An Area Famous for Brocade Weaving

When visiting the town and seeing the Tay and Nung ethnic women industriously weaving brocade cloths with abundant motifs and colours imbued with the ethnic characteristics, it’s difficult to believe that the brocade weaving craft o­nce fell into oblivion. Not until Nuoc Hai Brocade Weaving Co-operative was established in 1997, thanks to the great passion as well as devotion of its chairwoman Le Thi Dinh and members, was the craft restored.

To develop the Co-operative as well as create more brocade products, Le Thi Dinh not o­nly learned and drew experience from veteran artisans in the locality but also traveled to neighbouring areas which are renowned for brocade weaving, such as Son La and Hoa Binh, to research and collect new styles. Hence, brocade products of Nuoc Hai Town look more beautiful with various styles and colours but still preserve traditional features. Particularly, products with strange and novel patterns and motifs of horses, canariums, humans and scripts are much sought after by both domestic and foreign tourists as gifts for their relatives and friends.

To meet the increasing demand, Nuoc Hai Brocade Weaving Co-operative annually produces thousands of shawls and dozens of bags, papooses, indigo shirts, etc. The Co-operative’s products were first displayed at the international fair of co-operatives and small and medium enterprises in Hanoi in 2001 and won a gold medal for the table tapestries. To preserve and further develop the traditional craft, the Co-operative has opened many vocational training classes for hundreds of locals, including 40 ethnic people in Ba Be, Bac Kan Province.

The development of the traditional craft not o­nly helps preserve the ethnic cultural features but also makes a contribution to providing jobs, eliminating hunger and reducing poverty for ethnic people in mountainous areas.