It takes one whole month to create one meter (yard) of pineapple cloth, an exotic fabric spun from the tropical fruit by weavers in the central Philippine province of Aklan.
But the paper-thin cloth that was first worn during the 17th century Spanish colonial era is worth the painstaking process, say weavers whose prints are being scooped up by designers from Japan, France, and the U.S.
Fashion giant Calvin Klein is one of the clients importing pineapple cloth from weavers and ateliers that specialize in manufacturing pineapple fabric.
While the cloth sells at 2,500 pesos ($61) per meter, spinning pineapples into fabric is no get-rich quick scheme, said Susima dela Cruz, one of the oldest weavers in Kalibo town in Aklan.
The labor-intensive process sees fibers first scraped from the leaves, then dried, parted into threads thinner than hair strands, knotted together, and inserted into a loom, she explained.
Only then does the weaving begin.
Most women in the town start weaving as a rite of passage, rather than a business venture, she said.
“It was really my ambition to become a weaver. I enjoyed it a lot. In the afternoons when my mother would step off the loom, I took her place. And when the threads broke, I put them back together,” dela Cruz said.
But with patience, Aklan’s weaving export market, worth only $105,000 in 2006, has potential, said the weaver who now employs fellow housewives as weavers for her business making dinner sets for American clients.
While underselling machine-made fabrics that dominate the market is impossible, weavers hope that the global trend for organics will perk up demand for their niche, fruity, fabric.
“If you compete with synthetics… it cannot be done…it won’t flourish,” she said.
“The trend now is on organic. No chemical is being used, even the dyes are safe. Now, it should be globally safer for everyone”.
