Dear Amigos,
I believe I am a rather persistent and ambitious character when it comes to the arts that I love. Since January I have had the divine experiences of learning backstrap weaving with two very talented Maya Traditions weavers. I have covered brocading, scarf making, and creating a scarf with two sides using natural dyed cotton/silk thread blends. In addition, I have had the opportunity to experiment with Saca Tinta or Indigo on both cotton and wool yarn. I was able to source the wool yarn in a shop in San Juan la Laguna that purchased it from Momocastenango. It was not the best made wool yarn I have ever encountered, but after months of not having the divine pleasure of playing with wool, I was excited. It took me weeks to find it, but Filomina, Juana, Adelaida and I discovered in San Juan the delight of successfully dyeing wool with plant mordants.
Many people have told me that sourcing wool here is difficult if not impossible, especially when it comes to raw wool that is cleaned and carded for felting. However, I have a stubborn nature, and knew that where there are sheep, there are people who work with wool. I did not give up on sourcing wool, and after my first success I decided that I was going to find raw wool to make felt in Guatemala. So when an opportunity to travel to Chichicastenango for a day arrived, I took it knowing that the mountain towns have sheep. Maybe, I thought, just maybe, I will finally find raw wool!
When I arrived, through a chance encounter I met a daughter of a family of wool workers. Through conversing with her and her younger sister who spoke better Spanish, I began business negotiations around raw wool. Through our conversation I discovered that low and behold I had found people who knew the difference between sheep varieties. Sheep do not just come in the colors of black, white, beige, and brown. There are varieties that have soft wool and others that have very coarse wool. Some have long hairs and some have short hairs or fleeces. My new favorite people in the world knew the difference. With a heritage of 50 years of working with wool, this family was incredibly educated around wool fiber arts. I asked if I could come and visit their workshop, and they said yes. So this past week I was able to visit their home and witness parts of the sorting and cleaning process, carding, spinning, crocheting, and weaving all with wool! I taught them the basic action of felting beads with their wool. They were pleased and very quick learners. We shared a delightful lunch in their kitchen and they showed me their work. After talking more with the son, I learned that he sourced the Merino I had purchased in Momocastenango, a mountain town known for its wool production.It is not easy to buy and is often mixed with other varieties, but he has his tricks and is successfully making merino blankets.
I was able to purchase raw merino wool and begin experimenting with its felting ability. I have succeded in felting with Merino, but the local Chichicastenango wool from a variety of sheep named Vasco does not make as good of a product. I am hoping to go to Momocastenango in April to visit Momo to witness their wool production and source more tools and merino. I also have the task of learning how to write a project proposal and grant ahead of me. I am determined to teach felting, because I have seen with the incredible artistic minds of the women in our weaving groups, it is possible to make incredibly beautiful felt work. This past week I learned a valuable lesson about Guatemala, sometimes no just means I do not know, but keep trying. Persistence does pay off.
Over and out,
Volunteer Natalia Robinson
Many people have told me that sourcing wool here is difficult if not impossible, especially when it comes to raw wool that is cleaned and carded for felting. However, I have a stubborn nature, and knew that where there are sheep, there are people who work with wool. I did not give up on sourcing wool, and after my first success I decided that I was going to find raw wool to make felt in Guatemala. So when an opportunity to travel to Chichicastenango for a day arrived, I took it knowing that the mountain towns have sheep. Maybe, I thought, just maybe, I will finally find raw wool!
When I arrived, through a chance encounter I met a daughter of a family of wool workers. Through conversing with her and her younger sister who spoke better Spanish, I began business negotiations around raw wool. Through our conversation I discovered that low and behold I had found people who knew the difference between sheep varieties. Sheep do not just come in the colors of black, white, beige, and brown. There are varieties that have soft wool and others that have very coarse wool. Some have long hairs and some have short hairs or fleeces. My new favorite people in the world knew the difference. With a heritage of 50 years of working with wool, this family was incredibly educated around wool fiber arts. I asked if I could come and visit their workshop, and they said yes. So this past week I was able to visit their home and witness parts of the sorting and cleaning process, carding, spinning, crocheting, and weaving all with wool! I taught them the basic action of felting beads with their wool. They were pleased and very quick learners. We shared a delightful lunch in their kitchen and they showed me their work. After talking more with the son, I learned that he sourced the Merino I had purchased in Momocastenango, a mountain town known for its wool production.It is not easy to buy and is often mixed with other varieties, but he has his tricks and is successfully making merino blankets.
Over and out,
Volunteer Natalia Robinson
