Why Buy a Bag When You Can Weave One From Scratch?

In San Juan de la Laguna, we took a weaving class at Tinte Maya (@tintemaya) with Amalia and Antonia. My cousin, Kasey, made a table runner, and I made a shoulder bag. We started around 10:30 AM and finished at about 4 PM, not knowing at the beginning how long we would be there.

The end-to-end process typically starts with making yarn from cotton, then involves dying the yarn using different natural materials. However, we jumped into the process with ready-made yarn the Tinte Maya ladies had already created.

After choosing our colors and deciding what to make, Kasey and I learned how to make the loom by wrapping the yarn in a pattern around a set of wooden pegs. At first, this seemed difficult, especially since neither Kasey nor I speak Spanish well, and the ladies at Tinte Maya don't speak English. So, we just had to watch and learn.

After close observation and enough puzzled glances at our teachers, we got the hang of the pattern. Kasey's pattern of wrapping the yarn around the pegs was different than the pattern the ladies taught me because our end products would be different. What seemed difficult at first became easier and easier until it became so repetitive that Kasey likened it to meditation.

The next step was so complicated that Amalia decided she would just do it for us: setting up the loom. She transferred the delicate loom we had made onto a pole on the outdoor porch and looped in threads around each vertical strand of yarn. The looped threads acted as teeth in a comb so every time we brought down the wooden pegs it would separate our vertical loom of yarn so we could weave in and out of each thread in a perfect pattern. The type of weaving traditionally done in Guatemala is back strap weaving, so we watched as the ladies transferred our looms to the poles and then brought the other end to their waists secured by a thick strap.

When the loom was set up, Amalia told me where to sit and then set up my back strap, which sat snugly across my derrière. Amalia's friend then showed me how to weave.

Not only was I slow, but I made visible mistakes with a few threads. When I pointed out these defects, they just shrugged and said "Es el arte." Getting the hang of the weaving pattern took longer than getting the hang of the pattern to wrap the loom in the first place. Eventually, I did learn the pattern, but I would also second guess myself from time to time. It was slow and tedious work. I was also surprised at how sore my body was the next day. Being strapped into the loom takes serious effort, since you really have to pull at the threads and create tension when weaving. 

In the late afternoon, Amalia's husband came out with hot tamales for us to eat. Kasey and I did not expect to be fed (nor had we expected to be there as long as we were) and had just commented on how hungry we were when food arrived. The homemade tamales were the best we had on the whole trip.

While we ate, the veteran weavers took over at the loom to help us make progress. We went back to work after eating but continued to make slow progress. Worried they might never get their lives back with these novices at the loom, with a mixture of pity and exasperation, Amalia's friend eventually took over to help me finish. Antonia helped Kasey do the same.

When the weaving was done, they took apart the loom, and we set to work making the bag straps by twisting the threads int small ropes. Amalia then sewed the bag shut and sewed the handles, and I was the proud owner of a hand crafted bag! It was a collaboration between myself, Amalia, and her friend.

I asked how often they teach lessons, and Amalia said not often--maybe once a week--because people don't want to spend the time learning. If you're ever in San Juan and have a day to spend, this is a worthwhile activity. I wish I knew more Spanish because so much of the joy would have been getting to know these women better and understanding their daily lives. Even with language barriers, they made us feel welcome, and we shared several laughs.