T'nalak Weaving at Lake Sebu

T'nalak is made from abaca fibre stripped, knotted and tied off in bundles before dyeing, so the pattern is set in the thread before a single row is woven. The dyes are red from a root and black from leaves, on the natural pale fibre. The weavers are T'boli women around Lake Sebu, and the tradition holds that the designs come to them in dreams rather than being drawn or copied, which is why they are called dreamweavers. A finished piece takes weeks on a backstrap loom. Work continues in family houses and at a school of living tradition by the lake, where weaving, brass casting and dance are taught to younger T'boli.

The main sights

• The tying of the fibre - patterns bound into the abaca before dyeing, the slowest part of the work.
• The backstrap loom - the weaver braced against the tension, the cloth growing a few centimetres a day.
• The finished cloth - red, black and natural bands in interlocking figures, sold by the piece.
• The school of living tradition - young T'boli learning weaving, brass casting and dance by the lake.

When to go

November to May is drier and the lake road is better. Mornings are the working hours in the weaving houses; by afternoon the light in them is gone. The T'nalak Festival in Koronadal takes place in July. Arrange a visit through a guesthouse or the tourism office rather than turning up at a family home unannounced.

Practical notes

Weaving is slow and watching it is slow; most visitors last twenty minutes. Genuine t'nalak is expensive and much of what is sold to visitors as t'nalak is machine cloth printed with the patterns, so ask and expect to pay properly for the real thing. Lake Sebu is far from anywhere, on long provincial roads, and the accommodation is basic. Photographs of people should be asked for, not taken.

Nearby

Lake Sebu itself, its seven falls and the zipline over them are the other reason people come here.