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Teleras and natural dyes
Dyed whith natural colors, ancestral knowledge
The ways of giving color in the mount are very diverse and the natural dyes are as diverse as there are plants in the forest.
In La Florida, Irma explains how to get a pale pink while crushing a parasite that feeds on quimil, a cactus abundant in the area. The blood mixes in the hot water and slowly invades the bales of wool.
For her part, Nilda from El Puesto shows us a tea-and-milk-colored ruana that she dyed with a typical plant from the Santiagueño mount. She calls it cosquil, but when we Google it, it doesn’t exist. It is the Maytenus vitis-idaea, a shrub about five meters high, whose thick branches boil in the pot over the coals.
Sandra from Bajo Grande collects the water that accumulates on the tin roof. The oxide is special to achieve an intense mustard color that is applied in details of stitching and embroidery of the weaves she delivers to the Parish.
The bark of the carob tree, the onion husk, the leaves of the yerba mate, and so the list goes on, because necessity knows no bounds..
Who would say that necessity would be the holy remedy for sustainability. Think that the natural dyes that are obtained from plants, insects or minerals are ecological and do not harm health or the environment.
Note: SachaMama teleras dominate the art of dyeing in an ancestral way and they do it in a traditional way, the same as spinning.
The sale of SachaMama weaves is a source of livelihood for many families from San José del Boquerón in Santiago del Estero. To purchase their products (ruanas, shawls, ponchos, throws and blankets) send us an email to consultas@sachamama.com.ar