Eyes on the Pineapple: Piña Pride

Seeing our country’s own pineapple fiber (piña)  put to greater use in fashion beyond the usual and traditional route has always been a source of national pride for me. In the past few years, Tan-Gan (known for their knits) has been incorporating piña into their designs. I find myself featuring more of their pieces for my fashion editorial shoots in the past few years as I love the modern and edgy twist they’ve provided to this classic material.

A shoot for Asian Dragon's wedding issue a couple of years ago with sisters, Danielle and Danica (before she won the Ford's Supermodel of the World title) & Ela; photography by Pat Dy.
Bridesmaids: A shoot for Asian Dragon’s wedding issue a couple of years ago with sisters, Danielle and Danica (right before she won the Ford’s Supermodel of the World title) & Ela. Photography by Pat Dy.

These gorgeous ensembles above (featured in Asian Dragon Magazine) are pretty innovative as piña is combined with Tan-Gan’s trademark hand-loomed knits. Another great feature is that they’re easy to pack in your luggage for those destination weddings, whether you’re the guest, the bridesmaid or (congratulations!) the bride-to-be. They are to be folded a certain way in order to maintain its shape.

A couple years later, I found myself showcasing more of Tan-Gan’s pieces for another Asian Dragon bridal shoot (many thanks to the wonderful editor for these special Asian Dragon bridal issues, the uber-stylish Liza Ilarde) with a Chinese engagement party theme….

Photography by Lilen Uy.
Photography by Lilen Uy.

And here are some of my behind-the-scene photos of Tan-Gan’s pieces during this shoot. Kindly click on an image for a larger view.

Some of the final images for this fashion photo story….

And this outfit below included a piña vest worn over a black knit dress for the cover of High Life Magazine’s October/November 2012 issue. I combined the wearable look with a fantastic headpiece by Albert Andrada, Kermit Tesoro’s skull heels and a bright yellow clutch by Bowery all for added drama.

Organic Futuristic

I love visiting their shop at Greenbelt 5….

If you’re lucky enough, you’ll get to bump into the lovely and vivacious Jessica Tan-Gan, who manages the PR and marketing for this wonderful brand.

Jessica Tan-Gan

And while you still can, 20% off at Tan-Gan/L Manila, Greenbelt 5 until July 14!

Based from my more recent works, other purveyors of the piña include….

As I catch up on my “reading” at my friendly neighborhood salon, this catches my eye….

Oliver Tolentino

Piña power.

More of my Instragram photos on Tan-Gan @helloandgoodeye…. Follow me!

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