Stiff, Staid Songket Gets A Makeover

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Songket, a hand-woven piece of fabric, is usually taken out of the wardrobe just a few times a year — Hari Raya and Malay weddings, mostly.

But if Royal Terengganu Songket has its way, songket will be the sexy evening gown for a red carpet event.

Or a shawl for a casual evening out. Or Christmas ornaments for the tree.

The company is working hard to turn the staid traditional textile into stylish modern wear for a wider market.

“We want to take songket to a new level,” said Roslan Wilkinson, its chief executive.

He has become used to disbelieving looks from visitors who come to his showroom in upscale Bangsar.

One particular dress that gets everyone gushing is a full-length white gown with a songket peacock down the back.

It looks nothing like the heavy stiff songket with fussy designs.

Songket is most commonly used as a kain samping — or a piece of fabric wrapped around the waist as part of a man`s formal baju Melayu. Think of that as a short sarong that comes to the knees.

It is so stiff that in the past when real gold threads were used, it is said that even a dagger could not cut into the kain samping.

The new songket is lightweight and modern, as the looms are remade to take lighter fabrics.

“It is made through exactly the same processes, and each piece is hand-woven,” said Roslan.

It started when the Raja Permaisuri Agong Tuanku Nur Zahirah, who is from Terengganu, met songket- weavers struggling to earn a living. Like most traditional crafts, songket-weaving was dying.

“But that`s the only skill that the weavers know,” said Roslan.

The Raja Permaisuri Agong set up a foundation in 2007. Royal Terengganu Songket now hires about 60 weavers in Terengganu and Sarawak.

It also hires established weavers, builds proper work areas for them, and pays a fair price for their work.

It quickly realised that it must find new markets, and looked for new products that had wider appeal.

A team of designers got to work and came up with table runners, placemats, handbags and shawls.

Better techniques also enabled the weavers to work faster, and at a lower cost.

Shawls are the most popular products, with each selling for RM2,200 upwards. The most elaborate one with a peacock motif is tagged at RM25,000.

At the higher end, luxury items include fabric that costs about RM3,000 a metre, and designer gowns.

The enterprise is still funded by the foundation but it hopes to earn enough to support itself soon.

It is trying to do for songket what former prime minister Abdullah Badawi`s late wife Endon Mahmood had done for batik.

When new batik designs were unveiled, Malaysians were uncertain if their traditional textile should look so modern.

Now, modern batik is everywhere.

Songket has gone from staid to sexy, and may soon come out of the closet more often.

Source: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com

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