What does it really mean to follow your passion? Passion is defined in its purest definition “as a powerful urge, a compelling emotion, a strong feeling, or an overwhelming instance of love for someone or something”. Passion can be a strong motivator when it comes to pursuing one’s dreams and aspirations. For young Filipina fashion designer Angeli Abelo, her ultimate passion is the art of fashion. The love for designing and creating magnificent pieces of clothing that has led her to become one of the industry’s young and up-and-coming fashion designers.

With her fervor and hard work come opportunities that gave her a solid push to create her own clothing brand. Her fashion brand Triple A Label came to  life in July 2019 at the Sinulid Altered Translation, a final prerequisite before finishing her fashion design degree from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde.

Her thesis collection titled “Crossroads” was inspired by the seasonal interactions and relationships of people in the designer’s life.

“The title crossroads insinuates the intricacy of connections and how each of these relations lead to different outcomes that form the main avenue that is the designer,” she said.

The collection was also inspired by the concrete jungle, her fascination with city life. She focused on interwoven roads and the life to be found on its side.

“The use of earth tones was to signify the sense of being grounded and staying true to roots, for what is under concrete is still earth. This then provides a sense of nostalgia,” she said.

Born with Innate Passion for Fashion

“For as long as I can remember, I have always dreamt of being a fashion designer. This manifested into draping random bed sheets and towels over myself in front of the bathroom mirror, posing as if I had been wearing designer pieces,” Angeli shared.

As a little girl, she enjoyed collecting various fashion magazines, as well as watching fashion shows and beauty pageants. She loved the evening gown segments of beauty pageants, as she recalls sketching her own gown designs with a box of crayons and a stack of papers laid out in front of her. She’d imagine her designs would be worn by celebrities someday.

In her own words, “Fashion has provided surges of inspiration within me that has lasted me my whole life.” 

Durin her high school days, she would sketch and design prom dresses for her friends. During a particularly mundane afternoon, she had been doodling in one of her notebooks when she unintentionally created the logo for her Triple-A Label.

Her college days at De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde finally gave her the opportunity to truly focus on honing her technical and creative skills in the whole design process.

Breathing Life into her Vision

Bringing life to one’s dream is not easy. And for the field of fashion design, it requires delicate planning and masterful craftsmanship to create elegant pieces of garments. Nearing her graduation, Angeli finally stepped into the zone of finally materializing her vision into a clothing brand.

“Triple A Label is a brand with the desire to become a channel to help people express themselves through clothing, offering a tangible translation of stories, and creating wearable narratives.”

For the actual process itself, Angeli starts with developing a concept that will be the guidepost of her designs. She usually chooses themes that are personal to her. Afterward, she decides what will be the name of her collection that truly exudes her concept, as she believes that the title of a collection is very important in helping communicate her creativity to the world.

Then comes the mood board and color scheme, then the process of sketching studies. “I remember sketching 185 silhouettes for my Crossroads collection until I came to the final 3 looks.”

After sketching, she finally proceeds to fabric manipulation, where she translates the message that she wants to convey. Then go and materializing them into clothing pieces in her production. 

“I firmly believe that Filipinos are keen to detail, and it is something that catches the attention of the international market,” she said. 

Triple A Label is very much inspired by the Filipino identity of this designer, materialized with a modern and global approach.

“Triple A Label started with an innate fascination in fabrics and how people can carry and express themselves with the clothes they wear. With this, a desire to become a channel to help people express themselves through clothing had ignited.” 

Her distinct, edgy, and vintage design aesthetic has separated her from other designers. Her creative team has helped her grow Triple A Label into a reputable and stylish brand in the industry with rich potential to flourish into a global brand someday. 

“I am looking forward to have more runway presentations locally and internationally. I am doing it little by little. With the support of my mother, grandmother and friends who are also my creative team, I know we can get there,” Angeli said.

We are so with Angeli on this. The future is just about to get brighter for this style visionary.