Hmong Beeswax Painting and Indigo Dyeing Workshop in Sapa

Two hours of Hmong batik in Sapa: draw in wax, dye in indigo, take the cloth home.

The technique is wax resist. Molten beeswax is drawn onto hemp cloth with a chan, a small copper-tipped pen that holds the wax hot enough to flow, and the cloth then goes into an indigo vat. The dye takes everywhere the wax is not, so when the wax is boiled out your drawing appears white against blue.

The indigo is the part that surprises people. The vat is a living fermentation, fed and kept warm over weeks rather than mixed on the day, and cloth comes out of it green and turns blue in front of you as it meets the air.

Hmong patterns are not decoration. Spirals, snail shells, elephant feet and ram's horns each carry meaning, and women learn them from their mothers rather than from a book. The instructor will tell you what you are drawing before you draw it.

No experience is expected. Two hours is enough for a small piece done properly.

You take home the textile you made.

This runs whatever the weather, which in Sapa is worth more than it sounds. Cloud fills the valley for much of the year and closes the views and the paragliding; nothing here depends on seeing the mountains.

Your place is held before your booking is final. The price covers the hands-on workshop, instructor guidance, beeswax painting materials, the natural indigo dyeing and your handmade textile.

Two hours. Wear something you do not mind marking. Minimum one day's notice.