Peranakan women love their kebayas, but today, there are only a few artisans left in Singapore who make these traditional outfits. We find out how two men have not only kept the art form alive, but given it a modern update to attract a new generation of customers. Miro Lu has the story.

The Peranakan kebaya is a common sight at celebrations and gatherings of the community. But in Singapore, there are only a handful of kebaya makers who still sew them the traditional way.

One of them is Heath Yeo, who makes kebayas with a 1950s style of free motion embroidery. It's also known as sulam, which means Heath controls the speed and direction of the stitching. It's like painting, with a needle instead of a brush.

THOMAS WEE VETERAN FASHION DESIGNER "Peranakan embroidery is a specialty item in fashion production. It's really something traditional. It's an artisanal craft which not many people know how to do today. And when I found him doing it, I was impressed. He's one in a million."

Sulam is a painstaking process. Heath takes between 40 to 70 hours to complete the embroidery for a single blouse, and customers who want bespoke designs must wait a few months. Although his methods are traditional, his designs are unique and modern.

HEATH YEO KEBAYA MAKER "Flowers, you know we see it all the time on the kebaya: peony, rose for example. But there are so many flowers available, there's hibiscus, there's orchids, orchids in different styles and sizes, so I'm very motivated to slowly introduce new ideas. Not just in the patterns, but also trying to work on the arrangements. Why not break the monotony and go for something asymmetrical for example."

Heath is not the only one who wants to innovate. Another kebaya maker Raymond Wong feels strongly about modifying the traditional attire to sustain interest from the younger generation. He's created a halter-cut version of the kebaya blouse, and incorporates Swarovski crystals for the extra bling. His designs have received mixed reactions. Some older Peranakans thought he was adulterating their culture.

RAYMOND WONG KEBAYA MAKER "To them, the kebayas that I remember, that my mom and my grandmother used to wear, are kebayas with some plain embroidery and cutwork, and that's it. You don't add anything much. So that was quite demoralizing. But I strongly feel like we need to move on, because if our culture doesn't move on, it will really be a dead culture."

Raymond's passion for all things Peranakan runs in the blood. His family owns a successful business selling Peranakan rice dumplings.

Started as a fringe business, Raymond ventured into textile and fashion more than a decade ago. He learnt kebaya making on his own by studying the stitching of vintage kebayas and learnt hand embroidery techniques from books.

Today he teaches Peranakan embroidery to fashion school students. He was also chosen by Singapore Prime Minister's wife Ho Ching to create a shawl for the then US First Lady Michelle Obama in 2016.

MIRO LU SINGAPORE After our tour, Raymond even dressed me in a traditional kebaya. He believes the future of kebaya making is dynamic and evolving. It's for the young, the old, and even non Peranakans. Miro Lu, CGTN, Singapore.