Thanks to Your Vote: New Logo
Thanks to all the 85 people who responded to our request to help us choose a logo for Oaxaca Cultural Navigator LLC. Your opinion matters and we listened! In my graduate school statistics study at The University of Notre Dame, I learned that any survey response of N30+ is valid. We are secure in our […]
Beauty and Fashion: Did Carolina Herrera Copy Mexican Designs?
Why should we care? Yes, I agree that Carolina Herrera’s new 2020 resort collection, just unveiled, is beautiful. The collection, the company says, is inspired by Mexican indigenous designs. When you look at the clothes, some of the designs are startling — exact duplicates of textiles made by hand in Mexican villages for centuries. Excusing […]
The Virgin of Guadalupe Revisted: Who is she?
December 12 is the Feast Day for Mexico’s beloved Virgin of Guadalupe. The devoted make pilgrimage to her shrine in the Mexico City basilica named in her honor. Many arrive crawling on their knees in supplication. She is honored and revered. Her image appears on every form of religious and commercial iconography you can imagine, […]
Who Made My Clothes? Digging Deeper Into Fashion and Consumption
Who Made My Clothes? is a program of the Fashion Revolution. I’ve been following them and its co-founder Carry Somers since she came to Oaxaca in February 2016 to take one of my natural dye and weaving textile excursions. I introduced her to some of the weavers who make my clothes and the rugs that […]
Humble Apron Elevates to Fashion Statement and Identity in Oaxaca, Mexico
Here in the Tlacolula Valley, and most villages surrounding the city of Oaxaca, the apron is more than a utilitarian article of clothing used to protect the wearer’s garment from getting soiled. It is a statement of identity, style, and social class. Walk around the Tlacolula Market on Sunday, or any day for that matter, […]
Names, Identity and Change: Why Norma Schafer
Perhaps you have noticed, or not, that my name on the masthead of this blog has changed to Schafer. I thought I might offer an explanation. If you don’t care, just stop reading, delete this post and Move On. This is not about Oaxaca or Mexico or my recent trip to Spain. This is personal. […]