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Art Director Rain Ramas: "This Feliciano Ador standard shift dress is dramatically accented with a bow belt made of the inaul fabric from Maguindanao." Inaul is the traditional woven cloth of the Maguindanaon, another indigenous group in Mindanao. Inaul is the Maguindanaoan word for "woven." The bara-bangsa fabric was first woven and worn mostly by the Maguindanao women from the Royal Houses. There are around 20 known original designs of the fabric, including the binaludto (rainbow), makabimban (stripes), panigabi (taro), sinodengan, matampuhay-seko, kawang, sinukipan, and binaludan (wave-like). It usually takes two to four days to make one length of inaul.
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Venus Wears Ador
A Glimpse of the Model,
the Clothes, and the Designer
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 A rise Mindanao was conceptualized by Ador in July 2017 together with Emmie Nazareth, Emily Uy, and Mitz Magtoto to help in Dalsaka Foundation's efforts to promote the livelihood of indigenous peoples (IPs). It is the culmination of years of fund-raising effort, humanitarian work, and fashion design.
It remains to be the means to providing financial support for the education of IP students, seed capital for cottage industries engaged in traditional materials, training workshops for capability-building, and the delivery of relief goods, food, and medical supplies during calamities.
Ador confesses, "I want to help improve the lives of the indigenous peoples since I am one of them, being a Mandaya native myself. That is why I use their traditional materials, particularly the t'nalak and inaul, to showcase them, and to show to the world that our crafts can also compete with the premium brands."
It's time to support the crafts of the tribes of the Philippines. It's also one way of preserving our culture.
"It's time to support the crafts of the tribes of the Philippines. It's also one way of preserving our culture," he emphasizes.
Growing up in a typical Mandaya family in hometown Tagum City, Ador reminisces about his early years. "My father is one of the tribal leaders in our community. My parents raised us very well, with all the love only mothers and fathers could give their children. One of my fondest childhood memories is playing with my siblings in the rice fields, happy and without a care in the world."
Ador dind't always immerse in fashion early on. "Before entering the world of fashion, I was into landscaping when I was in college. A lot of prominent families in General Santos City hired me to do that."
"Aside from landscaping, I also loved doing floral arrangements."
His first foray into designing clothes was inevitable. "I got into fashion design after Madam Jinkee Pacquiao introduced me to many different celebrity fashion designers... I was inspired by them. My experience with them gave me some ideas on how to execute my craft."
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