Vakul Weaving

The vakul is a headdress and shoulder cape made from the shredded fibre of the voyavoy, a small native palm that grows on the slopes of Batanes, and it exists because of the weather: it sheds rain, blocks the sun and takes the wind off a woman's head and back while she works in the fields, which in this island group is a genuine requirement rather than a picturesque one. Making one takes days - the palm leaves are cut, dried, shredded into fibre and then knotted in overlapping rows onto a frame - and the craft is concentrated on Sabtang, where women in Savidug and Chavayan still make and wear them. Visitors are shown the process and can try one on, and vakul are sold, though a full-sized working piece is not cheap and reflects the labour involved. The men's equivalent, a vest of the same material called a kanayi, is made alongside it.

Highlights

• The fibre preparation - voyavoy palm cut, dried and shredded.
• The knotting - rows of fibre worked onto the frame.
• The finished vakul - the cape worn over head and shoulders.
• The kanayi - the men's vest of the same material.

When to go

March to June, when Sabtang crossings are reliable. Demonstrations are arranged through guides or at the villages - ask when registering at the port.

Practical notes

Demonstrations are short and arranged informally; there is no fixed schedule. A working vakul costs real money because it takes days to make. Ask before photographing women wearing them in the fields - they are working, not posing.

Nearby

Savidug and Chavayan's stone houses are where the craft lives; Ivana and Batan Island are across the channel.