Fashion Philippines stole a limelight at Maison & Objet at Paris Design Week

(Image grabbed from ABS-CBN News)

 

Filipino fashion accessory companies showcased unique products at Maison et Objet Paris, an international trade fair at the Parc des Exposition in Villepinte this September.

With the theme Fashion Philippines “Reimagined Traditions,” Fashion Philippines, a project of the Philippines’ Department of Trade and Industry-Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (DTI-Citem), showcased a collection of accessories that focused on the theme “Reimagined Traditions,” a tribute to Philippine cultural practices.

Ten exhibitors shared the famed space at the Maison et Objet Paris – Ann Ong, Beatriz, Crystal Seas, Floreia, Kitsilver Jewelry, Larone Crafts, Megabijoux Inc., Mia Arcenas, Michelline Syjuco and ZAI Design Hive. They all showcased wide-ranged collection of fashion bags and jewelry using metals, indigenous and organic materials like shells, grass and tree trunks. Some used upcycled materials, while others utilized patented technology using paper.

Chiqui Veneracion, representative of Maison et Objet Philippine office, said that the biannual trade fair for professionals dedicated to lifestyle, decoration and design is not a platform for everybody.

“I am very fortunate to be given the opportunity to be able to promote the Philippines, give a platform which is the M&O because it’s a platform that is already branded and the whole world knows it and to be in it is actually showing the quality of work that we do and the kind of innovation that we have in design and creativity which is very Filipino,” said Veneracion.

She acknowledged the efforts of the government through the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM), the attached agency of the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), which is in-charge of export promotion, for assisting the 10 companies.

Each piece showcased in Maison et Objet was handcrafted and unique.

“No two items will be exactly alike,” said Bianca Monson-Cueva, Beatriz representative and Paris resident, “because every piece is purely handmade.”

The ten Philippine fashion brands will also be present in Manila FAME, a twice a year lifestyle event in the Philippines which houses more than 100 suppliers from different categories for home, decor, gifts and fashion, from October 20 to 22, 2016.

According to a CITEM representative, Reimagined Traditions is a sort of a preview to what Philippines can offer through Manila FAME.

 

Source: news.abs-cbn.com, lifestyle.inquirer.net