RESEARCH DATA:

This textile is a contemporary variation of a balikes, a belt worn by men for everyday use which they tie around their waist and hold small objects (Cole, 1922). It features multiple white embroideries locally called as the sinan-ramay (finger-like), or kuko-palay (fingernails and rice stalks) (Respicio, 2015), which are reminiscent of the traditional embroidery used in Itneg or Tingguian skirts and blankets. Embroidery is an observed weaving tradition in the community with motifs ranging from frogs (tokak), rice plants (pagay), mountains, aside from the finger or nail-like motifs. These embroideries are set on a rich indigo background; dyed using a vegetable dyestuff called the tayum.

REFERENCES:

Cole, F.C. (1922). The Tinguian: social, religious, and economic life of a Philippine tribe. Publications of the Field Museum of Natural History. Anthropological series, 14(2), 231–493.

Respicio, N. A. (2015). Design techniques and weaving centers. In Inabel: Philippine textile from the Ilocos Region, 48-143. Artpostasia.