Arts and Crafts in Vietnam...

Right down the street from our hotel in the Old Quarter was Phuong Thao Embroidery House, a lovely little shop that sold European style embroidered items. Vietnam is full of embroidery studios where dozens of women and youth sit for hours embroidering intricate landscape scenes of the rural countryside--works that frankly weren't much to my taste. I love European folk embroidery, however, and was surprised to find this store specializing in very high quality, hand embroidered table runners, table clothes, pillows, napkins and linen sets. Many of the designs are direct knock offs of old Swedish and Norwegian linen designs, and Bui Thi Thu Huong, the woman who owns and operates Phuong Thao Embroidery, has many clients from Australia,  Japan, Great Britain and the United States who collect and treasure Northern European linens and handwork, and purchase these fine Vietnamese linen imitations. The handwork is of exceptional quality, and the studio will do commissioned work.

Phuong Thao Embroidery House

3 Hang Be, Hanoi, Vietnam

email: huongembroidery@yahoo.com