Somewhere out there in London, England, someone whose roots (his dad, Modesto, is iBangui) is making things happen in a big way: Here’s the account from FOREVER BETTER:
Image courtesy of Stylist Stuff
On the 29th of March we’re going to be spending the evening with fashion designer Jasper Garvida.
Jasper will be talking about his latest collection and discussing garment care. We’ve already got a full guest list and the night promises to be one of quiet glamour among the sparkling surroundings of the Miele Gallery in London.
We’ll make sure we capture as much as we can and relay it all back to you through our Flickr account and here on Forever Better. We’ve got, among quite a few others, ThatGirl39 from Forty Not Out, Kavita from I Heart Vintagex and Reena from Fashion Daydreams attending, which means style is going to be in abundance – and we can’t wait.
There’s also sure to be conversation on the Miele Fashion Prize 2010, the chance for an aspiring designer to see their design made real by Jasper and shown in an exclusive event later in the year. Full details are here.
Although the guest list for the meet and greet with Jasper is full, Forever Better will be doing more events like this throughout 2010. If you’d like to be involved just send us an email telling us why and we’ll get straight back to you. Right, we’re off to start picking out our outfits.
Today we got the final arbiter on Jasper Garvida’s roots! Jennelle Garvida, Jasper’s very own sibling, left a comment on the earlier blog entry last month. Here’s Jen’s comment in its entirety:
“First off, I want to thank you for this article. I am commenting to finally help resolve the roots of Jasper, my brother.
Roy Padre mentioned that the ones embracing and congratulating Jasper after he was announced the winner toward the end of the above video are his grandparents. That is an incorrect statement. Those are in fact our parents.
Roy is correct though in stating that Jasper’s dad is Modesto Agullana Garvida (from Bangui). Our mom Liza, hails from Solsona and Laoag from the Laureta and Marcos clan.
Prior to my family migrating to Canada, we were raised in Project 4, QC and had opportunities to visit our parents’ hometown and had visited relatives in Bangui, Pagudpud, Solsona and Laoag. From our childhood memories, we remember our heritage and of course our longing to someday visit Ilocos Norte soon.
Once again, thank you for your support.”
Frankly speaking, the first time I saw the videos on Jasper on YouTube, they reminded me of a few familiar faces from Bangui and I suspected right then and there that this phenom must have roots from there.
In any case, our heart swells with pride for Jasper. Such as when an interviewer asked him: “Apart from winning, what was your highlight on Project Catwalk?” To which Jasper replied: “For me the highlight was actually seeing my parents again after the show because I hadn’t seen them for such a long time and they hadn’t really seen what I’ve been doing and for me that was the biggest highlight.”
An erstwhile lecturer for fashion students at Havering Collegein London, Jasper has moved on, saying “it would be unfair for me not to give myself entirely to that job so I decided to stop teaching and just work in fashion at the moment.” He revisited Alternative Fashion Week 2008 where, he admits, “it all started for me.” He had his own collection featured on Oli Fashion (oli.co.uk). Jasper, we are proud to note, is on an enviable trajectory in his life: from iBangui roots to conquering a much grander international stage in haute couture.
The info we found in the Internet on Jasper Garvida’s roots, in spite of the comprehensive coverage regarding his accomplishments, is downright sketchy. ABS-CBN Global says: “Garvida one of seven siblings, born to Ilocano parents grew up in a house in Project 4, Quezon City, and when he was 12, migrated to Canada. His father is a lawyer and mother an accountant.”
Alexa Vilano did a profile on Garvida in the Philippine Star in which Jasper disclosed: “I grew up in a creative environment. I was exposed to fashion through my sister who studied fashion and art. I was always fascinated by art — visiting galleries and museums. I learned how to draw when I was five and since then, I was really interested with texture, color and shapes. I decided to pursue fashion when I was 19. I’ve always dreamed of becoming a doctor when I was a kid but did not excel in Science or Math. I knew I have a huge interest in fashion but I was not entirely sure whether I could make a career out of it. Until I realized that it was something I could not live without. So I enrolled myself in a fashion school where I learned my craft.”
Garvida (jaspergarvida.com) worked his way up from studying pattern cutting, tailoring and construction at the International Academy of Design in Toronto.
Hayley Cox of The Dish writes: “It seems Jasper Garvida, has hit the big time… Having taken the title of winner in last season’s Project Catwalk, he has gone from strength to strength. Throughout his younger years Garvida studied at Central St. Martins College of Art and Design in Central London. He spent two seasons working as chief designer on the collections of Couture Label Michiko Koshino and his designs have also graced high street stores such as Evans, Miss Selfridge, Wallis and Monsoon. Celebrities such as Liz Hurley, Sophie Dahl and Sophie Ellis-Bextor are all fans of Jasper’s work. It seems there are many highs left to come for Garvida, as he has now been enlisted to show his work at London Fashion Week within the shows On/Off exhibition. Although he will not be a complete novice to this, Jasper should be very proud to have made it so far on his own merit. From starting his own label in September last year it seems to be a non stop climb for this up and coming star.”
Pastime.blogspot.com added: “After a nail-biting ten weeks, we can proudly reveal that Jasper Garvida is Project Catwalk’s winning designer. The announcement was made in the season’s finale of Project Catwalk, which was broadcasted last night, 19th March, Sky One 9pm….. Jasper Garvida has won every fashion designer’s dream–an exclusive deal with online style boutique Oli — leader in new media fashion, a £25,000 cash prize to the winner courtesy of Oli, as well as a spread in the world renowned iconic fashion magazine covering top designers and trends, Grazia.”
After winning the top prize in March 2008, Jasper was dubbed by Grazia Daily “The New King of the Catwalk“. His debut collection from the reality television show (which, sadly, has been recently canceled by Sky), is being featured by Oli, an online fashion magazine.
From the extensive mileage one gets Googling “Jasper Garvida” (something like 34 screen pages as of Jan. 13, 2009), it easily becomes crystal clear that this unique person is a true phenom. And we’re genuinely proud to know he’s Filipino. With Ilocano parents! Jasper’s feat and exploits in haute couture are way beyond what only a few in the whole wide world could lay claim to.
Perhaps you couldn’t fault us if we’re a bit curious as to whether or not Jasper or his dad is a scion of the Garvidas in Bangui. Needless to say, we’re in awe of what he has done so far for fashion and wish him well for all his ambitious plans for the future. More power to his overweening drive to achieve!
Anyone who has crossed paths with this now famous person or who can enlighten us on Jasper Garvida’s roots, please leave your comments.
We have a way of knowing you visit here now and then. And that puts a spike to our curiosity especially when we see your footprints but we don't see your face, nor hear your voice, nor read your thoughts. Please leave some comments or some valuable insights. Or, you can just say "Hi", "Comusta", or something or tell us who you are, or where you are, or what you may be doing. Tell us something about Bangui; share your memories about the place and its people. Maybe you've done something--super, unusual, or whatever--and you'd want to share your experience(s) with us. We'd be so interested to know. We're in a global community and you're most welcome here. Perhaps you have a better idea of how we can improve this site. Perhaps you have a suggestion as to what or who should be featured here. Maybe you have a favorite Ilocano/Filipino folk song or folk dance or folk story or joke/riddle or traditional recipe which, if at all possible, we may post here for everybody's enjoyment. Or you may even volunteer a full length guest blog entry which you could send to joepadre@sbcglobal.net. Write in Ilocano or English or Filipino, or some combination thereof. We'll take care of the rest, striving to make your input look good as best as we could.
Today we got the final arbiter on 
The info we found in the Internet on 
BANGUI: iBangui--A Vantage View 