Kebaya Modern 2011

Kebaya was introduced by the kingdom of Majapahit. On that era duchess wear it because it look simple, elegant and acceptable by the new religion of Islam which just entered Indonesia. Regions of Aceh, Riau and Johor Natural adopted as a means of social expression of the state with the ruler of Java. Kebaya on Java Island is considered sacred clothing to be worn at the national meeting or at the meeting of the nobles.

Kebaya gradually spread to other regions through trade, diplomacy and social interaction in Malacca, Bali, Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and the Sultanate of Sulu and Mindanao. After hundreds of years Kebaya has been the artistic merit, full of cultural elements and the clothing is the characteristic of the diversity of the Indonesian nation.

Photo Credit: flickr.com and permission from Food Fashion
- Labeled as Creative Commons-licensed content for commercial use, adaptation, modification or building upon.

The variation of this cloth does not have a limit. You can find a glamorous design with full of sequin and color combination or design which is very simple and matching the right color. In my opinion there are only two type of it. First, the one which is quite complex since it is use so many embroidery and the sequins variation. The second one is the simple type which just relies on materials that have good motives with a little improvisation.

Now, how to choose the design that will be appropriate to wear and not over budget? Here are the tips:

Specify the color theme with the occasion
Determine how much you will spend to make it.
Find info about the fee and the location of the tailors.
Consult about the skin color and posture of your body so the tailor will give some variation ideas to get the best results.

Many people are having difficulty caring the Kebaya because most of them are using sequins and embroidery. Well, actually caring it is quite simple. I will try to explain how to take care it.

First, never try to wash it with an ordinary washing machine or by hand. If you use an ordinary washing machine it will damage the embroidery and the sequins. Its strongly suggest to wash it with a dry cleaning.

Never wash it too often because usually it will make the color fade. Besides, many people wear it in special occasion and only in short time. As an alternative to clean it, you can soak it in the water using a detergent and avoid a direct sunlight when you dry it.

Removing stains that hardly to clean, you can simply use lemon juice to clean the stain and slowly soak it in the water.