Rastik, Conjuring Jengkol Skin into Clothing

Confused that you have a lot of electronic waste at home and don't know where to throw it? Rastik could be one solution.

Antiques or known as Rastik is a community of environmental activists located at Jalan Pamitran IV No. 22 Cipadung Kulon, Bandung.

Since 10 years, this community has been involved in the processing of inorganic waste. This includes plastic, metal and electronic waste.

The founder and creator of Rastik, Enie Mualifah said, the Rastik community usually holds routine activities every Saturday and Sunday. Starting from the process of collecting used goods to making it into a work of economic value.
 
“Usually we get garbage from local residents. But, if when we make it, it turns out that there are still not enough ingredients, we usually look to a junkyard," said Enie.

The results of this craft, they sell through online. Enie said that she received many positive responses from her customers.

Not only personal, but also from the government level, they often order the works of Enie and Rastik's friends.

"Many have ordered Alhamdulillah. Some are from the government around Bandung. There is also a personal message from Kalimantan for our work," he said.

For the price range, Enie said, it depends on the level of difficulty in making the order. Because, if it is more complicated or specific, it is usually difficult to find the raw materials for used electronic goods.

“The price range is IDR 25,000 – IDR 1.5 million. Apart from the size, the price also depends on the level of difficulty of the material and the length of manufacture," said Enie.

“The easiest thing is that we can finish it within an hour, such as a glass pot, or a simple carved craft. Then, the old ones make paintings, installations, or sinks. Usually it takes two weeks or 1-2 months," he added.

When looking at some of Rastik's works, there is one very interesting work, namely the sink. This sink is not made of buckets, stones, or wood like the usual ones on the market.

Enie said that she and her team made this sink from used electronic materials, namely a manual sewing machine and a tube monitor.

“The village office ordered this sink from us. It took two weeks to make. At that time, we sold Rp. 1.5 million because the materials are now difficult to find, yes, manual sewing machines that use feet, and tube monitors," he explained.

Not only processing electronic waste into something antique and unique, Rastik also makes clothes from used jengkol skin.

In fact, this outfit had received an award from Atalia Praratya in 2017, when Ridwan Kamil was still the mayor of Bandung.

“At that time we were invited to the batik exhibition fashion show in Siliwangi in 2017. Some of the clothes we made were made from jengkol leather and used sofa seats. Alhamdulillah, I got an award from Mrs. Atalia," said Enie.

Enie explained that this inorganic waste processing activity is also one of the innovations of the Regional Development and Empowerment Innovation Program (PIPPK) under the Family Welfare Empowerment (PKK).

Enie really hopes that more people will be able to learn from his work with his friends in the Rastik community.

"Hopefully the public will understand that waste also still has economic value if we can process it in the right way," he said. (din)**