Eda in Her Exquisitely Elegant Evening Gown Presentation

Contrary to popular belief, it’s not what the candidate wears that gets the star billing in the evening gown competition. It’s the poise, the grace & confidence in the way the candidate carries herself

Eda  Calimbayan Cimafranca: Elegance


 

Although the gown’s design can also make or break a girl’s chance of making a positive impression in this area of judging, judges always look for class and elegance in what is considered the most glamorous part of the competition. 

Complete List of Miss Bohol Winners

Eda is shown with Will DeVaughn 

Here are some of the photos that captured Miss Bohol 2015 Eda Calimbayan Cimafranca’s winning attitude and the aura of confidence when she stepped onstage in her evening gown.  

Sixteen year old Eda exuded so much elegance & elan in her evening gown presentation that even when her heels snagged her gown’s hemline which resulted in a slight trip could not get in the way to bagging the Best in Evening Gown special award. 

Photo Credits: Ric Obedencio 

In Defense of Eda

It started as a hush. A random murmur until it began to rise to a deafening crescendo. It was the most blatant booing to ever hit the Miss Bohol Pageant.

It was not Eda Cimafranca’s fault that she was chosen by the esteemed panel of judges to reign as Miss Bohol 2015. The booing was an offshoot of the awarding of corporate awards & special titles where Eda scooped 10 of the awards a stake.

       2015 Miss Bohol Updates & Coverage

Miss Bohol or any pageant for that matter is not a charitable institution. Special awards are given because a girl deserves it. Corporate awards are given by sponsors to girls who they think best represent the ideals or image of their companies.

Don’t get me started on the issue of a cooking show. If there were any shenanigans, Miss Balilihan should have at least made the Top Ten considering that the project chair is from the same town but no it never happened because Miss Bohol is a showcase of fair play & integrity

We have taken pride on how we Boholanos put a premium on our respect for our women. Our women have always been envied because of our collective reverence for them. 

Last Saturday's crowning finale showed our ugly side when what was supposed to be good- natured rivalry and competition turned into a display of rude, disrespectful and uncivilized  manners unbecoming of a Boholano. 

How can we make up for our booing to an innocent 16 year old whose fault is to give her best to a city that is hungry for its Miss Bohol crown which has eluded its representatives for the last six years? 

Every  pageant would always have victors and also- rans (another term for those don't make it).  I wonder if the bashers & bitter gourds would be singing a different tune had their bets made it. 

Let us be happy for the winners. Eda may not be the prettiest nor the smartest but the stars were all aligned in her favor that night. Simply put, she was destined to win the crown.

Here are the video highlights of the 1st Set of Awards during Miss Bohol 2015 courtesy of  Nestor Daarol's DYRD 1161 AM radio program "Silab sa Udtong Tutok" every 12:30 pm - 1:00 pm

L-R: 4^th RU Guindulman, 3^rd RU Jagna, Miss Bohol 2015, 1^st RU Talibon 2^nd RU Tubigon


 

Eda reacts after her name is called 
photo: Edsel Roseus Villas

When Eda Cimafranca gets to board her float this Sunday, let’s give her the applause that she so deserves otherwise this blogger would say:

Shame on us Boholanos for disrespecting & mocking our symbol of the quintessential Boholana

The Merry Month of May

 The month of May is the merriest and the most beautiful month of the year. And with reason.  It is the time of the year when flowers and fragrant blossoms are in full bloom, It is also the season for the most colorful of all festivals and every week, a major beauty pageant takes place every week in our province.

 reigning Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015 Eda Cimafranca


 

Here in Bohol, May is the most popular month for fiesta celebrations with Tagbilaran City ushering the fiesta season on May 1. In fact, there is a fiesta almost every day for the whole month of May. 

It is said that one can never go hungry during the entire month for as longas one is familiar with the fiesta dates in all sitios, puroks, barangays & towns. On the other hand, with the staging of the Santacruzan almost everywhere , it  is time me when we reluctantly bid adieu to summer and brace ourselves for the rainy months ahead.

Memorable Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015 Moments

This might be a tad too late but nevertheless, for those who are based abroad and who are hungry for news, this will give you an idea how pageants have evolved in Bohol.

Here are some of the highlights from the spectacular Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015

OPENING SALVO that featured all 15 girls and the reigning Mutya 2014 Geraldine  Topsnik dance up a Burlesque- themed number

SWIMSUIT SIZZLERS in swimsuits by Charina Sarte

ELEGANT EVENING GOWNS created by the Bohol Designers Guild

Photo Credits: Abigail Gulay

What Do Eda, Marian & Christine Have in Common?

Your Blogger would like to share a commonality involving three pageant queens, namely: 2015 Mutya sa Tagbilaran, 2014 Mutya sa Dampas & 2014 Miss Silka Bohol. They haven't been in a pageant where all three were contenders yet Fate had a way of connecting all three of them 

 Christine Ann Juguan, Marian Grace Malubay & Mary Eda Cimafranca

MARIAN GRACE MALUBAY

Did you know that before she was crowned Miss Silka Bohol 2014 & earned the chance to represent Bohol in the national finals of Miss Silka Philippines 2014, Marian Grace Malubay was 1st RU to Christine Ann Juguan in Mutya sa Dampas 2014 last July 24, 2014?

 Marian is 1st RU to Christine

CHRISTINE ANN JUGUAN

Christine Juguan almost gave her barangay a back-to- back Mutya sa Tagbilaran crown after giving a strong performance in the citywide pageant. She placed a strong 1^st RU to Mary Eda Cimafranca in the recently- concluded Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015 last April 24.

 Christine is 1st RU to Eda

MARY EDA CIMAFRANCA

Here's the clincher: Did you know that before earning the right to represent the city in the forthcoming Miss Bohol 2015 set this July, Mary Eda was 1st RU to Marian Grace Malubay in the 2014 Miss Silka Bohol Pageant last September 26, 2014? 

She was quite raw being a pageant newbie that time and one of the two youngest candidates. Yet, one cannot deny that she already had the potential and she did. She was Best in Swimsuit and almost won over Marian. 

Fate, Destiny & Timing indeed play a crucial role in crowning a beauty queen. 

Eda is 1st RU to Marian 

It’s a Pageant Merry- Go- Round after all! 

Eda & Her Beauty Queen Sisters

When it comes to Tagbilaran families that have been blessed by the genetic pool with a surfeit of pulchritude and charm, the Gonzaga sisters, the Manding girls, the Darunday ladies, the Pepito girls and the Evardone beauties come to mind.

 Eda holds her own during the Q & A 
with Phoem Barranda & Tim Yap
Photo: Edsel Roseus Villas

It has been a few days since the much- talked about 2015 Mutya sa Tagbilaran Pageant and the newly- crowned queen Mary Eda Calimbayan Cimafranca has come under intense scrutiny as pageant watchers start asking for more info about her particularly her family background.

The 16 year old fresh high school graduate from Bohol Wisdom School is the third of five siblings born to Engrs. Cresente & Maria Eva Cimafranca. 

Eva is of course, the former Eva Calimbayan who happens to be my high school classmate who was a certified beauty and headturner during our Janssen Heights days. 

Here’s the interesting part: Eda’s Ate Elaine is also a multi- titled beauty queen having been crowned Miss HNU Nursing 2010, Miss HNU Intramurals 2010, Miss Alay Lakad 2010 and Miss Dauis 2011.

Ebone Cimafranca  is Miss Teen Tagbilaran 2012 & the reigning Miss Bohol International 2012. Aside from being beauty queens, all three have been declared Best in Swimsuit and Best in Evening Gown in their respective pageants.

Beauty indeed runs in the blood with three sisters in the family as beauty queens.

L-R: Elaine, Ebone & EdaPhoto Credit: Nayr Shufa Sines

Efrem, the only son among the five siblings, has already showed hints of appealing looks and who could give the Daniel Padilla & Diego Loyzaga of the next generation a run for their money.  

As for Ezabela, the fourth & youngest of the Cimafranca sisters, I can only commiserate. I can just imagine the pressure when she blossoms into a beautiful and level- headed lady but Ezabela need not worry for she has three elder sisters to run to when it comes to pageant tips & advices plus the immense support from their loving parents.

Photo Credit: Ghen Lumayag, Edsel Roseus Villas & top hairstylist Ryan Sines

Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015 is Best in Swimsuit

She simply owned the stage without trying to. From the opening dance number to swimsuits and all the way to evening gown, she transformed from fierce and fabulous to sexy and sultry then finally to elegance & sophistication.

Here's the link to the Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015 Winners

But it was during the Charina Sarte Swimsuit Competition that she shone the brightest. The snaps and turns plus the curvaceous figure & legs that went on for miles and miles impressed audiences and judges alike. Her very unrehearsed and candid way of expressing herself in impeccable English sealed the deal for Eda. 

Eda Calimbayan Cimafranca, the leggy and lissome lass who represented Poblacion 1 is a fresh high school graduate from Bohol Wisdom School and comes from a family of beauty queens. Her Ate Eileen is a former Miss Dauis & Miss HNU Nursing while Ate Ebone is a former Miss Teen Tagbilaran & the reigning Miss Bohol International. 

The pressure is now on for Eda as she tries to give back the Miss Bohol crown to the city this July.

 BEVY OF BEAUTIES: Mary Eda Cimafranca who leads the pack is Best in Swimsuit

Photo Credit: Edsel Roseus Villas

Photo Credits: Ric Obedencio, Mil Calimbayan & Edsel Roseus Villas

Eda Calimbayan Cimafranca is Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015

There was only one last hurdle before the city’s fairest would be crowned and it was the final common question that all five finalists  had to answer 

“Winning the Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015 title is a great privilege. If you win as Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015, how will you live up to the title, while promoting the best that Tagbilaran City has to offer?”

Your Blogger would have been stumped had he been asked to answer the same question. To their credit, all five girls acquitted themselves well despite the tense and nerve- wracking moment. 

Edsel Roseus Villas captures the reaction of Eda at the exact moment 

her name is called as the new Mutya sa Tagbilaran 

  

There were 15 candidates who represented their respective barangays in Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015, considered as the glamorous prelude to the City Fiesta Celebration in honor of St. Joseph the Worker.

The panel of judges whittled down the field to five finalists after the casual interview, swimsuit & evening gown competitions.

MUTYA 2015 IS EDA CIMAFRANCA

The big winner during tonight's pageant finale was Miss Poblacion 1 Eda Calimbayan Cimafranca, 16 years old, who topped the swimsuits, casual interview and evening gown competitions on her way to being crowned as Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015. 

Pob 1 Brgy Captain Arlene Karaan led a big contingent from their barangay to cheer on for the leggy and lissome lass. Mary Eda, the daughter of Engrs. Maria Eva and Cresente Cimafranca. will represent the city in the forthcoming Miss Bohol 2015 set this July. 

THE ROYAL COURT:

1^st Runner Up was Miss Dampas  Christine Ann Juguan and 2^nd RU was Sheree Ann Ciruela. 

Rounding out the Final Five were Miss Dao Jennifer Lynee Winters and Miss Mansasa Ma. Mercedes Cutanda

L-R: Miss Dampas 1^st RU, Miss Pob 1 Mutya 2015 & Miss Pob 2 2^nd RU

The Class of 2015 whoops it up 

 Gov. Edgar Chatto assists outgoing Mutya 2014 Geraldine Topsnik

MY FEARLESS FORECAST

Your Blogger was able to get four of the five finalists correctly as he predicted in his Bohol Chronicle lifestyle column a week ago.  In fact, all top three winners were in my prediction list.

SPECIAL AWARDS WINNERS:

Best in Production Number  # 4 Pob 1

Miss Congeniality                      # 2 Cogon

Darling of the Press                   # 11 Dampas

Miss Bohol Tropics                    # 9 Tiptip

Miss Smart                                      # 2 Cogon

Miss Globe                                      # 10 Manga

Miss Talent                                    # 13 Dao

Miss Photogenic                        Cabawan

Viewers’ Choice                        Cabawan

Miss Rejuv Beauty Soap       # 12 Bool

Best in Swimsuit                      # 4 Pob 1

Best in Casual Interview       # 4 Pob 1

Best in Evening Gown          # 4 Pob 1

Darling of the Crowd             # 6 Pob 2

Best Designer is EJ Relampagos for # 13’s gown 

According to Tagbilaran City First Lady & Pageant Chair  Jane Yap

“Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015 aims to champion the beauty that is in Tagbilaran. Young ladies from the 15 barangays will compete to get the chance to represent Tagbilaran – its vision and ideals – to the entire world. 

Advocating beauty with a purpose, Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015 hopes to transcend beyond physical beauty and empower young ladies to maximize their potential to the good of their locality”

STAR- STUDDED SHOW

 Miss Tagbilaran 1987 Fiel Gabin &
Miss World 93 2^nd RU Ruffa Gutierrez
 Judges’ Briefing,  Bohol Tropics Resort

Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015 was literally & figuratively a star- studded affair with celebrities & newsmakers lending their star wattage to illumine & brighten the most spectacular beauty pageant that Bohol has witnessed so far. 

Among the judges were top model Allison Harvard, designer Cary Santiago, Miss Intercontinental 2^nd RU Kris Tiffany Maslog Janson, Miss World 93 2^nd RU Ruffa Gutierrez & Manhunt International 2012 June Macasaet.

Congratulations to all the winners & to the organizers led by the Project Chair Jane Cajes Yap, First Lady of Tagb City, keep it up!  

Photo Credits: Ghen Lumayag Photography

Vote for Your Favorite Mutya sa Tagbilaran 2015 Candidate

Here now are the 15 young ladies representing their respective barangays in the 2015 Mutya sa Tagbilaran Quest. Aside from becoming the city’s ambassadress of goodwill, the winner will also represent Tagbilaran in the forthcoming Miss Bohol 2015 Pageant

Aside from generating more mileage for the pageant and for the girls, Your Blogger is launching a poll on your favorite candidate in the ongoing Mutya sa Tagbilaran Quest. At the upper right side of this blog are the names of the participating barangays. Just click on the blank spaces that corresponds to your candidate’s barangay.

Mutya ng Cabawan: Nicole Fiona Gordillo

Mutya ng Cogon: Darlene Galao

Mutya ng Dampas: Christine Ann Juguan

Mutya ng Pob III: Cristine Ponce

Mutya ng Tiptip: Reneith Alturas

Mutya ng Ubujan: Frances Marie Montero

Mutya ng Booy: Jorgene Daguplo

Mutya ng Pob II: Sheree Ann Ciruela

Mutya ng Mansasa: Ma. Mercedes Cutanda

Mutya ng Pob I: Mary Eda Cimafranca

Mutya ng Manga: Lady Arlia Lumantas

Mutya ng Bool: Careen Jane Pilayre

Mutya ng San Isidro: Patrice Marie Visaya

Mutya ng Dao: Jennifer Lynee Winters

Mutya ng Taloto: Sunshine Tutor

Talent Competition on Sunday, April 12, 4 pm, ICM Activity Center

Pageant Night on April 24, 8 pm, Bohol Wisdom School Gymnasium

Photo Credits: Chris Ramasola for www.ramasola.net