A year after winning the good medal in Terno Con, Hannah Adrias talks about the impact of Filipino clothing in today’s generation.

Related: Spot Your Favorite Stars Celebrate Filipino Pride At TernoCon 2020

Baro’t Saya, Filipiniana, mestiza dress—the terno goes by many names. Tracing its history and evolution since the pre-colonial days, it’s more than just the voluminous butterfly sleeves and wide, bell shape. It’s a testament of our history and fight against colonialism—something that many Filipinos seem to forget.

Luckily, there’s young designer Hannah Adrias. At last year’s prestigious Terno Con Festival, where the most notable Filipino designers showcase their take on the terno and mentor the next generation, her collection stood out. Not only did the Slim’s Fashion & Arts alumni deliver and win the gintong medalya, her terno collection showed how millennials and Gen Z are perceiving our national attire. It resonated with a lot of young people, especially her military renditions and utilitarian-inspired silhouettes. It didn’t stop there as Adrias also produced a distressed denim terno for internationally regarded brand Filip + Inna’s capsule collection in mid-2020.

For Hannah Adrias, her renditions of the terno are more than just for the aesthetic. It’s the storytelling behind its history and the Filipino identity, an empowering message to all. It’s high time we decolonize ourselves and follow suit.

This fashion feature is as seen on MEGA’s September issue now available in Readly, Magzter, Press Reader and Zinio.

Photos courtesy of HANNAH ADRIAS