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20 August 2019

Created: 20 August 2019

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TACLOBAN CITY -- Basey, Samar’s high-end woven bags made their debut at a three-day international tradeshow in Las Vegas, Nevada in the United States.
The bags, under the brand Lara, are on display at the "Magic 2019", the biggest tradeshow for emerging brands at the Las Vegas Convention Center on August 12-14. Lara is a local term for weaving.
Lara is one of the products under the "Spark Samar" tourism program launched in 2015. The brand has been selected by Fashion Philippines under Project Women to join the international trading event.
Lara brand manager Yen Pomida-Nacario said they aim to be a top contender in the global market, ultimately bringing the Samar product to the forefront as an iconic fashion staple.
“Lara is one of the Philippine brands handpicked and co-sponsored by (the) Department of Trade and Industry CITEM (Center for International Trade, Exposition and Mission) to join this prestigious event with the goal of turning local products into a top global fashion commodity. We wish our Lara team the very best,” Nacario said in her Facebook post on Wednesday.
“We have challenged our weavers to create designs that could compete in the high-end, global arena -- a challenge the weavers took to heart. 'Spark Samar' pursued the endeavor further toward fashion and lifestyle, creating Lara, a visionary brand, which transforms indigenous materials of Samar into contemporary fashion and lifestyle creations,” she added.
Being showcased in Vegas is a bag embroidered with the Visayan Broadbill, one of the many rare birds indigenous to the rainforests of Samar Island.
The image of the bird was meticulously embroidered using “buri”, a type of soft dried palm, into the original “tikog” (grass) bucket bag with a Bagobo weave.
“The attention that 'Spark Samar' is giving the industry, fuels this eagerness and creativity,” Nacario said.
From the usual bags made of “tikog” grass, weavers are now fusing their products with other indigenous materials, such as “buri” or “pandan” to create a design that reflects the daily lives of the people of Samar.
“Each bag, shoe, accessory, and decor tells a unique story since no two pieces are ever exactly the same. Everything is made with a touch of love,” Nacario said.
“By reinventing the banig (woven mats) into contemporary creations, Lara is saving the industry, thereby becoming a creative design platform weaving a bright future for the people of Samar. Through Lara, communities look forward to long-term sustainable livelihood promoting socio-cultural and environmental awareness while integrating a contemporary handle on tourism through fashion plus style,” she added.
Nacario said with Samar’s products being showcased in the international fashion arena, it became a wonderful representation of a nation that prides itself with the masterful hands of local artisans and with history and tradition, handed down from generation to generation.
Nacario and her team hope that not only Filipinos who live abroad but also foreigners would support their products with the chance given to them to showcase them in the international tradeshow.
"Magic 2019" is a fashion marketplace where buyers find the latest in apparel, footwear, accessories, and manufacturing. (PNA)

Read more: https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1077822

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19 August 2019

Created: 19 August 2019

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“WE are world-class and we belong to the world,” said Consul General Claro Cristobal when we spoke with him after he and the economic team from the Philippine Consulate General New York visited around six booths at the NY NOW, the largest US gift and home decor trade show.
“What can be the most important lesson to learn is that we have what it takes to leapfrog onto the global stage. It only takes ambition. The skill, the talent, the wherewithal, we have that,” he added.
Consul General Claro Cristobal, Special Trade Representative Nicanor Bautista and Consul Arman Talbo with Rome Oamil and Rosemarie Oamil of Mele+Marie at NY NOW. | AJPress photo by Momar G. Visaya
Cristobal, together with Senior Trade Representative Nicanor Bautista, Consul Arman R. Talbo, economic officer, and some staff from the consulate made the rounds and encouraged other retailers and wholesalers to participate in the Manila FAME this coming October 17-19, 2019 and consider buying and distributing Philippine-made and Filipino designed products in the U.S. mainstream market.
Among the booths visited were a mixture of American companies like Kubla and Lily Juliet, importers and distributors of Philippine-made artisan products; Natibo, ATBP and Likha, which are Filipino American owned companies which use hand-loomed, handwoven fabrics indigenous to the Benguet Province in the Philippines and natural, eco-friendly materials including natural straw and plant fiber, coco coir, sustainably-sourced shells, and recycled wood, respectively.
The Boracay Bowl is available for sale at Barney’s and Bloomingdale’s, among other places. Lily Juliet is an importer of products from the Philippines where Joel Levin, its managing director, works with craftsmen to create products from shells and driftwood found in the countryside. | AJPress photo by Momar G. Visaya
If there is one thing that these companies’ Philippine-made and Filipino designed products have in common, it is the fact that each product is made with love and a lot of skill and hard work. Just a quick and cursory look would show its beauty but a much closer and detailed look would reveal each item’s unique characteristics.
Case in point: the Boracay Bowl, sourced through Lily Juliet, sold at Barney’s for $415 and at Bloomingdale’s for $385. Crafted out of driftwood, it is also described as “handmade by craftsmen, no two pieces are alike” and a “statement-making bowl inspired by texture and patterns of driftwood” that can be used as a centerpiece or decorative fruit bowl.

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