Sentani, Jubi – Learning to knit is not an easy thing. It looks easy, but difficult to do. But for the young man from Deiyai Regency it becomes a mean to meet the needs of his life.
Nahum Kotouki, this Deiyai origin young man learned to make Noken since he was still in junior high school. He knit yarn into a Noken.
“This has become our culture especially the Paniai people and has been a hereditary from our ancestor, they used to weave orchid Noken, bark noken, then the materials replaced by factory-made yarn,” he told Jubi in Pasar Pahara, Sentani, Friday (July 7).
Nahum explained he made three kinds of Noken differentiate by their materials: ordinary yarn, orchids and bark.
He has learned to make Noken since junior high, but just stared to market his craft after sitting in high school. The work can help with his tuition fees. Even then help her college tuition.
“The sale of Noken and other accessories could help me pay tuition until I finished college,” said the young man graduated from the Faculty of Engineering at Cenderawasih University.
According to Nahum working on a big Noken need two-three days, while the small one can only a day. for the motives ones can took a week or two working days. He used to work on various motives, such as drums, cenderawasih, and the morning star.
While the type of product he made are noken, clothes, hats, earrings, bracelets, and other accessories.
The prices are vary, Noken made from factory yarn range from Rp200 thousand and above to Rp50 thousand. The highest price reach Rp500 thousand to Rp600 thousand while for accessories are rangae between Rp10 thousand to Rp30 thousand.
“My income a day is at most Rp600 thousand to Rp700 thousand and the lowest is Rp300 thousand,” said the 27-year-old guy who wants to be young entrepreneur.
Dorlllince Kotouki, Nahum’s sister said she is very proud of her younger brother that he could pursue the business of embroidered crafts which she is taught.
“I am happy because I had thaught him and now he is succeed, when we came to Jayapura I initially invited him to sell vegetables,” she said.
Elisabet Salon
Noken crafts and knitted dress are getting highly popular in Jayapura and around.
The owner of Elisabet Salon, Elisabet Ety Tebay says that in her place, the crafts are made by Papuan employees and Mama. She also ordered from the outside parties such as knitted shoes and wallet.
The prices are quite high in the Salon, which located in Perumnas 2 Waena Jayapura City. Knitted Rasta clothes reach Rp1, 5 million, while Israeli knitted motive Rp2 million, Jamaican knitted daft Rp2 million, and Brazil knitted dress Rp2 million.
While original dress made from bark can reach Rp2, 5 million, Papuan knitted dress Rp1, 5 million, green yellow knitted dress Rp1, 8 million, knitted long vest is Rp700 thousand, and rectangular knitted dress is Rp250 thousand.
” Elisabet Salon is not only serve woven, dreadlocks and hair knitted but also sells Papua speciality accessories such as bracelets, earrings, shoes to clothes (dress) are woven with a thread resembling clothes, bags, and hats with various colours and sizes,” he said .
Betty Gebse one of the customers said it’s great to see and use handicrafts of Papuan mama. She hopes young Papuan women can even more develop their creativity skills like this. (*)
