Our very own Christmas top picks
It’s gift-giving time! With Christmas just a few weeks away (surely, the countdown is on), here are some surefire gifts to put a glow in a woman’s heart, which are proudly made in the Philippines by dedicated artisans. Whether you want to keep some for yourself or give them to loved ones, they are definitely top picks for the holidays.
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For your comments and ideas, email the author at jacinto.fa@gmail.com.
“La Porta” clutch in steel gray croc belly skin with gold-plated brass door knocker accent and gold chain
Lally Dizon
Lally Dizon’s crocodile and python bags are fashion classics. Not only are they versatile pieces that can take one from day to night, the artistic touches of semi-precious stone and metal accents are also topnotch with carefully chosen color combinations for the bags’clasps.
Available at Vintage Restore, The Podium (Ortigas); www.lallydizon.com
Cecilia earrings in 14K rose gold with tourmaline posts and dangling lavander jadeite encircled with diamonds , Daniela cuff in 14K white gold with tanzanite, tsavorite, blue sapphires, moonstones, and diamonds
Kristine Dee
Kristine Dee enjoys working with one-of-a-kind and bespoke pieces, updating and developing personal jewelry collections. Her industrial design background is infused with her love for jewelry, beautiful gemstones, and materials. She creates noteworthy pieces to collect and treasure, and combines them with her intense appetite for remarkable aesthetics, function and proportion. Kristine works with precious metals using 14- to 18-karat gold and personally oversees the whole process—from the original concept to the manufacturing and goldsmithing.
Elsa ring in 14kt rose gold with aquamarine marquise center stone, accented with yellow and white diamonds, Leona bangle in 14K yellow gold with tsavorite, tanzanite, blue and violet sapphires, and diamonds
Email: kdeestudio@mail.com; website: www.kristinedee.com.
Black horn necklace interspersed with polished vari-shaped kamagong wood, “Abundance” necklace strung on a leather cord with albino horn edges and brown horn toggle clasp
Nida and John Danao
Silnag’s Nida and John Danao are a hardworking, passionate husband and wife team. Using only organic and natural materials, they have done wonders with accessory designs featuring carabao horn that range in color from jet black to dark to light brown, and the treasured albino which looks like polished ivory. They’re proud to say that these horns are salvaged pieces reworked into handmade items that are exclusively designed by Nida herself. Their workers are trained to do meticulous, detailed work — they shape, polish, and smooth out the tough horns, which are designed with pearls, corals, handsewn leather, kamagong wood, etc.
Prices range from P1,800 to P13,000; available at Rustan’s Makati, Edsa Shangri-La, Alabang Town Center, Ayala Center Cebu.
“Oasis” necklace with thin horn tubes suspended with black leather and red coral dangles , “Born Free” kamagong wood earrings with brown horn links and pear-shaped albino horn drops
Email: john@silnag.com; website: www.silnag.com.
These graphic pop art clutches, with each thread individually glued, take two days to make.
Carissa Cruz Evangelista
Carissa Cruz Evangelista’s Beatriz clutches will definitely be assets to one’s wardrobe with innovations using diverse materials, such as colorful threads that are individually glued to form special pop art designs as well as hammered metal to create multi-dimensional yet sleek forms in matte silver, matte gold, and copper. All clutch bags come in two sizes with prices starting at P6,800.
This sleek Victoria clutch is the 2015 Katha-award winning design of Beatriz Accessories. The thinly hammered metal clutch is available in matte silver, matte gold, and copper.
Available at Firma (Greenbelt 3), Rustan’s Makati, and Beatriz Showroom (tel. 654-3512) .
Grasshoper and baroque pearl clasp accents a T’nalak cloth and crumpled metal clutch bag.
Ann Ong
Ann Ong is a perennial award-winning accessory designer. She always comes up with avant-garde accessories that use the most ordinary of materials, such as bamboo twigs and tree bark, that are mixed with lustrous baroque pearls, semi-precious stones, and gold plated metal to create bags that are truly works of art.
“Bamboo Bird” clutch with a baroque pearl on a bamboo twig bag, with gold metal accents
Available at the Ann Ong boutique, Marco Polo Ortigas Hotel. Email annegianinna@yahoo.com.
