Thach That Bamboo Fan

Thach That Bamboo Fan

Thach That province - Hanoi - is famous for skillful crafts such as Chang Son carpentry, Vinh Loc mechanics, and Thach Xa green tea. Especially in Binh Phu village, the bamboo tube fan making is a long tradition. Nowadays, bamboo tube fans still retain their charm and uniqueness. According to the oldest villager, fan making dated back more than 100 years ago.

Fans have different designs, colors, but have to go through the same basic procedures. To make the fan, artisans have to choose the right bamboo tubes. They shave the first layer of the bamboo tubes which are then chopped into thinner sticks and bleached with sulfur till turning white. Those sticks are later dyed with different colors such as blue, red, or yellow. With skillful hands, the artisans have created such beautiful and handy fans. These fans have been exported to Japan and Korea with various styles and designs. Not only limited to paper fans or bamboo tape fans, nowadays craftsmen also produce “the” fans, silk fans, and painting fans…