This factory made Shan paper umbrellas from scratch. It was another simple local plants and simple processes with no electricity to make a beautiful and functional product.

1. These two women work at the start of the production of the paper. They take mulberry shoots and pound them with hammers until it’s a pulpy mess.

2. The mulberry pulp ends up in a water tank that has a screen already inside. When it’s ready, they add flowers and leaves for decorations and lift the screen up, dry it, and tear off the mulberry paper.

3. My favorite step was the guy on a lathe turning the main section of the umbrella. He used India Trumpet wood which he said is very soft, light, and flexible. He turned the lathe with his foot pressing on a stick attached to a piece of rope that turned the lathe. He was fun to watch and incredibly efficient on his lathe.

4. This woman is cutting the Shan mulberry paper to spread onto the umbrella lattice.

5. You can see some of the finished products in the last photo. I know that Pete purchased a couple of their umbrellas.