Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 22) – Brazilian-Filipino beauty queen Nikki de Moura stunned pageant fans with her radiant national costume inspired by Philippine festival culture for the Miss Grand International 2023.
The 19-year-old from Cagayan de Oro donned a “festival queen’ look designed by Er Stephen Alvarado for the pageant’s national costume competition.
The costume features an intricate headdress and even a set of wings embellished with colorful feathers, and decorated with ornaments and jewels meant to showcase the craftsmanship of Filipino artisans.
“It captures the essence of being a Festival Queen, symbolizing the rich cultural heritage and celebration of festivals in the Philippines,” the MGI organization wrote on Friday.
As of this writing, her look has garnered over 60,000 reactions on Miss Grand International’s Facebook, and over 13,000 on its Instagram page.
De Moura donned the country’s colors for the national costume segment on Friday. She will next represent the Philippines at the MGI 2023 preliminary competition in Thailand on Sunday night.
The pageant will culminate with its coronation night on Oct. 25.
Last July, De Moura bested 29 other beauty queens at the Miss Grand Philippines to earn her place as the country’s representative in the international pageant.
