Discovering the bobbin lace makers of Santa Barbara, Iloilo

Traveling across the Philippines can be a gateway to discovering the country’s vast pool of talents in creating crafts and heritage arts. From the intricate weaves of the Ifugao to the colorful inaul cloth of Maguindanao and countless others, each piece tells a story of tradition and identity, passed down through generations.

In a laidback town in Iloilo province, amid the peaceful, small-town vibe of Santa Barbara, a group of women gather around, their fingers nimbly maneuvering threads around small spools. 

They’re creating what the tour guide says is a bobbin lace, a delicate, lacework technique that looks almost too fine to be handmade. It’s a meticulous crafting process, unfolding in a place with an origin story worth telling.

Rare craft, expensive lace

The story of WUHTLE (Women United Through Handcrafted Lace and Embroidery) traces its origins to the 1980s, inside the Western Visayas Sanitarium in Santa Barbara. It began with a simple gesture: the daughter of a patient handed a delicately embroidered handkerchief to a Belgian missionary, Sister Madeleine Dieryck, who was then working with people affected by leprosy.

The handiwork amazed Sister Dieryck’s eye immediately. She then began teaching embroidery to the women under her care, only to realize that many patients, their hands altered by the effects of leprosy, struggled to hold a needle. 

While taking a break back in her hometown in Belgium, Sister Dieryck thought of a solution. There, she sought to learn the craft of bobbin lace, a technique built not on needles but on the manipulation of pins, threads, and wooden bobbins.

When she returned to the sanitarium, Sister Dieryck introduced the craft to her patients. The women took to it with focus and determination. By 1996, their small circle of lace makers had formally organized into a cooperative, laying the foundation for what would become WUHTLE.

Among those keeping the tradition alive is Lola Delia, 75. Her fingers, deformed by years of illness, move with practiced ease across the threads. She has been crafting bobbin lace for more than three decades.

Today, she and her fellow artisans produce intricate lacework and embroidered pieces that have found buyers far beyond the shores of the Philippines, a testament to resilience woven, quite literally, by hand.

“It’s a rare craft, one of the most expensive laces in the world, and its production keeps shrinking as time goes by. To think that a small community of women here in Santa Barbara are its keepers makes their work extraordinary,” says veteran Iloilo tour guide Erlyn Alunan. 

“What began as a lifeline for those shunned because of their illness has become a unique heritage of the province.”

Displayed in the small workshop are several of the women’s pieces, their designs ranging from colorful birds to religious symbols. Depending on the complexity, each one takes anywhere from a day and a few days to several weeks to complete.

Aside from providing a livelihood for the roughly 30 bobbin lace makers still practicing the craft — a fraction of its numbers at its peak decades ago — the cooperative now hopes that renewed public interest might inspire a new generation to carry the skills forward.

Beyond its role as a source of income, this profession harnessed by WUHTLE adds another layer to Iloilo province’s cultural and commercial identity.

Located on the island of Panay, Iloilo is already celebrated for its indigenous products: from hablon and patadyong weaving to pottery, basketry, and panubok embroidery. Though bobbin lace does not stem from local tradition, it reinforces the region’s reputation for artistry and has the potential to draw visitors and collectors, particularly those with an eye for art and fashion.

“The value the bobbin lace makers bring to Iloilo’s tourism is immense, operating on three critical levels at once,” said Department of Tourism Region 6 Director Krisma Rodriguez.

“It diversifies and deepens our portfolio by moving beyond grand heritage sites toward ‘slow tourism,’ offering immersive cultural experiences that reveal the province’s living artisanal soul.”

“It also champions sustainable, community-based tourism, as every purchase provides a direct, dignified livelihood for the artisans, empowering the community and sustaining the enterprise from the ground up,” Rodriguez added.

“Finally, it creates a cycle of heritage preservation, where visitor interest validates this patient, exquisite craft, ensuring these invaluable skills are passed on and safeguarded for future generations.”

Heritage preservation is often overlooked in travel, and it’s a lesson that can be learned from the women of Santa Barbara — that beyond the picturesque sights and postcard moments, there are opportunities to witness creativity and craft. – Rappler.com