Shopping locally and choosing sustainably made clothing are practices that have a profound impact on both our communities and the environment. When we shop locally, we support the livelihoods of our neighbors, contributing to the economic vitality of our community. 

Sustainable clothing, on the other hand, is made with eco-friendly materials and ethical labor practices. It reduces the carbon footprint associated with long-distance transportation and combats the fast fashion industry's strain on resources and labor conditions.

Never fear, because I have rounded up a list of Filipino fashion labels that consciously make sustainable and ethical decisions in their production processes. There are so many Filipino-owned fashion brands that use technologically advanced, recycled, repurposed fabric and materials to create stylish garments for different occasions that are built to last years, not seasons – and they look damn good too.

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Popular for using the traditional signature piña and cocoon silk pin-tucked fabric, its designs are with timeless charm and not shy in mixing tradition and modern details.

Named after the designer's two daughters, Style Ana is an independent Filipino fashion brand celebrated for its contemporary designs that incorporate traditional Filipino silhouettes. The brand utilizes locally sourced textiles and collaborates with a local team of skilled seamstresses in the Philippines.

Created by the French humanitarian Aurore Roiland, and her daughter Marjorie de los Reyes, Liwayway PH is a local premium fashion and homeware brand that sells handcrafted items and fashionable pieces with Filipino modern flair. 

A desire to create beautiful pieces drove the designer Joseph Bagasao to major in fashion. He trained at the Fashion Institute of the Philippines and was awarded “Designer of the Year” upon graduating. He shuffled between Manila and New York to undertake internships before landing a job as an embroidery designer for a New York-based women’s ready-to-wear, couture, and sleepwear brand Josie Natori. Bagasao has always been concerned with environmental and ethical issues within the fashion industry.

Rica Rico is a Filipino fashion designer known for creating dainty, and demure womenswear while getting inspiration from modern girl trad wife styling. Expecting to release her latest collection of feminine womenswear inspired by a painting titled “Maiden in a Flower Garden’ by the work of Filipino national artist Fernando Amorsolo.

PamPinay is a collection of high-quality, limited edition wearable art that showcases 100% Filipino-made crafts aimed to promote social entrepreneurship, sustainability, and responsible branding through the playful illustration of Filipino culture, heritage, and traits in the pop art genre.

YNDAN is a Filipino, female-founded clothing label that champions slow fashion among the community through its collaboration with local artisans from Indang, Cavite Philippines. Made of 100% cotton material, YNDAN continues to bridge Filipino culture and community through clothing as they embrace the slow fashion brand and support local artisans by preserving the local cultural traditions of handloom weaving. 

Filipino-American designer Anne Marie Robicheau Saguil is passionate about delving into the art of Filipino embroidery and the principles of sustainable slow fashion. Hence, she founded AMARIE, a brand with a broader mission to honor Filipino craftsmanship, support livelihoods, and positively influence her cherished Philippines.

Founded by Dianne Ursais, this independent womenswear label specializes in unique creations through unconventional processes, techniques, and textile manipulation. The brand offers custom-made, contemporary avant-garde streetwear crafted from handcrafted and upcycled materials.

Kinabuhi offers ready-to-wear fashion items crafted from upcycled high-quality second-hand garments, surplus fabrics, and remnants, paired with modern handwoven textiles made from Philippine cotton and abaca fibers. The brand partners with a community of indigenous handloom weavers to create designs that are deeply embedded in Philippine cultural heritage.

Gabriel Buenabajo, a graduate of a prestigious design school in the Philippines, has been likened to Daniel Roseberry of Schiaparelli for his innovative work with the traditional 'pukpuk' art form, in collaboration with local church artisans. His latest creations, crafted from upcycled denim textiles, were showcased at the recent Rampa Manila event.

Filipino designer Happy Andrada, who studied fashion at Central Saint Martins in London, has garnered numerous accolades. Her awards include the National Commission for Culture and the Arts' Ani Ng Dangal in Visual Art 2018, International Artist of the Year 2017 at the International Fashion Art Biennale in Seoul, Korea, Miami Fashion Week's International Emerging Designer, FDCP's Weaving the Future, and recognition from GoNegosyo.

Established by the ingenious local fashion designer Victor Baguilat Jr., Kandama Collective is a social enterprise dedicated to preserving the art of handloom weaving and offering social and economic opportunities to the women weavers and artisans of Julongan Village in Kiangan, Ifugao.

Meaning ‘Goddess’ or ‘lady’ in the Hiligaynon language, Lin-ay is a collection of contemporary Filipiniana pieces made by women for women using handwoven textiles from all over the region of the Philippines, with its brainchild and local fashion designer Binky Pitogo. All pieces are custom-made locally using sustainable materials and Philippine textiles such as the local cotton hablon, a tropical fabric produced entirely within the Western Visayas region— it uses natural cotton fibers sourced from local farmers, processed by a regional yarn facility, and handwoven by artisan communities.

Founded in 2012 by Iris Ceneta based in Legazpi City Albay. Her bespoke brand Habi PH is dedicated to sustainability, producing handcrafted garments with naturally sourced colors, and working with the region’s grassroots, Ceneta has been creating a fair-trade ecosystem that produces modern pieces using traditional materials such as the use of abaca fiber aka Manila hemp. 

If you know a local independent Filipino brand, and you want it to be included in our list, kindly email us at forurbanwomen@gmail.com

For more information on finding independent Filipino fashion and lifestyle brands, head here.

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