Paloma Zobel champions filipino weaves
MANILA, Philippines — A music video sets the tone. A woman who looks how you would imagine a diwata to look in broad daylight makes her way through tropical woods and fields — and she isn’t languid about it, as folklore would have you believe. She is in fact dancing to Pastat Groove and The Hernandez Brothers, waving her salakot to emphasize her movement. She is full of life. And she’s making her way to… somewhere.
The Piopio woman as defined by Paloma Urquijo Zobel, — creative, well traveled, with her eyes open to the wonders of the world — is characteristically drawn to the sensory experience of contemporary festivals like Burning Man and Wonderfruit. For holiday season, Piopio draws our hearts back to our heritage of celebration, the Filipino fiesta of Masskara and Dinagyan, and the result is evocative of it and not just because it once again champions Filipino weaves.
It’s overalls, twinsets of universally flattering crop tops and off-shoulder tops worn with a sarong intertwined with bottoms, wide-leg pants, and flared skirts — they stand out from the crowd. It’s being dressed for the occasion of celebration, but it also gives you the comfort to be one with it all, from the dancing to the lounging.
The development and use of new technical details show us that Paloma is serious about taking our traditional weaves and craftsmanship into contemporary dress. It’s in the stitching details and the treatments, it’s in Inabel mixed with Piopio’s denim — notably on a spunky fringed denim jacket and skirt set. Each weave sewn together to create each piece is a proffering of slightly different patterns across every fiber used in garment construction.
Shoes, too, are introduced in the collection: fringed suede leather booties that protect your stompers from the ever-changing terrain of festival season. With every footloose model, the fringe sways.
Ben Chan, Paloma Zobel and her mother Bea Zobel Jr. dancing to The Hernandez Brothers, models shimmying with pure levity, all reverberating with an energy so contagious the audience sways and bops along, smiling, even grinning — what an experience! Piopio’s runway debut at Bench Fashion Week was pure joy and the two couldn’t have been a better match. #LoveLocal is deep in both brands’ DNA — and it’s high time our heritage of traditional weaves went global, too. Now, doesn’t that call for a fiesta?
