Tag Archives: backstrap loom weaving

Oaxaca Coast Textile Study Tour 2021

Posted on Friday, January 31, 2020 | 6 comments

Arrive on Saturday, January 16 and depart on Monday, January 25, 2021 — 9 nights, 10 days in textile heaven!

Trip is limited to 12 participants–6 single rooms and 3 shared rooms.

To register, please complete the Registration Form and email it.

Indigo and purple shell dye in Pinotepa de Don Luis
Handmade masks for Dance of the Tigers, San Juan Colorado

Cost is $2,795 per person shared room or $3,395 per person for private room. See details and itinerary below.

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

This entire study tour is focused on exploring the textiles of Oaxaca’s Costa Chica. You arrive to and leave from Puerto Escondido, connecting through Mexico City or Oaxaca.

Natural dyes on back-strap loomed cotton, the finest handmade garments

We go deep, and not wide. We give you an intimate, connecting experience. We spend time to know the culture. You will meet artisans in their homes and workshops, enjoy local cuisine, dip your hands in an indigo dye-bath, and travel to remote villages you may not go to on your own. This study tour focuses on revival of ancient textile techniques and Oaxaca’s vast weaving culture that encompasses the use of natural dyes, back-strap loom weaving, drop spindle hand spinning, and glorious, pre-Hispanic native cotton.

The weaver and Kristy, who came on our trip from Australia

Villages along the coast and neighboring mountains were able to preserve their traditional weaving culture because of their isolation. Stunning cotton is spun and woven into lengths of cloth connected with intricate needlework to form amazing garments.

San Juan Colorado, Oaxaca, weaver who uses indigo and nanche tree bark for dyes

We have invited a noted cultural anthropologist to travel with us. She has worked in the region for the past fifteen years and knows the textile culture and people intimately. We learn about and discuss motifs, lifestyle, endangered species, quality and value of direct support.

Our 2020 group and one of the weaving cooperatives we visit
Market meander, Puerto Escondido

What we do:

  • We visit 7 weaving villages in Oaxaca and Guerrero
  • We meet back-strap loom weavers, natural dyers, spinners
  • We see, touch, smell native Oaxaca cotton — brown, green, natural
  • We participate in a sea turtle release with sunset dinner on the beach
  • We swim in a rare bioluminescence lagoon
  • We visit three local markets to experience daily life
  • We travel to remote regions to discover amazing cloth
  • We support indigenous artisans directly
  • We attend Dreamweavers annual sale at Hotel Santa Fe
  • We escape WINTER in El Norte
Hand-painted Converse tennis shoes at Pinotepa de Don Luis art studio

Take this study tour to learn about:

  • the culture, history and identity of cloth
  • beating and spinning cotton, and weaving with natural dyes
  • native seed preservation and cultivation
  • clothing design and construction, fashion adaptations
  • symbols and meaning of regional textile designs
  • choice of colors and fibers that show each woman’s aesthetic while keeping with a particular village traje or costume
  • the work of women in pre-Hispanic Mexico and today
Rare skirt (posahuanco) fabric dyed with caracol purpura, cochineal and indigo

2020 Itinerary — Oaxaca Coast Textile Study Tour

  • Saturday, January 16: Fly to Puerto Escondido—overnight in Puerto Escondido, Group Welcome Dinner at 7 p.m. (D)
  • Sunday, January 17: Puerto Escondido market meander, lunch and afternoon on your own. Late afternoon departure for turtle release and Manialtepec bioluminescence lagoon.  (B)
We release just hatched baby Ridley turtles into the Pacific Ocean
  • Monday, January 18: Depart after breakfast for Tututepec to visit a young weaver who is reviving his village’s textile traditions, visit local museum and murals — overnight in Pinotepa Nacional. (B, L)
  • Tuesday, January 19: After breakfast, we go on to the weaving village of San Juan Colorado to visit two women’s cooperatives working in natural dyes, hand-spinning, and back strap loom weaving. Overnight in Pinotepa Nacional. (B, L)
  • Wednesday, January 20: After breakfast, we return to the mountain with a first stop at the Pinotepa de Don Luis market. Then, we visit the Converse shoe project where talented artists hand-paint footwear, carve gourds and make amazing graphic art prints. We have lunch with Dreamweavers cooperative members and caracol purpura purple snail dyers in their home, complete with show and sale, and cultural talk.  Overnight in Pinotepa Nacional. (B, L)
  • Thursday, January 21: After breakfast, we travel up the coast highway into the state of Guerrero, where we visit two outstanding Amusgo weaving groups in Xochistlahuaca and Zacoalpan. They are working to revive ancient designs and incorporate locally grown native, wild cotton. Overnight in Ometepec. (B, L)
  • Friday, January 22: After breakfast, we begin our journey back to Puerto Escondido, with a stop at the Afro-Mexican Museum to understand Mexico’s black history. We stop in Pinotepa Nacional for lunch and a market meander.  Overnight in Puerto Escondido. (B, L)
Understanding the slave trade and cultural history, Afro-Mexican Museum, Costa Chica
  • Saturday, January 23: This is a day on your own to explore the area, return to the Puerto Escondido market, take a rest from the road trip, enjoy the beach and pools, and begin packing for your trip home.  Overnight in Puerto Escondido. (B)
  • Sunday, January 24: Attend the annual Dreamweavers Expoventa featuring the Tixinda Weaving Cooperative from Pinotepa de Don Luis. Other regional artisans are also invited, making this a grand finale folk art extravaganza — a fitting ending to our time together on Oaxaca’s coast. Grand Finale Dinner. Overnight in Puerto Escondido. (B, D)
  • Monday, January 25: Depart for home.
Sea and insect motifs adorn collar embroidered with snail dye and indigo

Note: You can add days on to the tour — arrive early or stay later — at your own expense.

Cost to Participate

  • $2,795 double room with private bath (sleeps 2)
  • $3,395 for a single supplement (private room and bath, sleeps 1)
We visit the mask-maker, too
Picking native pre-Hispanic green and coyuchi cotton, Amusgos, Xochistlahuaca, Guerrero

Your Tour Leader: Norma Schafer, director of Oaxaca Cultural Navigator LLC, will again lead this popular tour. We sell out each year so don’t hesitate to register if you are interested in participating.

An intricate floral bodice, woven into the back strap loomed cloth, San Pedro Amusgos
Village chapel, Zacoalpan, Guerrero

Some Vocabulary and Terms

Sunset dinner on the beach, somewhere north of Puerto Escondido, Manialtepec Lagoon
On the Manialtepec Lagoon, a night it is bioluminescence–Let’s go swimming!

Who Should Attend

  • Explorers of indigenous cloth, native fibers
  • Collectors, curators and cultural appreciators
  • Textile and fashion designers
  • Weavers, embroiderers, dyers and collectors
  • Photographers and artists who want inspiration
  • Anyone who loves cloth, culture and collaboration

Full Registration Policies, Procedures and Cancellations– Please READ

Xochistlahuaca, Guerrero, where Amusgo women make extraordinary cloth
Shuko with award-winning coyuchi and cochineal huipil, Dreamweavers

Reservations and Cancellations.  A 40% deposit is required to guarantee your spot. The balance is due in two equal payments. The second payment of  30% of the total is due on or before September 15, 2020. The third 30% payment is due on or before November 15, 2020. We accept payment using online e-commerce only. We will send you an itemized invoice when you tell us you are ready to register. After November 15, 2020, there are no refunds. If you cancel on or before November 15, 2020, we will refund 50% of your deposit received to date. After that, there are no refunds.

We will send you an itemized invoice when you tell us you are ready to register. After November 15, 2020, there are no refunds.

Required–Travel Health/Accident Insurance: We require that you carry international accident/health insurance that includes $50,000+ of emergency medical evacuation insurance. Proof of insurance must be sent at least 45 days before departure.

History of the Mixtec nation and 8-Jaguar Claw Chieftain
Hand-carved jicara gourds, rattles and lamps

Be certain your passport has at least six months on it before it expires from the date you enter Mexico!

Fuschina dye, preferred by the women of Santiago Ixtayutla, Jamiltepec

Plane Tickets, Arrivals/Departures: Please send us your plane schedule at least 45 days before the trip. This includes name of carrier, flight numbers, arrival and departure time to our destination.

All documentation for plane reservations, required travel insurance, and personal health issues must be received 45 days before the program start or we reserve the right to cancel your registration without reimbursement.

Terrain, Walking and Group Courtesy: We will do some walking and getting in/out of vans. If you have mobility issues or health/breathing impediments, please let us know before you register. This may not be the study tour for you.

Indigo and coyuchi cotton huipil, detail

Well-Being: If you have mobility issues or health impediments, please let us know. Our travel to remote villages will be by van on secondary roads with curves, usually not for more than two hours. When you tell us you are ready to register, we will send you a health questionnaire to complete. If you have walking or car dizziness issues, this may not be the trip for you.

Traveling with a small group has its advantages and also means that independent travelers will need to make accommodations to group needs and schedule. We include free time to go off on your own if you wish.

Note: Itinerary subject to schedule change and modification.

AeroTucan, between Oaxaca and Puerto Escondido, a 35-minute ride


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Oaxaca Indigenous Clothing for Sale: Wearable Art

Posted on Thursday, May 2, 2019 | 9 comments

After a year of walking with some days up to and exceeding 10,000 steps, my beautiful huipiles and blusas no longer fit me. For the next week, I’ll be offering for sale some of my clothing treasures from Durham, North Carolina before I return to Oaxaca on May 11. Most of these are new or lightly worn and purchased directly from the makers. (See photos below.)

These are loose fitting, cool for summer, and drape easily. In this group, two blouses and one dress come from the Oaxaca Coast, the villages of Pinotepa de Don Luis and San Pedro Amusgo. The embroidered dress is from the Oaxaca mountain community of San Bartolome Ayautla. They will fit size L to XL. Measure across your chest and hips to be sure of fit.

To buy, please send me an email. Include your name, mailing address with city, state and ZIP code, along with the ITEM NUMBER. I will send you an invoice and add on an $8 charge to mail USPS Priority Mail. As soon as I receive payment, I will ship.

NOTE: ALL PAYMENTS MUST BE RECEIVED BY MAY 9, 2019. The last day I can mail is May 10. I return to Oaxaca on May 11. Thanks very much.

SOLD. #1, indigo and native Oaxaca brown coyuchi cotton blusa, light gauze weave, $285

This is an amazing indigenous weaving from the Pinotepa de Don Luis Dreamweavers weaving cooperative. You see the symbols of double-headed turkey, lightening, corn plants, and eternal life woven into the cloth. The village is 12 hours from Oaxaca City and four hours from Puerto Escondido. If you can’t make it on one of our trips to the village or to the Santa Fe Folk Art Market where they will be this summer, this is the next best way to shop. Each piece is unique, so there is no guarantee you will find this one again.

#1 detail, Pinotepa de Don Luis, Dreamweavers Cooperative, 28″ wide x 27″ long
#2, hand-spun native white Oaxaca cotton, gauze weave, $285

#2: Caracol purpura, the rare purple snail is the featured color element on this gorgeous huipil. The three wefts are joined together with caracol dyed silk yarn, also hand-spun, in the turkey-trot needlework style. The color is intricately trimmed in purple snail-dyed silk, too. The body of the blusa is made from hand-spun cotton grown locally in the village of Pinotepa de Don Luis. It is lightweight gauze, perfect for summer. Design elements are similar to the indigo/coyuchi blusa described above.

#2, white and caracol purpura blusa, measures 28″ wide x 31″ long
SOLD. #3, indigo and ochre huipil/dress with tiny animal embroidery, $265

#3 SOLD and is from Zacatepec on the Coast of Oaxaca in the Mixtec region just beyond San Pedro Amusgos. I bought this in the village from Odilon Morales who is at the Santa Fe Folk Art Market each year and operates the Oaxaca cooperative Arte Amusgos. The cotton is hand-spun and woven on a back-strap loom, dyed in a lovely blue indigo. The small animals — are they deer or rabbits or dogs? — are finely hand-embroidered with commercial cotton embroidery floss. The embroidery is impeccable, teeny, tiny stitches.

#3 measures 29″ wide x 35″ long, and the yellow is more of a rich ochre color
#4 is a creamy dreamy white huipil with finest Oaxaca needlework, $265

#4 is from the Oaxaca village of San Bartolome Ayautla and embroidered by Anacleta Juarez, famed for her perfect, almost invisible stitches. It takes months to embroider a garment like this. The cotton is manta, a natural fabric that Mexicans love. The finish work is amazing. The birds and flowers tell the story of the mountains where they are made in the Cañada region between Oaxaca and Veracruz. I bought this directly from Anacleta.

#4 bodice detail. Dress measures 27″ wide x 46″ long
The underside of #4 is almost as beautiful as the front. Teeny, tiny embroidery stitches.

Thank you for considering and stay tuned for more offerings this week.

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Backstrap Loom Weaving of Oaxaca

Posted on Friday, June 19, 2009 | Comments Off on Backstrap Loom Weaving of Oaxaca

Nicolasa Pascual is a weaver from San Bartolo Yautepec, Oaxaca. Her work is considered to be the best and finest example of Oaxaca weaving. She uses the backstrap loom, with cotton- warp and weft, synthetic dyes, 1 heddle rod, about 35 ends/threads per inch, plain weave + supplementary weft weave technique.

You can see Nicolasa Pascual’s weaving detail.  The needle is used as a shuttle to pass the threads and weave a supplementary weft design at the same time.  The designs are interwoven using the heddle rod — they are not embroidered!

The man featured is Moises Martinez, a weaver who works in silk from San Pedro Cajonos, Oaxaca. He uses the backstrap loom, with silk-warp and weft dyed with Cochineal dye, 1 heddle rod, about 20 ends/threads per inch, plain weave technique.

Photos taken by Eric Chavez Santiago, Director of Education, Museo Textil de Oaxaca, courtesy of the museum.

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Editing My Collection: Oaxaca Folk Art & Textiles Sale

Posted on Sunday, January 20, 2008 | 2 comments

From time to time, I edit my collection and offer a small number of rugs, hand woven shawls, blouses, pillow covers and other Oaxaca textiles for sale. These include some beautiful cotton brocade blouses hand woven on a backstrap loom from the Amusgos tribe and embroidered beauties from Tehuantepec.  The tops from the Isthmus of Tehuantepec were purchased at the market in Juichitan.  They are intricate floral designs that are finely worked and lined. 

See my Gallery Shop online:  www.oaxacaculture.com where you can browse and order, or send me an email with any questions you have.

 Animalitos: I have several hand carved and painted copal wood alebrijes — a fantastical lizard, a brightly decorated  armadillo with a very long tail, a howling coyote standing on a “rock” from the villages of Arrazola and San Martin Tilcajete.

Woven Pillow Covers:   The pillow covers are like miniature rugs.  I commissioned several of them from Esther, a woman who lives just outside the village proper, and she is now able to earn a living because she just got a loom through Annie’s Women’s Project.  All are  complete with sturdy cotton backing and zippers.  Some have piped edges, too.

Rugs:  I have many small, medium and large sized handwoven and natural dyed rugs from Teotitlan that are for sale made by the Chavez family, and other weavers working in natural dyes.  They are made in a variety of  patterns and designs.  Most sizes are 2′ x 4′, 3′ x 5′, and 4′ x 6′.    Although, a few are larger, 6′ x 9′ and a 3′ x 9′ runner.   

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Posted in Oaxaca Mexico art and culture, Oaxaca rug weaving and natural dyes, Teotitlan del Valle

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