Kabalikat

Kabalikat is a notion of being linked by the arms. (In Filipino) This is how the workers at our factory refer to each other. It is a sense of family and camaraderie.

When I first started apprenticing at the factory, there was a disconnect and unfamiliarity. But as time went on, as I constantly showed up, the team would eventually “let me in”. Most workers at the factory have been there for some 20 years, and they’ve developed not only a specialisation in their craft but also a sense of belonging. I learned from each team member their part in the production process but also about their families and their lives.

Ola, is the master pattern and sample maker (my teacher), Jimmy is the cutter, always decked out in silver and a smile, Ate V (in Filipino = big sister V) is the skiver, which prepares newly cut panels for construction, Genny is our sample seamstress, absolutely masterful and precise.