints making inroads this season. Colorful floral print dresses were featured in Alberta Ferretti, Dolce & Gabbana and Marni’s collections.

Vanity Fair says "peace"!

In this much-awaited September cover, Lady Gaga throws up a peace sign in Vanity Fair US and UK edition.  The cover was photographed by Nick Knight and styled by Nicola Formichetti.

Obviously, she’s wearing a long wig, which looks rather more convincing than her usual.  There’s nothing too stylish (it looks rather washed out) except for the diamond collar and her 70s inspired eye makeup --- black eyeliner and false eyelashes.

Marie Claire Twinkles

In Marie Claire, Mary-Kate Olsen sports a glitzy sequin dress. According to some fashion observers, people tend to pay extra attention to sequined pieces whenever the Yuletide season’s nearing.

Indeed, it does appear that sequin dresses are making a comeback,  but the newer dresses aren’t your typical grandmother dresses. They’re short and like what Mary-Kate’s wearing, they often feature open backs. They’re very sexy yet classy, provided you don’t overdo it with too much jewelry - if any!

All photos courtesy of their respective magazines. Released for press purposes.

www.cosmo.ph

www.metromagazine.ph

www.stylebible.ph

www.vogue.com

www.vanityfair.com

www.elle.com

www.marieclaire.com