This month, Vogue Philippines’ seasonal edit includes local designers such as Proudrace, Bagasáo, and Golden Monstera in plaids and laissez-faire drapes.
In the last scene of The Wizard of Oz, after a whirlwind adventure in a magical land, Dorothy finds herself back in Kansas, surrounded by her family, and says, “There’s no place like home.” It’s a cliché expression but a very earnest and universal one.
Our homes, to most, are comfort zones, built and dressed in the locally-sourced or far way cargo-ship imports. These spaces chronicle the lives of its occupants in form and function, being an infinite source of inspiration for creatives across the world. On average, we spend 62% of our time in our households, 10 hours a day to be exact, and it’s no wonder fashion designers constantly riff and reference the domestic sphere.
Rick Owens’ shop floors and designs embody his brutalist dens, you can live the Armani life in his suits and suites, and you can watch videos analyzing every interior detail in Coco Chanel’s apartment: decoding the brand’s language with the CCs, wheat, camellias, and lions littering the historic quarters in splendor.
Below, we have assembled our shopping list of local homegrown Filipino brands to support, champion, and shop in the comfort of your own home.
Life of the party
For New Year’s, featherlight drapes that let you focus on what matters: raising a glass when sparks fly at midnight.
Back home, Filipino designers are playing with interior archetypes in fashion design, like Martin Bautista’s clothes that drape upon the body and flow in the breeze. Linear tones of magenta spill across the body, and circular twists and knots of cream accentuate and celebrate the female form.
Hearthbound
Checkered accents bring you home for the holidays, to the warmth of plaid pajamas, evergreen leaves, and twinkling star lanterns.
Last summer, Proudrace’s Rik Rasos presented an artisanal collection at BYS Fashion Week, recontextualizing the home delivery of “emotions tied to the excitement of opening a balikbayan box” with a selection of deconstructionist designs. A highlight was a reworked trench coat, made from multi-panels of thrifted gabardine, with shirt-collar sleeves and a monarch court train.
The study wardrobe
For the wallflower who loves to stay at home, wear loose garments, robust leather shoes, and capacious bag for the solitary commute to the library.
Carl Jan Cruz offered his vision of Filipino design in “International Interbarangay,” a tribute to the brand’s sartorial philosophy and visual alphabet. We saw archetypal CJC designs in comforting domestic fabrics, leisurewear and habitual materials formed into accessories. After a decade in the industry, he’s firmly established a brand with a clear message, giving his audience the opportunity to feel at home, in the homegrown.
Photographs by RENZO NAVARRO. Styling and shopping edit by NEIL DE GUZMAN. Makeup: Pam Robes. Hair: Mong Amado. Model: Pam Prinster. Producer: Julian Rodriguez. Stylist’s Assistants: Aliane Tan, Divine Lorenzo, Ticia Almazan.