For Filipino designer Roko Arceo, fashion is a way of keeping cultural memory in full motion.
At Maligaya Clothing Co’s Fashion Week Asia 2026 show at Palacio de Memoria, that idea took shape in garments that reinterpret the traditional Filipino dress through contemporary silhouettes. Arceo works with details from heirloom clothing and the marks of age and texture that give distinctly Filipino materials their character.
This season, Maligaya presents Found Treasures—an exploration between things living and fragile and a contrast between beauty and deterioration. Arceo celebrates the richness of marine life while also being aware of the effects of global warming, rising ocean temperatures, coral bleaching, and environmental degradation.
The beauty looks, created by lead makeup artist Gery Penaso with MAC Cosmetics and hairstylists from Cream Silk, gave a lighter take on Arceo’s thoughtful premise: slicked-back wet-look hair, a sunburnt flush, and bronzed eyes.
“We know that the collection is inspired by the sea, so I wanted beach waves, and I wanted everything wet. Then I wanted some sunspots, which naturally occur to everyone. I just wanted something natural, no fuss, and just sun-kissed,” tells Arceo to Allure Philippines.
Faux freckles
Paui Guevarra
Paui Guevarra
Natural-looking freckles were dotted across the models’ faces for Maligaya’s runway, mimicking the way they naturally surface after a long day in the sun. Scattered across the nose and cheeks, the freckles added a sun-kissed touch to the look.
Sunburn-like flush
Paui Guevarra
Paui Guevarra
Paui Guevarra
On Maligaya’s runway, skin looked lived-in. Makeup looked barely visible, as if the models had skipped it altogether. Some, however, wore a flush of warm pink across the cheeks and on the bridge of the nose, the kind you get after a day out by the beach.
Slicked-back and gelled hair
Paui Guevarra
Paui Guevarra
Paui Guevarra
Slicked-back hair lent a polished touch to the otherwise carefree beauty looks. Kept close to the head with a high-shine finish, the styling evoked the look of hair pushed back after a dip in the sea, allowing natural texture and movement through the lengths to shine.
Muted, glossy lips
Paui Guevarra
Paui Guevarra
Shiny lips added a soft, understated finish to this natural-looking beauty look. The subdued hue kept the overall palette natural, while the sheen lent a touch of freshness and the effortless glow of a day by the sea.
Frequently Asked Questions
Faux freckles were dotted across the nose and cheeks of Maligaya’s models at Fashion Week Asia 2026, mimicking how freckles naturally surface after a long day in the sun for a sun-kissed finish.
The sunburnt flush at Maligaya’s show is a warm pink wash across the cheeks and nose bridge, mimicking skin after a day at the beach. Makeup otherwise looked barely-there and lived-in.
Hairstylists kept hair slicked close to the head with a high-shine finish, evoking the look of hair pushed back after a dip in the sea, while letting natural texture show through the lengths.
Maligaya’s Found Treasures collection draws on marine life and its vulnerability to coral bleaching and rising ocean temperatures. The beauty looks echoed this with wet-look hair, sunburnt flush, and sun-kissed freckles.
Filipino designer and stylist Roko Arceo leads Maligaya Clothing Co, reinterpreting traditional Filipino dress through contemporary silhouettes inspired by heirloom clothing and the natural marks of age, wear, and texture.
