Skull bags, baby Oxfords, and modern weaves: 10 fashion items that got our attention at Manila Wear

Bags by Michelline Syjuco. Photo by AC Dimatatac, InterAksyon.com.

At the 59th edition of Manila FAME, Filipino fashion designers are showing that they’re ready to present their designs to the world. Both young and established designers impressed visitors presented their take on Manila Wear, which international fashion icon Josie Natori inaugurated in 2012 to showcase the best of Philippine accessories and apparel inspired by summer.
For this occasion, the up-and-coming designers collaborated with Manila FAME creative director Budji Layug to come up with works under an “urban resort” theme. Four types of Filipino weaves were put on display, as well.
CITEM Executive Director Rosvi Gaetos said that Manila Wear is generally about creating a defining look for the brand. When Natori began to collaborate with CITEM, both parties realized the uphill climb to promote Philippine fashion to the world due to constraints such as a dearth in textiles and technology.
Gaetos shared, “Josie realized these problems and said, ‘Let’s create Manila Wear as a brand’ and to show the best of the fashion industry and the young fashion designers that are coming in. But let’s also challenge them to create something wearable, whether it’s a bag or a sarong, into something that can be competitive in the market, that can be sold and is commercially viable.”
The goal of CITEM, she noted, is really designing for profitability and to bring the Philippine fashion to various retail outlets all over the world. With this challenge in mind, Manila FAME Creative Director Budji Layug and internationally renowned furniture designer Kenneth Cobonpue have been tasked to develop what is Manila Wear in collaboration with the metro’s rising fashion designers. The results of this project will be more palpable in the next Manila Wear exhibition in October 2014.
“So that when you talk about Manila Wear, a certain style, a certain sensibility comes to mind. It may not be a form but (it could be) a sensibility.”
Gaetos added, “But right now what you’re seeing are the designers’ own interpretation of what Manila Wear is. It may be wrong, it may be right but at least we’re moving in the right direction. Later on, there will be confluence of sensibilities. It’s an ongoing process.”
Here are some of the highlights from the exhibition, which runs until Monday, March 17.
1. Knitted streetwear by Tipay Caintic

Tipay Caintic presents knitted streetwear at Manila Wear, March 14 to 17 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City. Photo by AC Dimatatac, InterAksyon.com.

The designer who was born and raised in Tacloban had just come back from London Fashion Week, where she presented five Yolanda-inspired looks at the International Fashion Show. Each look represented the stages of the November disaster: the downpour, the collapse of communication lines, the lack of leadership, the blame game, and the blind hope.
The Visual Communication graduate took off from there to come up with her Manila Wear collection of wearable, “less wild” pieces that still include knitted streetwear made of piña fiber. Caintic said the fabric fascinated her, as it was hard and rough yet appeared like wool and had a soft look. She threw in some organza for a light feel, as well as her signature ball embellishments.
2. Accessories by Ken Samudio

Ken Samudio with his intricately beaded bib necklaces. Photo by AC Dimatatac, InterAksyon.com.

Joining Tipay Caintic at London Fashion Week in February, Ken Samudio did not formally study fashion but had always been good with paintbrush and pen. The Biology graduate had to quit his nine-to-five job when his health deteriorated because of diabetes. This was when he began making accessories for his mother and sister, gaining attention from friends and fashion editors alike.
Samudio makes “playful, colorful, (and) fun… pieces you wear when you’re in a good mood.” He uses everything from upcycled plastic to bamboo, mixing and matching materials. The designer plans to accomplish his dream of conquering the world by learning more through work or an internship in London, a place where he says culture is nurtured and talent is embraced.
3. “Macolet” Shoes by Maco Custodio

Maco Custodio holds a pair of baby shoes from his Macolet line. Photo by AC Dimatatac, InterAksyon.com.

The Industrial Design graduate also became part of the first batch of students of the Philippine Footwear Academy in Marikina City. Custodio forayed into footwear through stilettos, then ventured into men’s shoes and leather accessories.
In 2013, after a year of prototyping, he launched “Macolet,” baby shoes made of scrap leather. Predictably, it was received with excitement and a string of “OMGs.” These footwear for tots still bear Custodio’s preference for color blocking and a contemporary, architectural aesthetic.

Shoes for ladies and babies by Maco Custodio. Photo by AC Dimatatac, InterAksyon.com.

“It’s amazing when you design something and see it in reality. I think it’s a wonderful feeling,” he told InterAksyon.com.
4. Skull sculptures/bags by Michelline Syjuco

Michelline Syjuco with one of her skull bags. Photo by AC Dimatatac, InterAksyon.com.

A sculptor born into an artistic family, Syjuco uses an acetylene torch, a sander, a grinder, pliers, hammers, and screwdrivers to come up with her distinct brand of accessories. “I’m inspired a lot by sword and sorcery, fantasy movies,” she told InterAksyon.com. The collection she launched in February is the same she is presenting at Manila Wear, which features, among Game of Thrones-worthy jewels, skull sculptures which double as bags.
The collection is titled “Theater of the Mind”, where she explores her themes and inspirations along with the “inner workings” of her mind. The skull as a symbol of mortality and as appropriated by pop culture is one such insight.
5. Jewelry sourced from nature by Silnag Native Handicrafts

Business is a family affair for Nida Danao, who is shown here (on the right) with her mother-in-law. Photo by AC Dimatatac for InterAksyon.com.

Part of the Kankanaey tribe of Benguet, Nida Danao learned to make jewelry from her grandparents, who used materials such as pigs’ teeth to turn into necklaces. No animal bones or carabao horns went to waste when the beasts died, as, together with shells, wood, and seeds, they are turned into accessories.
Danao presents these in her “raw earth” collections, which are in great demand abroad. She began her venture with her husband and their family in 2006 during a trip to the United States, where they used their vacation as an opportunity to exhibit a few pieces, as well.
“The market loves it,” she told InterAksyon.com. Locally, Rustan’s carries the biodegradable pieces she designs and that are influenced by life in the Cordillera mountains.
6. Accessories and apparel by Red Box designers

Clothes designed by Yves Camingue are on show at Manila Wear, March 14 to 17, 2014 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City. Photo by AC Dimatatac, InterAksyon.com.

To develop the next generation of talents, the Department of Trade and Industry’s Center for International Trade and Expositions (CITEM) in partnership with the Garments and Textile Industry Development Office came up with the Red Box program.
Young designers are mentored—in this case, by Layug—and matched with local manufacturers to create fresh products featuring indigenous materials together.
Presenting accessories are Rencie Santos (Nu-Cast and shell), Earl Gariando (brass and foil), Sheila Damaerio (minaudieres), Angela Angeles (jewelry and clutches), Neil Felipp (raffia and snakeskin bags), and Jaggy Glarino (metal jewelry). Glarino and Rei Escario are presenting their designs for apparel while Joco Comendador and Ronald Ramiro are presenting their designs for footwear.
7. “Kulisap” by Renan Pacson

Renan Pacson presents the softer side of urban wear in his Kulisap collection. Photo by AC Dimatatac, InterAksyon.com.

Formerly an assistant designer for a couture shop in Dubai, Pacson is transitioning from gowns to “the softer side of urbanwear”. This style is reflected in his insect-inspired collection, where silhouettes are similar to that of salagubangand the clothes capture the fragility of the moth. Pacson favors basic T-shirts and pants, which he reinvents to exude an air of “underground, Scandinavian, cool kids on the block”. He enjoys playing with volume and seams, and now creates streetwear for the tropics.
The Red Box designer said he learned valuable lessons from Layug, particularly the golden rule of editing.
8. “Antelusia” by Yves Camingue

Cebu designer Yves Camingue. Photo by AC Dimatatac for InterAksyon.com.

Prompted by a photo of the Sta. Maria church in Marbella, Spain, the Red Box designer combined piña silk with modern fabrics to come up with “Antelusia.” Its sportswear shapes and Spanish influences are all part of Camingue’s creative process, wherein he fantasizes about places he has never been to before and recreates them through clothes.
It was the first time for the Project Runway Philippines alum to show his designs in Manila for something other than a competition. Just like in the contest, he was able to come up with a design in a short time. Here, he was only given two and a half weeks to concoct his play on silk cocoons which adorn the clothes.
The Mass Communication graduate said he tried to appeal to the “contemporary lady with urban references”, and wanted them to look “fragrant and classic”.
9. Leather and pearl meet Yakan fabric

Martha Rodriguez enjoys putting together indigenous fabrics and luxurious materials. Photo by AC Dimatatac, InterAksyon.com.

An avid promoter of Mindanao, Red Box designer Martha Rodriguez is used to combining local handwoven fabrics into her line of bags, VESTI.
For Manila Wear, she partnered with Chelsi Leathershop to create bags and minaudieres made of leather and Yakan fabric from Zamboanga. She also collaborated with Astolia Jewelry Arts to incorporate their metalworks with a rose-gold finish into bags and minaudieres with Yakan fabric, pearl, and faux fish skin.
Mentored by Layug, she learned that instead of going overboard in an attempt to make a good impression, it was better to be oneself.
10. Weaves of the Philippines

Traditional weaves like piña get a fresh spin with new designs and colors created by young designers in collaboration with local weavers. Photo by AC Dimatatac, InterAksyon.com.

Manila FAME wanted to make visitors aware of the country’s many weaving traditions, which was why there were live demonstrations by the makers of abel from Ilocos Sur, banig of Samar, piña of Aklan, and t’nalak of South Cotabato and Davao.