In Vietnam, flowers are a very popular decorative item, particularly during special events. But this Lunar New year clay flowers seem to be the in-thing and can be seen in many houses.
They have been imported for less than a year but some Vietnamese artisans have already visited Japan, where the art of making them was born, to learn how to make them.
The flowers are made of Japanese clay, and are pliable but tough.
From clay fig tree to orchid, each product has to go through several stages. Blended clay is laminated and molded in the shape of petals. Then an artisan has to patiently shape each vein in the leaf and cleverly and delicately use colors to bring the flowers to life.
“It takes six months to a year to learn the basics,” Son, owner of Gala Flowers in Hanoi, says.
“There are some flowers like carnation and orchid that requires an artisan to test hundreds of times to get the color right.”
During Tet, clay flowers are very convenient since people do not have to worry about watering them when they are busy visiting relatives.
Unlike plastic or paper flowers, clay flowers also have realistic colors and can last as long as a year. Besides, old ones can be remade into new styles and colors.
Followings are images of some clay flowers:
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