Quichua weaving

This morning after breakfast we went to a place called Artesania El Gran Condor.  They sell a wide variety of handwoven items including wall hangings, blankets, sweaters and much more.  The building itself was really interesting.  It had multiple levels and a number of rooms with colorful items on display everywhere you turned.  On the lowest level there was a display of different weaving looms and materials.

After combing the wool she spun it into yarn.  Then she explained to us the different things used to dye the yarn.  Walnuts for brown, a plant for green, and a bug.......

Yes, a bug.  it lives inside the mold that grows on a cactus.  She passed the bug around for each of us to hold.  It resembled a roly poly.  When we returned the bug to her she placed it in the palm of her hand and with the thumb of her other hand she proceeded to squish it!  Once it was thoroughly squished she had a large circle of beautiful red dye in the palm of her hand.  She added a drop of vinegar and it turned into bright orange.  Then she added some baking soda in turned to a dark purple.

Once the yarn is dyed and dry it is placed on this spinner.  Then it is wound onto the spools.

She demonstrated two types of weaving.  In one method she strapped herself to the weaving a created the tension using her body.  It also required a great deal of energy because she manually manipulated individual strands of yarn and moved them with a stick.  This method is used to create beautiful double sided wall hangings . She said it took about 10 days to complete one.

She also demonstrated using a large loom with multiple levels and pedals.  They use this method to create things like blankets, table cloths, and scarves.

I enjoyed looking through the items for sale so much that I forgot to take pictures!  Prices ranged from a few dollars for a bookmark, $5 for a pair of gloves, $45 for a sweater and up to $200 and $300 for a large wall hanging.  The colors were vibrant and the designs were very detailed.  All were beautiful!