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Umbrella Village - Bor Sang

Umbrella Village - Bor Sang

Umbrella Village - Bor Sang
4
Speciality & Gift ShopsNeighbourhoods
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
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Top ways to experience Umbrella Village - Bor Sang

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles375 reviews
Excellent
120
Very good
171
Average
60
Poor
17
Terrible
7

These reviews have been automatically translated from their original language.
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Kim
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico30 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020 • Couples
We spent the morning in Bor Sang during the festival. We visited the Umbrella Making Center which was informative and offered alot of photo opportunities. I had my purse painted and we purchased a phone case in the gift shop to have painted as well. There were many shops, a beautiful ladies bicycle parade, and a free umbrella painting event at the entrance of the festivities. It looked like a lot of food stalls would be open at night.
We would definitely return for another visit even if it weren't the festival.
Written January 24, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Abovetheclouds
2,320 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2022 • Solo
This was so nice but sadly with the pandemic, most of the area was closed. We managed to find this one shop open which was lovely. There was like a museum, shop and an area where you could observe the workers. Very interesting, clean and well kept. Information is in English as well. The shop was surprisingly reasonable. I purchased an umbrella which was cheaper than the night market we went to the night before. Staff are pleasant and allow you to browse at leisure. Good quality products. Workers don't speak English but were happy to let you observe them.
Written January 19, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Laudaleda57@gmail.com
24 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Friends
You choose the size, color and pattern of your handmade parasol. For a large model, with the foot. The support. It costs 150 euros, and what's more, they'll send it to your home. Exceptionally beautiful, and you can be sure of sending and receiving. 6 week
Google
Written March 10, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Maudie B
Sandy Bay, Tasmania, Australia18 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2023 • Friends
It was beautiful to watch the men and women cutting the bamboo and making the umbrellas. I bought five. One was plain so that I could ask the artists to decorate it for a friend. I got other artists to write names on other umbrellas. Take a plain bag with you and pay the artists to decorate for you. Beautiful souvenirs. We bought wall hangings and fans as well.
Written October 7, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Captain_Rob_D
Calgary, Canada4,689 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2011 • Couples
This area of Chiang Mai is famous for handcrafted and painted umbrellas and fans, as well as the making of a handmade paper called saa paper. This factory was visited by HRH Princess Diana in 1988 alongside the famous Shinawatra Thai Silk factory nearby.

The ladies who handcraft the umbrellas produce some beautifully coloured works of art, as well as fans (Chinese-style hand fans that is). The artwork is beautiful and fascinating to watch. I would plan to spend 1-2 hours here, watching, learning and then shopping for souvenirs.

Saa paper starts as the bark of the mulberry tree, common across Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries. This plant (Broussonetia Papyrifera Vent) is a common, rapidly growing, and non-cultured flora that rapidly fills untended environments. The material of this plant is perfectly sustainable as it is essentially a weed, replacing itself

The mulberry bark is soaked in clean water for about a day until it is softer and more pliable. It is then boiled in a salt water solution for a couple of hours to break down the internal strength of the plant cellulose. After boiling, the salt solution is rinsed away from the fibre, resulting in the basic raw fibre which makes up the essence of the paper.

Handmade paper is actually the second main use of the mulberry tree. Silkworms can only produce quality silk while keeping to a diet of mulberry leaves. As the bushes mature, the leaves are no longer appetizing to the silkworm. At that point the bark and leaves are stripped (and ultimately grow back) for use in making Saa Paper.

Saa paper now begins its real transformation. The raw material has been groomed and selected for consistent texture and color. This step is crucial in the final texture and feel of the paper. In preparation for its coloring, the paper is now immersed in cold water and agitated repeatedly through a blunt thresher to create a granular pulp. The Saa paper pulp is then allowed to sit for a few minutes after the agitator is removed from the pulping bin. The ground, dyed fibers then rise to the top and are collected on a light screen that draws out even layers of pulp for the final drying process.










































































































Individual Gift Boxes

Price: from $6 to $12


Mulberry Paper Square
Gift Box Sets

Price: $49


Mulberry Paper Gift
Rectangular Box Sets

Price: $49


Hexagon Saa Paper
Gift Box Sets

Price: from $19 to $35

HOW TO MAKE SAA PAPER
How Saa paper is made
Saa paper starts as the bark of the mulberry tree, common across Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries. This plant (Broussonetia Papyrifera Vent) is a common, rapidly growing, and non-cultured flora that rapidly fills untended environments. The material of this plant is perfectly sustainable as it is essentially a weed, replacing itself faster than it can be used.

Mulberry bush used for Saa paper
Mulberry tree bark is harvested
Handmade paper is actually the second main use of the mulberry tree. Silkworms can only produce quality silk while keeping to a diet of mulberry leaves. As the bushes mature, the leaves are no longer appetizing to the silkworm. At that point the bark and leaves are stripped (and ultimately grow back) for use in making Saa paper.

Handmade craft paper is made from the naturally fast growing mulberry tree bark
Natural paper material is boiled

The mulberry bark is soaked in clean water for about a day until it is softer and more pliable. It is then boiled in a salt water solution for a couple of hours to break down the internal strength of the plant cellulose. After boiling, the salt solution is rinsed away from the fiber, resulting in the basic raw fiber which makes up the essence of the paper.

The bark is soaked and boiled to make it easier to work into paper
Mulberry strips are whitened for uniform color
Handmade paper has to be a uniform color in order to consistently hold any dye added further in the paper making process. Salt treated in a chlorine solution is used to remove the color inconsistencies in the raw material. The whitening agent is then thoroughly rinsed away to prevent it from interfering in additional coloration.

Mulberry bark is treated with a sodium agent to lighten color inconsistency
Raw material is sorted for quality
After the raw bark is soaked, cleaned, and treated for uniform color there still remain natural variations. The low-impact, handmade processing means that even after a few days of handling the material can still be grouped by hue and roughness. The most delicate and regular-hued segments are chosen for paper, while rougher and darker segments are destined for rope or thicker boards.

Handmade processing leaves too much variation to use for paper making directly, so the material is chosen for quality.
Handmade paper pulp
Saa paper now begins its real transformation. The raw material has been groomed and selected for consistent texture and color. This step is crucial in the final texture and feel of the paper. In preparation for its coloring, the paper is now immersed in cold water and agitated repeatedly through a blunt thresher to create a granular pulp.

The natural fibers are now rendered in cold water for uniform consistency.
Handmade paper coloring
As the fibers are being crushed and separated, traditional dyes are added into the cold water solution. The color is therefore dyeing the pulp as it is ground into a mash of cellulose so fine that the rich colors come through as close to true and with minimal dilution and variation in the final paper.

The color is added in the same step the paper pulp is ground, fixing the coloring at the smallest particle.
Paper making revealed
The Saa paper pulp is then allowed to sit for a few minutes after the agitator is removed from the pulping bin. The ground, dyed fibers then rise to the top and are collected on a light screen that draws out even layers of pulp for the final drying process.

The pulp is spread evenly over a screen to make a single sheet. The smooth and evenly-layered pulp is now essentially dissolved cellulose amalgam. The sun, while drying the pulp, evaporates the water in the solution as the trays are exposed on alternating sides, fixing the pulp together into sheets with the natural adhesive that was formed in the pulping process.

The Saa Paper is used in making gift boxes and greeting cards and is very interesting to watch being made and then drying in the sun.

Excellent memories of Chiang Mai thanks to the people of Borsang.
Written October 19, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Dorsie_80
Sydney, Australia78 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Demonstration of how Umbrella's are made from scratch.From the bark to the end process.

They also have a great gift shop and the prices very reasonable.I bought most of my souvenirs from here.

Be sure to take clothing/bags/photoframes with you that you want painted.The maximum cost to get anything painted is 50 baht and it took the artist less then 5 min to paint a dragon onto my purse.The artists have books that you can look through to find a design you want.
Written November 17, 2005
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Carol B
San Marcos80 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2012 • Couples
I wouldn't do this on a tour, but as a chance to get out of Chiang Mai a little bit and see where all that stuff at the Night Market comes from, it couldn't be beat. We visited the Umbrella Making Centre, which is immediately on your right as you turn into Bosang (spelled variously) village proper. There was a good explanation of the paper and umbrella making process in signage in Thai and English, and you could see samples (including a mulberry tree) of all the steps. People were actually working on umbrellas in each stage. And then there is a row of painters who can hand paint something on your purchase or personal items. I had read this, but for some reason didn't really get what I was reading until somebody told me they could paint an elephant on my backpack - at which point I got excited. Talk about a unique souvenir - and on something I USE, not something to be bought and forgotten when I get home. My acrylic painting of an elephant cost 50 baht and I enjoyed sitting and watching the painting process. Good coffee shop across the street. The rest of the village seems to be non stop souvenir shops, and it was hard to distinguish one from the other.
Written October 8, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Sam1055
Wellington, New Zealand37 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2012 • Family
We visited this place twice as were really impressed by the artists. The second time was because I wanted to go and find a shirt for my son to be painted. MUST DO: before visiting this place make sure you take something with you that you might want to have painted - we didn't know they painted your personal items here (painting sizes range from tiny to large). They will paint on just about anything - cameras, camera bags, wallets, shirts, trousers, back packs (even saw a guy take off his top that he was wearing). They say you choose what you want to pay, but there is a price list up behind them from about B50 for small, but hey you can always give them more. There is also a relatively large shop selling all sorts eg souvenirs, jewellery, clothing, wood items etc and somewhere to get a drink.
Written August 17, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

ianinthailand
Chicago, IL34 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2018 • Family
No need to order a tour. Just order a Grab (if you have more than 4 people, use Roddaeng option). They may even wait while you look around and take you back at the same price you paid to go out (but make sure and tip, please). You’ll need about 1-2 hours there. First walk in the factory and observe how they make different pieces of the umbrella. Prices for the umbrellas are cheap. However, make sure and cross the road to look at the shops on the other side. Go down the road next to the 7/11 and you’ll see many shops selling unique things (hill tribe clothes) that are cheaper than in the city.
Written November 18, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Nomnom39
Brighton, UK54 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2012 • Friends
First off, it is pretty small and takes no longer than an hour. However, it is thoroughly delightful. Seeing all the stages at umbrella development was interesting. They also have all these artists that will hand paint elaborate and beautiful pictures onto whatever you give them. I went along with my fabric iPad case and a couple of t-shirts I bought for 69 baht at a random shop the previous night and now I've got two unique items that are amazing souvenirs. If you forget to bring your own things, you can buy some plain t-shirts in the gift shop but they're pretty expensive. The gift shop was in the main really reasonable as I bought a beautiful small fan very cheaply. I'd say it's more appealing to females, as my two male friends got bored very quickly, but I had a lovely time and as it's so close to the other manufacturing things such as the silk factory, it's totally worth it.
Written May 15, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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UMBRELLA VILLAGE - BOR SANG - All You MUST Know Before You Go (2024)

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