Acep makes key chains for a living

Text and photos by P.J. Leo

JAKARTA (JP): What is there to buy at the entrance of recreational sites such as Taman Mini Indonesia Indah, Monas Square, the Cibubur Camp Site and the Bogor Botanical Garden? Souvenirs made of simple materials but meaningful, nonetheless, to the buyers.

Acep Djuandi, 48, from the West Java town of Tasikmalaya is a craftsman who makes key chains from the kernels of kenari nuts (a kind of pecan).

Better-known as Kang Acep among his circle of friends and relatives, Acep started making key chains 10 years ago, around the time he stopped selling household utensils on credit to his neighbors and the community at large.

"I quit that job after having done it from the time I was a bachelor because my income was unsteady. My customers often delayed their installments. They seemed to have little regard for me, while I needed the money to keep my business going. Perhaps I was too lenient with them," he said.

Acep, who lives on the Ciliwung riverbank on Jl. Otista II in Bogor, West Java, feels more secure in his present profession. "My father and brothers are all souvenir craftsmen. Not surprisingly, I had no difficulties when I handled this work for the first time," he said laughingly.

Acep not only sells key chains. He also sells rings made from kenari nuts and wayang golek puppets. His mainstay, however, is key chains. In his small but cozy house, Acep displays a lot of objects that look antique. His walking sticks, for example, look very simple. He takes them with him at night around his neighborhood.

The sticks are fairly thick tree branches painted and carved to produce an expensive look.

His kenari key chains, made in two sizes, are sold at Rp 1,000 each for the large ones and Rp 500 for the small ones. "I only make big kenari key chains during a certain time of the year because the trees blossom only once a year. The small ones are no problem because the plants yield nuts all year long."

Acep obtains kenari nuts from one of his neighbors, who works in the Bogor Botanical Garden where kenari trees, big and small, grow. He pays Rp 100 a piece for the large nuts and Rp 10 a piece for the small ones. Acep, his wife and their five children all take part in peeling off the nuts' outer covering. The kernels are washed and scoured, and stored for about one week.

"Kenari kernels that are too small are separated and sold at a low price to the Minipark Ornithological Garden to feed Kasuari birds," Acep said.

After one week, the kenari kernels are scoured again to obtain a smooth surface. Acep, his wife and his daughter can smoothen 20 large and 60 small kernels a day. When they are dry, Acep makes holes at both ends using a simple homemade tool consisting of a nail, a small wheel to rotate the nail, a short piece of bamboo and some yarn to support the bamboo when rotating the wheel. Acep produces red, green and brown kernels by dipping them into paint and hanging them to dry. Faces are depicted on the large kenari kernels. Acep affixes small eyes, and uses a mixture of Melamix and Herder C liquids to dry and lend luster to the dark brown kernels. Large nuts are burned prior to the above process at certain spots to erase wrinkles and scratches. Melamix costs Rp 7,000 a tin and Herder C is priced at Rp 1,000 a bottle. "I have difficulty in applying the colors to kenari kernels during bad weather because they take a long time to dry," said Acep, while hanging kenari kernels after the dipping process.

The key chains are now affixed in the holes of the dry kenari kernels. Acep adds "BOGOR INDONESIA" to the small kernels because they are sold at the Bogor Botanical Gardens. A decoration or a inscription on large kernels is made on order.

"With big orders, I ask a friend to engrave the writing. I pay him Rp 100 a piece for large kernels and Rp 50 for small ones. For other places, I apply different inscriptions. For example, when the Jamboree took place in Cibubur, I inscribed "CIBUBUR INDONESIA" on the kernels," he said.

"During the summit meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum at Bogor Palace in 1994, I inscribed "APEC-BOGOR INDONESIA" on my kenari key chains. I sold many of these souvenirs at prices far higher than usual. Many foreigners paid US$1 for a small key chain," said Acep with a happy smile on his wrinkled face.

He said that Matahari Department Store in Bogor once sent his souvenirs to the United States and another buyer took some, bearing the inscription "Jeddah-Riyadh-Madinah", to Saudi Arabia.

However, after 10 years of running his handicraft souvenir business, Acep has not been able to expand it.

On Sundays, Acep sells his souvenirs at the Bogor Botanical Garden and on weekdays, retailers come to his home to buy his products for resale.