These exceptional cotton items are the product of the Ban Rai Pai Ngam workshop near Chiang Mai. Begun after WWII by the late Mrs. Saeng-da Bansiddhi, it was formed to preserve traditional dyeing and weaving techniques and to provide employment to women in the area. Here, they grow their own cotton and dyestuffs, make the thread, dye it, and then weave the various items in limited quatities. It is a labor-intensive process that yields textiles of extraordinarily subtle beauty, and earned Mrs. Saeng-da the honor of National Folkcraft Artist in 1985. Today her daughter and granddaughter carry on her work.
Portrait of Mrs. Saeng-da amidst textile materials and accoutrements
Former home is now a museum and workshop
Workshop looms under the house
Mrs. Saeng-da’s loom in the museum
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| Weaver at work | Making skeins |
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| Spinning cotton | Cleaning the cotton fibers |
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| Housewares in the museum | Skeins of naturally-dyed cotton |
See our Ban Rai Pai Ngam Textiles