About
this shop is in flux and will feature a mixture of self made one off pieces and philippine made textiles that represent my family heritage. currently it focuses on work I started in 2016 with Ilocano weavers and my family. my personal intent follows:
- to keep learning
- to teach others about an overlooked culture
- to expose younger filipinos and filipino americans to the wealth in culture they already have
- to respectfully put “handicrafts” / “crafts” in a new context
- to help support small communities
- to set an example for the future
- to give beauty to the home, which is the truest expression of oneself
tracing back to the 1400s, "kusikus" is a spiritual motif native to ilocos norte and ilocos sur in the northern philippines. located on the coast, kusikus translates to whirlpool and was used to protect ships and confuse and ward off evil spirits.
from the 1600s, the filipinos and spanish used these textiles as currency for trade and labor. they were understandably treasured for their sturdy quality and distinctive appearance.
the name of the woven cloth itself is called “abel” and the weaving technique is called “binakol”. these pieces are woven in cotton, just as they were back then.
the collection aims to highlight the history and quality of filipino crafts and support the local artisans and their communities. the weavers are based near la union and ilocos sur, philippines.
each piece is produced by all-women artisan collectives with local cotton.