Materials
Main materials for this handicraft of Vietnam include rattan and bamboo species (tre, giang, nua, lo o), hence the name. They all have natural origin, thus are environmentally friendly and safe for users. Nowadays, the sources of material for rattan and bamboo woven wares are mostly distributed in the northern mountainous area such as Hoa Binh, Son La, and Dien Bien. The advantage of being ‘available in nature’ is now becoming rather a disadvantage, as one of the difficulties that craft villages face is the dependence on material sources, which can be unstable. The woven products sell well, but the problem is that there are shortage of materials at times, or that the materials are of inferior quality.
Products
Woven hand fan is one great example of woven products. It is, along with many other rattan and bamboo wares, are present in the Vietnamese’s everyday life. For instance, most, if not all, Vietnamese families have used and may still be using basketries. Basketry is a general name for all bamboo woven containers, often shaped like a big bowl, having hard rim, and used to hold many things, usually food ingredients.
Depending on thread types, weaving methods, sizes and shapes, basketry items are categorized into different groups. “Thúng” are quite large and have dense stitches, often used to contain grains. “Rổ” are smaller, have looser stitches, used to hold, often when washing and rinsing vegetables. ‘Rá’ are a little smaller than “rổ” and have closer stitches, used to wash rice and hold small grains.
Those are just some of the simpler and more common woven items. Vietnamese rattan and bamboo weaving craft has a wide range of products, including many extremely delicate and unique items, using intricate methods.
With the craft people’s creativity and skill, the rattan and bamboo weaving craft are growing more and more every day. It has proven that products with delicate workmanship, made with love by people who cherish and long to preserve the traditional craft, will certainly stand, however the world changes.
