Dyeing is always nothing short of a miracle to me. Taking a handful of leaves freshly picked from the hillside – as we did yesterday with ch’illca, which we use for the green colour in our products – putting them into a boiling pot of water followed by carefully wound skeins of yarn, and moments later watching that yarn take on the hue of the leaves is simply amazing.
At Threads of Peru, we think our WATOs and SENKAPAs make great bracelets, but traditionally, these narrow weavings hand-decorated with beads are used to fasten or embellish women’s traditional hats called monteras.
Before I came to work at Threads of Peru in 2012, I was involved with another local non-profit organization called Q’ente, which similarly works to revitalize the weaving traditions in the Cusco area and provide economic support to weavers. Having volunteered there since 2009, I was already fairly well-connected with some of the local weaving cooperatives, including the one in Huaran.