Julan in her stall at Miri Handicraft Centre
JULAN Nelly Apoi was so hung up on making baskets and becoming a weaver when she was in lower secondary school that she even locked herself in her hostel room.
And behind locked doors, she spent hours honing her weaving skills and soon became so adept in the art of basketry that she was able to produce exquisite patterns and shapes out of rattan.
She wanted so much to become a basket weaver because of her desire to continue the legacy her ancestors have passed on to her generation.
Reminiscing the bygone days, this Kenyah lady said she had come a long way from her days at a rural boarding school in Long Tungan, Ulu Baram. She now owns a stall at the Miri Handicraft Centre.
Julan looks younger than her 50-plus years.
The only tell-tale signs that weaving has taken a physical toll on her are her hands. They have become rough from working with rattan, packaging strips and gardening but she is not afraid to show them. And why would she?
“These are my hands. Maybe not so beautiful, no nail polish,” she chuckled before adding: “But with these hands, I have helped to provide for my family all these years.”
Indeed, the hands that rock the cradle rule the world.
Julan got married at 30 to a palm oil estate employee. Her eldest child has just entered UiTM in Kuching and her second is attending PPKS in Lutong, Miri. Her third child is in Form Three and the youngest in Form Two.
Over the past two years, she has been manning a stall, selling Kenyah handicrafts and baskets she makes from plastic packing strips.
A traditional basket is given a colourful twist with packaging plastic strips processed into fine rattan like strips.
Early start
Julan started making rattan baskets when she was very young — in fact, while still in primary school.
At that time, there were not many women weavers around to teach her — so she learned through observation and by analysing the patterns of old baskets, mats or whatever else made of rattan in the kampung and in the shops. She has committed many of these patterns to memory.
Although she wanted to present a basket she made for her Form Three art exam, her teacher said it was not acceptable according to the exam syllabus.
Instead, she submitted a beaded handbag which earned her an unexpected distinction, and the highest mark ever for her school. That motivated her even more to do well.
From the items at her stall, it is clear she has a collection of some of the nicest Kenyah art forms — from woven and beaded hats to all sorts of Kenyah beadworks, and, especially, baskets made of rattan and plastic packing strips.
“Basket is one of man’s oldest art forms, according to a Chinese scholar on Chinese bamboo art. And incredibly, the art of weaving baskets from materials we can gather is also part of the culture and history of the Kenyah people,” Julan noted.
Rattan too expensive
On the materials for making baskets, she pointed out that rattan and bamboo were not only hard to come by but also hard to process.
“I find rattan too expensive to use. Nowadays, plastic packing strips are cheaper — by the kilo.”
Julan revealed that before she got married, she was already making baskets with plastic strips discarded by logging camps and shops in the Ulu.
“I tried using them but because I had to sambung (string together) the short strips, the baskets did not turn out as beautiful as I had wanted. There were flaws I didn’t like.”
So when she was able to shop for rolls of plastic packing strips, she was only too happy to use them to make baskets.
According to her, plastic strips are easier to manage — softer and prettier because of their colours. They are now very fashionable and even available in London.
Julan said baskets could come in any shapes with distinct bottoms and tops, woven by hand.
They can be made from any fibres or materials man can think of. Materials can be twisted and plaited. This is where creativity comes in.
Today, Julan has orders to make food carriers, letter holders, shopping baskets, traditional round carriers (ajat) and serving trays.
She said in the past, the Ibans were good at making fine rattan filters for wine making.
A small protective basket for a large bottle of water.
Colouful and suitable
According to Julan, plastic packing strips (PPS) are very colourful and, therefore, suit the taste of modern women.
She has customers who like to buy baskets of different colours to match their clothes.
Although PPS are very useful for making mats and winnowing trays, Julan does not make them but she said those in the kampung would use PPS to make these items.
Mats are usually too big to be made at the Handicraft Centre but at her own stall, she can make baskets of different sizes between attending to customers.
Actually, Julan started selling her first baskets when her eldest was in kindergarten at Batu Niah. While waiting for her child to finish class, she would fill the time making baskets.
Mothers and teachers saw and liked her patterns and started ordering baskets from her.
Her life was simple in Batu Niah then because she was basically a ‘mummy doing housework and looking after children’. And the little sums she earned from her baskets came in very handy.
Soon, the primary school teachers, and mothers of the pupils, were placing orders with her. She was also selling her surplus baskets outside the school while waiting to pick her children up.
Incidentally, making baskets with plastic packing strips was the trend at that time, and many teachers from the peninsula even ordered these baskets from her to take home.
So Julan started creating different patterns and shapes which became very popular. Hence, commercialisation of her baskets really started with the support and encouragement from the school teachers. That was almost 15 years ago.
Julan said in those days, she made baskets at home — from 7pm to 11pm — at the rate of four per night.
When there were a lot of orders, she would burn the midnight oil, working until 1am or later.
In recent years, she had from time to time been contributing her baskets to relatives taking part in government-sponsored exhibitions.
She is happy these exhibitions are promoting Sarawak handicrafts throughout Malaysia. She hopes to participate alongside other basket weavers in future exhibitions.
One of Julan’s baskets.
Dream come true
Her stall at the Miri Handicraft Centre is a dream come true. Although having to pay RM550 rental (without GST) now, she is happy she still can make a small profit.
Her fellow stall operators at the centre are all very friendly and they also help to sell some of her baskets.
Asked if she would teach basketry, Julan replied: “If people want to learn, they can come here and I can teach them. I may not have the speaking skills but I can show and tell.
“I want to teach people how to make baskets which are lasting and pretty. I also want people to feel good owning a handicraft with a design specially selected by them.
“The art of basket weaving is not that difficult to master. You need good eyes, good feelings and good steady hands. When you do something from your heart, you create something beautiful for those around you.”
Julan hopes to save enough money to buy more expensive rattan for making baskets with beautiful Kenyah patterns.
“Now, because of rising costs, I have to rely on PPS. I pray the towkays will not raise the price,” she said.
Although Miri is a long way from Long Tungan, Julan’s birthplace, she returns home regularly. It is her duty to attend funerals and weddings at her village.
Biggest event
The biggest event in her kampung is Christmas and she makes sure her family celebrates it. She has not missed the celebration in the past few years even though the road she has been travelling on to get to her village is in very bad condition.
Retirement is far from Julan’s mind.
She said she will work as long as she could.
“I really like to travel when my children are educated. My youngest is in Form Two — so for me, there are still nine more years to go.”
Yes, maybe sometime in the future, Julan Nelly Apoi will take on the world and see it with her bright Kenyah eyes with a lovely basket in her hand. Who knows, her dream of selling her baskets in London may even come true!