Buying directly from producers, why not...

Buying directly from producers, why not...

Sri Wahyuni
The Jakarta Post
Yogyakarta

If you feel confused about which handicrafts to bring home
from your visit to Yogyakarta, don't be ashamed. You have all the
reason to feel that way.

The large assortment of charming handicrafts that this ancient
city offers, the numerous showrooms and the shops that offer
them, not to mention the relatively good prices, are simply
staggering and, frankly, hard to resist.

Yogyakarta is certainly a shoppers' paradise. You can find
handicrafts in almost every corner of the city, ranging from the
air-conditioned showrooms and star-rated hotels to the small
kiosks and vendors along Yogyakarta's streets, including the
legendary Jl. Malioboro right in the heart of the city and
Prawirotaman village in the south part of the city.

You can also find handicrafts sold at many tourist
destinations, mostly by street vendors, including the Hindu
temple of Prambanan on the eastern outskirts of Yogyakarta and at
Yogyakarta palace.

"But you need to be very careful when deciding on which
handicrafts to buy from street vendors, especially regarding the
price and the quality of goods they offer," Mohammad Abadi of
Yogyakarta's Apikri Foundation advised shoppers.

Although street vendors offer handicrafts that seem to look
the same and have the same price, theirs might be a copy that is
of a lower quality, he warned.

Abadi therefore suggested that the best way to purchase high
quality handicraft products at a relatively rational price was by
buying directly from the producers in the villages. That, too,
would enable shoppers to get a closer look as to how the products
were made.

"Unless you are sure about the quality and that you have a
good bargain, you will end up with a handicraft of inferior
quality at a much higher price when you buy from the street
vendors," he said.

The variety of handicrafts that Yogyakarta offers is
limitless, ranging from easy-to-pack souvenirs as small as a key
chain to memorable items that require shipping, such as life-size
statues or two-meter-high earthenware jugs. Also in unlimited
supply are the materials used to make the handicrafts.

These include wood, silver, bamboo, shells, ceramics, leather,
cloth and natural fibers, such as pandanus leaves, fragrant root,
agel (a plant), enceng gondok ( water plant), rami (jute), and
banana bunch stems.

Wood can easily turn into puppets, masks, loro blonyo
(traditional Javanese groom and bride) statuettes, animal
miniatures and functional souvenirs, such as tissue holders,
jewelry boxes and ashtrays. Among the most famous wooden
handicraft centers include Bobung in the Pathuk district of
Gunungkidul regency, and Kerebet in Pajangan, Bantul regency,
which is also one of the regency's well-known tourist
attractions.

Bobung, which is located some 28 kilometers southeast of
Yogyakarta, is home to hundreds of wooden handicraft makers.
Almost every family in this village has one or more of its
members working in this particular business sector. The monthly
turnover of the village's wooden handicraft business reportedly
reaches billions of rupiah.

"I earned a gross income of Rp 121 million last year (2001),"
Sujiman, one of Bobung's craftsmen, said.

Although most of the handicraft products are exported or sent
to other tourist regions, mostly Bali and Jakarta, and many of
the handicraft makers do not have showrooms, they will sell to
tourists or allow them to watch how the handicrafts are made.

Finding this village of 78,000 hectares and a population of
460 was not difficult. You only need to follow the Yogyakarta-
Wonosari road and turn left at the Sambipitu intersection at the
25th kilometer. Bobung is just three kilometers away from the
intersection.

There you can visit one or more of the six different groups of
Bobung handicraft makers of Karya Manunggal, Bina Karya, Bina
Usaha, Hasta Karya, Sanggar Mulyo or Panji Sejati, who will
warmly greet you.

If silver is your preference, however, Kotagede, which is
located just a few kilometers southeast of Yogyakarta, is the
best choice. Although you may also be able to find silver work in
the city, you will find a much larger choice of silver in
Kotagede, or the city of silver as it is also referred to.

Most of the silver work showrooms are located along both sides
of Jl. Mondorakan, Kotagede's main street. Visitors and buyers
can have a look at how handicrafts are made in the showrooms as
most of them also give demonstrations. However, many of the local
silver craftsmen do their work at home.

Kasongan village in Bantul regency, some 10 kilometers south
of here, offers different kinds of handicrafts. Initially, it was
just a ceramics handicraft center as most of its villagers are
skilled at making ceramics. However, as time went by, the village
developed into a market where visitors can also buy handicrafts
other than ceramics.

"You can also find leather work here, but it is of course not
as complete as what a leather work center would offer," said
Yayuk, a visitor at Kasongan, who mentioned Bugisan village, in
Wirobrajan, Yogyakarta's municipality, as one of the only few
leather work centers left in the province.

While the ceramic work centers, including Kasongan and
Pundong, also in Bantul regency, are developing, many of the
leather craftsmen in their respective centers have stopped
business activities, mostly due to a drop in business orders.
Leather craftsmen in Manding village, the center of production
for leather bags and shoes, and Gendeng village, the leather
puppet center, both in Bantul regency, are two examples.

"But you can still find a few craftsmen who continue to
produce handicrafts in these two villages," Abadi told the
Jakarta Post.

A village that is also worth visiting is Imogiri, some 20
kilometers east of here, which is home to hundreds of traditional
batik makers. Shoppers can buy a sheet of handmade cotton batik
for Rp 350,000 to Rp 500,000 (about US$59), depending on the
quality of the batik print and the cotton.

"But you may not be able to find silk batik there. It's all
cotton as far as I know," said Etty Larasati, a regular visitor
to the batik craftsmen in Imogiri, adding that batik showrooms
and galleries in the city would be the right place for shoppers
to find fine handmade silk batik.

Other handicraft centers where visitors can find good products
at the best price include Malangan and Nanggulan, both in
Kulonprogo, which are centers for handicrafts made of natural
fibers or plants, such as bags, shoes, slippers and boxes of all
sizes and for different functions. While Minggir in Sleman
regency, some 20 kilometers west of here, and Dlingo in Bantul
regency are centers for bamboo handicrafts.