Hannah Arnold. Images: Raymond Saldaña via Instagram/@arnoldhan_
Hannah Arnold made an ode to a childhood toy doll in a glamorous Maria Clara national costume at a photo shoot, hours before the long-awaited Miss International 2022 coronation night in Tokyo, Japan.
The Binibining Pilipinas International beauty queen looked like a living Barbie doll in an intricate cornflower blue Filipiniana by Manny Halasan, as shown on her Instagram page Tuesday, Dec. 13. The portraits were taken by Raymond Saldaña at Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar event space in Quezon City.
The Maria Clara, also known as the “Pamana (Heritage)” gown, was a nod to Arnold’s “favorite toy” that was given by her mother when she was still young.
“This national costume was inspired by Hannah’s favorite toy (gifted by her mother) as a child: a Barbie wearing a Maria Clara Filipiniana, which Manny Halasan took inspiration from and mixed it with his own fond childhood memories of his grandfather’s antique tambourine.”
The designer described the Filipiniana as a national costume that inspires the audience to “remember our childhood experiences and look back on our past,” as mentioned in Arnold’s Instagram post.
Prior to the shoot, Arnold showed off her curves in a green one-piece during the preliminary swimsuit round of the Miss International 2022 pageant. The video, uploaded on Miss International’s YouTube channel on Dec. 11, showed the 66 delegates flaunting their glamorous pasarelas, or catwalk.
Arnold is aiming for the Philippines’ seventh Miss International crown after Gemma Cruz (1964), Aurora Pijuan (1970), Melanie Marquez (1979), Lara Quigaman (2005), Bea Rose Santiago (2013), and Kylie Versoza (2016).
The 60th Miss International will be held at the Tokyo Dome City Hall after being moved twice due to the pandemic; first in 2021 and later to 2022. Sireethorn Leearamwat of Thailand will crown her successor at the end of the pageant. EDV