Kain Tapis : A Traditionally Woven Fabric of Lampung Province.

A Combination of  Sulaman Usus and Kain Tapis from Lampung.

Lampung is well known for its traditional textile products such as Kain Tapis, or Tapis Fabric, and Sulaman Usus , or Intestine-shaped embroidery. These products are traditionally woven using Alat Tenun Bukan Mesin (ATBM) or non-machine device.

Kain Tapi is a traditional product of Lampung made with a special motif pattern of gold or silver thread.The basic ingredients of this fabric is cotton yarn woven traditionally. The motives decorated with gold or silver thread are made with embroidery technique or traditional embroidery techniques (modern). These crafts are made by women, both housewives and girls who were originally to fill leisure time with the aim to meet the demands of customs that are considered sacred.

Framed Tapis Wall Hanging With Motifs of Al Qur'an Verses.

This fabric is usually used by the women as a cover of the lower body, from waist to ankles. Recently, the use of Kain Tapis goes beyond women wearing but many other uses like fabric wall hangings, men' s clothes, T shirt, and a variety of souvenirs. 

The motifs  applied in Kain Tapis are generally the theme of nature, especially flora and fauna. There is also a particular fabric that lifts domestic life as Kain Tapis Cucuk Andak. In addition, there are differences in the motives influenced by their regions of origin. For example, Tapis Liwa from West Lampung,Tapis Pepadun from inland , Tapis Peminggir from coastal areas of Lampung. Motif on the Tapis Peminggir (Coastal) raises the dominant flora while the motif of Tapis Pepadun (Inland) tend to be simple and rigid.

A Number of Kain Tapis With Varied Motifs.

The process of making traditional fabric like Kain Tapis is complex and must be done manually, so that the process can take weeks, even months. This makes Kain Tapis has a relatively expensive price. Price range of Kain Tapis vary greatly, depends on the complexity of motives, the proportion of gold thread, and the age of the cloth. The new Kain Tapis production generally range in the millions of rupiah. If it's been decades old, old piece of cloth filter can be hundreds of millions of rupiah and become collectibles.