On Malaysia Day, bestie and I headed to Royal Selangor Visitor Centre, tagging along relatives and friends from London to the place where it is known with quality pewter, design and craftsmanship. Never in my mind I would step into Royal Selangor Visitor Centre nonetheless, I did not regret for going. Instead, I foresee myself to visit that centre again =).
Founded in 1885, Royal Selangor Visitor Centre is home to the world's foremost name in quality pewter, and to its precious metals brands Comyns and Selberan. I was literally putting myself in a knowledge of history and science between metal, tin and pewter, thanks to the guided tour which is offered in 4 languages and also, my dedicated tour guide who generously explain the story of Royal Selangor. At the end of the tour, we were greeted with a retail space that hosts a wide array of pewter gifts and homewares.
After we were educated with some history on how Royal Selangor is established, we were greeted with a cup of 100 Plus before continuing our pewter education on how the items are being made.
There are few stages to how a pewter item is made. The first stage is known as CASTING. At approximately 250'C, pewter is casted; it doesn't just reproduce every single detail in the mould but also makes a stronger and robust article.
Second stage is known as POLISHING. Pewter is polished to impart a soft lustre using tropical vine Tetracera scandens' abrasive leaves.
Third stage is known as FINISHING and I believe this step has put Royal Selangor items into a different level. Though we are embraced with modern technology, each piece of Royal Selangor item requires handwork in order to attain the desired finish and quality.
(Left): Before polishing (Right): After polishing
Lastly, is the HAMMERING stage. According to the tour guide, the staff of Royal Selangor is usually trained for at least 6 months to 1 year before they can start hammering; this is because if the stylization or shaping of the fine pewter is not consistent, they will not be able to use them.
I believe there are more stages in order to make a good pewter however, the abovementioned ones are pretty much the basic stages.
How the factory looks like
If you have some free time to spend, you can join one or two interactive workshops namely The School of Hard Knocks or The Foundry. In The School of Hard Knocks, you will be taught step by step on how to make a pewter bowl between 30 minutes to 45 minutes whereas in The Foundry, you will be creating an object with molter pewter such as jewelries in an hour.
If you can't make it on that day, then head off to the retail space where you will be greeted with tons of pewter-made items.
Since I did not intend to buy anything, bestie and I went to The Cafe - I must say that it is a must to dine in there. Offering a spot of tea or coffee, visitors like me get to indulge in a delicious selection of homemade cakes and pastries. We ordered three cakes and I must say that they are worth trying! The cheesecake is really, really delicious. Same goes to their Guiness Chocolate Cake..Ahh...that's life - indulging these lovely cakes in a sunlit space with garden views.
Spent literally about 2-3 hours before we called it off a day. Well-spent Thursday, I would say =)
Royal Selangor Visitor Centre,
4 Jalan Usahawan 6, Setapak Jaya,
53300 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
royalselangorvisitorcentre.com
03 - 4145 6122
Regards.
Foodiestravel
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