A pageant page shared behind-the-scene photos of the Tikbalang costume of a Binibining Pilipinas candidate ahead of the coronation night.
Kapuso actor Paolo Ballesteros is the designer of the Tikbalang-inspired national costume that wowed judges and audiences during the “National Costume x Fashion Show” on July 16.
Candidate No. 7 Graciella Sheine Lehmann of Oriental Mindoro showcased the ghostly white outfit with a tall, horse-shaped headdress at the event.
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Pageant Talk, a dedicated Facebook page for pageant updates, shared photos on Friday, July 22 that showed how Paolo and a group of artists from the Mersinaryo Production Services created the intricate horse accessory, along with the rest of the costume.
The post also cited a quote from Paolo where he detailed the design and inspiration of the costume.
“This Tikbalang national costume is fashioned with intertwined branches of the Balete tree that forms the horse head and butterfly sleeves and hug the body down to its hooves to conceal the creature’s looming presence. Sheets of translucent, ghostly-white fabric are decoratively draped as its beguiling mane and tail that dance with the wind as it lurks in the shadows,” Paolo was quote on the post as saying.
“The body is adorned in lace, with white pearls and rhinestones flickering like diamonds that will captivate anyone who may glimpse at this elusive mythical creature,” he added.
The seasoned comedian and impersonator released the full details of his creation on Instagram on July 6.
The images, meanwhile, were uploaded on the Facebook page of Mersinaryo Production Services on the same day.
The photos showed the skeleton of the horse head and the body with the intertwined branches before it was painted in white.
To make the costume more realistic and scary, they made the horse’s eyes and mane glow eerily.
Some online users who saw these images reacted in surprise and admiration for the hard work Paolo and the group of artists put into this outfit.
“Na imagine ko yung hirap at pagod sa paggawa nito huh. Di basta basta lang. Kudos to Paolo, ang galing lang talaga,” one user said.
“So intricate…grabe ang effort. Imaginatively creative. A real work of art. Paolo deserves huge applause and recognition!” another user commented.
A shrimp, a national festival, and the wings of truth were among the different inspirations of the national costumes that Binibining Pilipinas candidates previously sashayed in the fashion show leg of the competition.
READ: Hipon, hometown festivals: Inspiration behind Binibining Pilipinas 2022 nat’l costumes
Forty hopefuls are set to compete and vie for the elusive crown on July 31 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
Aside from the main crown, other titles to be bestowed are BBP International, BBP Grand International, BBP Intercontinental and BBP Globe.
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