kabibahay: kabibi + bahay

A woman in an ivory floor-length gown stands, looking down and to the side, with her left hand on her hip. The seams on her skirt spiral upward and to the viewer's right, terminating in an embellished knit bodice. Her sleeves are short and spiral upward and in, toward her body, like a snail shell. The background is light gray.

Empire gown with spiraling seams, fully fashioned seashell sleeves, and embellished Aran knit bodice

A woman stands with her back to the camera, looking to the right. Her left leg is out to the side, showing off a triangular godet in her spiraling skirt. Round and crisscrossing knit designs go across the bodice. Her left hand is on her hip, and round, seashell-shaped sleeves sit on the tips of her shoulders. The background is light gray.

Spiraling bias skirt with godets, embellished bodice with crochet trim, knit seashell puff sleeves

A woman stands in a strapless ivory floor-length tiered gown with cream-colored wavy textured vertical stripes. One hand is on her hip, the other touches the tip of the Filipino terno sleeve of her sheer knit bolero. Pearls and shells adorn the neckline of the bolero, like a necklace. She is looking upward and to the right. The background is light gray.

Tiered knit gown with wavy striped pointelle fabric, sheer bolero with Filipino terno sleeves

A woman stands with her back to the camera, holding her arms behind her back. She wears a floor-length tiered gown with textured, cream-colored vertical wavy stripes. The low-back gown and high bolero create an open back. Her bolero has large sleeves that are flat and tall and features a faux multi-strand pearl necklace from which shells hang. Shadows cover her face as she looks over her left shoulder. The background is light gray.

Raw pineapple fiber stripes stiffen and texture fully fashioned, dartless, Filipino terno sleeves.

Cropped photo showing a woman's torso, neck, and mouth. She wears a strapless knit dress with a belt and sheer bolero. Strands of pearls twisted together are around her neck, accented with several hanging smaller seashells and one larger, pointed seashell in the middle. Her right hand is on her hip and her head is turned slightly and shows her hair in a low bun.

Twisted pearl strands and seashells embellish the bolero neckline; slices of shells adorn the belt.

In Tagalog, kabibi means seashell and bahay means home. Kabibahay is my shell: a collection of different parts of me, spiraling together. It is my old love of seashells, my Filipino heritage, my original degree in mechanical engineering, and my newfound love of knitting. Just as snails and other shelled creatures build their shells as they grow, Kabibahay chronicles my personal journey, culminating in the fully fashioned knit seashells that adorn my garments.

Credits

Photographer: Julie Tu
Model: Kesha Dalal, Mari Estacio

Karen Lam

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