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CEBU CITY, Philippines - Being appreciated for well-done creations is the best reward any seamstress can receive in her lifetime, said 58-year-old Evelyn ?Manang Belen? Dangaran of Barangay (village) Apas, Cebu City.
While getting many clients would mean good business, she said nothing beats satisfied clients who tell her how much they value the dress or a uniform set she made.
?Kun nindot pud imong trabaho, magbalik-balik man pud na sila. Kun imong huna-hunaon, mas daghan gyud nuon akong kliyente nga tarongon nako akong tinahian (If you do your job well, your clients will keep on coming back. So if you think about it, I gain more clients if I do my job well),? she said.
Manang Belen, who hails from Iloilo province, arrived in Cebu in 1977 to live with her sister, Dolores, who got married to a military official. She lived with them in Barangay Apas.
At the age of 27, she applied for a job at a clothing store, Loalde. Manang Belen worked for the company until 1985 then transferred to a boutique ran by a friend.
She was unstoppable after that. She was employed by different designers both in Cebu and Manila and took on several roles, as official dressmaker, stylist and at times, supervisor.
?I worked with anybody. There was a time that a gay friend asked me if I'll be interested to operate a boutique with him. I readily agreed,? she said in Cebuano.
For 16 years, Manang Belen worked for different dress shops and companies. In 1993, she decided to stay in Cebu and start her home-based dress shop.
There was nothing fancy with the dress shop she had in mind. No glass windows, no mannequins, no expensive fabrics; just her, her sewing machine and neighbor clients.
It somehow turned out that way - no glass windows, no mannequins. But there were expensive fabrics, more than one sewing machine and clients were not just her neighbors. They came from all over.
?Many of my clients got to know me because they were recommended by relatives or they were told by friends that I existed. The agreements I have with universities also started with the same process,? she told Cebu Daily News.
Currently, Manang Belen is the ?official seamstress? of some schools in Cebu, one of which is the nursing department of Cebu Technological School.
She also has four high-speed sewing machines and two seamstresses, who help out in finishing uniform sets so they can deliver on time.
When Manang Belen decided to open a dress shop, she only had a sewing machine, which she bought for P300, as her closest ally. Her first clients were her neighbors.
?I worked on this set-up for four years until 1997 when a friend who worked as an agent for Singer (a company which sells sewing machines) asked if I would like to purchase machines on installment basis. I said yes since I've been receiving many orders,? she said.
She has since then acquired three high-speed sewing machines. Each machine costs P16,600. To get rebates, she saw to it that she paid dues in advance.
She also bought an edging machine to create a clean finish with her creations. The machine which has a revolving cutter a clean finish in dress edges cost P31,000.
With her machines in place, Manang Belen was in full gear to accept ?sewing jobs? as she calls it.
She did succeed in getting many clients.
?I had clients even from abroad, who until now keeps on sending me catalogs which I use when making dresses and uniforms. I have a friend from Spain, who also who sends me catalogs,? she said.
Being the second child among nine siblings, Manang Belen helped send two of her siblings to school. She also sends money to her mother in Iloilo to help in the family's daily expenses.
While the art of sewing made her known to several people, Manang Belen was also not spared from people who took advantage of her.
?I was not paid. I was the one who bought the fabrics so I was on the losing end. I was not able to pay my seamstresses immediately. It was hard,? she said.
The experience, however, taught her to be prudent in dealing with clients.
Now, she prefers that clients buy the fabrics themselves although she gives pieces of advice on what is the right fabric to use for certain outfits.
She tells them to buy fabrics in stores located in the downtown area because they can be bought at discounted prices.
Anecdotes from satisfied clients often keep Manang Belen upbeat about her chosen career.
?There are those who tell me that they pass the board exams because they wore what I made. I am happy. Being appreciated for what you made is one of the greatest joys of a seamstress,? she said.
She may not own a boutique, but Manang Belen said she is more than contented with what she has now.
?I am able to pay my bills, help people and make my clients happy. To me, those are the most important things,? she said.
