📓THE FASHION HEADS: IONICA ABRAHAN LIM
SIX SCHOOLS. SIX VISIONS. ONE GOAL: TO TEACH FUTURE CREATIVES.
Behind every fashion school is someone keeping the machines running, the minds thinking, the deadlines moving, and—most importantly—the creative spirit alive. Meet the fashion heads shaping the classrooms where tomorrow’s Filipino designers learn to sketch, drape, sew, question, experiment, and, eventually, find their own voice.
For this edition of COOL Burn Book, we meet six of the people shaping Philippine fashion education—from a motherly chairperson and a former model to a Draping Queen, a self-confessed anti-organza academic head, and directors who believe that discipline, technical mastery, business acumen, and creativity are all essential parts of a fashion designer’s survival kit.
If Ionica Abrahan Lim had to describe her fashion-school personality, she would call herself the curious creative: always exploring, experimenting, and collaborating, while respecting tradition without ever being afraid to challenge it. Motherly, accommodating, and reliable, Ica believes that a great fashion student isn’t necessarily the one with the most obvious talent, but the one who remains curious, resilient, professional, and willing to keep learning.
Her personal fashion philosophy is just as fearless. Princess Diana is her style icon, Iris van Herpen is her favorite designer, and yes, she firmly believes that “It’s okay to be overdressed.” For students who find themselves losing confidence, her advice is simple: “The first fan of your work should be you.”
At Benilde FDM, creativity meets industry. The program prepares students not only to make clothes, but to become designers, entrepreneurs, innovators, and changemakers through hands-on learning, industry collaborations, global opportunities, and specialized facilities. Looking ahead, Benilde FDM is gearing up for Sinulid 2027 and its 30th anniversary, while continuing to strengthen the connection between fashion education, industry, sustainability, technology, and culture.
Ica sees the next generation of Filipino designers as bold, expressive, globally competitive, and deeply connected to their roots. Her words to live by? Believe in your work, keep improving, and never stop learning.
Full Name: Ionica Abrahan Lim
Nickname: Ica
Position: Chairperson, Fashion Design and Merchandising Program
School: De La Salle-College of St. Benilde
SLAMBOOK QUESTIONS
Three words students would use to describe you. Motherly, Accommodating, Reliable
Coffee, tea, or energy drink during deadlines? Coffeeeeee please!
A trend you secretly love? Oversized jackets!
Your fashion icon? Princess Diana
Your favorite designer of all time? Iris Van Herpen
One wardrobe staple you can't live without? Well fitted trousers.
The best fashion advice you've ever received? It's okay to be overdressed.
Favorite comfort food after a stressful week? Ice Cream :)
Weekend plans: sleep, shopping, museum, or beach? Sleep at the beach!
Hidden talent outside of fashion? Home decorating!
“The process of discovering creativity can be taught and guided. We can expose students to new ideas, methods, and experiences, but creativity truly flourishes when they learn to explore, experiment, and develop their own voice.”
SIX SCHOOLS. ONE GOAL.
Different classrooms. Different personalities. Different philosophies.
But ask these six fashion heads what they ultimately want from their students, and their answers begin to look remarkably similar. They want young creatives who know their craft but aren’t afraid to question it. Designers who can dream—and execute. Creatives who understand that fashion is art, business, culture, technology, and hard work, all stitched together. Most importantly, they want students who can enter the industry with something no curriculum can simply hand them: a voice of their own.
Because the future of Philippine fashion isn’t going to look like just one thing. It will be global and local, technical and experimental, traditional and disruptive, circular, conscious, digital, handmade, and completely unexpected. And somewhere right now, the next generation is sitting in a classroom—cutting fabric, refining a pattern, sketching an idea, questioning a critique, or staying up far too late to meet a deadline.
The fashion heads are watching. And they’re ready to teach them how to make it happen.#CoolisinSession #CoolBurnBook
