Pins, Charms, & Art

Product Features

These unique jeepney signages are hand-painted by Kuya Edwin Tayao, an expert jeepney signage artist based in Tondo, Metro Manila. This creation is part of Project Para Boss by Pop Junk Love, an initiative dedicated to revitalizing the traditional art of signage painting in the Philippines. 

Dimensions: 7.25 x 3.25 inches

Important Information

• Each signage features a different colour scheme for the text, so the one you receive may not match the photos exactly. Throughout this project, Kuya Edwin have the freedom to choose the colours for each signage, adding to the unique beauty of each piece.

• Like any handmade art, these hand-painted jeepney signages may have minor flaws such as chipped paint, smudges, or small dents due to the nature of the craft and the environment in which they are created. Each sign is manually dried in outdoor spaces, making them naturally exposed to the elements during creation.

• Made from PVC/Sintra plastic board, these signages should be kept out of direct sunlight.

• The actual colour of the signage may appear lighter or darker than in photos due to lighting conditions or screen resolution differences.

The Cultural Significance of Jeepneys 

Born from the aftermath of World War II, Jeeps, or Public Utility Jeepneys, have become a cultural icon and a vital, affordable transportation mode for over 40% of commuters in Metro Manila and many provinces across the Philippines. Dubbed the hari ng kalsada (king of the road), jeepneys traverse routes that limited transportation options don't cover, providing an indispensable service. Along with jeepneys comes their art, particularly their hand-painted signage.

The exact origins of jeepney signages are not well-documented, but they are believed to draw deep inspiration from the letter paintings on kalesas (horse-drawn carriages) and the carts of roaming sorbeteros (ice cream vendors) in the streets of Metro Manila. These eye-catching signages serve not only to provide directions but also as a form of artistic expression - a truly remarkable piece of Philippine culture.

Proceeds

PISTON has been at the forefront of the #NoToJeepneyPhaseOut campaign, opposing the unjust PUV Modernization program in the Philippines. They fight to promote and advance the basic demands of Filipino transport workers for decent and stable work, livable income, freedom of association, and all their economic and democratic rights. Learn more about the struggles of Filipino jeepney workers through PISTON's work and our blogs.

20% of the proceeds from this product collection support PISTON's mission to advocate for a just and pro-people Philippine transport system. 100% of the profits from the 'Free Palestine' sign boards will be donated to mutual aid supporting Palestinian-Filipino refugees across Luzon. For the updated donation amounts and transparency report, please check out this link.

Combining two powerful symbols of resistance—Palestine's watermelon and the Philippines' sun and stars—this pin represents unwavering solidarity and serves as the official emblem of Filipinos United 4 Palestine. Designed by its members, the pin not only honours the Palestinian resistance against occupation but also reflects the deep connections between Filipino and Palestinian liberation movements. Through this symbol, we recognize the shared histories of colonialism and violence, and the critical lessons many Filipinos have drawn from the Palestinian struggle.

For more resources on Filipino and Palestine solidarity, please check out the following:

• Huwag Matakot! Leaving Fear Behind as We Speak Up for a Free
• PalestineFilipinos in solidarity with Palestine call for Arms Embargo now!
• Christian Zionism in the Philippines: When Faith Becomes a Tool for Settler Colonialism

Proceeds

100% of the profits from this pin ($5 for each) will go to Palestinian mutual aid efforts, distributed across Palestinian-Filipino refugee families in the Philippines. For the updated donation amounts and transparency report, please check out this link.

Product Feature

1.5 x 1.3 inch, gold-backing enamel pin with rubber lock

Beyond the Word

Malakas, Matapang, Palaban—Strong, Fierce, Fighter. These qualities are often tied to masculinity in Filipino culture, with women traditionally expected to be mahinhin—modest and passive. But Filipina women have long defied these narrow expectations. From Gabriela Silang, who led a revolt against Spanish colonizers, to Teresa Magbanua, a revolutionary who fought in all three resistance movements against the Philippines’ major colonizers, Filipinas have shown that strength and bravery are deeply rooted in our history. Filipina women have fought, organized, and led with the same fierceness traditionally reserved for men.

So here’s a reminder to Filipina women and our queer kapatids: we’re strong because we endure, we’re fierce because we resist, and we’re fighters because we never back down from what’s right. These words no longer just belong to men—they belong to us too. Our power has always been there, even when it wasn’t recognized. Now, we’re making sure it’s undeniable.

Proceeds

15% of the proceeds from this collection will support Bahaghari PH and its work to advocate for and liberate the LGBTQIA+ community in the Philippines. For the updated donation amounts and transparency report, please check out this link.

Product Features

1.5 x 1.3 inch, acrylic pin with rubber lock

Beyond the Word

Before reading the narrative below, here's an important reminder that being a woman, a Filipina, does not necessarily mean having a Pekpek (Vagina). 💖

As a young Pina/xy growing up, how many of us have been shamed by talking about our period? How many of us were associated with being mataray, suplada or maldita just because it's that "time of the month"? How many of us have not learned about safe sex and sexuality at a young age because it's a topic that's deemed shameful? And because talking about our Pekpeks is deemed makasalanan (sinful)?

The creation of the Pekpek Power pin is definitely something we're extremely proud of. Kaya let's go! Help us normalize these conversations. Help us empower our Pekpeks!

15% of this collection will be donated to the Free Our Sisters, Free Ourselves (FOSFO) campaign - an international campaign under GABRIELA, against the political persecution and repression of women activists and human rights defenders in the Philippines. Learn more about FOSFO by checking out their Facebook page.

Product Features

1.5 x 1.3 inch, acrylic pin with rubber lock

Beyond the Word

"Maarte means extra/ sassy. Maldita means baddie. Maganda means beautiful. To be Maarte and Maldita is to be beautiful." - K.D.

Proceeds

15% of the proceeds from this collection will support Bahaghari PH and its work to advocate for and liberate the LGBTQIA+ community in the Philippines. For the updated donation amounts and transparency report, please check out this link.

Product Features

1.5 x 1.3 inch, acrylic pin with rubber lock

Beyond the Word

A broken heart will make us face all our truths. Some of which Jen Maramba calls, “the truth of a lie” because sometimes the world will vibrate in the frequency that tells us, we’re the problem. Due to our own personal reasons we’re going to accept that vibration and believe the truth of a lie.

This is the truth: There was never ever anything wrong with us. We were made perfect as is. So we don’t have to prove this to the world or to ourselves that we are anything but what we are. We don’t have to overcompensate or minimize our light or try too hard.

We just be, be loved. Act like we’re loved. And we will remember and forget this over and over again because life is truly a series of loud challenges and small joys (at least right now). We are so receptive to either because we are creatures meant for connection. Unless we deeply embody the truths of being loved and being whole, our effort will stray us towards these truths of a lie and will make us behave in some whackshit ways.

Our receptivity to how people perceive us is that direct link to our gift of human sensitivity tuned in for connection. It is our embodied truths that are the filtration system to how we will respond to our reality. 

The Bumalik sa Sarili anting-anting (amulet) is about returning back to ourselves and being rooted to our real truth. The ones that stem from a deep understanding of who and what we are in the midst of everything that’s happening around us. It is about cultivating a deep trust in ourselves by being clear and radically honest about our prevailing truths that lead us to do the things we do. The design is a figure who is so connected to themselves that their actions and their words align. The prayer, bumalik sa sarili (return to self), is embedded in the design in Baybayin written in purple partially obscured as an invitation to cultivate this through embodiment.

Design and artist statement by Althea Balmes

Proceeds

15% of the profits from each sale of this product goes to Sugarfolks' Unity for Genuine Agricultural Reform (SUGAR). SUGAR is an organization advocating for the rights and livelihoods of Sugarfolks' and farmers in Batangas, Philippines. Learn more about this partnership here. For the updated donation amounts and transparency report, please check out this link.

Product Features

1.5 x 1.3 inch, acrylic pin with gold coloured-lock

Product Features

These unique jeepney signages are hand-painted by Kuya Edwin Tayao, an expert jeepney signage artist based in Tondo, Metro Manila. This creation is part of Project Para Boss by Pop Junk Love, an initiative dedicated to revitalizing the traditional art of signage painting in the Philippines. 

Dimensions: 7.25 x 3.25 inches

Important Information

• Each signage features a different colour scheme for the text, so the one you receive may not match the photos exactly. Throughout this project, Kuya Edwin have the freedom to choose the colours for each signage, adding to the unique beauty of each piece.

• Like any handmade art, these hand-painted jeepney signages may have minor flaws such as chipped paint, smudges, or small dents due to the nature of the craft and the environment in which they are created. Each sign is manually dried in outdoor spaces, making them naturally exposed to the elements during creation.

• Made from PVC/Sintra plastic board, these signages should be kept out of direct sunlight.

• The actual colour of the signage may appear lighter or darker than in photos due to lighting conditions or screen resolution differences.

The Cultural Significance of Jeepneys 

Born from the aftermath of World War II, Jeeps, or Public Utility Jeepneys, have become a cultural icon and a vital, affordable transportation mode for over 40% of commuters in Metro Manila and many provinces across the Philippines. Dubbed the hari ng kalsada (king of the road), jeepneys traverse routes that limited transportation options don't cover, providing an indispensable service. Along with jeepneys comes their art, particularly their hand-painted signage.

The exact origins of jeepney signages are not well-documented, but they are believed to draw deep inspiration from the letter paintings on kalesas (horse-drawn carriages) and the carts of roaming sorbeteros (ice cream vendors) in the streets of Metro Manila. These eye-catching signages serve not only to provide directions but also as a form of artistic expression - a truly remarkable piece of Philippine culture.

Proceeds

100% of the profits from the 'Free Palestine' sign boards will be donated to mutual aid supporting Palestinian-Filipino refugees across Luzon. For the updated donation amounts and transparency report, please check out this link.