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Fri, 12 Oct 2007 19:00:37 -0700

We just wanted to drop a quick note to say thanks for all the positive feedback we have been receiving. The first round of designs seem to be sitting really well with everyone and the emails that have been coming in have been very flattering. So this is just a quick thanks for the support for our growing business, we hope you will continue to enjoy the direction we are headed in with Mai. Please keep those emails coming.

The new pillows arrived

Sun, 26 Aug 2007 14:48:05 -0700

We are currently working on new designs and colors for pillows and accessories. We continue to research antique textiles of the region and are looking to incorporate motifs that still continue to appear in Lao textiles today and create new designs with a twist on the old. As this was such a vibrant expression of an ancient culture, incorporating the different motifs and learning their symbolic significances has been an interesting task.

With new patterns emerging with each new repeat, the layering of new colors and new designs created, we are very much looking forward to offering these new designs next season.

A visit to New York

Mon, 13 Aug 2007 22:23:38 -0700

Recently having spent some time in New York I cannot help but be inspired by the city in the summertime. We sat back and watched all the different people and children congregating around the cities parks enjoying the sun and the refreshing cold water of the fountains, the interaction of vendors lined up in the park and along the streets hustling and selling their wares.
We were inspired by all the people, the design and architecture of the city, all the different textures and different surfaces, the different cultures and food amalgamating in city life.

Touring the temples

Thu, 22 Feb 2007 21:10:16 -0800

So we are back in Laos to do some work on a selection of table runners and decorative pieces. As always we like to share a bit of this wonderful country with you and this day we checked out the beautiful old temples in the city of Vientiane, each of them so rich with their own histories. Laos has the dubious honor of being the most bombed country in history. In fact its estimated that more bombs were dropped on Laos during the Vietnam war than were dropped during the entire second world war. For this reason, to see the oldest temples like the original Wat PraKeo (Emerald Buddha Temple) and Wat Sisaket still standing and to be able to walk the grounds my ancestors worshipped at so many years ago was definitely a coming full circle experience for me.

Going up country

Thu, 15 Feb 2007 20:56:06 -0800

Today we decided to head out of the city and venture north. We made the three hour drive to the town of Vang Vieng to check out the limestone hills and the caves and caverns. Driving into the city we are reminded of this region's history and connection to the Vietnam war as one main feature of the town is a long mostly unused airfield runway then called "Lima Site 6", parallel to the river that was used as a refueling area during the Vietnam War by Air America's planes. Venturing through the many caves found in the region you can't help but wonder about the many people who have hidden and found refuge and safety in the caves during wartime.
Today the town is mainly known as a "backpacker's town" as most of the business and trade in the area is catering to foreign visitors checking out the breathtaking surroundings and tubing on the Nam Song river. During the wet season the river can be a series of raging rapids, the complete opposite to the calm waters we saw.

Visiting the weaving studio

Mon, 12 Feb 2007 22:07:05 -0800

Here are a few photos from the studio of a new pineapple color-way experiment in progress. Whether or not this color will see the light of day we have yet to decide but we thought a glimpse into the studio might be interesting. We do most of the designing rough sketching on a notepad or on the computer so its not until we actually start the weaving process that we get to see the colors come alive. For this reason I have always looked forward to the visits to my family's handloom weaving studio where we continue this ancient art of intricate hand weaving that has been passed down from our ancestors.

We're constantly barraged with possibilities for new colors and new designs thanks to the innovative techniques and skills possessed by these artisans. It's amazing to be reminded of the great deal of care and skill that's involved in creating a finished piece. Doing things naturally is a highly involved process, from the gathering and preparing of the seeds, fruit, bark and leaves that we use to create the natural dyes to the actual dying process and preparing the silk thread for hand weaving. Our senses were over-stimulated by the beautiful colors achieved from our natural dyes and the variations of textures we are able to achieve using different grades of silk.

At Mai Handwoven we are very fortunate to be working with such skilled artisans who have apprenticed and taught for years at the studio. They are all so colorful, each of them so uniquely gifted and talented in their craft and yet so very humble, they are the true artists continuing to breathe life into and evolving this ancient art.

Monkey business

Fri, 9 Feb 2007 21:35:01 -0800

This morning some neighbors invited us to go to a temple along the Mekong river a little way out of the city as well as make the trip to unload a bunch of bananas to some monkeys they had seen the week before at another temple on the same route. Our first stop was to pick up another friend in the city before making the trip, he had the most interesting landscaping I'd have ever seen. He had a collection of old vintage tractors that were overrun by weeds and shrubs dotted all along his property, it was a sea of green and metal, interesting eye candy to start our day.
After enduring the worst road ever to get to the temple along the river where it narrows and Thailand seems a tiny distance away we were very glad to park and have lunch. We checked out the buddhas along the river rock and the grounds of this temple under construction and soaked up the view. On the way back we made the stop to see the monkeys we had been hearing about. We were told that it used to be a group of more than a dozen monkeys but their pleasant demeanor and friendly ways proved to be their own downfall as people stole most of them for pets leaving just two remaining. The minute you stepped from the car they ran at you, which was a little unnerving at first but it was just their excitement at the prospect of new playmates. The two bounded and twirled in acrobatic feats from branch to branch and human to human. A truly amazing sight.

That Luang Festival

Sun, 12 Nov 2006 21:24:00 -0800

Boun That Luang (That Luang Festival)
We were fortunate to be in Vientiane in November when Laotians enthusiastically and colorfully celebrate this three-day religious festival held in and around That Luang stupa, the national symbol of Laos in the heart of the city. The celebration lasts a week and includes fireworks and music, culminating in a candlelit procession(wien thien) circling That Luang, a fireworks display, and an international trade fair near the temple. It was a colorful scene, wonderful to see all the Laotian woman out in their best silk skirts, my eyes overwhelmed by all the designs and colors. It was a treat to watch and take part in the early morning festivities, our family laid down our straw mat on the grounds, took turns in line presenting our offerings to the hundreds of monks assembled to receive alms and our floral votives. The memory and the smell of freshly cut flowers, incense and all the food being sold by vendors on the street that morning are etched forever in my mind. Here are a few pics from that morning we hope you enjoy.