Retiree makes handicraft passion his business

MIRI: With one hand holding two strings of thread and another picking out a dark-coloured bead, his eyes were focused on a ‘tangu’ (traditional accessory worn by women), which he was half-way making.

It was fascinating to see that while other merchants were busy reading the newspaper or simply whiling away their time on their smartphones while waiting for customers, Uncle Edmund (as how I addressed him) kept himself busy with his beading work.

“Yes, I know here usually the women do the beading and weaving of handicraft, but I do think that if I can do as good as them, if not better, I like to do it myself rather than waiting for people to do it for me,” Edmund Pawie Gayoh told The Borneo Post when met yesterday.

The 66-year-old was fascinated by the handicraft he saw on the street. After retiring as a primary school teacher in 2007, he took up several courses on rattan weaving for a start.

“I do not know what had triggered the interest, but I do know that the passion to learn and master the handicraft doesn’t stop me from flying around, attending courses,” Edmund said.

After his first course which was held in Kuching sometime in 2011, Uncle Edmund took up more courses – in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan; Kundasang, Sabah; and Miri.

While most of the courses were sponsored by a government agency, he actually had mixed feelings about the response from the former.

“Rattan weaving takes a lot of my time, energy and of course capital to start up. I remember very vividly one time I approached the Agriculture Department to get some grant to help me start up a small home business. A woman from the department told me that I was too old to get this grant, which angered me a lot until today,” he said.

He said he was angry because retired and senior citizens should be given the encouragement to start a small business, given that they have the time and passion for it, especially handicraft making.

“I like to invite these people with judgemental mindsets to come to my house and see for themselves how this very old man did all the handicrafts with his own hands. I want to let the young people know that being old does not mean you are weak and incapable. Age is just a number.”

As I browsed through his stall at the Malaysian Craft Promotion at Bintang Megamall, Uncle Edmund proudly told me that there were more items for sale on the first few days.

“I brought a lot more of my craft here all the way from Bintulu, and they were sold off to my customers. Most of my ‘anyaman’ (woven rattan products) are in the form of food trays, food covers and baskets. Many of my products are well-loved by people of all races. Many of them bought my baskets straight away without negotiating the price.”

Sharing his thoughts on the annual event which he had taken part in over five times, Uncle Edmund said it is a great platform for artisans to showcase their handicrafts.

“I do not dare to comment about others. I feel that such an event enables me to easily reach out to potential customers, telling them how the product was made and in return I love how they respond to my products.”

Halfway during the interview, Uncle Edmund resumed his work on the ‘tangu’ and while doing so, he told me that he actually learned the beadwork through observation.

“I’ve made several ‘tangu’ and now I am making a new one with relatively new design. I do not like to keep beading using the old design which many others know. I guess similar to my weaving work, I like to think of new ideas and change the designs as I know that my customers love my creativity.”

Apart from the annual event, Edmund has been promoting his beautiful art and craft at the Kuching Regatta and Pesta Kaul in Mukah several times.

The Malaysian Craft Promotion which started on Oct 21 will be happening until Oct 30. Held from 10am to 10pm daily, it features  more than 50 stalls selling a variety of   handmade crafts from Sarawak and other parts of Malaysia.