The young couple admitted they are not furniture designers by any means. However, they know what they like, to which they put their own unique touches. “Most of our pieces are inspired by classics. Our first chair, the Malinao chair, is inspired by Pierre Jeanneret’s Chandigarh chair. As we go along, we are getting bolder and more creative—not just us partners but the entire team. This is where we all have the most fun. Each piece, whether it’s part of our catalogue or custom-made, is always a joint effort,” the lady adds, her tone full of joy. What they also discovered was that Siargao is full of talented craftsmen and artisans—from woodworkers, weavers, painters and a lot more. “There is so much talent yet to be discovered. For our team, all it took was for us to give them a laptop and show them how to [watch videos on] YouTube. It literally unlocked a world of possibilities.” Right now, the team is composed of 17 artisans, all of whom were part of the couple’s pre-COVID project.

True to its name, Siargao Green Artisans aims to be as “green” and eco-friendly as possible. “We made our original samples using retaso [wood scrap] recovered from our own construction site. In making those first pieces we realised the potential for transforming these off-cuts into beautiful furniture, so we began asking friends who were also building if we could salvage their wood scraps. We still make most of our furniture this way,” the lady explains. Before Siargao Green Artisans, the team was already collecting empty glass bottles to crush into sand, which they then mixed into cement that they needed for building. “We ended up incorporating this into our designs by using the cement and broken glass to make terrazzo for tabletops. We try our best to upcycle materials and to let not any by-product go to waste—we want to be the “greenest” artisans we can be,” she says with determination. Siargao Green Artisans also plan on using local Philippine woods and other materials available locally such as rattan and bamboo.

Right now, Siargao Green Artisans produces pieces for the local market, starting with Cebu and Manila. But why would one buy a chair or a table all the way from the Siargao, you ask? Well, not only are the pieces made of aesthetically appealing upcycled wood but the story behind every item symbolises hope and versatility. For these pieces are painstakingly handmade by those who had lost their jobs and have found a “greener” one.