A different view of Christmas

By Ryan Louis Mantilla

 

Seasoned designer Josef Crisanto is challenging conventional perceptions of what Christmas can look and feel like. 

For him, Christmas can be joyful and melancholic, bright and dark, celebratory and bittersweet. These contrasting emotions became the foundation for Pasko x Pascua, a collection of home decor exploring the duality of the holiday season that will be unveiled at Manila FAME: Bloom 2026. 

Manila FAME, the Philippines' premier lifestyle and trade show organized by the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM), will mark its 74th edition on Oct. 15-17. Its signature settings will also return, including Design Commune, a curated exhibit showcasing innovative Filipino craftsmanship through home, fashion, and lifestyle pieces. Each show feature is managed by esteemed designers and curators Tony Gonzales for Home & Lighting, Milo Naval for Home at FAME, and Vince Uy for Fashion.

Also under Design Commune is Pasko x Pascua, in which Crisanto serves as both the creative director and head designer, working alongside his mentees, designers Clark Mendoza and Razel Mari.

Josef Crisanto during an interview with FAME at Likhang Filipino, Gallery 4.

 

“Pasko is an iteration of the Spanish word Pascua, which means Easter. It's the Pasko ng pagkabuhay. So, compared to Pascua, which we consider atmospheric and bittersweet, Pasko is more joyful. Both are celebrations: one is of Christ’s birth while one is of His rebirth. So, there's a dichotomy, and that's why we titled the project Pasko x Pascua,” Crisanto explains. 

Though he admits tapping into the holiday theme was “something new” to him, he didn’t hesitate to take on the challenge. He saw the project as an opportunity to bring young designers into the conversation.“I'm also a mentor. I have trained many of them who are now professional designers. I think the industry needs young voices and new personalities in the field. It's time to bring the young ones in.” 

Conceptualizing Pasko x Pascua

Since the Philippines is known for celebrating an unusually long holiday season, Crisanto began with the idea of “Christmas Every Day.” However, rather than recreate a familiar Christmas, he wanted to explore the emotions and memories that make the season personal. “I wanted to avoid the usual decorations: typical Christmas trees, Santa Claus, reindeer, or garlands. In order to do that, I had to start from scratch—from a tabula rasa (blank slate), as we say.

“I asked my mentees to reflect on their Christmas memories and go back to the true essence of what the holiday really is to them,” he continues. “We unpacked the sensations they felt, what the most memorable Christmas for them was, the gifts they hold most dear, the decor that they attach themselves to, even the music and films—overall, the sentiment of what Christmas truly is for them.” 

Josef Crisanto and his mentee, designer Clark Mendoza.

 

Although Crisanto still pursued his initial plan of creating pieces that consumers can use all year long, he wanted the Pasko x Pascua concept to shine through. 

“We wanted to come up with a collection of objects that will evoke longing, joy, melancholy, and sadness all at the same time,” he elaborates. “I want people to find objects that they can use not just for holiday decoration but for whatever purpose they want. That’s what we mean by ‘Christmas Every Day’: having objects that you can actually hang in your house the whole year round.”

Crisanto’s team also incorporated the Filipino Christmas culture in their own way. “That was important,” says the designer. “When I asked my mentees to unpack their sentiments and experiences of Christmas, they ended up describing the Pinoy experience: the Simbang Gabi, the smell of bibingka and puto bumbong, the odor of the food being prepared for Noche Buena, and the caroling.”

Josef Crisanto with Clark Mendoza at one of Pasko x Pascua’s manufacturers, Bayang Candle. 

 

One distinct Filipino aspect that Crisanto wanted to present was the local culture’s association of the holidays with nighttime. For him, Christmas in the country is not a daytime experience, unlike in other countries where some Yuletide activities happen during the day. “We felt that Christmas is sort of a bittersweet and also dark experience. It is not a daytime thing,” he asserts. “ In the Philippines, [the actual Christmas Day] is just another ordinary day, except for the tinsel decorations. Christmas Eve is more festive; it’s what most Filipinos anticipate.”

Hence, for the Manila FAME showcase, Pasko x Pascua will capture both spectrums of the holiday. “Our special setting will be one of dark and one of light, one that’s more subdued, muted, and controlled while the other explosive with color and life.”

Pasko x Pascua fully realized 

Such an ambitious idea required extensive execution. Luckily for Crisanto, he had “organic” meetings with local manufacturers. “So far, we visited small companies that also cater mainly to the local market.” The designer wants to highlight the quality of the work of these manufacturers, who come from different provinces—Cebu, Laguna, and Pampanga, to name a few—whose craftsmanship, he believes, deserves global recognition. 

One product is The Giant Trees tabletop piece by Jalikee Arts & Craft, which transforms into a miniature Christmas tree when adorned with holiday ornaments but, when without decoration, is an understated combination of enameled tin and driftwood, perfect for rustic-inspired interiors.

Decorative pieces from Jalikee.

 

Another is the pair of capiz wall decor that was given a contemporary twist. “We visited Zyrrah's Arts and Crafts, a traditional manufacturer in Antipolo, Rizal, that works with mother-of-pearl. It's a bit challenging because it's been overdone, but we tried to do something very classy with it.” The first piece features small capiz discs set on a gold-plated wire frame, delicately arranged to create a sunburst effect. The second, meanwhile, is a heart-shaped wall decor in a warm brown and pearl-white palette, giving its romantic silhouette a sophisticated touch. Both work beautifully as holiday accents, but their timeless designs make them equally suited to be year-round wall decor. 

Capiz wall decorations from Zyrrah's Arts and Crafts. 

 

For the candle piece manufactured by Bayang Candles, Crisanto aimed for a more “classy” look. The all-white design is embellished with a sampaguita-inspired motif, making it an elegant adornment for any setting.“We asked our manufacturer to create delicate, intricate candles.  The wax carving is based on the Mexican Oaxacan tradition, and the sampaguita bloom is like something you would offer in an altar,” he shares.

Of course, Crisanto veered away from the usual holiday figures. He challenged Klassy Collections, which is known for its holiday decorative pieces, to create “something magical” beyond the usual Christmas fare. The result is a collection of pieces that feature elements not traditionally associated with the holidays but somehow capture the whimsy and spirit of the Yuletide season.

“Klassy Collections normally makes Santa Claus figures. They’re really beautiful, but you can see that the company is tired of making them,” he recalls. “So I said, ‘Let’s do something different.’”

Figures from Klassy Collections.

 

In reimagining Christmas, Crisanto made sure to bring the 11 manufacturers along for the journey, shining a light not only on himself and his talented team of designers but also on the exceptional craftsmanship of the makers behind each piece.

“It’s very important for our design process to consider what they can do and where they want to go, too. We don’t want to simply design products just for the show, but also to develop pieces that will help catapult these enterprises into making new products and selling more items,” he says. “CITEM is putting designers to work with manufacturers in very close proximity. And as designers, we have to consider what the companies' objectives are, what their roadmaps are, so that we are on step with them in the direction of this product development.”

*****

See the full Pasko x Pascua collection at Manila FAME 2026. 

Manila FAME: Bloom happens on Oct. 15 - 17, 2026, at the World Trade Center, Pasay City. Register as a visitor here.