EDITOR’S NOTE

Heart and home

“My team is here, my studio is here, and it got me thinking: do I want to be [traveling] all over the world, or do I want to create things?” designer and milliner Mich Dulce asks herself. “Manila is the place where I could have space and be most creative.”

This issue’s theme, Retreats, is rendered two-fold in our cover story. After seven years in Europe, Dulce returns to Manila, which emerges in this narrative as an expected refuge, a setting for family, collaborative partners, and, most importantly, production. The retreat—or return—to Manila is representative of the creative ebb and flow of Dulce’s travels, and proves that Manila, despite its flaws, is home.

Home as a retreat is a truism most apt during times of stress or difficulty—the space where you feel most yourself, where you can kick back, drink some wine, and watch TV ’til late at night. On page 4, we recommend binge-watching some shows for their cathartic effects, and the process of empathizing with our favorite characters leaves us feeling blessed about our own lives. According to the author, “Leon Festinger’s social comparison theory says we watch TV shows to make us feel better about ourselves. The shortlived euphoria can be sparked even within just a 30-minute timeframe. Case in point: the entertaining absurdity in every Keeping Up with the Kardashians episode.”