Tammy Tan designs are born of a lifelong passion. I fell in love with fashion design at age 6, while drawing ball gowns for my dolls in my mother’s dress shop and watching her vision for an elegant dress come alive. My concept of beauty was shaped partly by what lay outside my window: the glistening waters, clear skies and majestic mountains of Puerto Princesa City, Palawan.

My year as a high school student in Holland, Michigan, honed my talent for drawing and painting. I filled canvas after canvas with watercolors of the seasonal changes I saw in that picturesque Midwestern town. It was also there that I took my first fashion design classes, which taught me how to combine colors and understand the human figure.

In 2002, I graduated from the Ateneo de Manila University with a bachelor’s degree in humanities. During my senior year, I became art editor of Heights, the Ateneo’s literary publication. In my spare time, I designed clothes for classmates and friends.

After university, I was eager to join the fashion industry. I became a merchandiser for Freeway, a Philippine clothing line for young adults; afterwards, a buyer-merchandiser for British fashion brands Topshop and Topman.

My desire to design clothes remained, so I decided to make a career change. I enrolled in a fashion design course at LaSalle College International, a Canadian-run school in Makati. While learning to make patterns, sew and drape, the idea for Tammy Tan was born.

In 2006, I started the label, creating both tailor-made and ready-to-wear clothing. Two years later, I attended a course at the Paris Fashion Institute in France.

Since then, I have focused on designing bridal gowns and entourage dresses. My creations have appeared in magazines like Martha Stewart Weddings Philippines, Metro Weddings and Wedding Digest. They have also been featured inBridalBook.ph, the number one wedding website in the Philippines. 

In addition to my studio in Katipunan, Quezon City, I recently opened a bridal and ready-to-wear boutique in my hometown of Puerto Princesa.

For a woman’s wedding day, one of the most important moments in her life, my goal is to create gowns that will help express the bride’s unique beauty, her personality and her hope in lasting love.