Native decorative begs

A small decorative beg with native's motif is good to place in a car or home. The colourful beads used to design the native's motif enhances their beauty or shall I say giving added value to the items.

Ankle Bells @ gerunong

Many young native women like to wear ankle bells. In the Iban language these ankle bells are called "gerunong". Tied around their ankles these instruments produce warm and rich chime sound when shaken or as the legs of the person who wears them move. Iban women wear these gerunong as part of the accessories to enhance their beauty. I have noticed Indian cultural dancers like to put a lot of these bells around their ankles. However, I also found that these ankle bells were also used to decorate darts container by some blowpipe shooting competition participants. The picture here speaks it all. 

A ''temilah'' (dart container) decorated with brass ankle bells

The Borneo natives' headgears

Headgears come in different forms, shapes and sizes and are designed for certain specific purpose(s). While most are used for physical protection against falling objects or rain or heat, there are others specifically made for religious, decorative or ceremonial purposes. The Malay songkok for instant are both for physical protection as well as for religious purposes. The materials used for making headgears are also coming from various sources, places and nature. Some are made of cotton cloth whilst others made from animal skins or even plastics.  

In the picture here we have the native headgear designed basically for ceremonial purposes and cultural performances. What I am particularly interested in sharing here is the material used for decorating the headgear, namely, the beads.

The Sarawak Natives' or Orang Ulu headgear

Welcoming distinguished guest with a garland

Welcoming distinguished guest with garland is a common practice in Malaysia, amongst the Indian in particular. The Indians made garlands from flowers, holy basil and leaves of mango tree. They called this type of garland 'bunga malai'. In Borneo the indigenous people also welcome their distinguished visitors with garlands, a practice, which I think could have originated from the Indians. The only difference is that the garlands the indigenous folks used to welcome their distinguished guests are usually made of beads of various sizes, colours and designs.

Garlands made of beads

Another garland made of beads

Decorative Sheaths of Borneo Indigenous Sword

The 'ilang' or 'parang ilang' as it is known to the indigenous ethnic of Borneo is a type of sword. The word 'parang' means knife and 'ilang' is just a name. Literally it means the 'ilang knife' or the 'ilang sword'. Sword as we all know is a weapon of combat used by people of various cultures around the world. The indigenous or the native people of Borneo and notably in Sarawak, have been using parang ilang for centuries. How they get the metal to make the sword before the advancement of trade is something I have not researched on. But in this writing I am only bringing readers into the decorative parts of the parang ilang. 

Since tribal wars and battles have become things of the past the parang ilang have been serving different purposes. Today basically they serve two purposes: decorative @ ornamental and ceremonial. They are placed in homes as part of the interior design. And this is where beads play some significant role. During festive season namely the Gawai Dayak that is celebrated in June each year, the native people also use the parang ilang in the performance of the warrior dance called 'Ngagat Bebunuh' [literally translated, "dance to kill' or a killer dance]. Picture below shows two sheaths of parang ilang that have been beautifully decorated with beads of various colours and designs.

The handles and sheaths are beautifully decorated with beads

Passion for beads

On one fine day many months back a friend brought me to a place where religious articles and beads were sold in bulks. They did have retail sale though. I was impressed by a young and sweet lady responsible for manning the place. Besides assisting the employer in the sale and packing of the religious articles she also helped in making a variety of religious articles. She gave me some very useful tips in making rosaries. 

I have had an advantage of attending one workshop some years ago associated with the making of handicrafts and women's ornamental accessories from various materials including beads and metals. With the combination of tips the above mentioned lady gave and my hands on knowledge and experience acquired during the five-day workshop, I had started making various religious articles and women's ornamental accessories myself. In fact I have sold many to friends and colleagues at a very reasonable price. Here I like to share some of the religious articles and accessories I have personally made, a passion I have subconsciously developed.

Religious articles: the rosaries

My masterpieces: brooch and scraf clip

Marik Empang also known as Tango

Beautifully adorning the bosom and shoulder an Iban maiden is the 'marik empang' also known as 'tango' at any occasion or festival that requires her to wear the traditional costumes. Usually red in colour, marik empang is a combination of beads and hand-stitched cotton decorative outer garment. The 'ngajat' or the traditional Iban dance performed by an Iban maiden in full traditional gear can never be complete without the marik empang as part of the outer garment adorning her shoulder and bosom.  
    

Marik Empang: the personal works of my hands

Borneo International Beads Conference

Browsing through some of the beads put up for display and sale during the Borneo International Beads Conference on 9 October 2010 (BIBC 2010), I stumbled upon some very interesting beads.

Some of the beads put up for sale and display

Bead bracelet

Conference Poster

Conference venue 9-10 October 2010

Another booth displaying beads for sale