Woven Gold, Worn Daily: Terengganu Batik and Songket, the Modern Way

Songket was once the cloth of courts and kings. Batik was the cloth of everyday life. In Terengganu, both are now waiting to be worn on an ordinary Tuesday.

Anyone raised in Terengganu grows up surrounded by two textiles. There is batik, bright and breathable, on school teachers, market traders and uncles at Friday prayers. And there is songket, heavy with gold thread, folded in tissue in a grandmother’s cupboard and brought out for weddings and Hari Raya. One is the cloth of daily life; the other is the cloth of occasions. The modern way to wear them is to blur that line, with confidence and with care.

First, the Cloth Itself

Songket is a handwoven fabric in which gold or silver thread is inserted between the base threads, so that the metallic pattern seems to float above a coloured ground. The name comes from sungkit, to pick, after the technique of picking out threads to form the design. It is woven on a traditional two-pedal floor loom called the kek, and a single piece can take weeks or months. In 2021, Malaysia’s songket was inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Terengganu songket is known for motifs drawn from nature and geometry. Look for pucuk rebung (the bamboo shoot, the triangle you see in our own logo), bunga pecah lapan, tapak manggis, awan larat, bunga tanjung and bunga cengkih. Learning a few of these names is the quickest way to start seeing the difference between pieces.

Batik in Terengganu is made both by hand, with wax drawn freehand or brushed onto cotton and silk, and by block, where a metal stamp repeats the pattern. Terengganu batik is celebrated for its flowing floral motifs and vivid colour, and a hand-drawn piece will carry the small irregularities that prove a person, not a machine, made it.

Batik for Work: Polished, Not Loud

• One statement at a time. Pair a strongly printed batik shirt or blouse with plain trousers or a solid skirt in navy, charcoal, black or cream.
• Fit is everything. A batik shirt tailored at the shoulders looks contemporary; a boxy one looks like a uniform. A trusted tailor can adjust off-the-rack pieces quickly.
• Choose a quieter palette for conservative offices: indigo, earth tones and soft greys, or smaller motifs.
• Layer it. A plain blazer over batik works beautifully for presentations and cold, air-conditioned meeting rooms.

Batik for the Weekend: The Kaftan Moment

Off duty, Terengganu batik is at its most joyful. A loose batik kaftan, belted or left to flow, is the most elegant answer to East Coast heat, and it moves just as easily from a beach lunch at Teluk Mak Nik to an evening at the Kemaman Waterfront. Men can wear a short-sleeved batik shirt open over a white tee with linen trousers and leather sandals.

Songket, Unfolded

The modern way to wear songket is to let it be the single precious thing in an otherwise simple outfit.

• The samping, rethought. A songket samping over a plain, well-cut baju Melayu remains the finest look a man can wear to a wedding. For a less formal occasion, try it over dark tailored trousers with a crisp white baju.
• The selendang. A songket shawl over a plain baju kurung or a simple black dress turns an outfit into an occasion.
• The small piece. A songket clutch, a cuff-width trim on a jacket or a pair of covered buttons lets you wear the gold every week, not once a year.
• Mix the generations. Pair a grandmother’s songket with today’s footwear. Clean leather loafers or even white sneakers feel fresh at a majlis held in a garden.

Songket asks one thing of the wearer: that everything else in the outfit should know its place.

Where to See and Buy in Terengganu

In Kemaman, the best pieces often come through family networks, home-based tailors and stalls at local markets, so ask around and ask questions. For a deeper look at the craft, it is worth the drive north to Kuala Terengganu:

• Noor Arfa Craft Complex, in the Chendering industrial area, describes itself as the largest batik pavilion in Malaysia, presents more than 70 batik brands under one roof, and offers batik-making workshops.
• Yayasan Tuanku Nur Zahirah (YTNZ) runs a songket weaving centre in Chendering that trains young weavers and produces contemporary handwoven songket.

Check opening days and workshop bookings before you go, and remember that Terengganu’s weekend falls on Friday and Saturday.

Caring for Batik and Songket

Wash batik by hand or on a gentle cycle in cold water, especially for the first few washes, turn it inside out and dry it in the shade. Iron on the reverse at a low to medium setting. Songket should not be machine-washed: air it after wearing, have it professionally cleaned when necessary, and store it folded with acid-free tissue, away from damp. Refold it along different lines now and then, so the gold threads do not crack.

Wear It Like It Is Yours

Because it is. Every batik shirt on a Monday and every songket samping at a friend’s wedding is a small vote for the weavers, block-makers and tailors who keep this heritage alive. Buy from local makers where you can, ask who made what you are wearing, and let Terengganu’s two great cloths become part of your everyday, not just your festive, wardrobe.

How do you wear your songket or batik? Share your favourite combinations in the comments.

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