Learn To Weave at Sukarara Village

Lombok Handicrafts, Sukarara Village | BLOG

A weaved cloth is one of the traditional arts of Lombok island which has special and distinct beauty. You can find that when you’re in Sukarara village and you will hear the traditional weaving tool, not a machine. This village indeed is a village which already widely known as traditional weaved cloth producer in Lombok island. The life of the people is mostly filled by operating the traditional tool to weave. They produce various kinds of merchandise, such as cloth, dress, table cover, blanket, and scarf with high quality and beautiful motifs. Due to the high-quality product they produce, their village has been widely attracting many visitors, local or foreign.

In Sukarara village you may find many women are work as a weaver. It used to be a myth that a man will get infertile if he weaves. But the myth is started to be left behind and now many men are work as a weaver. The men usually weave for Tenun ikat (string weave) while the women usually weave for tenun Songket (weave which usually embroidered with gold /silver threads).

The material to weave such as cotton fabric, nylon, silk, silver thread and mersis thread usually imported from outside Lombok. While for the color, they still use the traditional material such as seed of tamarind, turmeric, mahogany bark, and betel vine leaf. But there are some threads that already colored with special colors.

See The Process, Learn and Practice

Sukarara Traditional House

The Process

If you want to buy weaved cloth from this village, you will have so many motifs you have to choose. But the most famous motif and becomes an icon of this village is the Subahnala motif. This motif’s name came from the Arabic language. According to the local story, when the weavers were weaving this kind of motif, that repeatedly saying ‘subhanaallah’. The word is mentioned because it is hard to weave this motif and it took a long time to make it.

Beside Subahnala motif, there are other motifs too such as Keker, Serat Penginang, Cunglik and so on. The price varies, from IDR 25,000 scarf to IDR 3,000,000 weaved-cloth. If you wish for batik cloth, you can also find in this village. The handmade or the printing batik are available here with Sasambo and Lombok special character with price from IDR 600,000 – 1,000,000.

If you’re curious to see the weaving process, you can see it in major gift stores in this village. In Dharma Setya Artshop for example, you can see lines of weaving tool being operated by man and woman. You can also try to weave in this place.

To get into this place, you can take a personal/rental car, public transportation or motorbike. If you’re using personal car/ motorbike, the route is Mataram-Cakaranegara-Kediri-Sukarara. While if you’re using public transportation, you have to take route Mataram-Bertais (IDR 3,000), Bertais-Praya (IDR 6,000), and stop at Rented bus station. From this station, you can take Cidomo with cost IDR 5,000/person.

If you have enough time, you can arrange your visit to Penujak and Beleka village. In those villages, you can enjoy the making or shopping of pottery products.