Malaysian handicrafts shopping
Worker making fruit plates from candlenut
Visitors to Malaysia should have no problem finding an assortment of great souvenirs to give to family and friends back home. Malaysia is a shopping Mecca with countless fashion boutiques and shopping malls for all tastes no matter if you desire a designer frock or the latest must-have video game for the kids. There’s no excuse not to bring home some postcards of the magnificent Petronas Twin Towers or a cuddly toy hornbill for a young relative.
Cheap buys such as humorous slogan t-shirts, handbags, fake watches, DVDs, sunglasses, sportswear, wallets and trinkets can be sourced from any of the tourist areas such as KL’s Chinatown, Penang’s beach resort of Batu Ferringhi or Jonker Street in Melaka. But these areas also have some high quality merchandise on offer which caters for wealthy tourists who are keen to add some traditional batik art or sculptures to their home as a permanent reminder of a wonderful holiday.
Types of Malaysian handicrafts
Malaysia boasts a brilliant array of traditional handicrafts from priceless antiques to exquisite modern items. Malaysian handicrafts are heavily influenced by Islam, and as the faith forbids the depiction of human form in art the majority of designs are taken from nature such as the patterns of vines, leaves, flowers or animals.
Metal crafts are also popular with brass casting and bronze working still used today in the manufacture of different utensils.
Earthenware is extremely popular with traditional objects such as the black gourd-shaped clay jar called a labu sayong originating from the state of Perak. A belanga is used to cook spicy curries in rural homes and has a round base and wide rim which distributes heat evenly. The angular-shaped terenang jar is used for storing water in northern Malaysia and is reminiscent of a Roman amphora.
With such an abundance of rainforest in her interior, wooden crafts from Malaysia are world renown. Entire elaborately-designed houses were traditionally built from local timber, and today Malay-styled engraved keris daggers, panels, Chinese containers and unique Orang Asli spirit sculptures compete on handicraft store shelves with kitchenware, intricate walking sticks and carved scented woods.
Central Market is KL's vibrant cultural hotspot
Woven crafts utilising local plant fibres such as bamboo, pandan, rattan and mengkuang leaves are combined to produce items including bags, baskets, hats, tudung saji, mats and sepak raga balls.
Other than batik there are other textile handicrafts to enjoy in Malaysia.Songket uses gold threads woven between silk to give a metallic lustre to fabric which is popular with the Malaysian social elite. Pua Kumbu is formed from individually dyed threads and features supernatural motifs inspired by ancient animist beliefs, whilst historic Tekat is popular for weddings and involves the combination of gold threat and velvet.
There are many different types of jewellery available in Malaysia that make good souvenirs, such as a kerongsang brooch, which is made of three pieces and pins together traditional dress.
A Cucuk Sanggul hairpin is another popular Malay jewellery item that is normally made of silver or gold and is used to secure a lady's hair in a bun. One for the guys is the large Pending belt buckle that is normally worn around the sampin skirt. It is an important status symbol for Malaysian men in traditional dress.
Shopping for handicrafts in Malaysia
If souvenir shopping in Kuala Lumpur it makes sense to head straight to Central Market. All goods here are of superb quality and sourced from the different regions of Malaysia. The attractive art deco air conditioned building is a tourist attraction in its own right and possesses lovely restaurants on the top floor as well as dozens of stalls and shops. Prices can be a little more expensive here, but it can be worth splashing out a bit for convenience and an assurance of quality. More on KL Central Market.
The duty free island of Pulau Langkawi is great for gifts and even has a glass-blowing workshop where this ancient art is still practices. In Penang it is worth checking out Batu Ferringhi night market which is put on after dark every evening down the island’s most popular beach area. Brass and pewter souvenirs as figurines, jewellery, jugs or pendants are popular with tourists in Penang and there is even a Pewter factory where you can watch the age-old smelting process and pick up authentic gifts. More on shopping in Penang.
Wood carvings, while admittedly a pain to lug about, will always remain in fashion and can make attractive talking points at home and permanent reminders of your vacation. And, of course, traditional batik textiles are always popular with every conceivably clothing item or household furnishing available. There are also batik factories dotted around the country including KL and Pulau Penang where visitors can watch the dying and weaving process, otherwise acclaimed Malaysian fashion designers such as Eric Tho have off-the-rack creations with a modern twist. More on batik.
