How to celebrate Thanksgiving under the new normal
THANKSGIVING is on Thursday, November 26 this year, and families are gearing up for their grocery runs and are planning their menus. While the holiday is known for traveling to…
Category: MDWK Magazine
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Filipina American artists show ‘love of LA’ with new digital gallery
THOUGH museums, art galleries and performance venues remain closed for now, that hasn’t dampened the creative spirit in Los Angeles. To spotlight the artist community, which has been largely affected…
Philippine-based social enterprise Rags2Riches, which turns overstock fabrics into fashion accessories, launches North America online shop
STARTING this month, products from social enterprise Rags2Riches will be available to the North American market with its first self-branded store outside of the Philippines. R2R is a 13-year-old fashion…
Social justice, activism and allyship: Filipino American History Month kicks off with calls to engage politically, culturally and socially
Unpacking the history of social justice and revolution in the Filipino American community and cultivating a more inclusive, informed future EARLIER this year, Filipino Americans from all walks of life…
How entrepreneur Vanessa Lee brings her Filipina heritage, nursing background to the beauty business
Growing up, Vanessa Lee would sneak off with her mother’s copies of Glamour and Cosmopolitan to read about the latest beauty trends and do-it-yourself tutorials. Channeling her lola’s background as…
Self-care in each sip: Pinay-founded Droplet enters the wellness industry with functional beverages
FIVE years ago, Celeste Perez launched Well Fed, a design studio that has celebrity restaurateurs and hospitality groups among its clientele. The downsides of a bustling business for Perez, however,…
Fil-Am filmmaker Isabel Sandoval on ‘Lingua Franca,’ cinematic authenticity and the art of subtlety
Sandoval’s award-winning film Lingua Franca arrives on Netflix, signaling the permanence of diverse storytelling AS is the experience of so many Filipinos living in the United States, a woman named…
From egg sandwiches to burgers: Chef Alvin Cailan returns to LA with new meat shop, releases first cookbook on upbringing as an American-born Filipino
LAST December, Alvin Cailan put a down payment on the former Chego spot inside Far East Plaza in Los Angeles’ Chinatown without the immediacy, or a defined concept, to occupy…
Drawing a more vibrant future: Fil-Am animators on their creative beginnings, the universality of Filipino narratives in animation
IN the inclusive rider era of Hollywood, it’s almost become a pedestrian party line to pledge support for diversity but the actual outturns thus far of that proclamation still leaves…
Fil-Am culture critic, author Jia Tolentino on the gifts and curses of the internet in the time of a pandemic, racial reckoning
The renowned best-selling writer talks about her release “Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion” and how the COVID-19 crisis props up capitalist structures WITH the year more than halfway over, the…
Fil-Am makeup guru Patrick Starrr on defying beauty standards and debunking misconceptions about being an ‘influencer’
SEVEN years ago, Patrick Starrr wasn’t given a shift at a MAC Cosmetics store he was working at in Orlando, Florida, so he turned to YouTube and uploaded his first…
‘Blue’s Clues and You!’ host Josh Dela Cruz on figuring out clues and sharing Filipino culture with a new generation
WHEN stage actor Josh Dela Cruz was announced as the new host for the “Blue’s Clues” reboot, a wave of nostalgia kicked in for kids who grew up watching Nickelodeon…
Two Pinays reappointed to key Los Angeles boards serving the city’s 4 million residents
TWO Filipina American commissioners have been reappointed to five-year terms on Los Angeles boards that handle critical infrastructure programs and utility services for the city’s 4 million residents. The LA…
From Bukidnon to West Point: Filipino nuclear engineering graduate shares US Military Academy journey
CADET Lieutenant Jesson Peñaflor graduated from the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point on Saturday, June 13 with a bachelor’s degree in nuclear engineering. Peñaflor, who comes from…
Reflecting on husband’s death, Pinay weather anchor Maria Quiban Whitesell releases guide to grief and healing
A YEAR after Maria Quiban Whitesell’s husband Sean died of glioblastoma, a friend mailed her a book containing all the email updates she sent during the 18 months he battled…
CLASS OF 2020: Fil-Am students across the country share what it’s like to graduate during a pandemic
Graduation season is upon us but it’s not what students had anticipated. For graduates of the Class of 2020, this step in their academic journey is unprecedented as the pandemic…
Fil-Am books to read during summer 2020
NOW entering two months into stay-at-home orders, individuals across the country have found ways to fill their “free time,” whether through baking, sewing masks, or completing puzzles. Another method has…
Award-winning Fil-Am author Erin Entrada Kelly releases sixth novel about famous space shuttle incident, family dynamics
ERIN Entrada Kelly is a product of 1980s pop culture, from having names for each Cabbage Patch doll to collecting sticker books to rewatching “E.T.” countless times. But what the…
Meals over video chat, self-care rituals: Fil-Am moms share how they’ll spend Mother’s Day at home
THIS Sunday, May 10 marks Mother’s Day — another major holiday that families will have to celebrate while sheltering in place and social distancing. While treating mom to a dine-in…
Despite the pandemic, Fil-Am chef Ria Barbosa’s Petite Peso opens for service in downtown LA
WITH the city of Los Angeles’ stay-at-home order that took effect nearly two months ago, restaurants have been limited to take-out and delivery, or faced the decision to close. Opening…
‘Superstore’ actor Nico Santos on queer Filipino roles: ‘I don’t feel like I’m being pigeonholed at all’
In a season five episode of NBC sitcom “Superstore,” Cloud 9 employees Mateo (Nico Santos) and Marcus (Jon Barinholtz) get into a heated argument in Tagalog, surprising many Filipino viewers…
From registered nurse to first Fil-Am co-owner of a US hospital: How Vicki Rollins transformed a struggling medical center into a five-star rated hospital
ONLY two hospitals in the city of Los Angeles received the highest five-star rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) this past January — and one of…
How Fil-Am businesses in LA County are navigating impact of virus outbreak
EVENT cancellations, work from home, no dining in restaurants, doors shuttering — these are a few ramifications of the coronavirus pandemic that businesses across the country are facing. Here in…
From Army nurse to author: Filipina American author Tif Marcelo releases fifth novel, ‘Once Upon a Sunset’
WHEN Tif Marcelo first read “The Outsiders” by S.E. Hinton growing up, she knew she wanted to be a writer. “I told my dad and, of course, his reaction was…
Sustainable, ethical wear: How Pinay designer Claire Powers built her KINdom
The words “fashion” and “sustainability” were rarely ever used in the same sentence before. However, things began to change when people began talking about climate change and its chilling effects…
Filip+Inna and Zacarias 1925: How Filipina designers defy fast fashion demands and keep traditional craftsmanship alive
FOR many Filipinos globally, one way to proudly show their heritage is by wearing it on their sleeves, literally. This is the mission of Pinay designers like Lenora “Len” Luisa…
Remembering Harana: A lost Filipino tradition of courtship through song
“Harana, as the song introduces, is an old Philippine tradition of courtship in which a man bears his heart in song to a woman (and sometimes vice versa), while standing…