By: Elisabeth Uru Ndaya

The Stube HEMAT weaving group has successfully passed the weaving phases from the beginning till the end process. Now the participants learn many things about weaving because they have practiced step by step until they can make it. Overall, they are quite familiar with their duties and responsibilities as a weaver. They are ready to produce woven fabrics both for the market and their needs. However, as beginners, they do not understand how to develop a weaving business. Therefore, the Multiplication of Stube HEMAT in Sumba invited the weaving expert, Kornelis Ndapakamang to share tips and tricks to promote the tied weaving business on Wednesday, April 28, 2021.

According to Kornelis, the tied weaving is an age-long ancestral cultural heritage. The potency to promote it outside the region is prospective. He has been in weaving for decades, on various occasions he always uses woven clothing that can be modified with ordinary fabrics. He did this because he loves the local motifs from his weaving works, as well as an effort to promote them at the same time. He also shared his experience when he got an opportunity by the Governor of NTT Province, Viktor Bungtilu Laiskodat to represent NTT to promote his woven fabrics at the world tourism meeting in London in 2019. He has a weaving workshop which is used as a weaving learning center for his trainees and at the same time as a shopping center for qualified woven fabrics. His workshop is not only visited by local people but also people from outside the island of Sumba, and even abroad.

Rini Loyang, one of the participants asked how to promote woven fabrics made by themselves who are not experts in weaving, while there are so much better qualified woven fabrics out there. “I promote through social media and also by words from customers’ mouth. The key is to produce qualified products so that our products are always hunted, especially if you have opened your own workshop, it is easier to display and store the collection in one place,” he explained. "Now, the woven products are marketed not only in the form of cloth or scarves but can be modified in various accessories, and souvenirs," he added. Hearing this explanation, the participants began to think about and imagine the modification for their woven products.

After the discussion, Kornelis trained the participants to design the motif directly on the ‘liran’ thread to be used as a scarf. The motifs drawn are turtle, flower, and crocodile motifs. While moving a ruler and pencil over the ‘liran’ thread, he explained that designing a motif has its formula, from knowing the number of threads per ‘liran’ to locate the image of the desired motif. With his extraordinary experience, Kornelis has been able to create a movement for creativity, innovation, and tied weaving entrepreneurship. These skills are needed to be continuously developed. The young tied weaving craftsmen need to get intensive assistance so that they will be ready to start and continue weaving businesses for local, national, and international markets. The presence of the Multiplication of Stube-HEMAT in Sumba become a driving force to grow hope, to change perspectives, and to call on the entire East Sumba community to enliven cultural values ​​and to preserve nature.***