You Light Up My Life

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In Hoi An there are lanterns everywhere that provide light and are great for decorations!

Lighting the way in the old town
Lighting the way in the old town

Lanterns were first brought to Hoi An in the 16th century when the Chinese and the Japanese settled in Vietnam.  For 400 years, lanterns were used in shops and homes and are a symbol of the town.  Sadly, the traditional lanterns were forgotten during the Vietnam war.  A master lantern maker, Huynh Van Ba, who is now 82 years old, revived the art in the 1990’s.  He loves making lanterns in his spare time and has passed down the tradition to his family.  Today, his workshop is the second biggest in Hoi An, and he continues to share his expertise.

Through the Backstreet Academy, Mikhaila, my Dad and I decided to go to a lantern making workshop to learn more about the traditional craft.  Our facilitator brought us to the complex where everyone was busy either making lantern frames, hauling huge bamboo trees, or preparing the fabrics.

We were even able to meet Huynh Van Ba, and his daughter-in-law led our session.

To make the frame for the lanterns, the first step is is to soak tall bamboo trees in a swamp so they become flexible.

After the soak in the swamp
After the soak in the swamp

Then they are chopped into small thin sticks and holes are drilled into each end.  After that, a thin wire is threaded through the holes.

The pieces of bamboo with the wire threaded through
The pieces of bamboo with the wire threaded through

We wrapped the wires around curvy wooden blocks, one at the top and one at the bottom, so the bamboo sticks fit perfectly.

Then we pushed the top of the lanterns down a thick, “coat hanger like” wire attached to one of the wooden pieces; the frame was nearly done!

The last, and probably the most time consuming, part of making the frame was wrapping it with a string.  We were given an interesting type of needle with thread attached to it and wrapped it around each of the sticks twice.

Okay, the frame is done, now let’s do the hardest part… Putting the cloth on the outside!  We were able to pick one, two or four colours.  It was so hard to choose which colours to use!

Some of the different colours
Some of the different colours

I picked purple and turquoise, Mikhaila chose dark blue and purple and my dad selected all red.  First, we spread glue on four bamboo sticks.

Spereading the glue onto the sticks
Spreading the glue onto the sticks

Then we waited for about 10-15 minutes before putting one of the pieces of the cloth on the frame.  We repeated the same step on the other side with the same colour.  We had to be careful not to cut the strings when we were trimming the extra bits of material.

Cutting the  extra cloth
Cutting off the extra cloth

We repeated steps one and two on the other sides with a different colour.  I think this was the hardest part, because we had to pull the cloth really tight and make sure there were no wrinkles in it.  Last, but not least, we attached a tassel to the bottom of the lanterns.

Attaching the tassle
Attaching the tassel

Taa daa!  All done!

We tested them on light bulbs and they looked stunning.

On the light bulbs
How beautiful
Posing with our lanterns (Dad's on the left, mine in the middle and Mikhaila's on the right) and the daughter in law
Posing with our lanterns (Dad’s on the left, mine in the middle and Mikhaila’s on the right) and our teacher

When I saw the the lanterns in Hoi An, I never knew how much work went into them and how long they take to make.  We took two hours to make them and we didn’t even soak, cut, or drill the bamboo!  Now I have an even greater appreciation for this traditional art.

We had a great time making the lanterns and learning about their history.  I realize that if it was not for people like Huynh Van Ba, these art forms can become lost forever.  I hope that this tradition continues to be passed down through the ages and receives the appreciation that it deserves.

Lanterns
Lanterns

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Comments

10 responses to “You Light Up My Life”

  1. Your lanterns are beautiful Zoe, what a lot of work but such an amazing finished product. I really hope these make it to Pickering! It was so nice too, that you got to work with the daughter in law of Huynh Van Ba too, very special experience. Travel safely and love to all, Teta Doreen xoxoxo

    1. Hi!

      We sent home our lanterns, and I hope they made it to Canada in one piece! If so, I will definately hang it up in my room! 🙂

  2. Question: while you may not be able to get the exact materials here, do you think that you could get approximate materials from a Michaels type store, try this at home, and maybe teach the kids in your class? It would be SO cool!! It might take more than one art class but would be a most unique lesson. Your lamps were lovely. Did you have to leave them behind because of their size?

    1. Hi!

      I am not sure where you can get the materials. You are right, that would be a really neat art class at school! We did get to send them home, because they are portable and can fold up! 🙂

  3. RAVI PULIANI Avatar
    RAVI PULIANI

    Hi Oliver and the gang,
    Should you like, put them in a parcel and I could get them couriered to Canada (lol). All fine here. How come, the School Vice Principal not taking the lantern classes. Hope she is fine. Remember and miss you all a lot.

    RAVI & ANJU

    1. Hello Ravi and Anju,

      The Indian postal service is tried, tested, and true! We have had 100% success sending our two parcels from India back home to Canada! We decided that it would make sense to ship the lanterns home (along with a few other things) and so we tested out the Vietnamese postal service – not too bad at all!

      Katina did miss the lantern making class as she was working on her final project for her graduate work and it was due right around the time we took the lantern class.

      Otherwise we are all doing very well and often recall and remember our fun times in India!

      All the best,
      Oliver and the gang!

  4. Hi, Zoe, what a lovely experience! The lanterns are absolutely beautiful and it’s great that you learned first hand about this ancient craft, and to meet the Master at the same time. Hugs to all

    1. Hi!

      We are so lucky to have been able to learn how to make these lanterns and meet the master. It was AMAZING:)

  5. Oh Zoe,
    This is such a beautiful blog! The Lanterns are so lovely! This certainly was a great experience, and you have such a wonderful souvenir as well! I also love the song you chose. Love, Baba

    1. Hi!

      You are right, we do have a wonderful souvenir, and we know how to make them! 🙂