For many who attend concerts, dressing up for a show has become part of the experience itself. Fans spend weeks planning outfits, collecting inspiration, and finding ways to visually translate the music they love.

At Grammy-winning Icelandic-Chinese singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Laufey’s “A Matter of Time” concert at the SM Mall of Asia Arena last May 26, one look stood out among the crowd. Fashion designer Odile Pauline Roxas was later named Best Dressed for Day 1 of the three-night Manila run.

In an interview with Manila Bulletin Lifestyle, the 24-year-old founder of Odile Atelier shared that she approached the outfit less like a competition piece and more like a tribute to an artist she admired. “I wasn't ‘in it to win it’ per se. I focused on creating a tribute to an artist I admired. To be noticed was a bonus.”

The designer, who officially launched her fashion career after graduating from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde in 2024, has worked across different creative spaces before pursuing fashion. Ballet, theater, film, and costume-making all shaped the visual language she carries into her work today. “My designs revolve around art and romance. Odile Atelier’s aesthetic is ethereal, magical, and romantic,” she says.

For Odile, the idea began with the feeling the songs gave her. “To me, her music is like walking among the stars, bursting into soft white flames as the orchestra hits a crescendo.”

Laufey’s mix of jazz and romantic pop also reminded Odile of the music she grew up listening to at home. “Hearing her voice and her music hits a spot in my heart that not many artists can access. I also loved how fun and open she is online, the way she treats everyone she meets, the way she remains very humble and hardworking.”

The final look combined hydra gazar, taffeta, chiffon, beadwork, and reflective material normally used by bikers for nighttime visibility. Instead of using fairy lights, which many concertgoers were expected to incorporate into their outfits, Odile experimented with reflective fabric that transformed under flash photography.

“To the unassuming eye, my design appears simple,” she says. “But the hidden surprise is in flash photography. The flash of light on camera creates a reflection that imitates starlight.”

The midnight blue color palette was equally intentional. While softer blues dominated many Laufey-inspired looks online, Odile chose a deeper shade that felt more natural to her.

She also made sure the ensemble was practical to wear the whole evening. “The outfit had to be comfortable enough to stand in for many hours and not obstruct other people who were also there to watch Laufey.”

Even with the intricacy involved, the piece was completed in roughly two and a half days of continuous sewing and beading after spending nearly a month refining ideas. “That would be the beadwork and intricacy, which I love working into my designs when I can,” Odile says of her favorite detail. “I hand stitched every single bead on that corset.”

What surprised her most was the reaction from fellow concertgoers. “A lot of people were so kind about my design, and even took pictures with me,” she recalls.

Before the show started, members of Laufey’s production team approached Odile to inform her that she had been selected as one of the best dressed attendees of the night. “I was just on cloud nine,” she says. “I felt so numb from excitement.”

What stayed with her most was seeing the creativity of fellow Filipino fans who came dressed not simply to compete, but to celebrate an artist they loved. “Seeing the other artistic entries for best dressed reminded me of how talented Filipinos can be,” she says. “We really are born to hone craftsmanship.”