Lao Fabrics and Textile Handicrafts

A Partially Completed Needlepoint Piece from Baan Xiang Hai, LPDR

On the day that we visited Baan Hat Hien, Blacksmith Village, and Baan Xang Hai, Whiskey Village, we also visited Baan Phanom which is known for its silk weaving.

We stopped at a large tourist stop facility at the outskirts of the village.  The facility is a fairly large modern facility where I assume local women set up in the front area selling the fabrics that they have woven.  The room lacks all the character and ambiance that you can find at either markets in the larger towns or at the weaver's home in smaller villages.  Seeing a couple of the organized tour vans and buses parked in front of the building was somewhat of a turnoff for me.  However having traveled to the village, I decided to check it out.

Part of the front room hard been set up for some type of celebration.  There were several tables set up as if to have a conference.  Name tags were located on the tables in front of each plastic chair.  A man was occupied setting up the public address system for perhaps speeches or just as likely Lao music.  In the room beyond the display room I could smell as well as see food being prepared.

An Idle Loom In Baan Phanom, LPDR

As Duang checked out the various textiles in the front room, I investigated the back room.  It turned out that the back room was actually an area for weaving silk and for sewing although today the room was being used for food preparation.  The weavers were not producing any fabric during our visit but were busy preparing many of the foods that I have become familiar with in Isaan for celebrations.  In a corner of the large room, women were busy preparing river algae.  The river algae is harvested from rocks in the river and dried into sheets on woven bamboo mats or bamboo trays. Seasoning such as garlic, boiled tamrind water, sesame seeds are scattered on the drying algae.  To prepare for eating, the algae sheets are cut into 3 in by 6 in rectangles, partially folded in two, held together with a bamboo toothpick, and quickly fried.  I first ate kai paen jeun at the Boat Landing Hotel and Restaurant earlier this year in Luang Namtha.  I liked it, so when I was offered some of the food directly from the wok, I quickly accepted.  It was delicious.

Striped Patterned Silk Being Woven on Wooden Loom

Silk With an Intricate Pattern On An Idle Loom

I went off to the other side of the room and started photographing the idle looms.  It was interesting to see the partially completed fabrics on the old wooden looms.  The solid colored silk fabrics were not mystery to me.  I could imagine being able to weave them with a minimum of instruction.  However some of the silk fabric had very intricate patterns using different colored threads.  Other fabrics had several different colors.  I remember reading about how the predecessors to today's computer were cards that were used to produce intricate patterns in the 1800's cotton mills of New England.  I did not see any such guides or references for creating the patterns before my eyes in the weaving room.  From my past experience with the home weavers of both cotton and silk in Isaan as well as in other areas of Laos, I know that the patterns are retained in the minds of the weavers.  They are able to imagine a pattern and take the appropriate steps in the weaving process to recreate the pattern in their woven product.

Baan Phanon Silk Weaver

After a while one of the weavers who had been preparing food graciously offered to do some weaving while I took photographs.  It was an offer that I accepted without hesitation.  I am always interested to see how things are made and our trips to Laos usually are great learning experiences.

Weaving Silk

While in Whiskey Village, Baan Xang Hai, while I was drinking Lao Lao with the distiller, Duang had wandered off and found his wife and some other women embroidering some fabrics.  Duang came over and led me to where the women were working.  I was very impressed.  The women were occupied needle pointing intricate patterns on black cotton fabric.  Throughout the village these were the only women actually working and the only people doing needlepoint.  Both Duang and I appreciate and enjoy collecting textile handicrafts from the Hill Tribe people of Southeast Asia.  We consider their handicrafts to be art and expressions of the people's culture.  The fact that we are able to witness the artisans producing articles similar to what we purchase is even more gratifying to us.


Lao Women Needle pointing and Embroidering



Two Baan Xang Hai Handicrafters

I wrote earlier that I was impressed.  Well it turned out that I was a little too impressed.  Perhaps it was the double shot of Lao Lao.  Anyhow Duang showed me a very beautiful piece - 29 inches by 37.5 inches black cotton with a very colorful section 22.5 inches by 31.5 inches with intricate patterns and birds.  The piece struck me as being similar to Hmong motifs.  I asked the woman how much in Lao.  She answered me and I immediately paid her for the work that she claimed to have worked two months on.  I made a mistake.  The woman had quoted the same price earlier to Duang and Duang had offered her 25% less.  I had interrupted the negotiations with my unbridled enthusiasm!  Well Laos is like Thailand - things have to be "good for you, good for me".  The women discounted the price that I paid by 10%; a face saving gesture for Duang but not enough to prevent me from hearing about it for a while from Duang.  I put the 10% versus 25% cash discount into cash perspective for Duang and we enjoyed a good laugh together and the matter has not been discussed since then although I suspect that she has not forgotten.


Silks and Needlepoint from Baan Xang Hai



Laos Day #6 - The Rest of the Day - Silk Experience

After our lunch in Luang Namtha on Saturday, 30 January, we wandered around the "new" town searching for the bakery and a place to buy some supplies for the next day's journey to Ban Pakha for the Lanten New Year celebration. "New" town? After the war ended in 1975, the Pathet Lao moved, or more accurately rebuilt, the market and government buildings north of the original town site in 1976. The "old" town where we were staying is subject to flooding in the rainy season so the decision was made to move to the higher ground to the north.

The new town consists of three wide parallel streets, one of them being the main highway - Highway #3 with a small number of connecting streets. Luang Namtha is the capital of the province but is essentially a rural backwater. There are several guest houses and a large hotel is under construction. There are a few restaurants catering to tourists and even fewer bars. There are several tour company offices offering treks, and when the water levels are sufficient, boat tours. The town is the jumping off point for treks into the minority people villages and the NPA wilderness.

There are supposed to be 35,000 people in Luang Namtha, but that number must include all of the adjacent villages in the wide area around the town. Based upon my observations, I would say that the actual "new" town has around 5,000 inhabitants. There was very little traffic on Saturday afternoon and even fewer people on the streets. It was so empty that we found only two booths on the sidewalk - a young girl selling fruit and an older woman selling some clothing - unbelievable for southeast Asia. After talking with several people, most who did not know about the bakery, we found out that the bakery was closed on Saturday and Sunday. Undeterred with bought some fruit and resigned ourselves to having to make an early morning stop at the market in Kouang, a small village past Muang Sing, to have breakfast.


We returned to the hotel - Duang to rest and I to write in my diary. As Duang rested, I sat on the porch overlooking the Nam Tha River, and took photographs. Several children, two girls and four boys, were busy exploring the opposite river bank as well as the river itself. They were having a grand time as only 5 to 8 year olds can. The boys were dressed only in the jockey style underwear. One girl was topless and the other girl around 5 years old was stark naked. Two of the boys climbed a tree stump and jumped into the river. With that demonstration of bravado the group waded across the river to our side, put on their dry clothes that were cached midway up the river bank, and walked back to their village.

After about two hours I checked in on Duang to see if she would like to go for another walk. She agreed so we walked to the bridge that spans the Nam Tha River and leads to Ban Pasak. Ban Pasak is a Tai Dam (Black Tai) village that we had visited earlier. During our previous village Duang has purchased a beautiful silk scarf from a local weaver.


We walked to the home of the village weaver and found the family involved in another aspect of the silk process that we had not witnessed before. The grandmother was working in front of a large wood frame that had been set up outside of their home. The woman's daughter or daughter-in-law assisted her in her task. An older grand daughter cared for her younger sister and baby brother. Her son or son-in-law supervised and helped as required to keep the work going.

The wood frame reminded me of the wood curtain frame that my mother used in the 1950's to stretch out and dry freshly washed sheer window curtains. The frame in Ban Pasak was about 4 feet wide and 8 feet long. Along each of the two long sides of the frame, 16 shiny metal tubes, about 6 inches long and 3/4 inch in diameter were fastened. At the bottom of the frame, two similar tubes were attached. The top of the frame was a wood board with a series of notches cut into it's upper edge. The bottom cross member at the back of the frame had approximately 20 slender wood rods. On the day of our visit, 10 of the wood rods had short blue PVC pipe bobbins placed over them. Each of the bobbins had a mass of brilliant gold colored silk thread spun around them. The older woman was busily occupied taking the 10 individual threads in her hand from the bobbins and looping them around the 34 shiny tubes. In a continuous and fluid motion she wound the threads up and down and up and down through the tubular maze. Her motion only occasionally interrupted when a thread was broken or came to an end. She stopped and waited as her son or son-in-law tied the two ends together and gave them a few twists necessary to essential make the knot invisible. It was remarkable even when I removed my glasses and got extremely close to the knot that I had just witnessed being made I could not see it. The end result of the afternoon's efforts will be a large skein of golden silk that will be placed above the hand loom located underneath the family home which stands about 6 feet above the ground on stilts. The skein is then incorporated into the fabric that is woven my the woman's daughter. On our previous visit, we watched as the daughter wove similar golden silk thread into a piece that she was weaving. It was extremely beautiful - the gold silk iridescent within the intricate design of the finished fabric on the loom.

Since Duang and I typically are not part of any tour or organized group, we remain masters of our time. We are able to stop and if not to smell the roses, to talk to the local people and learn much more about their life as well as their work. We both share the same passion to learn and understand the world outside of our home which makes our travels so much more enjoyable. In our travels we have found that two of people's favorite subjects for discussion as well as sharing are their life and their work. Our visit with the village silk weavers was no exception. As Duang and the villagers were busily engaged in conversation, I wandered around. I noticed two long pieces of PVC pipe straddled across the back of the family's Chinese farm truck. The middle of the pipes were covered with heavy paper - locally produced bamboo paper I suspect. I asked about the pipes through Duang and the man came over to show me what they were. He removed the paper covering from one of the pipes exposing a mass of shiny gold silk threads. Removed from the constraints of their paper restraint, several ends, I believe 8, of small skeins of thread dropped from the pipe. The family had recently completed dying the thread gold and the finished product was drying around the PVC pipe. Eventually the dried threads will be wound onto bobbins for subsequent processing on the frame close by.
Also spanning the pick up truck's bed was a wide bamboo tray covered by a large piece of silk obviously covering many objects. We learned that the fabric was covering special structures along with silk worms. The man's wife came over to me and brought me to an area underneath the house where many objects were stored. The objects were a dome type very open lattice created from woven rattan. From the woman, we learned from the woman that at the proper time, silk worms are selected and placed beneath each dome, 10 worms to a dome. The domes are then covered which encourages the worms to commence spinning their cocoons. using the dome to support their work. She then took us to a screened room underneath the house.

The screened room was about 10 feet by 10 feet and had a vestibule with two doors as and entrance. Inside the room was a large framework made from lashed bamboo which served as shelves. Many low side woven bamboo trays rested on the shelves. The woman removed one of the woven trays and placed it on the floor. It was filled with wiggling silk worms and mulberry leaves. She squatted and commenced to sort through the mass of worms. She selected the fat ones that had a yellowish tinge. The selected worms were placed into a plastic bin. These are the worms that are placed underneath the rattan domes to spin their cocoons. She was joined by her young son who readily pitched in to select the worms. Her young daughter was not put off by the wiggling and squirming creatures but was not willing to give up her guard with a falang (foreigner) in such close proximity!

After completing the day's sorting operation, the woman went up into the house and returned with a large bag filled with dry cocoons that had been previously harvested and boiled. The dry cocoons would eventually be turned into thread, dyed, and woven into fabric. It was very informative and interesting to learn how the family produced as well as controlled the entire process of creating silk fabric. Every member of the family contributed to the process and it appeared that the family was successful. Although the family was currently living in a typical Tai Dam elevated wood house, next door a three story concrete and brick replacement home was being constructed.

The family had a baby son who had a cleft lip. Fortunately his palate was fine. He was able to feed without difficulty and just about upon cue in response to my query about his ability to eat, he started to breastfeed. The family told us that when the baby got to be 10 kilos (22 pounds) he would be able to have his lip repaired for free. I took a father and son photograph in appreciation for the family's time and kindness. I promised to send a copy to them by way of the hotel. Two days ago we mailed the photos to Laos.

After seeing and learning about the entire silk production process that the family used to produce the silk scarf that we had purchased, we have a greater appreciation for the piece and a much greater respect as well as admiration for the people who created it.

Isaan Silk

Sunday, January 10th, we drove approximately 150 miles south east to Baan Chat Yai Village in Maha Sarakham Province. The primary reason that we went to the village was to participate in the Anniversary Death Celebration for the mother of one of Duang's friends. The woman had died while we were in Vietnam so Duang could not attend the funeral.

As I had written in two previous blog entries, after a person has died, there is a big merit making event, essentially a party, to assist the deceased to earn a better status when they are reincarnated. For many Isaan families the celebration is held one to three years after the death when the family has saved up enough money for the event.

Duang's friend was staging a three day event, we were there for the second day. Since the deceased woman had social ties and perhaps family ties to Tahsang Village, we stopped in Tahsang Village to pick up 11 relatives to take to the celebration. We ended up driving along the roads looking like a typical Isaan vehicle - 4 people in the back seat and 7 in the pickup bed along with bags of rice, sahts, and mohns. Rice, sahts (hand made woven reed mats), and mohns (colorful intricately decorated covered rectangular pillows)are offered along with money to earn merit for the deceased as well as the donors.

We got up at 5:00 A. M. to get to Tahsang Village by 6:00 A.M.. We actually arrived at 6:15 A.M. but in Isaan that is considered to be early. We arrived in Baan Chat Yai at 9:30 A.M. Upon arrival we made the rounds of other guests and were introduced to everyone. It was a happy reunion for all the people. We were immediately seated at three of the many tables and served beer and soft drinks. As is customary when guests arrive in Isaan, we were fed sticky rice, and several plates of ethnic food. Many women were in the backyard under tarps cooking the food over several charcoal and propane gas fires. Several women were busy washing pots, pans, and bowls. Young women were busy serving the guests. Everyone seemed to know their duties and responsibilities. The whole process was very well organized.

In the middle of the street in front of the house, a very long pavilion had been erected. The pavilion was the site where the Monks would be fed and the formal merit making ceremony would be conducted. Fourteen Monks were served a meal. Four of the Monks were grandsons and nephews. Just as when she died, some male relatives, shaved their heads, shaved their eyebrows, and became Monks for the three day event. I was lead to believe that the number of Monks had to not be divisible by two but Duang assures me that 14 was not a problem.


Prior to the start of the ceremony at 11:00 P.M., Duang's friend gave me two beautiful "par mai". I had been given two pakamas (phaa khao maa)by Duang's family when we were married. The pakama were made out of cotton and are part of the Lao Loum identity. On Sunday I was given two "par mai" that had been hand woven in Baan Chat Yai, one of the many villages in Isaan where the tradition of silk hand weaving is maintained. "Par mai" are silk pakamas. The par mai that were tied around my waist were about two meters long by 3/4 meter wide. They had a red stripe motif on each end with the remainder of the fabric being a series of richly colored plaids. Many of the men at the ceremony had similar garments. This was not the end of our welcome and acceptance into this village.

Duang's friend then led us to the main pavilion where many people had assembled and were sitting on sahts awaiting the start of the formal ceremony. The people, mostly women, wanted to wish Duang and me "Good Luck" and "Good Fortune" and "Happiness". Duang and I went from group to group of the people and knelt before them. I extended my right hand to them. In a sort of baii sii ceremony, the people tied a piece white butcher's string around my wrist while chanting. As part of the string tying ritual, a knot was tied in the middle of the string and rolled along the inner wrist. Duang extended her left hand and the process was repeated for her. At the conclusion of our visits, we each had 48 strings around our wrist. The origins of this ritual go back to Animist beliefs that there are 32 necessary good spirits that dwell inside of us. These spirits are necessary to maintain our physical, as well as spiritual well being. The purpose of tying the strings around the wrist is to bind the spirits inside of us to prevent their escape. The ritual is also a manifestation of a community's acceptance and goodwill for a person.

The Monks were fed and went back to their Wat in the village except for three senior Monks. These Monks were seated in intricately carved, guilded and jeweled thrones. Each Monk had a microphone and took turns in speaking or chanting. This was the start of a 5 hour ritual. The Monks spoke about virtues, life, and death. They reminded young people of their duty and responsibility to care for their Mother and Father.

After one hour, I was getting sore legs so Duang and I got up for a walk around the village. Another of Duang's friends from the village invited us to her home. As we all walked towards her home, we came upon a lot filled with many bare spindly trees or more like bushes. There were a couple dried up leaves remaining on one bush. I thought that I recognized them as mulberry bushes which are used in silk production. Duang confirmed my suspicion.

Her friend's home was more of a family compound. Several family members live on the grounds with out buildings for storing rice, sheltering animals, working on equipment and weaving silk cloth. This was a teat that I had not anticipated.

We stopped at a covered work area where there was a raised platform with sahts on top of it - typical throughout Isaan for having one's outside meals on, a place to socialize with family or neighbors, a place to nap, and a place to care for children up and above the chickens and dogs. To the side of the platform was a large rustic loom for weaving silk. The loom was very rustic. It was constructed of heavy rough hewn lumber, a piece of PVC pipe, ordinary hemp rope, bamboo and sticks. The only piece of the loom that appeared to be manufactured was the blue plastic shuttle atop the piece of completed fabric on the loom. Two pedals for weaving the fabric had been fashioned out of two sticks attached to the loom with fabric. Long skeins of silk thread were draped over the top of the loom.

Silk thread had been set up on the loom to form the foundation for weaving a piece of fabric about three meters long - I have no idea how much thread had been used for that purpose but I am certain that it is an impressive length. I was told that all the silk had been grown and processed in the village. The small plot that we passed on the way to the compound was only one of several plots were mulberry bushes are cultivated as food for the silk worms.

At the family one of the sisters came out to show us how the silk thread is woven to create fabric. When she realized that I was going to photograph the demonstration, she excused herself. She returned wearing a very pretty silk blouse that had been made for her. She wanted to look her best for the photo. On the loom was a section of completed fabric. Many villages in Isaan have their own distinctive patterns for the fabrics that they weave. The patterns are kept inside of the weaver's head. There are no cards, computer sheets, or specification sheets documenting the sequence or steps to produce the desired design. It is beyond my ability to contemplate the process - threads lifted, threads run across, threads dropped, different colored threads at different times - I am glad that I was an engineer and not a home weaver!

The weaver sat on a simple bench with the obligatory radio next to her. Most of the time Lao Loum people have Mahlam Morlam music or Lao music blaring as they toil away. I have witnessed a young man spreading fertilizer by hand on newly planted sugar cane with a large and loud portable radio slung over his shoulder with a piece of rope. I witnessed farmers gathering sheaves of harvested rice listening to Isaan music until they backed the farm wagon over the radio.

After the weaving demonstration, my attention was diverted to another piece of handmade equipment. This device was a sort of spinning wheel. Rather than the pieces of art that were made out of fine woods such as maple back in New England which are now collector's items, this device was made out of rough lumber and a bicycle wheel. I continue to be amazed at the Lao Loum penchant to utilize whatever is available and to recycle. The other part of the spinning wheel assembly was a sort of drying rack constructed of bamboo strips and string. A skein of multi colored silk thread was placed over the rack creating large loops that seemed like leopard skin patterned fabric.


The bicycle wheel was turned by a hand crank to take the large loops of colored silk and spin them into thread on a bobbin to be used on the loom. Each woman, including Duang, had their turn at the device so that their picture could be taken. It was a fun time. One of the family dogs remained oblivious to his surroundings and continued his afternoon lounging.

The leopard skin pattern on the silk threads had been created by tie dying the silk in a process called "Mudmee". In mudmee process the silk strands are alternately tied and dyed to create the pattern that becomes apparent once the fabric is woven on the loom. It is quite ingenious and much sought after by collectors. I hope to see the mudmee process on a future visit to an Isaan weaving village. There are some villages near Udonthani so perhaps we can avoid another three hour drive to the south.