Originally from china, the Tay , Xa Pho, Dzay, Dzao and H’Mong are the five main ethnic groups found in the scenic highlands near Sapa, all with unique cultures tradition, and spectacular textiles.
Villagers often trek to Sapa to sell handicrafts to tourists. Brightly-garbed women carrying deep baskets woven or a baby swathed in cloth are a familiar sight on the winding mountainous roads. Although Sapa’s colorful market overflows with traditional garments and garish accessories, the best way to see local textile production is to trek to local villages.
The Textiles Of Sapa
Each ethnic minority is identifiable by their distinctive textiles and costume, central to each group’s cultural identity. The Black H’Mong (H’Mong Den in Vietnamese), named for their predominantly dark clothing, are the largest group, making up 50 percent of the minority people in the area. All H’mong clothing is made from locally-grown hemp, which has properties similar to linen. Huge hemp plants line the tracks that cut through the valley and villagers often cultivate a plant outside their homes for convenience. The entire process of hemp cloth production, from sewing the seeds to embroidery, is defined as a woman’s responsibility.
The first step of hemp production is to take lengths of hemp stalk from a male plant. The stalks must be tied into bundles and dried by a fire or against the walls or rafters of the houses. Then the women strip off the outer fibrous layer. The 30 cm-long fibers must be joined into a continuous thread for weaving. Weaving is usually done at home as the looms are fairly large, using a bamboo reed to create the width of the cloth. The women will usually weave several meters of cloth at a time which they then sell at the local market or dye to make clothing.
H’mong people have different techniques to dye garments. Using a tool which holds small amounts of beeswax, women mark out repetitive zig-zags, short crosses and other geometric shapes on long lengths of fabric, which are then dyed in a cold indigo vat. When the wax boils off, the batik material can be used to make pleated skirts, baby carriers, and jackets.
Often the cloth is dyed entirely and embroidered. The indigo plant used to make the pigment grows natively in Sapa. I was a little surprised when Chau Thi, a local H’mong, pointed the plant out. Rather than a rich cobalt, the low innocuous clumps of large leaves were very green. She assured me that when treated, the leaves produce a blue powder, insoluble in water and very easy to store.
The women make a liquid dye by mixing a number of ingredients their children’s urine is a common addition (particularly the boys’), and this is combined with lye, lime and rice wine in a large vat. Once the liquid is bubbling strongly the women know the dye is ready. They plunge the fabric inside, stirring for around half an hour before hanging it to allow the color to develop. Repetitive dipping and drying darkens the shade, and the
characteristic black of the H’mong clothing is achieved by repeating this process twice daily for a month.
To smooth the coarse cloth fibers, the women make a rolling press from a smoothed wooden log and a long, flat rock or piece of petrified wood treated with beeswax. The cloth is laid across the log and the rock placed on top. Then a woman climbs up, feet apart, using her weight to move the rock from side to side in a secsaw motion. The material is gradually moved across the log. The H’mong superstition is that the log represents the woman and the rock represents the man. If either break during the process, this symbolizes the break up of the woman’s marriage and her husband is free to choose a new wife.
Chau Tri entered the hut wearing a red shirt and plain black skirt, but when she emerged again from the make-shift bedroom she was dressed in a So (a long black jacket with brightly-coloured embroidery), an intricately detailed that lung (belt), and trau thi ko tied in place with blue and green laces (the black velour which H’mong women wrap around their calves).
H’mong women learn embroidery from a young age. They learn how to do basic cross and chain stitch, but then experiment to develop their own unique styles and designs as their skills improve. The women are very proud of the clothing they make – it is a part of who they are. As they can only practice their needlework after house and farm chores, each garment takes a very long time to complete. One girl told me that her jacket and skirt had taken over one year to make.
Like Chau Tri, most women wear everyday garments around the house, saving their best for going to the weekend markets. Men often opt for more typical Kinh style attire as they find the layers of hemp fabric cumbersome and uncomfortable, yet it’s still fairly common to see men in Sapa wearing a polished black hemp jacket with a discreetly embroidered panel on the back of the collar.
The arrival or tourists in the region has meant that many women now buy commercially made garments, producing natural textiles to sell rather than to wear themselves. Some people think this is going against traditional values, but the money generated can help households survive when their only other source of income is rice production.