How a bamboo bowl is produced
Bamboo submerged in water
Bamboo strips
Molding a bamboo bowl
It takes a lot of time and skill to transform a bamboo plant into a bamboo bowl. Prior to processing the bamboo, the stems are submerged in water for several months. Afterwards each strip is cut, split and pressed. Finally the pieces are cut and divided into thin strips.
For our bowls the craftsmen form the pressed strips into rings. These are then assembled into discs. The disc is placed over a cement mold to bring it into form.
Once the form is shaped the bowl is sanded for the first time. After this step the bowl’s surface is filled several times with rice flour and carefully sanded again and again until the surface is smooth. Once the raw bowl is dried, the dye and lacquer are applied in several steps. Water-soluble acrylic resin lacquers are used for painting, which we purchase from Germany.