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Aside from references on weaving and photography, Francesca Balaguer-Mercado also keeps her son’s storybooks in her studio. “Sometimes I would leave my son sleeping on the couch (inside the studio) while I try to work,” she says.
and pursue other crafts. “When I lived in the States, I took classes on the side [aside from] photography just because I enjoyed it, [especially] to de-stress. I [even] purposely made a project on doing portraits of crafters and other creatives so I could be around that scene because I loved it so much.” She confesses, “I took their pictures because I wanted to, and also because I had a show [to put together]. But the real reason was I wanted to know how they made their stuff.” Some say that in order to become successful, the safest bet is to stick to one craft or expertise and be the best in it. Mercado, on the other hand, constantly shifted from one thing to another. However, this doesn’t mean that she never became the best at any of those. “I love being a student. I love taking classes even if I know that I would know better than my teacher,” she shares frankly. With the creative drive and fire inside her, she never settled, and everything she’s learned, she tries to incorporate into whatever craft she is currently obsessed with. Her style is similar to Saori’s philosophy, where there are no rules and patterns; with this kind of weaving, the weaver simply enjoys the moment as it is and makes the best out of it. Whatever is produced on the fabric is a translation of the weaver's current disposition, created out of memories, experiences, even feelings. With Saori, it is strongly discouraged to copy a certain style. Instead, it encourages throwing out everything one has learned about weaving, including the rules.
With humility, Mercado shares, “I feel very blessed that through time, with God’s blessing and support from my family, I was able to hone all these skills that I can use to play around and work together to create something.” But her world hasn’t always been this creatively carefree and sunny. Months after flying back to Manila in 2012, one tragedy occurred after another: two of her nephews died in a car accident; her grandmother died; she miscarried her first pregnancy; her sister was diagnosed with cancer; her most beloved dog, who had flown with her to the States and was the flower girl at her wedding, passed away from old age; and, more recently, her sister died of cancer. It was the series of unfortunate events that turned her life around. “They just changed everything: my whole perspective in life, my lifestyle, and what I want to do.” And upon giving birth to her son, life changed for Mercado again. It became all about taking care of her kid and not missing out on any moment, no matter how mundane or momentous it is. This event was the deciding factor that led her to pursue Saori seriously. Since Mercado couldn’t practice photography professionally anymore as it would mean time away from her son, she reduced life to the most important details. “I just really simplified my life, paring it down to what’s essential. This is a simple as it gets,” Mercado admits. Recently, pursuing her fixation with Saori, she traveled to Japan to train under the Saori founder’s Overcoming adversities son Kenzo Jo. Misao Jo was also present, sitting The second slogan of Saori is “look out through eyes quietly, observing during classes. “I shared my story that shine.” and poured my heart out just to be accepted in the
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