Catriona Gray's Miss Universe national costume designer is from South Cotabato

Jearson Demavivas, who hails from Koronadal City in South Cotabato is the designer behind Catriona Gray's costume in the recently held National Costume Competition of Miss Universe 2018 in Pattaya, Thailand.

Demavivas also designed Catriona Gray's trending Filipino costume for Binibining Pilipinas earlier this year.

In a post, Demavivas said that his creation represented the 3 island groups of the Philippines – Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. The accessories represented Mindanao, while the body suit and the lantern represented the Visayas and Luzon, respectively.

"The giant lantern with paintings and baybayin symbolizes the islands of Luzon as the lantern was well-known in the Christmas Capital of the Philippines, the Province of Pampanga. The lantern's border was made from Floridablanca, Pampanga and the border's design was inspired by baroque churches which was declared as a national heritage by UNESCO.

The Pintados National Costume symbolizes the islands of Visayas. The Visayan Pintados is a few surviving documentation of the first tattoos of the Philippines.

The headpiece, accessories and shoes symbolizes the islands of Mindanao as it was inspired from the region's different ethno-linguistic groups such as Tboli, Bagobo, Maguindanao, Yakan and Maranao."

The costume also depicted historic and tourist spots in the country and the Philippine Flag.