Category Archives: Workshops and Retreats

Guatemala Textile Study Tour 2025: Cloth and Culture

Registration is now open. A $750 non-refundable deposit will reserve your space. We offered this tour first to those who expressed interest a couple of months ago, and we have filled seven out of fourteen spaces. We hope that if you want to go to Guatemala with us in February 2025, you won’t hesitate to tell us and send your deposit as soon as possible!

Guatemala Textile Study Tour: Cloth and Culture will be held February 6-15, 2025, nine nights and ten days. Join Olga Reiche, Eric Chavez Santiago, and Norma Schafer to explore Maya hand weaving, natural dyeing techniques, markets, and remote artisan villages where women work on back strap looms.

We begin first in Antigua, Guatemala’s colonial city where the Spanish conquest left its mark on art, architecture, food and culture. Antigua, founded in 1524, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. After settling into our hotel, we meet Olga, visit her Indigo studio where she dyes threads with natural plants that she provides to weavers with whom she works in the Coban region where they make fine gauze textiles using the pikbil technique. Later in the tour we will visit this region, off the beaten path where few venture.

We also visit master weaver Lidia Lopez, who Norma met at the Santa Fe Folk Art Market this year. Lidia also attended and exhibited at the 2023 WARP annual conference. Her rendition of flower gardens in her weaving is nothing short of extraordinary.

Of course, we travel to Panajachel, take a boat launch across Lake Atitlan, and visit weaving cooperatives there with whom Olga has relationships. Before going to Lake Atitlan, we spend time at the famed Chichicastenango market. I was there in the mid-2000’s and was amazed by the indigenous Maya culture, mysticism practiced in the church — a testimony to syncretism that blends ancient beliefs with Catholicism, and one of the most vibrant outdoor marketplaces in Latin America. The abundance of textiles is beyond belief! As we meander, we will have expert guidance on textile iconography, region, quality, and rarity.

From Chichi, we travel to Coban to meet Amalia Gue, who many collectors know as being one of the greatest weavers of fine gauze cloth. Amalia has exhibited at the Santa Fe Folk Art Market, the Museo Textil de Oaxaca, and we have invited her to Oaxaca Cultural Navigator expoventas at our Taller Teñido a Mano dye studio and weaving workshop in Teotitlan del Valle. In addition, we spend several days in this area to discover other talented artisanbs who also work in the same pikbil gauze weaving technique.

We make our way back to Antigua via Lake Atitlan and Panajachel to explore villages accessible only by boat, where women are also weaving huipiles and blusas using naturally dyed threads.

Preliminary Itinerary: February 6 – 15, 2025, 9 nights, 10 days

Day 1, Thursday, February 6: Arrive to Guatemala City, travel to Antigua before 4 p.m. by airport shuttle (at your own expense) to avoid traffic. Check in to our group hotel. Dinner included. 

Day 2, Friday, February 7: Drive to San Antonio Aguas Calientes to visit the town and Lidia Lopez home with a textile weaving demonstration. Then, we visit Olga Reiche´s Studio at San Juan Del Obispo, with natural dye demonstration and discussion about natural dyes. Lunch at La Cascade Marc in San Juan Del Obispo. The afternoon is free to explore Antigua. Breakfast and lunch included. Dinner on your own.

Day 3, Saturday, February 8: Antigua morning tour, with visits to places of interest. Breakfast included. Lunch and dinner on your own.

Day 4, Sunday, February 9: Early departure to Chichicastenango Market – Visit the market and have an early brunch at Hotel Mayan Inn. We then depart to nearby Santa Cruz del Quiche to visit artisans and then go on to Coban, Alta Verapaz. Our travel time is approximately 3-1/2 hours by luxury van. Arrive at Coban Alta Verapaz in mid-afternoon. Dinner at Restaurant Casa Acuña. Breakfast and dinner included.

Day 5, Monday, February 10: After breakfast, drive to Samac to visit famed pikbil weaver Amalia Gue who participates in the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market. We will invite other nearby weaving groups of Coban to an expoventa at our hotel. Dinner at X’Kape Coban with a local food. Breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Day 6, Tuesday, February 11: One more day in Coban to visit other weaving groups or return to Amalia’s or visit and tour orchid farm. Breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Day 7, Wednesday, February 12:  After Breakfast, visit Coban’s market and depart mid-morning. Travel to Panajachel, Lake Atitlan. Afternoon free to wonder around the shops on Santander Street. Breakfast included. Lunch and Dinner on your own.

Day 8, Thursday, February 13: Visit De Colores Studio in Panajachel, with an explanation of the work they do. Cross the lake on a private boat to Santiago Village and visit Cojolya Cooperative of weavers. Continue to travel by boat to San Juan La Laguna to visit artisans that practice natural dyes, with demonstrations. Return to Panajachel. Breakfast and lunch included. Dinner on your own.

Day 9, February 14: Return to Antigua, free afternoon to visit museums and galleries. Grand finale dinner. Overnight in Antigua.

Day 10, February 15: Departure to Guatemala City airport. Please schedule flights to depart after 11 a.m.  It will take 1-1/2 hours to get there, and you need to be there two hours ahead to check in to international flights.

On your own options are to arrive a day or two earlier or stay a day or two later to visit Guatemala City. The Archeological Museum there has an extensive textile collection, and next door is a vast Craft Market which has a nice selection of artisan made craft from different regions of Guatemala.

Price $4,395 shared room. $5,195 single room. Deposit to reserve $750 (non-refundable). Please complete this Registration Form and return to Norma Schafer at norma.schafer@icloud.com to participate. Please read Registration Policies and Procedures. Thank you.

Space is limited to 14 travelers.

About the Tour Leaders

Olga Reiche is a Guatemala textile artisan, dye master, and social justice advocate who has worked with local artisans and indigenous groups for over 30 years to train them to use natural dyes. Her concern for environmental and artisan sustainability is a driving force in her work around Lake Atitlan and in the northern Coban region of Guatemala.

She has been an invited participant at the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market for many years, teaches natural dyeing and weaving, has written numerous articles about natural dyes and sustainability, indigenous culture, and continuity.

She mentors weavers, developing new designs and products, teaching them how to manage a business, and how to competitively market products in the international arena.

Olga heads the sustainable eco-fashion brand Indigo that works with craftspeople from different regions to create clothing from recycled and reused materials. The name of her brand is inspired by the rich blue pigment which comes from the native Guatemalan indigo plant.

Olga is the lead designer and produces naturally-dyed threads that are used by a team of weavers with whom she collaborates—mostly women working out of their homes. They make pieces according to Olga’s instructions, weaving almost exclusively on backstrap looms, incorporating patterns and symbols inspired by their shared Mayan heritage. Once the pieces are fabricated, they are returned to Olga for assembly into comfortable and luxurious handmade garments that have been featured in Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue Mexico. 

Eric Chavez Santiago is a fourth-generation weaver and natural dyer from Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca. He is fluent in Spanish and English, and is managing partner of Oaxaca Cultural Navigator. He joined OCN in 2021. Eric was founding director of education at the Museo Textil de Oaxaca, where he organized artisan-led programs for eight years. After that, he was asked by the Alfred Harp Helu Foundation to open and direct the Oaxaca folk art gallery Andares del Arte Popular, which he did for six years. Eric is knowledgeable about all aspects of weaving and naturally dyeing, having developed over 100 different shades of cochineal before the age of 21, and is deeply embedded in the folk art and craft culture of Mexico.

Norma Schafer founded Oaxaca Cultural Navigator LLC in 2007, and has been offering educational programs, workshops and tours since then. She served for thirty years in university leadership roles, and has a keen personal interest in artisan economic development, all things textiles and folk art.

.Reservations and Cancellations.  A $750 non-refundable deposit (first payment) is required to guarantee your place. The balance is due in two equal payments. The second payment of 50% of the balance is due on or before August 1, 2024. The third payment, 50% balance, is due on or before November 1, 2024. We accept payment using Zelle cash transfer or a credit card with Square. For a Zelle transfer, there is no service fee.  We add a 3.5% service fee to use Square. We will send you a request for funds to make your reservation deposit when you tell us you are ready to register. Please tell us how your account is registered (email or phone number).

After November 1, 2024, there are no refunds. If you cancel on or before November 1, 2024, we will refund 50% of your deposit received to date (less the $750 non-refundable deposit). After that, there are no refunds UNLESS we cancel for any reason. If we cancel, you will receive a full 100% refund.

Required–Travel Health/Accident Insurance: We require that you carry international accident/health insurance that includes $50,000+ of emergency medical evacuation insurance. Check out Forbes Magazine for best travel insurance options. https://www.forbes.com/advisor/travel-insurance/best-travel-insurance/

Proof of insurance must be received at least 45 days before the tour start date.

About COVID. Covid is still with us and new variants continue to arise. As of this writing (December 2023), we request proof of latest COVID-19 vaccination and all boosters to be sent to us 30 days before departure. We suggest that you test two days before traveling to the tour. Please bring Covid test kits with you in the event you feel sick during the tour. Face masks are strongly suggested for airport and air travel, van travel, densely populated market visits, and artisan visits that are held indoors. We ask this to keep all travelers safe, and to protect indigenous populations who are at higher risk.

Oaxaca Screenwriting Workshop for Film + TV: We All Have a Story

Arrive Thursday, March 28 and depart Wednesday, April 3, 2024–Semana Santa Experience

What makes a good story? And how do we translate that to a movie or television? We might say: That show has a good story line, or I love those characters (or not), or The plot is unbelievable (as in, either amazing or false). A story is a simple thing – someone wants something, and someone or something stands in their way. The purpose of storytelling is to give meaning and to express wonder. It’s the emotion and empathy that you personally put into a story that makes it compelling. We have created this workshop to provide you with tools to develop and tell a worthy story, and then to pitch it to those who might produce it. This is the perfect opportunity to take a novel, short story, a work of fiction or creative non-fiction, documentary, and personal essay, and begin to turn it into a screenplay worthy of viewing in a movie or on television. Through personal coaching, learning sessions, and group feedback, you will gain the skills to create structure, plot, and formatting.

Whether you are interested in writing a TV pilot, a feature film, a short film, a documentary film, or a work of literary fiction, knowing your core concept and message, and developing fully realized three-dimensional characters is essential to the ultimate success – however long that may take – of a writing project.  We will help you get there.

Meet your instructor: Harry Werksman

Harry Werksman is a veteran screenwriter who promises that you will participate in a free-spirited, free-wheeling exchange of ideas, sprinkled with creative writing exercises, that are designed to warm up your writing engine. If you are an experienced writer and need encouragement and feedback, this is the place for you. If you have always wanted to write a screenplay and you consider yourself a novice, we can offer you a solid path from which you can pursue your dream. All experience levels welcome.

Werksman has worked in the entertainment industry as a writer-producer for many years. He has been nominated for two Emmys, one Golden Globe, one Saturn Award, one People’s Choice Award and three Writer’s Guild Awards (WGA). He has won a WGA Award for GREY’S ANATOMY, a Golden Globe for UGLY BETTY, and won both a People’s Choice Award and a Saturn Award for MOONLIGHT. Other credits include: EON-4, STAR TREK: DS9, EARTH: FINAL CONFLICT, FARSCAPE, THE INVISIBLE MAN, DEATHLANDS: HOMEWARD BOUND, VERITAS: THE QUEST, FINAL FANTASY XV and CASTLE.

In addition, Harry is a seasoned instructor! He has taught for The American Film Institute, UCLA Extension Writer’s Program, New York Film School, The Institute for British and Irish Studies (Oxford University), New York University, and more. Harry holds the B.A. from Northwestern University, and master’s degree from New College, Oxford University, England.

And now, after nearly 30 years in the industry, he’s left Los Angeles for the wind-swept, wide-open spaces of Santa Fe, New Mexico. He continues to write and teach – acting as the Lead Instructor for the Southwest School of Story Telling’s summer film camp for high school students; has earned a master’s certificate from University of New Mexico and the Santa Fe Watershed Association in climate change; and has begun to seriously explore the world of documentary filmmaking.

How Travel Boosts Creativity: Why Write in Oaxaca

Harry tells us that by traveling, we look at the world through an entirely different lens and connect with the greatest of all Muses, Nature. He notes that many of his most creative thoughts come when he least expects them, when he has taken his mind off the challenges he faces, even for a brief time.

He says, In this space, far away from the demands of everyday, competing, and conflicting thoughts, frustrations melt away. Eliminating external distractions allows my mind to relax. I can contemplate my ideas and understand the emotions and motivations I’m trying to convey through words. This is when the magic happens.

Think about Kerouac’s On the Road, Van Gogh’s Café Terrace at Night, Chopin’s Winter Wind: all these incredible pieces were inspired by travel. Finding inspiration in a creative field can prove difficult, with many experiencing a form of writer’s block. Often, the solution is as simple as going somewhere new and having new experiences. In these new surroundings, you may experience a renewed inspiration to get you going again. You may even enter a ‘flow state,’ in which you completely lose yourself in your work and complete a creative project without even trying!

By immersing yourself in a foreign environment, you are helping to strengthen the neurons that like to make connections, solve problems, and embrace new ideas. This will feed into your work, with your new surroundings, offering inspiration.

Location: Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico

We are based in the famed tapestry weaving village of Teotitlan del Valle, located about forty minutes outside of Oaxaca city, where there are 2,000 looms and artisans create award-winning floor rugs and wall-hangings . Here, in a retreat-like setting, we are based in a lovely, small bed and breakfast inn within steps of the 17th century church and pre-Hispanic Zapotec temple and archeological site. Walking trails and cobblestone streets attest to an ancient culture more than 8,000 years old. Up the road, about seven miles from the village, native corn was first hybridized 12,000 years ago. We will be there over Semana Santa Easter celebrations rooted in syncretism – Spanish Catholicism and ancient mystical-spiritual traditions. Being here allows us to immerse ourselves in rituals, observances, meet locals, and retreat into a world of creative inspiration.

What the Workshop Includes

  • Expert instruction and private coaching session
  • Lodging at an excellent bed and breakfast inn
  • 6 breakfasts
  • 3 lunches
  • 4 dinners, including Gala Grand Finale Dinner
  • Mezcal tasting
  • Guided visits to local artisans
  • Participation at Semana Santa Procession
  • Dance of the Old Men enactment
  • Transportation that is part of the itinerary
  • Support for a student scholarship at the Oaxaca Learning Center

The workshop does not include alcoholic beverages, tips, transportation to/from the airport or city to the workshop location, airfares to/from Oaxaca.

Preliminary Program: March 28-April 3, 2024 – Seven days, six nights

Day 1: Thursday, March 28. Please arrive to our Teotitlan del Valle lodging by 4 p.m. to check in. 6 pm welcome reception and supper. Sign up for individual coaching sessions with the instructor. (D)

Day 2: Friday, March 29. Breakfast is at 8 am, followed by a morning session that includes discussion about What is a story? What is a script? This includes a deep dive into format, structure, plotting and the process of scripting for TV, film, short, documentary. You will begin to develop a Concept Document and Character Thumbnails. 11:30 am lunch. Noon break to join the village Semana Santa procession. Afternoon individual consults with instructor and free time. 6 pm Mezcal Tasting followed by dinner. (B, L, D)

Day 3: Saturday, March 30. Breakfast is at 8 am., followed by a morning session to explore the Who, What, Where, and When of a good story. The Why will not be given – you will start your project by teasing out Why this story is important, valuable, meaningful. Through readings and feedback, you’ll better understand what works, what doesn’t, challenges, areas of difficulty and areas for improvement. You’ll continue to work on Concept Document and Character Thumbnails to ensure you are reaching your intended goal. Lunch is at noon, followed by individual coaching sessions, free time to write. We meet at 4 pm to visit a master weaver before dinner. (B, L, D)

Day 4: Sunday, March 31. Breakfast begins at 8 am followed by our morning workshop session that focuses on the “Character To Do List.”  We all make lists: errands to run, groceries we need, holiday gifts to buy, project milestones to hit. We will use this format to explore character as part of the script. And, we will continue to write Concept Document and Character Thumbnails. Lunch is at noon. Then, it’s writing, free time, and personal coaching sessions. Dinner is at 6:30 pm. (B, D)

Day 5, Monday, April 1. After breakfast, our session will focus on The Writer’s Room, by experiencing how this group format advances the project. We will collectively craft a single scene either from one of the concepts pitched or of our own that will represent the core scene of a potential story.  A Writers Room is where the writers pitch, brainstorm, and workshop ideas together. A collaboration, the group can vary from several to more than a dozen people. How they operate depends on the executive producer/show runner or their top lieutenants. This is where script ideas are born and polished for production. After lunch, we move into personal writing time, free time, and individual coaching sessions with the instructor. At 4 pm, we walk to the plaza to witness the Dance of the Old Men. Dinner is at 6:30 p.m. and on your own. (B, L)

Day 6, Tuesday, April 2. After breakfast we meet again from 9 am to Noon. Each participant will make a presentation to the group of their Individual Concept Documents and Character Thumbnails, to receive feedback, reactions, suggestions, identify areas of difficulty and improvement. This feedback will be the basis for the final rewrite on your own after lunch. At 4 pm we will meet local artisans who will present and discuss their work. We gather at 6:30 pm for a Reading and Celebratory Grand Finale Dinner. (B, D)

Day 7, Wednesday, April 3. Breakfast is included on your departure day. We are happy to help you arrange transportation (at your own expense) to the airport or to the city if you choose to extend your stay. (B)

Note: During the personal coaching sessions, each participant will be scheduled to meet for one hour with Harry Werksman. There will be opportunities, too, to meet for informal chats, answer questions, or help break up a creative/mental log jams that hold up the creative process.

(Itinerary subject to change at our discretion.)

Please complete this Registration Form and return to Norma Schafer at norma.schafer@icloud.com to participate. Thank you.

Note: You can add days on to the tour — arrive early or stay later — at your own expense. We also suggest you arrive a day early (your own hotel expense) to avoid any unforeseen flight delays.

Cost to Participate

  • $2,695 shared double room with private bath (sleeps 2)
  • $3,295 for a single supplement (private room and bath, sleeps 1)

Reservations and Cancellations.  A $500 non-refundable deposit is required to guarantee your place. The balance is due in two equal payments. The second payment of 50% of the balance is due on or before November 1, 2023. The third payment, 50% balance, is due on or before January 5, 2024. We accept payment using Zelle, Venmo, PayPal or Square. For a Zelle transfer, there is no service fee.  We add a 3.5% service fee to use Venmo, PayPal or Square. We will send you a request for funds to make your deposit when you tell us you are ready to register. (We need details on how your account is registered to make the request.)

After January 5, 2024, there are no refunds. If you cancel on or before January 5, 2024, we will refund 50% of your deposit received to date (less the $500 non-refundable deposit). After that, there are no refunds UNLESS we cancel for any reason. If we cancel, you will receive a full 100% refund.*

Required–Travel Health/Accident Insurance: We require that you carry international accident/health insurance that includes $50,000+ of emergency medical evacuation insurance. Check out Forbes Magazine for best travel insurance options. https://www.forbes.com/advisor/travel-insurance/best-travel-insurance/

Proof of insurance must be sent at least 45 days before departure.

COVID-19 Precautions. We trust that you are fully vaccinated and take all precautions when traveling, including mask-wearing in airports and on airplanes. Thank you.

We ask that you test two days before traveling to the tour, and that you inform us if the results are positive. Please bring 4 self-tests with you. We ask that you do a self-test 48 hours after arrival and then periodically thereafter if you feel you have been exposed. Face masks are strongly suggested for van travel, densely populated market visits, and artisan visits that are held indoors. We ask this to keep all travelers safe, and to protect indigenous populations who are at higher risk.

Be certain your passport has at least six months on it before it expires from the date you enter Mexico! It’s a Mexico requirement.

Where is Zacoalpan, Guerrero? Find It on the Oaxaca Coast Textile Tour

The Costa Chica of Oaxaca actually includes the southern part of Guerrero state, stretching from Puerto Escondido north to Acapulco. We don’t go quite as far as Acapulco, but we go deep into Amuzgo territory. The Amuzgo ethnic group encompasses northern Oaxaca and southern Guerrero. As in many parts of the world, political boundaries have nothing to do with tribal affiliations. I have seen this in India, China, Chiapas and Guatemala, too.

Selection of beautiful huipiles

Some years ago, I discovered the weaving family of my friend Jesus Ignacio when Instagram was in its infancy. I saw through his photos that the workmanship was extraordinary and he was dedicated to reviving ancient patterns, many lost to common memory. I knew that our itinerary took us to Xochistlahuaca, Guerrero, and learned that Zacoalpan is a nearby sister village where back-strap loom weaving also has important traditions. I added this family to our tour.

2023 Oaxaca Coast Textile Study Tour–Registration Open!

Supplementary weft technique yields dense design – 8 months of work

During our first visit a few years ago, Jesus showed us examples of textile fragments he was able to find and replicate. The family grows their own native, pre-Hispanic cotton on a small plot that he and his father tend. They grow coyuchi brown, soft green and creamy white. His mom, aunts and cousins process the cotton by hand, separating the fibers and taking out the seeds which they save for future planting. They roll a petate around dried corn leaves and beat the cotton on top with two hefty sticks to soften it. Then, they card and spin it using a malacate or drop-spindle. The cotton is then ready for the back-strap loom.

Raw native green cotton

I describe all this because the preparation is an integral part of the weaving process and takes a lot of time. To calculate he cost of a hand-made garment, we must factor in all the steps in the vertical production process — from growing to the final blusa or huipil.

Not only does the family use native cotton, they also use natural dyes: indigo, cochineal, wild marigold (pericone), nanche bark, zapote negro (a local fruit), and occasionally purple snail dye which they buy from Pinotepa de Don Luis across the Oaxaca-Guerrero border.

Native coyuchi brown and creamy white cotton

I want to share with you these words that Jesus wrote to me a few days ago. He doesn’t speak English, but he uses Google Translate. I’m copying what he wrote verbatim. When I read it, it makes me cry.

“Thank you friend Norma for visiting us. The Zacoalpan textile workshop teacher has been very talented, I have focused on helping her to spread her backstrap loom arts, even though I do not have compensation from the teachers, but my passion is to spread our ancestral knowledge. I feel so grateful for your visit in my humble home where we are struggling with stereotypes.

A study in humble— Jesús ‘ aunt

“I have always dreamed of going very far for the world to know our arts. I know our textiles are in danger of extinction, but I have not been able to make a lot of progress due to lack of support. The only support we have had is from your trip to our workshop. I have been a young dreamer, sometimes it makes me sad because I have not found a job in my profession, which is civil engineering. I have become very sad because our Mexico lacks employment. My dream is to become a better construction engineer but I have not been able to find work to practice my profession.

“My only dream is to have a house of my own and work. Sincerely, I am deeply grateful for your support in purchasing the art we make. I also have a dream that one day I will get to know your country, the USA, friend Norma. It is my only wish.

“I used Google translate.”

Jesús, Norma and his mom

Find Jesus on Instagram: @textil_zacoalpan

I’m sharing the contact because we don’t want them to have to wait another year for our visit to sell something! They ship internationally. Please support them. Our group was the only one to visit in the last two years. The work is finely made and exceptional. You must be able to do a wire transfer to his bank account. I use the App Remitly to send wire transfers to Mexico.

Ancient double-headed eagle design revived

Oaxaca Rugs in Philadelphia, Pa.

Omar Chavez Santiago from Galeria Fe y Lola in Oaxaca is traveling with me to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at the end of the week to start a series of rug exhibitions, sales and natural dye demonstrations.

Events start on Saturday, October 27, 2018. We hope if you live in the region you can stop by.  On November 5 and 6, Omar will be in New York City — his first time to the Big Apple. We will confirm dates, announce location and time soon.

Huge thanks to Leah Reisman, Ellen Benson, Suzanne Bakewell and Kathleen Bakewell for organizing Omar’s visit. They made it happen!

We hope to see you. I’ll be there the first weekend. Stop by to say Hello!

Please share so we can give Omar a big Philly welcome. It’s his first time there.

If you want a PDF flyer, send me an email!

Photo Essay: Oaxaca Cochineal Dye Workshop in Durham, NC

Cochineal dyed wool scarves drying

Yesterday, my Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, godson Omar Chavez Santiago, from Galeria Fe y Lola, taught a cochineal natural dye workshop through INDIO Durham, hosted by owner Wendy Sease.  We had a sold-out workshop.

Acid base using fresh lime juice turns the dye bath orange

Most people don’t know that cochineal is the natural dye that colors lipstick, Campari, yogurt, and wine. Anything labeled carminic acid comes from cochineal. When you manipulate the pH, you can change the dye color.

Cochineal dyed silk

When you over-dye with blue, the cloth becomes purple. When you start with wild marigold and over-dye with cochineal, the cloth becomes peach color. The color of the sheep wool will also determine the shades of red.

Cochineal dyed wool

The wool must be washed/cleaned or mordanted first before it is dyed. This takes out the lanolin and makes the wool more receptive to accepting the color. The cochineal mordant bath is clear water with alum, heated to dissolve the natural rock. Wool dyed with cochineal needs mordanting. Wool dyed with indigo does not.

Taking the wool out of the bath that mordants the wool

Once the wool is cleaned, we prepare the cochineal dye bath dissolving the powdered bugs into hot water and stirring.

A red pullover scarf called a quechquemitl coming out of the dye bath

For a deeper color red, the wool must stay in the dye pot for at least an hour. At home in Teotitlan del Valle, Omar and his family will keep the yard they weave rugs with in the dye bath overnight to get the most intense color.

Another view of a dyed wool scarf coming out of the dye bath

Eight women gathered around Wendy’s kitchen to prepare the mordant and dye pots after Omar gave an introduction and orientation to the cochineal and its color properties.

Cooking it up in Wendy’s kitchen

He brought hand-woven wool scarves with him from Oaxaca that each participant could work with.

Omar coaching participants as they get ready to immerse their scarves

Fresh lime juice is essential because the acid is the necessary ingredient to alter the color of the dye bath. This is exactly how the family does it at home in Oaxaca — an entirely hand-made process.

Everyone squeezed limes by hand!

You can come to Oaxaca for a natural dye workshop or a tapestry weaving workshop. Contact Norma Schafer, Oaxaca Cultural Navigator LLC. We can fit your schedule.

It was a perfect NC day — our outdoor dye kitchen

Wool wet and waiting for the dye pot

When you bring the cloth out of the pot you want to make sure not to waste the cochineal. It cost over $100 USD per kilo, so you squeeze the liquid out over the dye pot to reuse it.

Squeezing the excess liquid

A study in color variation depending on wool type and dye bath

Hot purple and juicy lime, a great color contrast of wool in bowl

Three scarves in black and white

Experimenting with shibori