GumDrops Wet Weather Boutique

Upon my travels over Christmas and the New Year I kept my eyes open for unusual and unique products…..while in the Bangkok airport trying to waste a few hours until my delayed plane arrived I read about the Bor Sang Umbrella Festival in Thailand which not only got me intrigued about the people (huge smiles all the time), culture and lifestyle but also the products and how to bring them into Canada and specifically GumDrops. I think these would be perfect additons to our range for the spring showers and summer sun. If you’d like to see these beautiful pieces added to the selection at GumDrops shoot us a comment or email me at goody@gumdropsonline.com.

The History:

For more than 100 years, the village has been associated with the production of umbrellas made from saa paper derived from mulberry tree bark. According to local history, a monk travelled to neighbouring Myanmar, where he came across saa paper umbrellas that offered protection against both the sun and rain.
He returned with the production technique and introduced the umbrella to the elders of Bor Sang village, who added their own artistic skills to create a distinctive colourful, but very practical, umbrella. At first it was just a profitable hobby that supplemented the villagers’ earnings from the annual rice crop. However, with time production of the saa paper umbrellas prospered, prompting villagers to establish a handicraft cooperative in 1941 that now organises the annual festival.
Using silk and cotton, weaved at neighbouring San Kamphaeng, villagers eventually added a second line of umbrellas decorated with images of the north, its flowers and birds, all intricately hand-painted. Today, Bor Sang village exports both saa paper and silk umbrellas. They are seen at trade shows in a variety of sizes, from giant parasols that offer a shady canopy from the sun, to miniscule variations that adorn popular cocktail drinks.
To celebrate its success, the village hosts a three-day festival every January. Streets are illuminated by lanterns, while hundreds of umbrellas are hung from the rafters and beams of houses and shops. Bands play, and villagers compete to design the year’s most attractive umbrella. Concerts, a food festival and beauty contest all compete for the attention of the audience, a mix of both tourists and residents, who gather here to celebrate Bor Sang’s innovative handicraft skills.
Throughout the year, tourists visit the village, a short 6 km drive from Chiang Mai, to buy umbrellas and study the process and skills that go into making a handicraft entirely from natural products. But nothing quite compares with the buzz that permeates the village during this colourful three-day handicraft festival, every January. It is a scene that represents village hospitality and charm at its very best.
The Bor Sang Umbrella and San Kamphaeng Handicraft Festival takes place from January 16-18 2010.