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The old woman sitting on a bamboo mat at Plaza Indonesia was seemingly lost to the hustle and bustle of modern life taking place around her. Her mind was focused on the blank sheet of white cloth in front of her, intent on a masterpiece in the making.

Slowly, she dipped her canting (traditional pen used for drawing batik) into the steaming earthen pot by her side, blew on it softly, and then drew elaborate fine lines on the immaculate cloth, her wrinkled hands transforming an ordinary piece of textile into an Indonesian tradition.

“I was amazed when I saw her that day,” said Freddy C Mercado Jr., a Filipino fashion designer who began working in Indonesia in 1989. “Immediately, it gave me the idea to blend our jusi [material blend of raw silk and pineapple fibers] from the Philippines and the art of batik into one.”

Mercado came to Indonesia in 1989 to work at a garment factory in Jakarta and he has been in love with the country ever since. “I think of Indonesia as my second home,” he said, with a smile.

The idea of mixing traditional Indonesian batik with Filipino jusi , born that day at the mall, came back to Mercado after he finished his factory contract in 2005.

He asked a batik maker in Simprung, South Jakarta, to draw batik on a piece of jusi . His request was unusual and the batik maker took almost four months to complete the design.

Mercado wore the garment to the Philippine Independence Day celebration at the Shangri-La Hotel in Jakarta.

“To my surprise, a lot of guests showed interest in what I was wearing,” Mercado said. “They asked what kind of batik it was, what kind of material was used and where they could buy it. So, I told them, ‘You can buy it from me.’ And that’s how the business started.”

For his new business, Barong Batik Indonesia, Mercado enlisted the help of Romi Oktabirawa, a fourth-generation batik entrepreneur from Pekalongan, Central Java, who owns a large batik business that employs more than 500 people.

“He invited me to his place, so I could see the entire process of batik tulis [hand-drawn batik] myself,” Mercado said.

Today, Romi, who is also the chairman of Paguyuban Pencinta Batik Pekalongan (Pekalongan Batik Fans Association), is Mercado’s business partner. He provides Mercado with traditional batik motifs to use on the jusi .

“There are motifs of parang [knives] and kawung [geometrical shapes], as well as dragons and butterflies of a Chinese influence,” Romi said.

The barong Tagalog (traditional embroidered garment from the Philippines) usually comes in broken white, with a button placket at the front reaching just above the waistline.

In contrast, garments from Mercado’s line, Barong Batik by Moon Joon, come in vibrant colors such as salmon pink, emerald green, blue and lilac.

“Pak Mercado chooses the motifs himself, designs their placement and layout, as well as the color harmony,” Romi said.

And the production process takes time. For hand-stamped batik, the process may take between three weeks and one month for one piece of jusi . For hand-drawn batik, it can take two to three months.

“We have to be very careful, because jusi is a very fine and delicate material,” Romi said.

In only a few years, Barong Batik has gained a following, especially among the Filipino community in Jakarta. The Philippine ambassador, Vidal Erfe Querol, is a self-professed fan of Barong Batik.

“It’s very nice and symbolic,” he said. “It’s a symbol of cultural fusion between two countries captured in a very elegant manner. The batik design is elegant. The jusi fabric from the Philippines is already well-known all over the world.”

“And it’s eye-catching,” the ambassador continued. “Whenever I attend formal functions with my Barong Batik, it simply catches everybody’s eyes. The fabric is delicate, the design is very colorful and the way it is cut is like the barong Tagolog .”

Barong Batik has also won a number of Indonesian fans. The head of the Indonesian–United States Committee of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce (Kadin), Peter F Gontha, says he owns 20 Barong Batik shirts.

“I have the long and short-sleeved ones,” he said. “I wear them on formal occasions, for example, when I meet with the president and ministers at the State Palace, as well as for relaxed family dinners. It has a luxurious feel, yet it’s comfortable to wear.”

According to Peter, the jusi material makes the garments crease-free and light.

“And it draws attention,” he said. “Whenever I wear it, people always say, ‘What is it? Where can I get it?’ So, I give them as presents to my friends and clients. They think it’s unique and like it a lot.”

But for the designer himself, the happiest moment was when his shirts were chosen to dress the male entourage at a friend’s wedding in Bali, last year.

“It was a wedding between a Filipino guy and an Indonesian girl,” Mercado said. “Seeing my products being worn and admired in a wedding ceremony made me feel so happy.”