Weaving with leaves and reeds is one of the oldest crafts to still be practices to this day. Among the myriad of fibres used for weaving in Malaysia is mengkuang/pandanus. A spiky plant found in Malaysian jungles and coastal areas, mengkuang is traditionally used to create mats, baskets, and other ornamental objects. The craft consists various roles that are usually undertaken by different groups within the same area, which include, (i) the harvester, who would harvest and process the leaves into finer even strips; (ii) the dyer, who would dye the mengkuang strips for weaving; (ii) the weaver, who would weave the dyed-strips into mats, bags etc.; and (iii) the tailors - who would assembly and sew, turning the woven mats into various products. Terengganu has been regarded as the home to one of the finest mengkuang weaving in the country.
The process of producing a mengkuang piece, from harvesting the plant to the completion of the final woven product, is long and arduous. The preparation of the mengkuang strips alone is often as time-consuming as the weaving itself.
Harvesting the leaves
Local specialists search for suitable mengkuang leaves (neither too old nor too young) for weaving. These leaves have thorny, serrated edges that need to be removed after harvesting.
Thumping the leaves
Harvested leaves are repeatedly thumped with a blunt pole to soften them.
Smoking the leaves
The leaves are smoked over hot coal to further smoothen them for weaving.
Cutting the leaves
Each leaf is cut into even strips using a jangka, a blade tool made from stationery blades embedded in a wooden handle. The gap between the blades determines the strip size—the closer the gap, the finer the strips.
Dyeing the mengkuang strips
A dye bath is prepared in a large pot of boiling water. Freshly cut strips are soaked and stirred in the dye bath for several minutes. Various dyeing techniques produce different colour effects once woven.
Weaving the mengkuang strips
The dyed strips are given to the weaver, who weaves them into mats and other objects. Different ethnic tribes in Malaysia have unique motifs and colour palettes. For example, mats made from pandan laut (sea pandanus) are harder and more exclusive, with only a few artisans in Terengganu still mastering the craft.
Assembling woven pieces into the final product
The woven pieces are handed to tailors for final processing, often combined with other materials like fabric for bag linings.