Back to Tradition

When finishing this work, what comes to mind is our Malay tradition - the tradition of fabric design. The half flower design reflects the same motif on our long lasting Songket. The rich and deep color of green brings back to memory those old traditional velvet baju kurung cekak musang. Although baju kurung cekak musang is mainly worn by Minang ladies, as a young girl I used to admire the simplicity yet rich cultural heritage of the dress amongst us Malays in the nusantara. And so I lay down here three pantuns to remind us of our heritage, with a modern twist:

anak cina memancing ikan,

ikan dipancing di muara sungai,

kalau kite sukakan sulaman,

sulamlah bunga bunga teratai

buah pauh buahnya masam,

mari dikait si anak nelayan,

sulam bukan sebarang sulam,

sulam di buat dengan sayang

bercicit si nuri di atas titi,

memanggil teman sambil menari,

saya bersulam untuk dinikmati,

sesama kita di blog ini

For those who share the same interest with me do balas my pantun accordingly. Thank you.

Basic Chain with Sequin Padding

Looks like pattern basic chain with sequin padding ni telah menarik minat ramai peminat-peminat sulaman manik! Kali ini sequin yang saya gunakan adalah yang size kecil sekali. Jadi sequin padding di jahit pada setiap basic chain. Wah! Of course warnanye adalah warna yang sedondon dengan kain. Kali ini saya pilih warna highlight pada fabric. Bunga pada fabric adalah besar-besar and ada splash in red! So I choose red as my main color on the chains. Disamping itu warna oren dan coklat mendampinginya untuk ia kelihatan lebih interesting. Hasilnya? Tentulah cantik!!

Lihat pattern yang sama dengan tona warna yang berlainan di post-post yang sebelum ini - Baju Kak Long, I did it again, Baju kurung lovers - recommended edging.

Vibrant Red Florals

These vibrant red florals just burst out from the fabric. The concentric pattern contrasts well with the swirling lines batik design on the silk. The flowers actually have orange tips and medium size pearls. This is a funkier version of Soft White-n-Blue Floral.

Check out how I used my new small spring loop to work with this kurung sleeve edge bead embroidery at Sulam Sayang DIY.

Merah Menawan

Raya nak dekat, perancangan untuk baju raya dah dimulakan. Merah Menawan ni is on my baju tahun lepas. The fabric is silk tapi pattern dia bila dah siap baju macam orang tua sikit. So I've decided to upgrade it and here's the result.

The flower motif actually is similar to the fabric design. As the original design is in gold, the flower is not very visible. So I've repeated the flower design with this dual color bead embroidery (jahit manik). The result is just lovely.

Maybe I'll wear it to Kak Nor's wedding invitation and again on Raya.

Happy Beading!!

Sulam Bunga

Sulam Bunga is hard work on soft material like this silk. You have to hold the material lightly and stich to avoid puckering, Found this flower beads and sequence embroidery from a public photo in Photopages. Would like to extend the stiches to the sleeves; unfortunately one of the sleeve do not have the flower. This kebaya is Batik on Korean Silk and thread embroidered at sleeve edges, neck, front openings and around lower hem. As it is already edge embroidered with shiny silver thread, it doesn't need any bead embroidery there. Can't wait to see the owner to wear this.

Triple Bracelet Chains

Had to do triple bracelet chains to tone down the bright green of this silk kebaya. Even though the saying is "the more the merrier" i think three is enough - just to give it the elegant yet smart look on this kebaya.

Border Lengan

Ayu... Anggun.... With the correct choice of color and design uplift those beautiful old dressess yang color dah faded sikit tu.

Border lengan of kebaya moden in Korean Silk.

To border your kurung or kebayas call Zihan at 019-9846026 or e-mail norazihan@yahoo.com now.