Photographed by Kim Santos
Mich Dulce
Untitled“We have so many incredible materials and craft methods in the Philippines, and they’re really something to explore and use with pride.”
“We have so many incredible materials and craft methods in the Philippines, and they’re really something to explore and use with pride.”
Designer and milliner Mich Dulce explores the thread of connectivity that weaves through her past work and her love of Filipino craft.
Mich Dulce doesn’t sketch. Her hands pin, drape, and layer fabric straight onto the form to fashion a piece she might see in her mind. It’s a tactile process that requires an eye for shape; her meticulous gestures are geared toward finding a balance between structure and fluidity.
The designer and milliner plays with the fabric, if only to see what works. It’s evident in her piece exhibited at Vogue Threads: Paris 2024 in Paris; she used piña, tnalak, and sinamay to spiral down her maquette in cascading layers, almost to the effect of the airy lightness of tulle. “My goal was to make a modern piece that utilized these [materials], much like the full-size clothing that I make,” she says. “I just like the integration of Filipino materials and silhouettes into global shapes.”
As she often starts on a piece by directly working with material, her choices for this piece were intentional. “I work with a lot of piña and tnalak,” she says. “They are staples in my collections and also key fibers in Filipino craft.” And craft was the main emphasis for this project, she notes, tied to both her personal work and how she chose to answer the brief given to her: “A representation of the Philippine Archipelago.”
“I used piña, but in its different forms—from plain to callado and the different types of embroidery,” she says. “I used tnalak and sinamay, and incorporated it with millinery methods for [both] the garment and hat.” She notes that both piña and abaca, which tnalak and sinamay is made from, are also frequently used in millinery. “As a milliner, I wanted to pay tribute to the craft of millinery, which the Philippines is a key player in,” she adds. “We have so many incredible materials and craft methods in the Philippines and it’s really something to explore and use with pride.”
The end silhouette is one that feels “quite archival” for the designer. But, in her collections, Dulce has always been one to continually reference her body of work, anyway; even her last collection—similarly left untitled, as she told Vogue Philippines she prefers not to—referenced her last runway presentation in 2002. There are always traces of her designed past in her newer pieces, including this one, which “has many of my trademark silhouettes, like the layering, the draping, the puffy and voluminous sleeves, and, of course, bows and a hat.”
On its second anniversary, Vogue Philippines invites homegrown and global creatives to Vogue Threads, an experience that weaves Philippine culture, creativity, and community into the world. Its inaugural edition celebrates Filipino artistry and heritage, through an exhibit featuring the works of designers from the islands of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.
Photographed by Kim Santos. Art Director: Jann Pascua.
