Peru 2024 Weaving in The Andes

Here are some clips from my recent trip to Peru, where I learned more about natural dyeing and back strap weaving processes.

🌈It has been such a joy learning about natural colour and the plants used in Peru for the colours of the rainbow.

🦙I’m so grateful to experience firsthand these kinds of textile techniques on my travels.
💜We were given a fascinating demonstration led by Nilda Callanaupa Alvarez’s sister ( Flora I think her name is) Both women with other Andean weavers and their supporters, helped to set up the Centro de Textiles Tradicionales Del Cusco (CTTC), a non-profit organisation in 1996.
🖋️Nilda has written quite a few books about the Andean weaving traditions, including ´Weaving in the Peruvian Highlands’

🥰Wherever I went, even in the highest mountains, women are spinning and plying their organic fleeces whilst climbing on paths that make my knees tremble. In the markets they are knitting or weaving on backstrap looms tied to trees by the side of the road.

🗻There was an incredible textiles centre in Chinchero. We were given an absolutely awe-inspiring demonstration of backstrap weaving, natural dyeing, spinning, and warping - all in about 45 minutes!

✨💕✨

🌈These women began learning spinning and weaving when they were 7, by the time they were 30 they were master weavers.

💪Instead of working in isolation as many textile artists do in the West, they work beautifully together as a team, in sacred reciprocity or « AynI »

⭐️Male & female members of the family spin and ply, as an enormous amount of alpaca fleece is needed to weave with.

🧶This was the « Away » Weaving association of Chinchero, who are part of the Centre For Traditional Textiles in Cusco, a non-profit organisation that works with 10 communities to recover traditional textiles.

@centrotextilescusco

🫧I learned that yukka is grated into water & used to wash the fleece clean!

🦙If you look carefully, you’ll see my first attempts spinning madder dyed alpaca on the new spindle that Doña Benita gave me. I am slowly learning 🤦🏼‍♀️

🌱Natural Dye plants in the reel are:

1. Ch’illca - Greens 🥬
2. Kinsa K’ucho - Turquoise, teal, light blues 🦋
3. Nogal (Walnut)- Dark Brown 🐻
4. Awaipilli - Purple 💜
5. Qaqasuncja - Lichen - Orange 🍊
6. Cochinilla - deep pink 💕

😍Photos of the dye plant illustrations are from a beautiful shop in Pisac, @pacabamba, who naturally dye all their clothing

🧶Another good website resource for natural dyes and plants in Peru is mosqoy.org

♥️❤️🧡💛💚💙💜💗

#cochinilla #myartdiary #therapeutic_arts_facilitator #andeantextiles #naturaldyed #ecodye #responsiblefashion #slowtextiles #ecodyeing #plantdyes #nomorecompromises #opensourcefashion