Just Back From: The Philippines

“Hybridization and fusion of foreign cultures onto indigenous cultures has created a new world culture that Filipinos should be proud of,” explains Manila-born designer Mark Wilson. “It’s one that I am happy to reflect and express in my work.” Mark is one of many Manilenos who is renewing the craft traditions of his native country with a modern twist. “Travelling has given me the luxury of comparing Filipino crafts with that of the rest of the world,” declares designer Ito Kish. “It has made me realize how masterful Filipino craftsmen are. They can stand with the world's best. I have also come to a deeper respect of our traditional crafting techniques, and a renewed appreciation for the richness of our materials. Now I am convinced that there is almost nothing that a Filipino artisan cannot turn into something beautiful.” And while some malls, where most shopping in Manila is done do carry local brands like the wonderful straw handbag company Aranaz in Power Plant Mall, my favorite made-in-the-Philippines treasures are found in special by-appointment-only showrooms. These are my favorite shopping spots.

Filip + Inna

Filipino fashion designer Len Cabili began working with weavers in her native region of Mindanao in 2008. She had grown up admiring the embroidery and beading of their textiles and sent her very first collection of dresses and shorts to be sold at one of our Indagare Souk trunk shows. “Filipinos tend to place higher value on things from abroad,” Len recently told me. “So our success with Indagare in America actually helped to establish the brand in the Philippines.” Today, Len works with twenty different groups of women artisans across the country and in a new workshop in Manila. Set around a lovely garden, her new by-appointment-only showroom adjoins the airy workshop, so shoppers can visit the seamstresses before or after browsing the collection, which is displayed in rooms with walls painted in colorful embroidery patterns. “This is true slow fashion,” Len says. “Sometimes we may not have a style in your size, but if you are patient, we can always make the exact size and pattern customized for you.” The best things are worth waiting for, after all, and they don’t go out of style.

Ito Kish

Designer Ito Kish, who calls himself a visual storyteller, proudly admits that he has had no formal design training. “I came from humble origins,” explains the successful retailer, interiors advisor and furniture designer. “But in my early job as an usher at the Cultural Center in Manila, I was exposed to so much art and heritage that it was my education.” With an exceptional eye for beauty, he now travels the globe collecting remarkable art, antiques and objects for his clients and his large gallery where he also exhibits his own collections of furniture and lighting and a vast array of coffee table and culinary books. From rattan pieces inspired by his childhood in San Pablo to award-winning wooden benches and embroidered pillows made by artisans from Lumban, all of his pieces emphasize Filipino visual language and craft. Note: the showroom is open on weekends only.

Valdes Designs

The internationally celebrated Filipino brand Valdes Designs is the passion project of sisters Bea and Margarita Valdes. Style arbiters and fashion editors have long swooned over the beautifully beaded, layered and embroidered handbags, clothing and jewelry designed by Bea and hand crafted by local women artisans in the Manila-based studio. Considered wearable art pieces, each item takes weeks to make. Kate Moss has worn the iconic large-stone bib necklaces on magazine covers. Recent seasonal clothing collections feature paint-splashed dresses that evoke abstract expressionist artists and blouses with delicately layered floral petals. Though Bea was recently named Editor in Chief of Vogue Philippines, she still powers the creative side of Valdes.

Caro Wilson

Harvard-educated designer Mark Wilson grew up in Manila, the child of an American father and Filipina mother. After many years working as a furniture designer in the States, he returned home to combine his love for modern aesthetics with his Philippine heritage. He designs furniture in Philippine hardwoods, lighting made from ebony wood and mother of pearl and trays in woven copper and brass that are woven in a similar fashion to traditional water bamboo baskets. All of his pieces are handmade by artisans in small workshops in Manila and Baguio province. In addition to his interior pieces, he recently launched jewelry collections that also incorporates local materials and techniques. His Cordillera bracelet, for instance, is woven in 18 karat gold or sterling silver and his Creolla earrings incorporate 19th-century filigree techniques that are updated with local stones like quartz, pearls and lapis lazuli. Wilson hopes that all of his designs express what he believes is true Filipino identity: “the Filipino soul is not a Western one. It is gentle, modest, self-effacing, and full of lightness of being.”