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Our homes are filled with precious memories from family vacations, souvenirs from the flea markets and family photographs. The Coronavirus pandemic has affected our way of living, spending more time at home with family, security and wellbeing has become the priority, while access to travel and experience of other cultures has been removed. Yearning for my homeland, I embarked on a personal journey to explore the feeling of warmth and comfort I missed, using it as an opportunity to show a sense of place through appreciation of Philippines’ traditional textile techniques.

Using weave and lino printing as mediums, this project aims to develop a ‘hygge’ inspired home décor collection. Bringing together motifs from old travel photographs, taken in my home country to encapsulate the feeling of escapism and memories of home. I decided upon a mid-century modern approach, incorporating a combination of traditional hand-crafted techniques to inspire the project and begin my visual research. This interior textile collection takes inspiration from the wood-cut prints, famous in certain provinces of the Philippines. They symbolise protection from evil spirits and bad omens, traditional wooden carvings are sold in tourist markets as the Filipinos are proud of their creations. Using Lino printing captures the cut lines of the carvings, this technique also relates to the concept of comfort, reassuring people with familiar symbols of protection. While using printed textiles, capturing fabric qualities and different colours ways, the collection also aims to embrace the ancient craftsmanship of weaving.

Balikbayan’s target market is the young, culture conscious and boho minimalist. Aimed at the generation between 25 and 35. They have a young spirit that finds a thrill in travelling and a recognition of culture and tradition. Their homes reflect their personality, mid-century, modern and minimalist, with an appreciation for texture and colour. The subtle textural and surface qualities of the collection, reflect the feeling of warmth and reassurance I enjoy when returning home to Philippines after a long period away.