How much does a rug cost in Teotitlan? There is no standard answer because cost depends on many variables: quality of wool used, size, whether it was dyed with chemical or natural dyes, the complexity of the design, and who made it. Is it being sold directly by the person who made it or is it sold in one of the “retail” houses that sub-contracts with other weavers in the village and markets under the master’s name? When I first visited Teotitlan del Valle, my quest was to find the “best weaver in town.” As a weaver, textile artist and collector, I knew it was important to do my homework, visit a lot of weavers houses, look at the galleries of the famous people whose names are in every guidebook, and then get off the beaten path. I wanted to find the highest quality weavers but also buy from a family that had not yet made an international name for themselves, support them directly and pay a fair price. In this quest, I learned a lot. For example, many weavers buy commercial wool that is mixed with nylon, which is cheaper and not as sturdy in the long run. Because I am an artist, it is important to me to support people who work with natural dyes because I love the subtle aesthetics of the natural colors. I also wanted to uphold and sustain the early traditions of the Zapotecs (chemical dyes were a 19th Century introduction), and minimize the health impact of working with chemical dyes. I learned that it takes considerably more time to prepare the wool for weaving when working with natural dyes, perhaps as much as 3-4 times longer, because the process has many steps. It is not cost effective for a weaver who has only modest talents to work in natural dyes because the price of the product will have to be higher. Only the most talented weavers, those who can achieve complex patterns using curves and circles, will command higher prices. So, if you are looking for a real bargain, are you willing to compromise quality for price? For example, a rug that is approximately 2-5/8 wide x 5 feet long, woven by a master weaver using the finest quality wool in the traditional caracol Pre-Columbian snail design using natural dyes, will cost around $600-700. This is an intricate design requiring many curves and takes a couple of weeks to execute. A modified version of this, the Greca pattern, will cost about $450-500, for a similar size. Less complex patterns, such as Mountains and Rains or the Zapotec Star, require less skill and can be made faster, and will cost less. A small 2 x 3 foot rug could go for as little as $80-125, especially if it is made with chemical dyes. I have seen poor quality work in the village, rugs prepared with single edge cotton chord (not the finer quality double edge to ensure a rug lies flat), a less dense weave, single ply wool, and “muddy” chemical dyes sell for as little as $50. Federico Chavez recently completed two very large, 10 x 12 foot, custom ordered rugs, which were $3-5,000 each. Not many weavers will have looms that can create a textile that large. The Chavez Santiago family house is committed to only working in natural dyes, so by virtue of this choice, rugs from them will be higher priced. But, they will last a lifetime…or several lifetimes! My recommendation is to read all you can about rug weaving in Teotitlan and make a list of the weavers who you would like to visit. They will be happy to give you a demonstration of their weaving and dyeing techniques, explain the process, and show you their work. Do not feel obligated to buy until you are comfortable, know the weaver, and are satisfied that you have explored all the possibilities. Weavers are artists. Many of their designs are unique to their own families. You will notice that there are subtle variations in patterns and designs among families throughout the village. Some families, like the Chavez Santiago family, are innovating with new mixes of colors and patterns. Mexico is a place where visitors are used to bargaining in the marketplace. I do not know of any weaver who wouldn’t be a little flexible in their pricing, but usually it is no more than 10%. But, consider that a 3 x 5 foot rug will take 30-40 hours of labor, and because Teotitlan weavers stand at their looms and are not able to work more than 6-8 hours a day, think about what constitutes fair compensation before you ask for a discount.
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Pigtails, Ribbons & Aprons: Las Abuelas
Las Abuelas (Ah-bway-lahz), the grandmothers, come together at Teotitlan market every morning to shop for the day’s meals for their families. The daily morning market is essential to the social fabric of village life for older women, a time to socialize, exchange news, and for some, I hear tell, take a nip of sweet flavored mezcal together, a ritual, I suppose, to seal their sisterhood. The abuelas get to the market via tuk-tuk, riding in the front seat or flatbed of a battered pick-up or by foot, carrying on laps or under the crook of their elbow the traditional shopping basket woven from split bamboo and trimmed in wide palm leaves. There is a status associated with the baskets: the fineness of weave, size, and added decoration, such as miniature baskets suspended from a garland encircling the perimeter. The grandmothers wear their hair in braids woven with ribbons. Mostly, they are burgundy red. They can also be brown, green, blue and yellow. I don’t know if there is a significance to the color, and this is something I will need to find out and report on. My guess is that each village has its own color preferences and customs. The women from Benito Juarez and Santa Ana del Valle and Tlacachuaya will have a variation on this theme. Sometimes, the braids hang loose and and tied together at the end forming a V down her back. A braid will extend far beyond the waist. Sometimes the braids are wrapped around the top of the head and give the appearance of a crown. This is useful, too, because a basket can be carried on the head, balanced, as the woman walks along with a grandchild in tow or with arms swinging free or carrying a bouquet of flowers for the home altar. The grandmothers wear the traditional handwoven, cochineal dyed wool wrap around fabric that is the skirt (falda). It is tied with a sash (fajas) that has a balled tassel on the end. The blouse (blusa) can be cotton and hand embroidered or commercially purchased. Sometimes, the skirt is a subtle check and the blouse is a polyester floral, having no particular significance other than personal preference. The costume is then complete when it is topped with a checked and machine embroidered or applique apron. In the market, the wife of a local English teacher (a man who lived in the states for 15 years before returning to Teo), sells intricately embroidered aprons. This is the “overblouse” uniform of village women from Mitla to Tule. Most buy aprons at the Sunday market in Tlacalula where the selection is so vast, over 50 different stalls of apron vendors or so it seems, in every shade and color combination. Aprons sell for 120 to 250 pesos depending upon intricacy of design, and whether both the front and back are embroidered. Scallop edges, huge flower or animal designs, embellished pockets and button closures will command a higher price — one more symbol of economic position in the community. To find these stalls in the market, you have to wander way back beyond the food vendors — ask: A donde estan los mandiles? Mandil is the Spanish word for apron. Few of the young women who stay in the village are wearing this traditional dress. Jeans, Gap or Tommy Hilfiger t-shirts and sweat shirts, and Nike tennis shoes are the ubiquitous uniform of teens and young adults worldwide. Young matrons of the village in their mid-20’s to 40’s will wear a store bought dress topped with an apron. Only the grandmothers carry on the traje tradition. In a few more years, will this be a memory captured by our photos as cultural traditions change and adapt and become subsumed by the dominant culture. I marvel as I sit in the market or meander down the streets at the tenacity of these women, their strength and fortitude and beauty, their survivorship, and wonder what the village will look like in 30 years when they have passed on. Will their dress be part of the museum exhibit only to be brought out during the annual July village fiesta that features the parade of the canastas? And I ask myself, am I being a romantic, romanticizing a way of life that is destined to change?
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Posted in Clothing Design, Cultural Commentary, Teotitlan del Valle
Tagged Clothing Design, mandil, Oaxaca baskets, Oaxaca grandmothers, Oaxaca women, Teotitlan del Valle, Teotitlan market, Tlacalula market, traditional dress, traje, women and mezcal in southern Mexico