Handmade lobster

While lobster is one of the outstanding specialties of the sea for people in the South Central Coast of Vietnam, the bamboo lobster is a particularly outstanding product in the handicraft village in Binh Dinh Province.  From natural materials such as bamboo stems, sand, cotton tree, banana strings, … talented craftsmen with skillful hands turned them into real-looking lobsters.

Cover the lobster's head with fine sand
Cover the lobster’s head with fine sand

Lobster, also known as the folk name “dragon shrimp” in the Eastern concept, symbolizes strength, abundant energy and a spirit of victory. Bamboo is a symbol of Vietnamese village culture.  The craftsmen have combined both of them to create a unique, sophisticated, environmentally friendly traditional handicraft product, suitable for indoor decorationas a gift for friends and relatives.

The unique bamboo lobsters;
The unique bamboo lobsters;

The head of the lobster looks complicated but is actually a very easy to handle, simple process, only with a cotton tree covered with glue, then covered with a layer of fine sand and finally attached a beard

Finished bamboo lobster products;
Finished bamboo lobster products;

The hardest part is making the lobster’s shape, the body of the lobster has a curved shape at the back, so they are made of round bamboo pieces, sawed diagonally, arranged in order from the big at the head and getting smaller towards the tailhow to fit together. Then they are connected to each other by steel wires to create certainty.

Curved body of bamboo lobster;
Curved body of bamboo lobster;

The lobster tail is composed of thin, smooth and spread bamboo pieces.

Lobster beards are banana strings that are wrapped in steel wire to easily create wiggles, creating lively features for shrimp

Lobster beard;
Lobster beard;

In order for the components to be bonded together firmly, glue is an indispensable thing.Not all adhesive can be used because the material is entirely from wood, sand, … so the requirement for adhesive is quite high.This glue has high adhesion, soak in water not rotted or frayed.

Bamboo lobster has not been sprayed yet
Bamboo lobster has not been sprayed yet

Raw materials must go through many stages of processing to get durable products and long preservation.The bamboo sticks must be soaked for 6 months in a mud pond and dried, after that they are sawed in many sections and impregnated with special chemicals to increase the life span.Finally, they are exposed to the sun again, dried and fumigated against termites, so bamboo lobster will preserve longer and more durable

Add texture for bamboo shrimp
Add texture for bamboo shrimp
shrimp belly
shrimp belly

 

 

 

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