The traditional lantern craft in Hoi An has been practiced for over 400 years. Every year when Tet nears, local lantern-makers rush to meet the demand.
This year, some local lantern shops have even had to refuse portions of new orders due to the overload.
Phan Van Trung, owner of the Thao Quynh lantern facility, which is around 20 years old, said that this year, the lantern demand has increased 2- to 3-fold compared to normal. He and his workers have had to work overnight to ensure the order schedule. He also had to turn down several customers.
Phan Van Trung, owner of the Thao Quynh lantern facility
The lantern-making is divided into two main stages: making bamboo frames, and wrapping cloth.
Bamboo must first be soaked for roughly 10 days in salt water to avoid being attacked by worms. After that, the bamboo is dried and split into thin laths, depending on lantern sizes.
The lantern-making is divided into two main stages: making bamboo frames, and wrapping cloth
The cloth used for wrapping lantern frames must be highly durable and colourful.
The same process is seen at the Ha Linh lantern facility. The workshop owner, Nguyen Thi Dieu Linh, said that her products are not only domestically sold but also exported to different markets, including Thailand, Malaysia, the US, and France.
She had to reduce the number of workers to half due to the impacts of COVID-19. Meanwhile, recently, she has received increased orders for Tet.
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