Kebaya with embroidered border

Around the turn of the century Peranakan women began wearing (Indo-)European white lace blouses (kebaya), replacing the loose fitting tunics that reached over the knees. They reached as far as the hip, which made the sarong better visible. In the 1920s and 1930s Peranakan women began to develop their own distinctive style in colour and design. Besides being shorter and a tighter fit, the ends of the front panels became tapered.
Synthetic dyes gave a whole range of new possibilities in terms of colour. Peranakan women favoured a range of pastel colours instead of white. The kebaya was transparent, made from voile or organdie fabric. A cotton camisole was worn underneath. The border along the front and neckline were machine-embroidered with flower motifs combined with cutwork, called keranjang. The pale lilac kebaya illustrated here is embroidered with European white daisies (or marguerites) and purple violets.

Java; 1930-1940; cotton, synthetic dyes