Rajo Laurel shares the story behind Ella Pangilinan's exquisite wedding dress
Renowned Filipino designer Rajo Laurel shared the background story of Ella Pangilinan's beautiful wedding gown.
Ella, the sister of Kapamilya actor Donny Pangilinan, tied the knot with Enrique Miranda in a ceremony held in Intramuros, Manila.
Rajo was tapped to rework Maricel Laxa-Pangilinan's wedding gown for Ella which was done by National artist Jose “Pitoy” Moreno.
In his Instagram post, Rajo gave special attention to the terno dress since Maricel is a childhood classmate.
He wrote, “It is not everyday that one gets to wear her mother's wedding dress for her own wedding. This recently happened with the wedding of @ellapangilinanx who happens to be the daughter of my childhood classmate @mommymaricel I have known Ella almost all her life. She would always accompany her Mother to my studio and I recall her fascination for fashion and love for design.”
Rajo continued, “One day I got a call from both her and her mother asking if we could meet. In the meeting, Maricel brought out her wedding gown made by Philippine National artist Jose “Pitoy” Moreno. My first reaction was to have Ella try the dress on. The gown overwhelmed her petite frame but I thought it had the most beautiful and interesting beadwork.
“I thought that if I could salvage this and transfer this into a silhouette that would be perfect for Ella. I played around with the idea and it all clicked. I then went into a full restoration mode cleaning and bringing the embroidery back to life. It was such an honour to be able to work and study up close the work of people whose shoulders I stand on today. From Ella's very first fitting to her wedding day, it was truly a seamless project. She was absolutely breathtaking. One of the key philosophies that have always guided my designs are Heritage and Timelessness. Most specially when I design wedding gowns.
“To be part of one's life's most important life highlights is a true blessing. I am so privileged & honoured to have been able to do this for my friends. congratulations Ella & @enriquemiranda22. Wishing you a lifetime of bliss!”
Ella thanked her Tito Rajo via Instagram for his exceptional work, “Thank you, Tito Rajo, for the most beautiful dress with the most beautiful story! And for being there to personally dress me and make sure I was ready for every moment
Meanwhile, Maricel also echoed the sentiments of her daughter saying to Rajo, “I love you, I can't thank you enough for this very special work of art made with love and passion. You and your team have a very special place in my heart my dear @rajolaurel ! Thank you for the honor you have given Tito Pitoy and his creation and now this for my daughters to cherish.”
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Ella and Enrique got engaged in December 2022.