26 MODEST FASHION
26 MODEST FASHION
@ Halal | September-October. 2026
The business of heritage
� Malaysian batik is being reshaped for contemporary fashion and international markets.
� Three designers share different approaches to keeping the heritage textile relevant.
� Their participation at MIHAS Modest Fashion Week 2026 reflects the growing push to give Malaysian fashion SMEs greater international exposure and market access.
Few Malaysian crafts carry as much visual character and cultural identity as batik. From intricate hand-drawn motifs to bold contemporary interpretations, the textile has continued to evolve, moving from traditional garments into modern fashion, lifestyle pieces, and international collections.
Its appeal lies not only in the patterns, but in the craftsmanship behind them. Each piece can reflect the designer ' s interpretation of Malaysian flora, fauna, architecture, history and cultural influences. At the same
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A SHOWCASE OF LEGACY: Designers demonstrate different approaches to bringing Malaysian batik into modern fashion and international markets. |
time, techniques passed down through generations give the fabric a distinct connection to place and heritage.
Today, Malaysian designers are finding new ways to bring batik into contemporary wardrobes, experimenting with silhouettes, colours and styling while retaining the character that makes the textile distinctly Malaysian.
Among them are the designers featured here, each of whom has spent years developing their own approach to batik; from preserving traditional craftsmanship and building family legacies to creating opportunities for local communities and taking Malaysian textiles
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into international markets.
Their participation at the Malaysia International Halal Showcase( MIHAS) Modest Fashion Week 2026, supported by MyFashionChamber ' s efforts to provide a platform for Malaysian fashion SMEs, offers another avenue to bring these creations before international audiences and industry players.
Together, their stories show that preserving batik does not necessarily mean keeping it unchanged. Sometimes, the best way to carry a heritage forward is to let it evolve.
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Batik is both a craft rooted in decades of experience and a canvas for the next generation to reinterpret, for Masterpiece by Masrina Abdullah.
Founded by award-winning batik artist and designer Masrina Abdullah, the label has spent years translating Malaysian influences into handcrafted textiles and fashion. Today, she increasingly shares that journey with her daughter, who serves as creative director and designer, bringing a different set of skills and perspectives to the family business.
The mother-and-daughter duo will return to the Malaysia International Halal Showcase( MIHAS) Modest Fashion Week 2026, having first participated when MIHAS was launched in 2019.
Masrina said the intervening years have strengthened the brand, particularly in ready-to-wear, and the latest showcase offers an opportunity to bring its batik and fashion collections to a wider international audience.
For the upcoming collection, the designers are drawing from the wood carvings of old Malaysian palaces, translating their architectural forms into batik designs and combining them with elements of local flora and
Tradition embraces digital design
CRAFTED IN LEGACY: Masrina Abdullah & Mayamin Azlan
fauna.
The collection will use natural fibres and the label ' s signature approach to floral batik, where flowers are dramatised into three-dimensional forms through hand-drawn canting work.
For Masrina, whose career in the industry spans 35 years, passing that knowledge to Mayamin began long before her daughter formally joined the business.
Mayamin said: " Since I was little, I ' ve been exposed to this batik."
She was introduced to the craft from a young age, including making her own clothes, before eventually deciding to continue her mother ' s work while taking it into the digital era.
That transition has become central to their partnership. Mayamin brings expertise in graphic design and architectural elements, creating structured forms that can be developed digitally before Masrina translates them into batik.
Their process involves studying motifs, developing sketches, refining repetitions and considering how designs will eventually sit on garments.
For Masrina, the partnership has connected decades of accumulated knowledge with a new generation of creative tools.
For Mayamin, it represents something larger than a family business: carrying forward a Malaysian craft while finding new ways to make it relevant.
With support from MyFashionChamber and MIHAS, the duo now hopes to turn that creative heritage into stronger international trade opportunities.
" We are trying to make it a trade that we bring our art to the world ".