What do you think happens with all those clothes? Disappear magically into the ether? Unfortunately, they end up in a landfill, in a place we usually don’t see, where they take between 20 to 200 years to decompose. They also “get dumped” in local markets of poor countries where people don’t actually need them, but they buy them anyway. Apart from that, this overloading of used clothes in poor countries doesn’t help their economy at all and makes their own local textile production obsolete. And all of this in the name of fashion!
I know that I am just one person with a very small role in the world economy, but everything has to start somewhere and all the big accomplishments began with one first step, so here are the things I am doing to help mitigate the huge problem of contamination and fast fashion
1 – My goal is to use 100% natural fibers, mostly pure wool, that will one day decompose and go back to the earth. At this point I am in 90%, and working towards it.
2 – When I dye my yarn, I use either natural dyes (plants, flowers, food scraps) or acid dyes that are environmentally friendly and safe for the consumer. When I use yarn that has been dyed already, I know that it comes from a safe place as well.
3 – I reuse and repurpose even the smallest piece of yarn. Nothing is lost. All the leftovers from the loom will later be used for a different project as they are, or I will “re-card” them and spin them into something different.
4 – My production is small and I am the only person in my “factory”. Each piece takes time, and it is imperfectly beautiful as it could be. So far, all my creations are absolutely unique, but I suppose that if someone wants exactly the same, I could make that happen too. I am flexible… just three times.
5 – All the packaging I use to mail my orders is biodegradable and does not contaminate the environment.
]]>When I choose to start from scratch, sometimes I spin my yarn first and then dye it, or I dye it first and then spin it. I absolutely love using natural materials for dyeing, like flowers, plants, fruit peels or vegetables. The colors you obtain are sometimes very subtle and sometimes very vibrant. It is fascinating to see the transformation, especially knowing that I am using onion skins or avocado pits, or plants I find on the hills around my house.
Sometimes I choose to dye with acid dyes, and the palette is completely different. Acid dyes allow me to create more vibrant colors and mixes that I can’t always produce when I use natural dyes. I think there is a time and place for each technique, and I appreciate and enjoy both.
When everything is ready to start the project, it’s time to dress my rigid heddle loom. There might be a sketch in a notebook. For sure there are technical notes about length and width, heddle size and all that, but many times, the sketch just lives in my head, like the idea of a painting or sculpture can be in the head of the artist. I might decide to weave following a pattern, or maybe I just create the pattern as I go, which gives me a wonderful sensation of freedom.
When I create a piece with yarn that I handspun and hand dyed, it brings everything to a different dimension and makes the final product even more special and unique. Maybe one day I will only weave with yarn that I prepared from the very beginning. At this moment, I’m taking advantage of both types of yarn. The one that I buy already dyed and spun, and the one I create with my own two hands.
]]>I choose my materials with care not only for you, but for our environment and the future of this planet too. Knowing the origin of the wool I am using is important to me, and I take it very seriously.
I come from Uruguay, where high quality wool and wool products are part of our identity and one of our many riches. Most of the yarn I use comes from Uruguay. You may ask, “why do you go so far away to buy yarn when you could buy it here?” It is true, I can find beautiful yarn locally too. However, when I buy yarn and wool from Uruguay I do it in part because no matter how far I am from my country, it always is and feels “local” for me.
I also use yarn from my country, because it’s a way of supporting their local industry. The wool that I spin into yarn to weave, comes from someone I personally met. The beautiful yarn that I choose for my creations, comes from a non-profit organization, Manos del Uruguay, which is a cooperative of women artisans, who – among other things - hand dye yarn in small batches, making each skein unique and special. Just like I try to make each one of my designs.
Creating pieces using Uruguayan yarn, is like sharing a piece of my identity with each person that wears that shawl or that scarf. I am connected to the material in a deeper level, than if I just were using yarn that I buy in a store, and I hope that is something that you can feel when you wrap yourself in one of my creations.
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