I can’t resist well-crafted finds that showcase local color, and the fact that Tali Handmade’s vibrant, tribal-inspired bags came with an empowering backstory made me a fan from day 1.

A little over a year ago, after being profoundly moved by their visit to a city jail, friends Liza Morales-Crespo and Marielle de Leon-Lazaro decided to start their socially conscious initiative to provide a decent means of living for impoverished women. Using unconventional raw materials, traditional crochet techniques, and embellished with high quality hardware, their luxe line of Tali Handmade bags has quickly made it to our list of lust-worthy items.

After launching their second collection at the MaArte Fair recently, Tali Handmade unveiled yet another coup—a collaboration with iconic department store Rustan’s for limited edition minaudières!

“Rustan’s is passionate about supporting local brands, and we felt that collaborating with a store known for premium products would help connect us with our clientele and help spread the story behind our brand,” shares Liza Crespo, co-founder of Tali Handmade.

Marielle shared that the limited edition minaudières feature wood handcarved in Paete, a clasp from jewelers in Bulacan, a tribal-inspired straw pattern handwoven by a community of women from the Davao city jail, and a gold chain link strap. These limited lovelies are available in black and white, and are exclusively available at Rustan’s alongside Tali Handmade’s 2017 collection.

I was thrilled to be invited to an intimate event to celebrate the launch of Tali Handmade’s 2017 collection, as well as their exclusive collab with Rustan’s. Here are a few snaps from the event:

The dynamic duo behind Tali Handmade: Marielle de Leon-Lazaro and Liza Morales-Crespo. Despite their busy scheds, Marielle, who is in manufacturing, and Liza, who is an architect, find time to work on their passion project Tali Handmade

 

Town & Country Philippines’ lovely Yvette Fernandez models the Tali Handmade minaudière in black, exclusively available at Rustan’s

 

Tali Handmade’s “Marilou” clutches

 

Always fun bumping into “family!” With my fellow former MEG magazine editors Liza Ilarde (now EIC of Style Weekend) and Peewee Reyes-Isidro (now EIC of MEGA). I’m wearing my own favorite piece from their first collection, the “Gina” fringed sling bag

 

Marga Espiritu of Bungalow 300 models a versatile sling bag from Tali Handmade’s 2017 collection

 

Mega’s Peewee Reyes-Isidro, me, Liza of Tali Handmade, Vicki Abary of The Gypsetters, Marielle of Tali Handmade, and Preview’s Jacqui Halili Co-Salonga

 

 

On the heels of Tali Handmade’s collaboration with Rustan’s comes an opportunity to present their luxe pieces to a global market. This December 10, Tali Handmade will be participating in a by-invitation only trunk show by Moda Operandi, a New York-based luxury online retailer. “We are hoping this Rustan’s event will pave the way and prepare us for that—for bigger things, and the global stage,” says Liza. Stay tuned to hear what New Yorkers think of Tali Handmade!

The “exclusively for Rustan’s” collection will be available at Rustan’s for a limited time only. Tali Handmade can also be found at Cura V and Tint, as well as luxury 5-star resorts such as Amanpulo, El Nido Lagen Island, Palawan, and Shangri-La Hotel in Makati City. Tali Handmade is also available via premium retailers in Hong Kong, Malaysia and the United States, as well as on the New York-based online retailer ShopLatitude ( shoplatitude.com ), which distributes Tali’s products worldwide.

For more information, visit http://talihandmade.com .

 

The post Tali Handmade X Rustan’s appeared first on tinypoem stories.