#LifeLokal: PNay makes clothing out of indigenous fabrics to keep traditions alive
Preserving traditions are important for teaching the next generation about our shared past. But with the ever-evolving fast-paced world that we live in, some are sadly slowly being forgotten.
Zamboanga native Pamela Meily, who used to frequent the Yakan village in her younger years, noticed that there has been a decline in interest from the younger generation.
“The younger people didn't seem [to be] interested in it. Who could blame them? It's a back-breaking exercise that was not very much appreciated and so they got very little money for it selling placemats, table napkins and coin purses,” she told PhilSTAR L!fe.
“At the back of my mind, there was always the worry that this weaving tradition would disappear,” she shared.
And so in 2018, when she had more time at her hands, she decided to launch PNay, a clothing brand that makes use of indigenous, hand-woven fabrics.
“The idea was for the fabric to be wearable for everyday wear and not just on ‘Filipiniana’ day. That way, we create a demand for it and will be able to keep the weaving tradition alive.”
Aside from Yakan fabric, they use piña from Aklan, hablon from Miag'ao and Negros, and embroidered clothing made in Lumban, Laguna.
Pamela shared that she and her team took a basic one-week hand-weaving course at PTRI (Philippine Textile Research Institute) in Taguig to really appreciate the fabrics.
“We were all already aware of how tedious hand-weaving could be but nothing prepared us for it. We were already on our 3rd day of class and we were still just setting up the threads! That experience really raised our appreciation for hand-woven fabrics even higher!” she said.
Continue reading below to learn more about Pamela’s clothing brand, PNay, is moving to promote local indigenous fabric.
What’s the story behind your brand’s name?
We wanted a simple name that says it all: Pinay, a colloquial term for Filipina, because want it to be an ‘everyday’ thing. But Pinay was already taken as a brand name, so we did an iteration and made it: P*Nay.
How does your Filipino heritage/culture influence your brand values and identity?
Our being hospitable and family-oriented as a people is projected in our brand. We want our clients to really love and be happy with their PNay clothing so we try to be as accommodating as we possibly can.
Our customer satisfaction is paramount. We hope our clients feel the warmth when we engage with them whether in person or virtually. We run our business like we are all part of one big family. In our workshop, we all take our lunch together in one big dining table. We treat everyone in our team like family.
There are so many competitive brands within the world of fashion right now, how do you make your brand stand out from the rest?
For PNay, the fabric is always the focal point. It is the fabric that dictates the design. Our goal is always to maintain the integrity of the fabric. We keep the silhouettes simple because we want to cut as little of the fabric as possible. We know how much time it takes to weave these fabrics so we want to keep as much of it as we can.
What obstacles have you faced whilst creating your brand and how have you overcome them?
Because we are dealing with things that are done manually (hand-woven fabrics and hand-guided embroideries), the challenge is always time. I would tell people, working with hand-woven fabrics is a lesson in patience. It takes time to weave these fabrics because they are woven by people and not machines that you can keep running for 24 hours non-stop if you have a deadline to meet.
These are woven by mothers who have to take care of their kids; by aunts who have to cook for the family; by sisters who have a class to attend. So PATIENCE is key.
Logistics is also a challenge. The process is peripatetic. The threads come from the source to a jump-off point then by sea to an island and then up the mountains to the weavers and then back down the mountain, by sea to the jump-off point before it gets to the workshop to be put together.
Keeping the designs fresh and keeping the brand interesting is always a challenge. As in any business, we have to evolve constantly. There are times when one is inspired and the designs just keep flowing; but there are days when ideas are hard to come by.
What role do you think social media plays in fashion/beauty/lifestyle today?
Social media is central in establishing trends these days especially in fashion, beauty and lifestyle. It constantly bombards us with visuals 24/7 – it’s hard not to be influenced by what's being posted. We felt the effect of it, first-hand, during the pandemic.
An influencer with millions of followers posted a photo of herself wearing one of our jackets and tagged us. That single post brought in sales that helped tide us over during the pandemic.
How do you want your customers to feel when they're wearing your products?
We want them to feel that they are telling a story through their clothes. That what they wear is a reflection of who they are—a reflection of their pride in being a Filipina, a reflection of their support for the weavers and the craftsmen, and a reflection of the respect they have for the traditions of the tribes that weave the fabrics.