It’s typically used for blankets, bed sheets, or curtains. But that’s not just what Inabel is all about.

Indigenous to the Ilocos region, Inabel is the Ilocano term for handwoven or "hinabi" in Tagalog.

This traditional fabric recently took centerstage at a benefit fashion show held at Sitio Remedios, Heritage Resort in Currimao, Ilocos Norte.

It featured the designs of Edgar Madamba inspired by 1950s fashion — flowing skirts and tight tops in romantic reds, soothing blues, and dramatic grays and blacks.

“We can treat Inabel just like treating any other fabric. We always wanted to be global. This can be global by doing this,” Madamba said.

Meanwhile, broadcaster and former reporter Niña Corpuz has taken up designing children’s wear. Her first collection is divided into three sets: Summer Sun, which brings out the bright colors of Inabel; Summer Blues, which features more subdued shades of blue; and Summer Moon, which brings a touch of classic dark hues to children’s wear.

“I wanted to show that an indigenous fabric like Inabel is also fun and fashionable not just for adults but for children too,” said Corpuz, who is expecting her third child in September.

The benefit fashion show was spearheaded by art patron and philantropist Dr. Joven Cuanang to celebrate the textiles made by a living national treasure: 93-year old Magdalena Gamayo, a Gawad Manlilikha ng Bayan (GAMABA) awardee for Inabel weaving.

Gamaya has inspired her neighbors in a poor barangay in Pinili, Ilocos Norte to take interest in traditional loom-weaving. From the initial three weavers some years back, there are now 15 of them,
including a 13-year-old girl.

Speaking in Ilocano, she admitted it is hard to teach younger people now to make Inabel as they seem obsessed with their cellphones and computers.

But she hopes that through this renewed interest in her work, she will be able to convince the young to take up the craft.

Meanwhile, Dr. Cuanang also pushed for the revival of the cotton industry, saying: “We used to be a big cotton producing country, then it disappeared.”

He convinced a number of local farmers to grow cotton instead of tobacco by providing the seeds and water pumps required for irrigation.

From two hectares in 2016, there are now 25 hectares of land where cotton is being grown. With more support, this is is expected to further expand.

“This particular fashion show is very important to raise funds to help out the cotton farmers develop the cotton into fiber and threads so we don’t have to buy from India and China,” said Cuanang.

“The new ethos, meaning the new consciousness of environmentally conscious people all over the world is to go global and produce something local, something that is handwoven and something that is located in a community, and the community you’re helping will be able to improve socio-economically from this particular project,” he added.