Textile ExpoVenta in Albuquerque, NM: April 3-5, 2025
SPECIAL EVENT! EXPO-VENTA SALE!April 3-5, 2025 — Albuquerque, New Mexico Oaxaca Cultural Navigator Textiles-Folk Art-Jewelry AND Hoon Arts Uzbek Silk Ikat + Baskets of Africa Norma is Participating One Day ONLY — Thursday, April 3, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. @ Fiber Arts on 4thhttps://FiberArtsOn4th.com 6463 4th Street, Los Ranchos, New MexicoOpen to Public — Thursday, 10am […]
Chiapas Textile Study Tour 2026: Deep Into Textiles
Dates are set and registration is now open — March 3-11, 2026 At Oaxaca Cultural Navigator, we aim to give you an unparalleled and in-depth travel experience to participate and delve deeply into indigenous culture, folk art, and celebrations. The Maya World of Chiapas, Mexico, spans centuries and borders. Maya people weave their complex universe […]
Sale from Norma’s Taos Collection
We haven’t had any snow in Northern New Mexico since I arrived on November 19. It’s been sunny and unseasonably warm, with temperatures rising to the low 50’s. Great walking weather. At night, it dips down to the 30’s, just perfect for sleeping. I’m returning to Oaxaca on December 30, in time for our January […]
LAST DAY TODAY! 20% OFF the Shop Sale
Don’t miss out! Sale ends TODAY, Tuesday, August 20 at 9 p.m. Mountain Time. Use Code AUG20 on Shop Oaxaca Culture our online store for all things Oaxaca and Mexico — through Tuesday, August 20. It’s still summer and we have some beautiful, lightweight clothing for sale in the Shop that will carry you through […]
Zinacantan + San Juan Chamula, Chiapas: Magic Towns
My friend Chris Clark writes a blog called Color in the Streets. It is her musings about living on Lake Chapala, Jalisco, and visiting many regions around Mexico during the last six years since she moved there from North Carolina, where I first met her. Chris’ partner Ben died almost two years ago and she […]
New Shipment Arrived for Shop Oaxaca Culture: Shop Mother’s Day
Three more very large shipping boxes just arrived from Oaxaca and we’ve just listed their contents on the shop! We are featuring handwoven and densely embroidered huipiles and blusas, rebozos, neck ties and bandanas, handwoven palm baskets, beaded coin purses, and more. These are from the Oaxaca Coast, Chiapas, the Mixteca Alta, and Michoacan. There […]
Traveling in Chiapas: Charmed, I’m Sure
My friend Chris Clark writes a blog called Color in the Streets, and just reported on her recent trip to Chiapas with us in February 2024. Chris lives in Ajijic, on Lake Chapala, in the Mexican state of Jalisco. She talks about how this was a dream come true trip that she had wanted to […]
Jump Start Summer Blouse Sale: Oaxaca + Chiapas
Stay cool and fresh as spring is here and summer is just around the corner. Preview sale of Oaxaca and Chiapas cotton and linen blouses before we put them in our shop. The shop won’t open back up until mid-April. Buy before March 29 and we will take these back to the USA when we […]
Threads of Connection in Oaxaca + Chiapas: Norma Presents at OLL, Tuesday, March 5
This Tuesday, March 5, 2024, at 4:30 p.m. I will be making a presentation at the Oaxaca Lending Library titled Threads of Connection in Oaxaca and Chiapas: Meeting Artisans Where They Live and Work. If you live here or are visiting, I invite you to join us. Contact the OLL website to register. During the […]
12 Cozy Warm, Shawls + Scarves Added to Shop
Just in time for winter bluster, order soon to receive before the holidays, these scarves and shawls are from Chiapas and Oaxaca, handwoven on either the back-strap or flying shuttle pedal loom. Materials are wool, cotton, and cashmere. The colors are extraordinary. We hope you see for yourself. When you order from the shop, you […]
Chiapas in Pictures
Spaces open in Chiapas Textile Study Tour, February 2024. Click here for more! We will not be offering this tour in 2025. Come with us for an extraordinary textile adventure! Included: embroidery workshop with master Francesca, from Aguacatenango. We go deep into Maya culture, visiting remote villages in the Chiapas Highlands. Click here. Chiapas is […]
Shop Small SALE Continues to December 1
We pride ourselves on buying direct from artisan makers. We know them and the quality of their work. We believe that by supporting makers we are contributing to the well-being of their children, families and communities. Many live in remote regions of Mexico where they have little or no access to those of us who […]
HAPPY THANKSGIVING. Gobble. Gobble.
Back on the Taos Mesa. Cooking extravaganza food fest for Thanksgiving Day. We are a family crowd of 13 people. Grateful. Thankful. Appreciate all friends and blog readers. Enjoy the day. We have much to appreciate. Wishing you a day filled with good food, good friends, good family and abundance. Sending abrazos fuertes. Don’t forget […]
At Original, Textiles from Chiapas Tell Stories
A group of us spent five days at Original this past week. This is a textile extravaganza in Mexico City that honors indigenous weavers and designers from throughout Mexico. With over 1,000 artisans showing and selling what they make, to say the event was mind-boggling is an understatement. The show also featured pottery, lacquerware, copper, […]
Huipiles Sale and Furry Bath Mats Close-outs
Janet Chávez Santiago from Teotitlan del Valle is with me now in Taos. We were together last week in Nashville for a pop-up sale of Fe y Lola Rugs from Oaxaca. Then, we flew to Denver to visit friends and drive to Northern New Mexico early Thursday morning to return in time for me to […]
2024 Chiapas Textile Study Tour: Deep into the Maya World
At Oaxaca Cultural Navigator, we aim to give you an unparalleled and in-depth travel experience to participate and delve deeply into indigenous culture, folk art and celebrations. The Maya World of Chiapas, Mexico, spans centuries and borders. Maya people weave their complex universe into beautiful cloth. Symbols are part of an ancient pre-Hispanic animist belief system. […]
In Chiapas: The Language of Cloth
Clothing speaks to us. We are drawn to the texture of cloth, the cut, the fit, the drape, the patterns and what this might say to us. Here, in the Chiapas Highlands in the city of San Cristobal de las Casas, and beyond into the surrounding pueblos where Maya women work on the back-strap loom, […]
In Chiapas: The Language of Cloth
Clothing speaks to us. We are drawn to the texture of cloth, the cut, the fit, the drape, the patterns and what this might say to us. Here, in the Chiapas Highlands in the city of San Cristobal de las Casas, and beyond into the surrounding pueblos where Maya women work on the back-strap loom, […]
Happy Black Friday Frenzy Sale
We are jumping into the Black Friday holiday sale fray and offering you a few choice pieces from our collection with deep discounts. Scroll all the way down–16 pieces today. I don’t know about you, but I gained three pounds after our Thanksgiving food extravaganza. Maybe online shopping will burn calories! See these recent listings, […]
Deals Continued From Oaxaca, Chiapas + More
We are committed to supporting Mexican artisans, especially women who work so hard to support their families to give them schooling, health care and nutritious food. Food insecurity is a big deal in remote villages. Access to local medical clinics is severely limited. There are extra costs for school books, tuition and required uniforms. It’s […]
Virtual Trunk Show: 16 Oaxaca + Chiapas Huipiles
Before I left Oaxaca in August to return to New Mexico (to pack, make the mortgage deadline, move, get cataract surgery, unpack, get settled), I went through my collection of back-strap loomed dresses and blouses (huipiles and blusas) in my Teotitlan del Valle casita and made some hard decisions about what to sell. I did […]
Joyas: Jewelry for Sale from Oaxaca and Chiapas
Joyas is the Spanish word for jewels. We often hear the word joyeria, which means jewelry. Today the selection includes vintage and contemporary jewelry made from pompoms, shells and seeds, fine Italian beads, sterling silver, and copper —necklaces and bangles. I’m also starting off with two great Oaxaca market baskets in dramatic black and white. […]
Day 3: Mixed (Shopping) Bag: Oaxaca + Chiapas Textiles
There is still a great selection from Day 1: Mixed (Shopping) Bag: Oaxaca + Chiapas Textiles, and Day 2: Mixed (Shopping) Bag: Oaxaca + Chiapas Textiles. Please click on these links to check it out! There are a lot of beautiful handwoven, handspun 100% cotton blouses and huipiles available, many prepared with natural dyes, some with […]
Day 2: Mixed (Shopping) Bag: Oaxaca + Chiapas Textiles
As I wrote yesterday for the Day 1: Mixed (Shopping) Bag: Oaxaca + Chiapas Textiles, I purchased a lot of beautiful handwoven, handspun 100% cotton blouses and huipiles when we were on the Oaxaca Coast and Chiapas Highlands. Most are naturally dyed, some with the rare caracol purpura purple snail dye. There are still many […]
Mixed (Shopping) Bag: Oaxaca + Chiapas Textiles
I’m back in Taos, arriving just in time for April winds and lots of blooming plants. Kerchoo. They tell me this is springtime in northern New Mexico and the Rockies. Now I know why my friend Winn, who has lived here for a long time, chooses to stay in Oaxaca until the end of April […]
San Andres Larrainzar and Magdalena Aldama, Chiapas: Textiles, A Conduit to Culture
Our last road trip on the Chiapas Textile Tour: Deep Into the Maya World takes us to the Maya highlands villages of San Andres Larrainzar and Magdalena Aldama. Many feel that both these villages produce some of the most outstanding textiles of the region. Here, we visit extended family cooperatives where both women and men […]
2023 Chiapas Textile Study Tour–Deep Into the Maya World
At Oaxaca Cultural Navigator, we aim to give you an unparalleled and in-depth travel experience to participate and delve deeply into indigenous culture, folk art and celebrations. The Maya World of Chiapas, Mexico, spans centuries and borders. Maya people weave their complex universe into beautiful cloth. Symbols are part of an ancient pre-Hispanic animist belief system. […]
Chiapas, Too: Round Two
We are mid-way through our second Chiapas tour. I always say, The right people always show up! and they do. We saw the same things, made the same stops, met the same people and each tour is different based on interests, questions, experience and personalities. We have four weavers and two three textile designers on […]
Interlude: Winding Road to Chenalho, Chiapas
In celebration of International Women’s Day, we traveled to Chenalho with a cake in hand. Or rather, protected from spilling by putting it on the lap of one of our traveling companions! Our adventure took us deep into Tzotzil territory via collectivo taxi, up a winding mountain road to the town of Chenalho. It’s a […]
From San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas: Textile Sale
My modus operandi is to visit the homes and cooperatives of the finest weavers wherever I travel in Mexico and elsewhere. I can’t possibly wear everything I love. But that does not deter me from buying to support what they do. We hear time and again from weavers on our textile tours that the pandemic […]