26/03/2024
Painting beeswax on rustic fabric is one of the unique crafts of the Dao ethnic group that is preserved to this day. Patterns painted on fabric are paintings of vivid nature in the mountainous region with very unique ethnic patterns. If you want to discover Vietnamese Culture or ethnic Vietnamese, don't miss this video!
With skillful hands and rich imagination, Dao ethnic women use beeswax to create unique patterns to enhance the beauty of traditional products such as bags. handbags, wallets, scarves, clothing, Vietnamese dresses...
In particular, the Dao people have unique and rich secrets to creating ethnic patterns on fabric. First, the fabric is ironed flat so that when printing, the beeswax will absorb evenly and beautifully, without spreading.
Next is the beeswax heating step. Boiled beeswax must have a moderate dilution. If it is too thin, the pattern will be blurred when printed on the fabric. If it is too thick, the wax will not absorb into the fabric. After getting a satisfactory beeswax solution, the woman will begin painting.
The decorative patterns - ethnic patterns - used by the Dao Tien people on their costumes are often divided into 6 types of motifs: coin-shaped patterns, horizontal striped patterns, overlapping rectangular patterns, rectangular pattern with lines inside, white water wave pattern, indigo water wave pattern. First, they create a triangle on the cloth, then use dots inside the triangle; create outlines of pointed triangles and coin-shaped dots. This is the final step to complete the pattern before the fabric is dyed indigo.
These ethnic patterns are used to create shapes on the skirt, which represent the Dao people's wish for prosperity and a better, fuller life. Some women said the circles represent mountains.
After drawing the ethnic patterns, wait for the beeswax to dry before dyeing the fabric in indigo many times (4 to 5 times) to get the desired indigo color. Then, the cloth will be dipped in boiling water, causing the beeswax to melt and patterns appear on the indigo background.
For a piece of cloth dyed indigo and printed with beeswax, a Dao woman needs about 10 days for all stages. Fabrics printed with beeswax patterns are used by Dao Tien women to sew Vietnamese dresses. The indigo dress with ethnic patterns highlights the graceful, simple beauty of Dao Tien women.
Painting beeswax on dresses is unique of VietNamese costume. This is the art of Dao ethnic People. This is interesting Vietnam Culture.