KOTA KINABALU, June 4 — Who would have thought that corn husks could be turned into beautiful works of art like flower bouquets?

This is because after the corn kernels are processed into food or drinks, the husks will usually be thrown into the trash or disposed of.

However, with unique ideas, creativity and Midas touch, the husks can be upcycled into flowers in various colours to be used as decorations or flower bouquets.

This was evident when Upcycled Shack founder, Tressie Yap, 50, decided to share her hobby and innovative skill of turning corn husks into crafts with over 20 housewives in Kota Marudu through a course she jointly organised with her friend, Farni Millis, a social entrepreneur in the district.

The Kota Marudu district, located about 125 kilometres north of Sabah, is well-known as a producer of maize.

When met by Bernama at the ‘Corn Husk Craft’ booth at the ‘Riuh Bah! Keluarga Malaysia’ carnival, Yap said it all began when Farni posted a question on their Whatsapp group on the various uses of corn husks.

“I then responded and said that I used to make crafts using corn husks such as flowers and earrings but it was just a hobby.

“After that, Farni asked if I could provide training? I said I could try and we started it (craft making course and training) about a couple of months ago,” she said when met at the Sabah International Convention Centre here today.

Yap said although it had only been two months, the response from customers was very encouraging, especially during the Mother’s Day celebration and they also received flower bouquets orders for weddings, birthdays and shop openings.

“These flowers are organic, eco-friendly products because they come from agricultural crops. We want to keep up with the eco-friendly concept. As for the colours for these flowers, we use materials from plants such as turmeric, pandan leaves and onion peels.

“Of course, there are some challenges to get the materials (for colouring) but we try to overcome them. However, we will inform customers that we dyed some of the flowers using food colouring,” she said.

So far, about 2,000 corn husk flowers of various colours have been sold at a price of RM6 to RM7 each, and 30 per cent of the proceeds will be distributed to every florist, she said.

Yap, who is also an architect and social entrepreneur, said the course, organised through community empowerment programmes, was a joint initiative between Farni Enterprise and Upcycled Shack aimed at boosting the potential of rural women by utilising agricultural waste to generate income.

Having ventured into recycling activities with a focus on the zero waste concept for the last eight years, she wanted to ensure that every discarded material is turned into a functional product while protecting the environment.

“We want to continue this effort to empower the community, especially in rural areas by turning agricultural waste into income. It requires very minimal capital for them to start a business.

“This initiative is very helpful for single mothers or housewives who are interested in becoming entrepreneurs to increase their income,” she said.

Those interested in obtaining the craft produced by the Kota Marudu community can place their orders via the ‘Corn Husk Craft’ Facebook or Instagram page or call 010-3961869.

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