Catalina "Inday Taling" Ybara-Jorolan had been making wax-coated paper flowers since she was seven years old.

These flowers, called “buwak papel” (flower paper in direct English translation), was a popular craft and a thriving source of livelihood for residents of Barangay Basak Pardo in Cebu City after World War II. Paper shaped into local flowers were dyed, assembled, and dipped in wax in order to protect the material from water and tear. 

These paper flowers were used to decorate carrozas and churches during fiestas, funerals, weddings, and other celebrations.

During this period, real flowers were not yet sold in commercial quantities, hence, the high demand for floral decors.

In a 2022 interview, Inday Taling shared that she learned the art of making “buwak papel” at a young age when her neighbor, Inday Tutay, hired her and other women in their neighborhood. Every Sunday, for P300, they would spend hours in the intricate process of cutting, folding, shaping, and waxing paper to make the “buwak papel” bloom. Their works were sold at the Taboan Market in downtown Cebu City.

She worked for Inday Taling for about a decade until she got married. By 1958, she decided to open her own business of selling paper flowers together with her husband. This also gave them the opportunity to provide livelihood for their neighbors to keep up with bulk orders.

They were able to supply their products to the local market and to funeral parlors, as well as to other areas in Cebu, including Daanbantayan, Bogo City, Danao City, and Bantayan Island. Their flowers also reached areas outside Cebu like the neighboring islands of Negros and Bohol, and even as far as Surigao in Mindanao.

Business was good but the winds of change carried plastic flowers from China between the 1950s to 1960s to the Philippines was felt, overtime, by “buwak papel” producers, including Inday Taling. These flowers were more affordable and the shift of preference to plastic by consumers took a toll on the paper flower business.

Inday Taling had to let go of some workers but managed to keep the business by expanding and producing other products like angel wings and crowns, also made of paper. Today, these products can still be found in local markets, including the Carbon and Taboan markets in downtown Cebu City.

While fresh and plastic flowers, both local and imported, dominated the market, eventually, the good news is that Inday Taling managed to pass down the skill of making paper flowers to at least three of her 10 children. They even inherited her tools.

Her grandchild, Trina Jorolan Abad, also took advantage of social media to market the “buwak papel” online so it would reach heritage enthusiasts in different areas of Cebu. Admittedly, unlike in the post WW2 era, the income from the “buwak papel’ is no longer enough to support a family.

In 2023, the last petal fell for Inday Taling.

RECOGNITION

Two years after she passed away, the Cebu City government recognized the art of making “buwak papel” as an intangible heritage during the 3rd Cebu Heritage Awards in May 2025.

The citation on the plaque reads:

“Buwak Papel” are synthetic paper flowers, which are dyed and coated with wax, and used to decorate carrozas for processions, funerals, festivals, weddings, and other events. This practice flourished during the post-World War II era as introduced by Tuyang Castañares of Kinasang-an Pardo.”

The plaque was signed by Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia, Vice Mayor Donaldo Hontiveros, and Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera of the city’s Tourism Commission.

The Jorolan family, recognized as the keeper of the craft in the neighborhood where it used to flourish, received the plaque on behalf of Inday Taling.

"Kini nga award, among gidawat dili lang isip pamilya, kundi isip anak sa kultura," Trina said.

She hopes that the recognition would introduce “buwak papel” to the new generation of Cebuanos so they will learn to appreciate the craft.

“Buwak papel” is the second intangible Cebuano heritage of flower-making recognized in the Cebu Heritage Awards. The first one was “Lagang,” the craft of making elaborate floral arrangements using the shell of the chambered nautilus. Master Lagang Maker Richelieu Colina received the recognition in 2023.

This author had the privilege of using and celebrating Colina’s work in her Lagang-themed wedding to Daryl Nazareno.

The Cebu Heritage Awards night serves as a culmination of Cebu City’s observance of National Heritage Month every May. It aims to recognize those who have made significant contributions to the preservation and promotion of the city’s tangible and intangible heritage.

(Contributed article by Lorraine Mitzi Ambrad - Nazareno, a GMA Network Excellence Awardee in 2017)