Festive Files: Home Alone & Hot Chocolate with Yana Kalaw

With red outfits, handmade hats, and a fridge stocked with her own Christmas ham, Yana Kalaw mixes playful traditions with cozy celebrations at home.

This holiday season, Vogue Philippines speaks to designer and artist Yana Kalaw for Festive Files, a series on how Filipino creatives celebrate Christmas. She shares the personal and family traditions that define her holiday celebrations.

What’s your favorite thing about Christmas in the Philippines?

I think my favorite thing is the excitement leading up to Christmas, when people put up Christmas trees four months before December. And the food; puto bumbong and bibingka are always present leading up to the holidays.

Do you have any holiday traditions that are unique to your family?

I don’t think we have unique holiday tradition per se, but when I first created my hats, we’ve begun wearing them for our family Christmas pictures.

What’s the one Filipino Christmas food you can’t live without?

Puto bumbong, definitely, and Christmas ham! I usually have my own Christmas ham at home. [Laughs] Perfect for my sandwiches.

How do you usually spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day?

I usually reserve my Christmas Eve and Christmas Day for my family. We eat lots of good food, and just catch up and unwind.

Are there any childhood holiday memories that still make you smile?

I remember my lola making her tablea hot chocolate, and we sip it and wait for Santa. It’s such a warm memory and I just love it.

What’s your go-to Christmas or New Year outfit?

My go-to christmas outfit is usually a good, red fit with stockings, or an ugly Christmas sweater, just to get that mood going.

Do you have any favorite holiday songs or movies that you watch every year?

“Baby It’s Cold Outside” and “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” definitely. Always loved watching Home Alone, too. It reminds you of how important your family is to you, especially this time of the year.

Are there any New Year’s Eve rituals or superstitions you follow?

We follow the usual 12-13 round fruits on the table rule; [our family] never really knows if it it is 12 or 13, so we just get more fruit just in case. Throwing coins on the floor and wearing polka dots for prosperity are the main things we usually do.