Barefoot chic: paradise found on Dedon Island

The Philippines has always loomed large on Bobby Dekeyser’s radar, the founder of Dedon outdoor furniture. Twenty years ago, after developing a fibre that would lend itself perfectly to outdoor furniture but lacking the know-how, Dekeyser (right) went to Cebu to meet a master weaver of rattan. Dedon was formed and its manufacturing has been based there ever since. The firm’s ties to the archipelago have been further strengthened with the recent opening of Dedon Island Resort, a four-hectare property on the southeast tip of Siargao.

The resort is a collaboration with designers Jean-Marie Massaud and Daniel Pouzet, who have combined local architectural influences, contemporary design and luxury fittings with the brand’s devotion to eco-friendly barefoot living. The nine-villa property uses local materials from sustainable sources and incorporates, naturally, many of Dedon’s signature products and specially created pieces.

The resort acts as an outdoor living lab for the company’s products and activities. “Every experiment we carry out here, from groundbreaking outdoor design to organic local farming, brings us closer to achieving our vision of a truly sustainable paradise – a place to retreat, rejuvenate and return to the world in a barefoot state of mind,” says Dekeyser.

The resort is a celebration of the weavers’ talents – from the woven pods encasing the children’s trampolines in the garden, the complex decorative panels in the circular bar, to Pouzet’s signature “nestrests” hanging from the palm trees. The villas, with verandas and large windows integrate with the natural surroundings, softening distinctions between indoors and out. Paradise found. dedonisland.com