Our Buntal Story
Growing up in a family of weavers in a village north of the Philippines, my growing up years were as much about using my hands for play as it was for crafts. I wake up to the sound of exotic plant fibers being hauled and I have been lulled to sleep countless nights by the soothing, rhythmic sound of handmade decorations getting stacked.
It was always joyful seeing strands of ethnic straw fibers gently transforming into objects of function and beauty and the pride in witnessing craftsmen and weavers hold their prized creations has been into my consciousness as far back as I can remember.
And now, more than 40 years since the very first strand of Buntal fiber was hand woven in our workshop, I am ready and very excited to share this passion with you.
A respect for an exotic natural gift of life
What is Buntal? It is a natural and organic fiber from large leaves of abundant palm trees that are grown sustainably in the Philippines. We principally work with this material along with other natural fibers such as Abaca, Raffia, Pineapple, Silk, and Sinamay.
Extra care has been taken to ensure that the plants are protected in the process of extracting the fibres.
Each piece of fiber is then meticulously handwoven to create a unique and natural textile that respects its origin. Each object is imprinted with its own history and the mark of the weaver.
Inspired by
Latin & Asian designs and techniques
The heart of our atelier where we manufacture our objects and decorations is a family run business. It was founded in 1975 by my parents, each one playing a vital contribution: my mother who has a passion for natural materials and the skills for handcrafting, my father who has the technical and engineering expertise necessary for creating the tools and hand looms that we continue to use.
Today we employ highly skilled weavers and craftsmen from nearby towns and communities who have been sharing our passion for several years.
With stable employment, they are given the chance to share their skills and create truly inspiring crafts and decorations appreciated the world over.
Abaca is a fine and naturally durable fiber extracted from a species of banana tree native in the Philippines.
Buntal straw are strands which are long and rigid fibers extracted from the leaves of a Philippine native palm tree.
Raffia is a thin and usually broad fiber recovered from stems of a palm trees which fall off after fruiting.
Manual and refined preparation of the thread base before hand weaving our textiles.
We create our beautiful textiles uniquely in our home-made and traditional hand looms.
Each of our creations is a product of a meticulous and precise hand crafting process.
Honoring
culture and tradition for over 40 years
Throughout the years, we expanded our atelier’s size to accommodate orders and continuously innovated our products and designs while preserving our traditional and artisanal techniques.
We are committed to preserve our respect towards nature, satisfy standards and provide a positive work environment as required by several clients such as Donna Karan New York, L’Oreal Paris, Armani Casa Italy, Asiaphile Los Angeles, Monies Denmark, Hermon and Hermon Australia.
Our unique passion has also landed our products into several media publications such as Style with Elsa Klensch (1996), Tropical Living Magazine (2000), Autumn in New York Movie (2000) and Oprah Magazine.
Angelo
Handmade textiles & decorations from natural materials.
Scene from Autumn in New York (2000)
Handmade ribbons made with Abaca with Gold Glitters for promotions and POS materials of Giorgio Armani - Si fragrances Christmas 2015 campaign.
Front cover with classy tropical and fiery orange draperies in abaca.