Village Weaver Update

In Ho Chi Minh Trail country, on a beautiful riverbank, Mangkon women create stunningly intricate skirts.  Some of the textiles even feauture motifs reflective of the American war.

Ock Pop Tok dropped in last February to deliver 100kgs of naturally dyed cotton, in an effort to encourage the use of natural dyes.  Early May the team will return to ick up the skirts and perform a natural dyes training programme.

Beaded cotton skirts and scarves by Katu community in Houay Houn Village, Salavan.

50 miles north east from Pakse on the road to Salavan, one finds themself in stunning coffee growing country. 

The area is overloaded with waterfalls cascading down from the famous Bolaven Plateau.  Its around here that the Katu people have chosen to settle.  Katu people are a small ethnic minority group is Laos and one of the few textile artisans that use the floor back strap loom.  What makes their textiles so unique are the beads added on the weft thread.

We went down to Salavan to develop natural dye skills and to assist with market development opportunities.  Read more below....

Cotton On in Ban Chabeu, Phongsaly by Andy Ranger

Part 1

Ock Pop Tok continued its development of rural handicrafts recently by
partnering with the UNODC in the Phonsaly Provice of northern Lao. (UNODC
-United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime)

The UNODC has been working in the Muang Kua and Muang Mai districts of
this beautiful and remote area where there are reversing the long term
effects of opium farming.  Linking traditional artisans with the private
business sector we instigate new supply chains in traditional handicrafts.
This process ensures the preservation and legacy of traditional artisans
while expanding their knowledge, developing new products and creating
sustainable income for remote communities.

Phongsaly province has many ethnic groups and the OPT team first began
this new Village Weaver project back in November 2009 when our Co-director
Joanna Smith visited Ban Chabue to assess what they are making and the
potential for product development.

Ban Chabue is a Tai Dam village of 302 people (at last count). The Tai Dam
ethnic group are well know for their cotton growing/weaving skills and
very distinctive clothing. Lao based Tai Dam migrated from Vietnam many
generations ago and have retained their traditional way of life and
craftsmanship to the present day.

After the initial visit to Ban Chabue the prominent weavers of the village
came to the Ock Pop Tok Living Crafts Centre in Luang Prabang. On the way
they visited another OPT Village Weaver Project 3 hours north of Luang
Prabang where they gained an insight into the business aspect of cotton
production and learned new natural dyeing techniques and made some new
friends.

Whilst in residence at our Living Crafts Centre we worked with the Tai Dam
weavers to improve the quality and finish of their existing handicrafts
and co-develop new products to challenge the weavers and expand their
commercial product range.

Tai Dam traditionally use beautiful fine cotton woven on backstop looms.
This cotton is then dyed with indigo creating a spectrum of hues from teal
through blues into black depending on the duration of the dye process.
These indigo cloths form the basis of the cotton handicraft and are then
embroidered with colorful patterns, red striped hand woven patchwork and silk
applique.

This 'artists in residence' was a great success with many new items
already in stock  throughout our shops. Products including belts, scarves,
bamboo hats, book covers and cushions are available for
purchase right now.

So this brings us to the current chapter in our journey from the Ban to
the Urban. As the product development manager for Ock Pop Tok I was
interested to visit the Tai Dam artisans in situ to show our commitment to
the project, gain a greater understanding of the village and oversee
current production whilst instigating  a new Ban Chabue community project.

In partnership with the UNODC and we departed in Late April for the
mountains of Phongsaly. Luang Prabang - Pak Mong - UdomXai - Muang Kua -
Day one 9 hours. Muang Kua - Muang Mai - Ban Chabue -  Day two 6 hours.
The road takes the word 'Bumpy' to a whole new level as we crossed rivers,
removed fallen trees from our path and successfully avoided slipping of
the side of 1000m cliffs. The journey was difficult but very rewarding, as
we rose above the clouds and descended into deep valleys I began to
appreciate the reality of a remote rural community. The logistics of
getting from the village to the nearest market town for trade is a serious
challenge. Hampered by rain and lack of consistent transport this journey
can take the people of Ban Chabue 6 hours. Far far away from the hustle
and bustle of modern life this charismatic village has endeavored to
partner with Ock Pop Tok and produce fantastic products which represent the
history, skills and innovations of the Tai Dam peoples.

The people of Ban Chabue are warm and welcoming, throughout our stay we
were well fed (Ban Chabue chickens make delicious eggs for omelets) and
looked after.  As guests of the the village, we slept in a communal room
at the village chief's house where we were bedded on traditional Tai Dam
mats with warm blankets and Tai Dam mosquito nets. The serene views from
every house window added to the ambiance.

During our visit  we organized the south and north Ban Chabue villagers to
work on a communal art piece for the Santa Fe Folk Art Festival:
http://www.folkartmarket.org/ and  developed new prototype designs for
clothing.

In order to protect the rights of all involved parties (Ban Chabue the
UNODC and OPT) we drafted a memorandum of understanding and met with the
district governor of Muang Mai. All parties signed the MOU and we are now
overseeing the supply chain to ensure this partnership continues after the
UNODC project reaches completion.

Part 2 coming shortly..."