Thaliand is known for its beautiful, high-quality crafts, among them silver work and silk fabric. Last Sunday afternoon, Barb took us on a tour of the area where these two products are created in factories and then sold at lovely stores. Both factories offered demonstrations of the creative process.
The first stop was the P Silver Collection and its beautiful showroom. As I meandered around the glitzy, glossy room, a salesperson followed the whole time, trying to entice me into buying something, of course. I was especially curious about the case with the silver and glass beads which are sold under the Pandora label, my "attendant" told me. Andrea, our Safe Passage friend - by way of Madrid - had introduced me to that whole new world of consumption, and now Pandora seems to be following me everywhere I go (including to the Maine Mall!). Alas, the only thing I took away with me were photos!
This worker is punching out a design in a silver plate.
Polishing the silver.
Our next stop, just down the road, was a silk factory. Here we saw the live silk worms eating mulberry leaves and the cocoons which the worms make from their saliva. Silk comes from the threads which constitute the cocoon. Like other natural processes, it makes you wonder how people first figured this out. Natural coloring agents, such as plants, are used to dye the thread, which are spun and woven. I had learned about this process when we studied Thailand with the kinders at Breakwater, so it was especially cool to witness it in person!
Hungry silkworms fattening up on mulberry leaves.
Yellow cocoons come from Thai worms and white cocoons from Chinese worms!
Weaving a beautiful piece of red silk.
Bruce recently had a fascinating field trip with the fourth graders to a rice paddy. Maybe he'll describe that experience one day.
The P Collection (silver ware) Showroom
The first stop was the P Silver Collection and its beautiful showroom. As I meandered around the glitzy, glossy room, a salesperson followed the whole time, trying to entice me into buying something, of course. I was especially curious about the case with the silver and glass beads which are sold under the Pandora label, my "attendant" told me. Andrea, our Safe Passage friend - by way of Madrid - had introduced me to that whole new world of consumption, and now Pandora seems to be following me everywhere I go (including to the Maine Mall!). Alas, the only thing I took away with me were photos!
Polishing the silver.
Our next stop, just down the road, was a silk factory. Here we saw the live silk worms eating mulberry leaves and the cocoons which the worms make from their saliva. Silk comes from the threads which constitute the cocoon. Like other natural processes, it makes you wonder how people first figured this out. Natural coloring agents, such as plants, are used to dye the thread, which are spun and woven. I had learned about this process when we studied Thailand with the kinders at Breakwater, so it was especially cool to witness it in person!
Hungry silkworms fattening up on mulberry leaves.
Weaving a beautiful piece of red silk.
Bruce recently had a fascinating field trip with the fourth graders to a rice paddy. Maybe he'll describe that experience one day.
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