Inle Lake has become famous for its silk weaving industry. They also weave cotton and an amazingly fine thread extracted from the stalks of lotus blossoms. We visited the Ko Than Hlaing factory and show room.

Silk shuttles glow against an open window.

We look out the window at the building across the street–well, okay, across the narrow canal; it turns out to be another factory, where people are also weaving silk.

In this factory, we watch as woman dyes the skeins of silk, her arms permanently stained from her work. A new batch of dye bubbles in a pot nearby. Traditionally, the dyes were all made from natural, local ingredients, but these result in a color that is muted and subtle. We tourists, it turns out, tend to like bright colors; and the factory owner is eager to please. And so now, some of the dyes are not all natural.

In the factory, women operate the looms.

This last young woman is weaving silk that has been tie-dyed to produce the traditional pattern that Inle Lake is known for. Here is a diagram of, well, I think it’s a diagram of how to tie the threads so that they will weave up into the right pattern. But I’m not sure.

This man is extracting thread from a lotus stem. The thread is fine, and one stem doesn’t yield very much. Shawls and garments made of lotus are breathtakingly expensive. And they feel wonderful. I regret not buying one.

Sitting on the floor, older men and women thread the dyed silk onto shuttles for weaving.