Decorative item
The weaving hands…
Discover the backstage of Sancho Poncho
Teotitlán Del Valle is a small village of 5 000 inhabitants in the Oaxaca state. His name is a Náhuatl word that means «Earth of gods». It says that it’s the first town founded by the Zapotecs, a culture that grew in the Oaxaca area. Today, there are about 400 000 persons that still speak the zapotec languaga. Natural pigments Blue añil is obtained with Indigo plants, red from cochineal, insects that grow on cactus or yellow from the Pericon plant, nature provides us more than the colors we imagine. This is why Sancho Poncho works exclusively with natural colors. It exists also chemical pigments, cheaper et that give colors brighter. Those products can be toxics for the craftsmen and the environment. Sancho Poncho, involve in the environmental sustainability, only uses natural colors. Wool Before the Spanish conquest, rugs were weaved from plant material (yuca, palm-tree, cotton). Spanish people have introduce animal material as silk or wool still used en Teotitlán del Valle. The wool comes from mexican sheep, it is spun and then colored in dye baths with different natural pigments. Design and weaving The Sancho Poncho design are a mix between tradition and modernity. Some like the Caracoles have their origin in the Zapotec culture. Others reflect modern and west tendencies. Each design is computer-created and taken by the craftsmen and transferred on the wires on the loom. The pedal loom is used. The weavers are called the dancers because their feet go up and down on wooden boards to move up and down the wires of the weaving weft. With those tools, it’s possible to weave rug until 3 meters wide and almost an endless length. A 2 meters long rug needs between 4 and 6 weeks of weaving. Finishing, cleaning and sending Once the rug is done, the wool pieces are hidden inside the weaving and all the impurities are taken off with a clamp to make it softer. Fringes are twisted or hidden inside the rug according to the finishing wanted. All the products sell by Sancho Poncho on demand or on stock are checked by us. We pack them in fabric covers before sending them with an authenticity certificate.
