The bamboo-handicraft trade village Xuan Lai

The bamboo trade village Xuan Lai which belongs to Gia Binh District, Bac Ninh Province is considered as the cradle of making use of bamboo. And consumers have been very familiar with products made from bamboo like flag's staff, bamboo stairs or wall paved with bamboo. Xuan Lai now is also famous for their fine art furniture from bamboo such as sofa, see-saw, swing, bamboo house, table, wardrobe, vase, picture, and so on. Especially, these bamboo products have the natural colour of glossy black-brown which is not created by paint.

Our forefathers in old days did not only use sedge mat and wooden tables and chairs but also other household commodities like bamboo sideboard, bamboo furniture, bamboo mat, etc. The commodities and decorating stuffs made of bamboo are combined harmoniously regarding to their shapes and long-lasting, beautiful colours and have high using value owing to the convenience and comfort the bamboo bring. For instance, the mat is made from thin pieces of bamboo and knit together by rattan string. This type of mat is very comfortable to users. There are two kinds of handicraft bamboo mats: black and white. The special ‘black' colour is made by a special technique that the inhabitants of Xuan Lai - Gia Binh are very proud of this monopoly situation; that is the mixed colour of cockroach-wing and sindora wood. In addition, the integral material that helps make unique products like mat in particular and other stuffs like pictures and furniture in general is called ‘fumigated bamboo' by the local people.

After being scraped, soaked in the pond for some months and some other phases of production, the bamboo is fumigated in a kiln on the ground and covered with thatch mixed with clay. This kiln is not run by charcoal but thatch. It only has smoke but no fire and is closed in four full days, except when people add fuel. The bamboo got is light, resilient, anti-colour fading and termite prevented. The products made from bamboo and fumigated this way have been existing for around 20 to 25 years.

Nowadays, the trade village Xuan Lai is still conserved and developed by the artisans here with the products that have high value of using and arts such as bamboo pictures, interiors and also architecture projects and precincts that are designed from ‘fumigated bamboo' of Xuan Lai. The products here are not only loved by the local residences but also by international friends who will know about Xuan Lai through tourism organising or the entities that export fine arts products.

Source: Vietnam Simple