Philippine national Costumes:

Barot SAYA

Barot SAYA

Baro't saya is the unofficial national dress of the Philippines and is worn by women. The name is a contraction of the Tagalog words baro at saya, meaning "dress (blouse) and skirt". Under the Spanish colonization, the basic outfit had evolved into a many-layered ensemble of the: kimona or inner shirt; the baro outershirt with its usually gauzy materials, fine embroidery and wide sleeves; the pauelo or piano shawl, starched to achieve a raised look; the naguas or petticoat (in the song "Paruparong Bukid," for example, naguas de ojetes refers to petticoats decorated with eyelet patterns which are visible underneath the saya); the saya proper, laid over the starched petticoat and bunched at the back to mirror the polonaise which was in fashion during that period, sometimes fashionably as de cola or with a finely embroidered train; and the tapis, a wrap covering the upper half of the saya.

Philippine national Costumes:

Balintawak

Balintawak

The traditional Philippine Balintawak costume consists of wide-arched sleeves in colorful clothing material. They have a panuelo (handkerchief) on the shoulder and a tapis (wrapped around material). The Balintawak dress is the less sophisticated version of the traje de mestiza. It was a popular rural costume starting the 1920's. It has the same bell-shaped sleeves. The skirt is usually shorter and simpler (without a train). The cloth used is usually brightly colored. It still has the four components: baro (blouse), saya (skirt), tapis (skirt wrap), and panuelo (scarf). The major difference is that the panuelo is not wrapped around the shoulders but was left to hang on one shoulder.