FOR YOUR FASHION LINE: Lau (second left) presenting Tarry with the SYTD cheque to help kick start his fashion line, ‘Touch by Taj’, witnessed by KTS senior executives Karen Teng (left) and Doreen Eng (right).
KUCHING: Sarawak’s ethnic designs often grace the baju kurung and baju kebaya but for Tarry Agong, he saw something more than just featuring these beautiful motifs onto traditional attire.
Instead of ethnic designs like the pua kumbu, the aspiring fashion designer chose to feature Dayak tribal tattoo motifs in his collection of dinner gowns and dresses.
“I noticed that tattoo motifs, especially Dayak tribal ones, have not yet been featured in our fashion industry here as traditional wear here usually bore ethnic designs,” he told The Borneo Post yesterday.
The 33-year-old from Kampung Sega, Siniawan who learnt how to sew from his mother, a seamstress at their kampung, opined: “If we were to feature only ethnic designs on the baju kurung or kebaya, these designs may be stereotyped and will only be featured on traditional outfits.”
Therefore, to create something new for the fashion industry here, Tarry decided to feature in his first collection Dayak tribal tattoo motifs and in order to kick start his fashion line, ‘Touch by Taj’, he signed up for KTS Group’s Sarawak Youth Talent Discovery (SYTD) project.
As one of the recipients of SYTD, he received RM5,000 from KTS which will go towards purchasing a sewing machine, mannequin as well as fabrics.
On hand to present Tarry with the cheque at KTS office here yesterday was KTS public relations manager Simon Lau.
“Once I’ve purchased all that I need, I will be starting ‘Touch by Taj’ as an online business through Facebook and customers will be able to place their orders with me from next month onwards,” he revealed and expressed his gratitude to KTS for the grant.