Sonam Jamtsho, 42, has been providing for his family by weaving. He has five children. He is the only male weaver in Lumang Gewog under Trashigang Dzongkhag. He took up weaving at the age of 20 after he couldn’t continue his studies due to financial constraint. Today, he earns as much as a civil servant does.
He never had a tutor. He picked up the trade by observing other women weave. And now he has almost perfected the art. “It is a gift from above,” he says.
Sonam Jamtsho mostly weaves for Khaling Weaving Center. “Since the price has increased for the threads it is difficult to sell what I weave these days.” He said he also weaves when there is an order from a customer. He gets order from as far as Mongar and Trashigang town
These days he is teaching his 41 year old wife, Choki Lhamo, how to make different patterns. “He knows more about weaving than I do,” said Choki Lhamo. She said he is also fast, “When he finishes two kiras, I can finish only one. So I normally stick to household chores.”
“I dream of opening my own weaving center in the future,” Sonam Jamtsho
