Through Vietnam, there are a lot of traditional handicraft villages depth in Vietnamese culture, we would like to introduce some villages out of tourism radar as Quat Dong and Son Dong in Hanoi, nowhere this can be sophisticated and skillfull techniques as Quat Dong’s embroidery, or Son Dong carving wood fine handicrafts village

Quat Dong Traditional Embroidery Handicraft village
Through Vietnam, a lot of villages make embroidery but nowhere this can be sophisticated and skillfull techniques as Quat Dong’s embroidery, located in Quat Dong commune, Thuong Tin district, 20km far away from Hanoi capital to the south, along the national road number 1A
Quat Dong was in former Ha Tay province which was famous for the thousand handicraft work with 1.160 handicraft villages and 200 of them become national traditional handicraft villages well-known over Vietnam for length during, beautiful, various, sophisticated products.
Old description on stone stela in Ngu Xa temple in Quat Dong, in 14 century, one mandarin named as Le Cong Hanh who learned to know how to make embroidery from China in one time working as embassador there, then he spread it out for Vietnamese people, focusing on ten villages, people here felt gratefulness and to commemorate this work day through his birthday.
Up to the 17 century, thanks to professtional artisans, this villages was famous for impressive national traditional embroidery, until now, they still use the traditional way as handmade not machine, with five basical color thread red, yellow, purple, green, blue from natural trees as Nau, Nghe, Mong, Hoe flower, indigo, and mashel cell… then till at the beginning of 20 century one white color from France. This traditional work supplies 50% GDP of the commune that is why girls was tought to do it from childhood time, many families has from 5 to 7 generation following the trational work.
Embroidery Handmade Techniques
1 choose the metarial how to be suitable for portrait picture as cloth: silk, cotton… color of thread, hoop
2 preparation: Shaping technique, following the traditional way, artisan will taut the cloth out on the flat surface then draw the picture on it. Making embroidery hoop technique, made from bamboo or wood about 1.2m lenth depeing on the size of embroidery.
Thread the needle technique, threading the background first, then thread the shaping, threading detail, then fixing , one step using different kind of thread.
This work need conscientious, aesthetical, sophisticated, patient artisan then can complete the big picture embroidery around 5 to 6 months with 2 or 3 artian group. This village is so famous for the four flower embroidery which symbolizes four seasons in the north of Vietnam, Spring – apricot, Summer – bamboo, Autumn – daisy, Winter - oaks …
Son Dong carving wood fine handicrafts village
Son Dong lies in Hoai Duc district, Hanoi capital, this is well known not only in Hanoi but all over Vietnam for traditional worshipping carving fine art product, with job loving, craftsman put their spirit into each product to create its sophisticated, typical village own product which exports to Europe and America to introduce the traditional Vietnamese culture through their fine art products
Son Dong was set up from 976 during the pre – Le dynasty, the eldest man Dao Truc who had contribution to teach people in the village for carving worshipping products.
Arriving at the beginning of the village, we can hear the sound of sculpture on wood, the main products in this villages focusing on the Buddha statues , holy men and women, national hero or cultural animals as horses, cranes… what related to the worshipping thing on the altars.
Their products was put into most famous tourist destination in Vietnam as Temple of Literature, Son Tay ancient palace, Perfume pagoda in Hanoi, or ancient Forbbiden city in Hue….