LOS ANGELES, Mar 31, 2006/ FW/ --- Alan Del Rosario believes that ‘eveningwear is the ultimate expression for making a woman feel at her most beautiful; it’s fantasy; it’s life, heightened and lit better. So, it was not surprising that during the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios, the Los Angeles-based designer presented 54 sumptuous looks that are all red-carpet worthy.

Fashion followers will recognize Alan Del Rosario as one of the winners of the prestigious GenArt LA’s ‘Fresh Faces’ in fashion for eveningwear. The qualities that the GenArt’s judges saw in Del Rosario were very much in evidence in the designer’s Fall 2006 collection.

Inspired by the sights and sounds of Barcelona, Madrid, Mexico City, Buenos Aires and Manila, Del Rosario explored the Spanish influence around the globe at the time when it was a world power. And as the population from each locale evolved, so did their manner of dressing. It became entirely their own, yet still exhibit the magnificence of the Spanish customs and religious mores that encompassed the then Spanish empire.

From these, Alan Del Rosario transfused a new vision, making the Spanish senorita a woman of the 21st century, dressing her in a color palette of black, gray and white, adding red for drama and excitement.

The silhouette is slim, tracing the female form gently at the torso, and then flaring the skirts to become a flounce, sometimes adorned with layered ruffles.

The bodice is taut, courtesy of corsets. Sometimes, the bodice was ruched, sometimes it was adorned with chevrons, adding a graphical elements to the collection.

Choosing luxe fabrics, silk satins and taffetas were mixed with rich velvet, satin and lace trims. Together with the dramatic use of black and white, two strong contrasting colors, Del Rosario achieved modernity without being stark as the ruffles and lace blurred the asceticism and added texture.

“Eveningwear is the opportunity to catch a woman at her most feminine, her most glamorous. It’s the moment she feels like a star,” Alan Del Rosario wrote in his press notes. And, he was very successful in conveying that feeling in this collection.

No wonder his former collection found its way into major retailers such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom, Fred Segal and countless specialty boutiques across the country and scooped up by numerous Hollywood heavyweights including Michelle Pfeiffer and Minnie Driver.

This one is destined to follow the same route.

Alan Del Rosario

Alan Del Rosario

Alan Del Rosario

Alan Del Rosario