(CLO) Creating hundreds of foam snowmen every Christmas, Mr. Vu Anh Tuan (52 years old, Hang Luoc street, Hoan Kiem district, Hanoi ) is one of the skilled craftsmen in the old quarter who work hard every day, making a living from his profession and earning millions of dong/day on Christmas.
Mr. Tuan Anh said that his main job was making votive offerings since he was very young, and the job of making foam snowmen was just by chance. “First, I went to a foam seller’s house to play. It was wedding season, so I used a lot of foam to cut out shapes of birds of peace and doves to attach to the gate of the theater, then cut a pair of peacocks to make a wedding gate… From then on, I found this quite interesting and started making foam snowmen to serve the people,” Mr. Tuan Anh shared.
To create a foam snowman, it takes many different stages. First, workers import foam blocks from companies outside Hanoi. Then, from the foam blocks, craftsmen will cut and mix them into parts of the snowman (depending on the size, the division is also different). For the round head, craftsmen create a round sphere, for the vertical body, they create a vertical shape... "Depending on the needs of customers, I create different shapes. Each detail of the foam snowman must be done carefully and meticulously so that each finished product looks as realistic as possible," said Mr. Tuan Anh.
Mr. Tuan Anh is diligent and meticulous with each foam snowman product.
According to Mr. Tuan Anh, in the process of creating a foam snowman, perhaps the most time-consuming step is making the hat, requiring meticulousness, precise angles and balance. Making the base is simple because the base has a rectangular shape. "Depending on the size of the product, the completion time is also different. For large products, it takes me about 3 hours to finish, and for smaller products, it takes about 2 hours. On average, I can make about 5 shapes a day, and less than 3 shapes, depending on my health each day," Mr. Tuan Anh confided.
Most of the finished products have an event organizer to pick up, usually taking about 10 pictures each time. In addition, small traders often come to wholesale 1 picture of each type depending on different sizes.
In Hanoi, foam snowmen have been around for a long time on Hang Luoc Street. On holidays, New Year's Eve or Christmas, people buy them as decorations for their homes, adding beauty to their homes and creating a cozy, full space.
Each finished product costs from 300,000 VND to 1 million VND.
“Compared to previous years, this year this item sells quite slowly. About 5 years ago, I alone made about 200 to 300 pictures at a time. Now, the most I can make is about 100 pictures. The price ranges from 300,000 VND to 1 million VND. Doing this job is only slightly higher than the state salary (the state salary is 7 million, our salary is 9 million),” Mr. Tuan Anh added.
Currently, in Hanoi's Old Quarter, there are hundreds of different handicrafts, however, as society develops and consumer demand increases, foam snowmen, although selling slower than in previous years, are still a 'hot' item at the moment. There are still very few craftsmen but social demand is increasing.
Source: https://www.congluan.vn/nguoi-dan-ong-pho-co-nan-nguoi-tuyet-bang-xop-kiem-tien-trieu-dip-noel-post323282.html
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