TOUGH SIX: Best Idol Moments for Jessica Sanchez

Tough Six is soooo back!

I don't know about you, but I will certainly be rooting for JESSICA SANCHEZ as she performs onstage on the finale night of American Idol. Irregardless of her ethnicity (Filipino, Mexican or American), I give my vote and offer prayer to this helluvah talent, and can't wait to listen to the songs she'll belt out. Amaze us one more time, gurl!

By the way, don't you think that Jessica kinda resembles Sarah Geronimo, the Philippine Pop Princess? Sarah was also a singing competition champ before she joined showbiz. I believe Sarah is way prettier, but Jessica has the better, louder voice. :-)

SEEING DOUBLE. Jessica Sanchez (left) vs. Sarah Geronimo (right).

Before the season of American Idol closes with the announcement of the grand winner, let me give this last salute to Jess, my gurl, how she dazzled the stage with her awesome Beyonce-ish voice together with her week-to-week outfit changes. Here are her 6 best stylish moments, in my opinion, and hopefully we agree on that fashionable vote:

Tough 1: Top 10 Performance

Jessica wows the audience with her soulful rendition of "Everybody Has A Dream" by Billy Joel and her fabulous new look while wearing this elaborate, lacey, see-thru dress by Byron Lars and shoes by Steve Madden. Truly a winner on my list!

Tough 2: Top 6 Performance

Jessica brightens up the mood while performing "Dance With My Father" by Luther Vandross and shows some sexy legs with a flowy BCBG assymetric Grecian dress and belt along with Jessica Simpson shoes. Earrings, necklace, bracelet, and rings all by Bijou Tresor.

Tough 3: Top 6 Performance

Jessica lungs out "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen in a rocker-inspired look that fits right her age. BCBG Max Azria top, ring, necklace, and earrings, a Bod & Christensen jacket, Parker ethnic-printed mini, and oh... those sneakers by Creative Recreation are just downright edgy!

Tough 4: Top 3 Performance

Jessica gives her all as the last-woman-standing, Pinoy pride singing "My All" by Mariah Carey while wearing a luscious bluish-purple dress by fellow Pinoy Oliver Tolentino and Bebe shoes. Earrings, bracelet, and rings by Erica Courtney.

Tough 5: Top 3 Performance

Jessica goes for neutral while hitting high notes with "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing" by Aerosmith in a skin tone-matching Zimmermann jumpsuit, thin belt by Zara, and Bebe shoes. Interestingly, she contrasts her outfit with a teal-colored Bijou Tresor necklace.

Tough 6: Top 7 Performance

 Jessica makes a statement, performing "Fallin'" by Alicia Keys in a head-turning jumpsuit by Alice + Olivia, spiced-up with a bold & gold Deepa Gurnani tribal neckpiece.

OK, I find Phillip Phillips scorching hot once he opens his mouth when he sings. But still, my bet is on Jessica and I hope she wins this big time - in as much as I hope I don't get to lose giving free rounds of drinks to my friends who have turned their backs on her for a guy seemingly with epilepsi attacks but oozes with tons of sex appeal. Chos! :-)

Go Jessica!









NOTE: Photos from americanidol.com

Tough Six: BEST FALL/WINTER BILLBOARD ADS OF 2011

Part of my resolution for 2012 is to limit myself from writing something with okray (I'll persevere on doing that), and instead focus -- wholeheartedly -- on giving light to the best of the best. After several months, it's Tough Six time again! With no further ado, allow me to crown the 6 best fashion billboard ad campaigns of Fall/Winter 2011 (in my personal opinion) before I completely deal with the year ahead - in great style, of course!


Tough 1: UNA ROSA
UNA ROSA lives up to its name by being UNA as the season's classiest, most stylish ad campaign. The brand continues to induce international flavor in its very fashionable pictorials - this time kinda reminds me of Gucci. From clothes to styling to photography to art direction, Holiday 2011 has never been this glamorous and expensive-looking, with luxurious play on fall colors and rich textures, coupled with dramatic moments and sexy elegance that only the stylish woman can pull off.

Photography: Paolo Pineda; Art Direction & Styling: Vince Uy; Makeup: Mickey See; Hair: John Valle; Model: Alisa (Elite)

Tough 2: PLAINS & PRINTS

This particular ad campaign layout of PLAINS & PRINTS is pure delight (the other one in red background I am not so sassy about) as the brand pays homage to YSL's revered Mondrian dress. It's the only local brand to channel the 60's fashion trend, which dominated the foreign runways during the fall/winter season.

Photography: Marc Nicdao; Styling: Liz Uy; Art Direction: Vince Uy; Makeup: Gela Laurel

Tough 3: HUMAN

Alternative lifestyle brand HUMAN goes black - and shoots its message direct to the point - for its Holiday 2011 ad campaign. No hanky-panky, just nice clothes and enviable edginess rendered in captivating black and white photos.

Tough 4: TYLER

After several years of dormancy, TYLER gets ressurected, and is back on the fashion spotlight through the acquisition of retail bigshot Golden ABC. The Holiday 2011 ad campaign looks very chic and modern, as put together by a new creative team that remains true to the brand's design philosophy.

Photography: Xander Angeles; Art Direction & Styling: Suki Salvador; Hair & Makeup: Pia Reyes

Tough 5: SILVERWORKS

The latest billboard ad campaign of SILVERWORKS is not utterly trendsetting, even not glamourous at all. But the spine-tingling, ghostly concept in vintage sepia (reminescent of our dead ka-lola-lolahan in baro't saya) gets everyone who passes by EDSA to take a second, third, nth look (depends on the gravity of highway traffic) and tell themselves, 'oh yeah... such a unique idea'. Unlike other accessory brands in the market, SILVERWORKS is not afraid to push the creative boundaries, thus with this billboard, I certainly agree - Never Let Go!

Tough 6: FREEWAY

Championing Filipino artistry thru fashion has been FREEWAY's battlecry for how many seasons now. The FREEWAY x MANANSALA National Artist Series is the latest installment, and the billboard ad campaign (though a far cry from Manansala's signature painting of local landscapes & folkoric colors) gets a twist with a tasteful Oriental styling - something unexpected, but rates high on my style meter.

By the way, a BLESSED, PROSPEROUS & HAPPY NEW YEAR to all!

TOUGH SIX: SCARY BEAUTIFUL

It's Halloween night - these are the ones that made you scream at the top of your lungs inside the dark moviehouse. They made your heart throb in fear in every scene. They gave you chills at night and - worse - haunted you even in your slumber. Equip yourselves with your Rosaries, the Holy Bible, a bottle of Holy Water, a crucifix and yes, some cloves of garlic. If you love scary movies, relive some of Philippine cinema's most beautiful, most fasyon actresses in recent times who portrayed the most iconic, most horriying, spooky characters.

And oh, please don't put off the lights when you get to watch their movies tonight!


TOUGH 1: DAWN ZULUETA in "PATAYIN SA SINDAK SI BARBARA"
Being one of local showbiz's most regarded and most beautiful, it's amazing how a movie goddess like Dawn Zulueta could transform into a vengeful, haunting spirit. In this Chito Rono classic remake (with Susan Roces starring on the original film), she played Ruth, the spoiled sister of Barbara (Lorna Tolentino), who committed suicide and haunted the household through a doll to extract revenge on everyone who wronged her. Still, with all the scary antics and thick makeup on her face, both weren’t enough to conceal her astonishing beauty.

Screen capture from youtube.com

TOUGH 2: ANGELICA PANGANIBAN in "WHITE LADY"
Nothing can be more fashionable and scary at the same time than a lady ghost in billowy antique-d white couture, and Angelica Panganiban fitted the role perfectly with her long, straight hair and pale white skin. Very natural (if not supernatural). Released in 2006 by Regal Films, White Lady wasn't much of a spookfest, but Angelica still managed to frighten everybody off their seats who saw this movie directed by Jeff Tan.

Photo from sinebuano.com

TOUGH 3: MARICEL SORIANO in "VAMPIRA"
In the 90's, Diamond Star Maricel Soriano played the role of a bloodsucker (Paz) who married a mortal man (Christopher de Leon) in a movie that actually pre-dated the vampire-human love story that made the Twilight series a worldwide phenomenon. With fangs that could bite deep, and bangs I'm not so eager about, Maricel definitely knew how to make a kill.

Photo from mariadiamondstar.multiply.com

TOUGH 4: ALMA MORENO and LOVI POE in "ASWANG" versions
Lovi Poe topbills Regal Films' new Halloween offering with the horror remake of the hit “Aswang” in 1994 that starred Alma Moreno. Although the movie has yet to be released (on Nov. 2, 2011), Lovi Poe looks so damned hot and so freaking sexy - I think guys would surely die to have them bitten by her. Equally, Alma Moreno being a sex goddess herself in her younger years, was exquisitely gorgeous that it would be impossible to think of her as an aswang targetting humans for her saucy version of dinuguan. 

Photo from tumblr.com

Photo from entervrexworld.wordpress.com

TOUGH 5: IZA CALZADO in "SIGAW"
Iza Calzado's portrayal of a battered and murdered wife turned ghost earned her a Gawad Urian Best Supporting Actress in 2005, with the bonus of acting the same role in the Hollywood version, "The Echo". With barely any makeup (except from some blood poured on her head to make her look bloody dead in one of the scenes), Iza was able to illustrate a pretty convincing creepy acting with misery, anguish and despair in both Sigaw and The Echo, that men wouldn't mind being haunted by her at all.

Photo from pelikula.tumblr.com

TOUGH 6: IRMA ALEGRE in SHAKE, RATTLE & ROLL 1 and JULIE VEGA in LOVINGLY YOURS, HELEN
Irma Alegre's role as a manananggal in the original Shake, Rattle & Roll (by Peque Gallaga) in 1984 raised the bar for all Pinoy folkloric horrifying characters. Despite having oversized bat wings and being half-bodied, it was Irma's brown skin and Pinay features that made her all the more beautiful and scary at the same time. On the other hand, Julie Vega (RIP) cannot be discounted, she was extremely memorable in her last film as the Pinay version of Linda Blaire (of The Exorcist) in Lovingly Yours, Helen.

Photo from vampire-movies.co.uk

Screen capture from youtube.com

Tough Six: MODEL LOVE

I'm in a mood for a little creativity that I wanna start something ticklish for my blog. Starting this September, I would be featuring a section label that I call TOUGH SIX. Every month, I'll enlist (in my opinion, or according to my liking) top 6 (six) fashion topics, personalities, of-the-moment items, hot trends, scenarios - anything fascinating that's related to fashion.

And without further ado, I'll kickoff by tackling the hottest model couples in town. Blessed with good looks, killer bodies and the usual X-factor, these model-plus-model combos are burning like fire, and are turning everyone green with envy.

Tough 1

LATIN LOVERS. Mercator models Hideo Muraoka and Fatima Rabago aren't just a hot pair - they're best examples of proud model parents with good gene combination (just see how cute their daughter is).

Tough 2

FIRE + ICE. Celebrity-models Borgy Manotoc and Georgina Wilson make a smoldering combination.

Tough 3

GUA AI DI. Bench model John J. Uy and recent face of Plaints & Prints Jessica Chiao-Han Yang are definitely having a Chinese Connection.

Tough 4

WHEREVER, WHENEVER. Nathaniel Kiefer and Petra Dvorakova often stick and travel together for modelling assignments here and abroad.

Tough 5

M&M. Marx Topacio and Maxine Medina of PMAP are having sweet, sweet love!

Tough 6

DYNAMIC DUO. Lance Howard and Wendy Tabusalla are twosome coosome.