A cooperative made of the Tubigon Community that loom weaves and one of the possible pasalubong items that can be bought.
Ever wondered where the raffia bag came from? Have you asked yourself how the colorful looms are weaved together in such a very beautiful way or how the patterns are being mixed and matched? Most times, the best experience one can have is knowing how their favorite items are made and knowing who made them.
Loom weaving is considered a major source of income for the local residents of Tubigon. For many weavers, wives of farmers and fisherfolks in Tubigon, loom weaving has been their major source of bread and butter. Fortunately, with just an initial capitalization of only P5, 000, the Tubigon Loom weavers Multi-purpose Cooperative has grown to a P1.5 M enterprise after 13 years.
Loom weaving utilizes raffia fibers extracted from young, unopened buri leaves. The fiber knitted for your table placemat, or bag, comes from buri palm tree, which grows abundantly in Bohol. Currently, members of the Tubigon Loom weavers Multi-purpose Cooperative prepare customized designs based on the concept and ideas of their clients.
Before it gets to be like your bag, its passes through hands of the community in many different ways. The weavers harvest, strip, and sun-dry the young buri leaves to produce the beige fiber. Subsequently, the fiber is then sorted according to shape, texture, and length.
Then to make it ready for weaving, the fiber is tied into long spools, hanks, balls or braids. Everything is a labor by hand!
Into wooden looms, these raffia fiber join a countless other fibers to form tapestries that narrate a history of a craft that feeds a community and its future generations.
Facts and Figures About Tubigon
Tubigon was derived from the word “Tubigan” which meant a place abounding with water. Back in the old days, the community was always submerged in water whenever the nearby rivers overflow during rainy seasons. Later, the early settlers changed the name to “Tubigon” to indicate the presence of the many springs and streams of the town. At present, these water sources have been pooled and converted into a giant irrigation dam to help regulate the flow of water supply in rice fields.