I always enjoy taking a few hours to visit Santiago Atitlan across the lake from Panajachel. It means a very enjoyable boat trip and a chance to at least see some of my favorite huipils. The women in this village decorate them with glorious birds of every description. They also used to decorate the mens pants which were made of the same fabric and about the length of pedal pushers. I don't see so many men's decorations lately. Originally the birds were all hand embroidered. Now they are mostly sewn by machine but the work is absolutely phenomenal. Some years I am not even able to purchase any huipils that I like as they are getting more and more expensive.
Some of the women huipil sellers waiting for me to leave a booth. The town is becoming more and more commercial with new booths being built every year. In addition to the huipils people sell beautiful wood carvings, beaded jewelry and paintings. It was nice to see the women wearing their traditional headgear. This year I was lucky and able to purchase a few huipils
The dock..JPG)
Closeup of the headgear. This woman was on the cover of a book when she was a child. Now she is in her 20's with a son.Two of the huipils which I purchased:
This beauty was embroidered by machine on the usual hand woven cotton huipil base.
The workmanship is fantastic considering that the women do this without digitalized patterns or anything.
The back is similar to the front.
$ 109 plus $8.95 postage
The second huipil is also made on handwoven cloth but this one is hand embroidered. The white line on the front is my label not a flaw.
Hand embroidered pieces are becoming a rarity as so many women switch to machines.
The back is essentially the same as the front.
$ 59.00 plus $8.95 postage.SOLD
It has been many years since I last visited Panajachel and Santiago de Atitlan, thank you for reminding me about the beauty of the people from there. I am from El Estor, on the north shore of lake Izabal, I miss Guatemala, what a beautiful country!
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