THE STORY OF TAMAY AND ME SO FAR ...

PART I
In October 2008 I went to Sapa, Vietnam for the first time. I was aware this was a special place to find unique textiles in South East Asia but what I discovered, and the extent of the warmth with which I was recieved, was far greater than I could have ever anticipated.

I spent two months learning to make the very tricky Red Dzao embroidery which is a fundamental part of Red Dzao culture. My teacher Tamay invited me to sit with her in the market and so patiently taught me how to roll the silk on my leg and then the traditional patterns that feature on all the clothes the Red Dzao wear everyday. It was a very different sort of learning to anything I had ever done before. With no books or reference points, I learnt as every Red Dzao girl learns to embroider, by using my memory.

This embroidery is very special. It is a traditional skill that has been part of the culture for many many generations and takes a very very long time and a huge amount of patience to achieve. Through learning myself I have gained a huge amount of respect for these women and their skills. Wonderfully they are still strong despite them living in an increasingly Western world, where time takes on a different dimension.

This enterprise, a joint effort between both Tamay and myself, hopes to spread the word of Red Dzao culture and generate a little more awareness and respect for these nourishing traditional skills of Red Dzao people (other names for the Dzao include, Yao, Dao, and Mien.)

PART II Then in May 2010 I went for a second exploratory adventure to see my Dzao sister and the women of Taphin village. This time staying with Tamay and her family for three weeks it was an opportunity to really experience Dzao family life. The purpose of the trip was to be able to have a really good chat with Tamay about the project and to find out the direction this project should go in order to really help the Red Dzao people, both financially and culturally.

The result was for 'me' to facilitate the following: - Telling the stories of Red Dzao women from Taphin village living in 2010, joys, struggles and ambitions. - The selling of their textiles to a wider audience on a regular basis to provide a regular income for families. And for 'Tamay' to facilitate the following: - Sourcing second-hand clothing and pieces from families who do not have easy access to sell to visiting tourists, both because they do not speak English or because they live further away or do not have time due to family demands. - The encouragement of high quality making of traditional clothing, as they will be able to sell them the following year.

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