Our Weaving Workshop Offerings
Our founder Caitlin used to sew clothing and quickly developed an interest in learning about the origin of materials and fabrics she was using. Through this research, she found her way to the talented weavers in Guatemala., and the start of Thread Caravan. Our very first trip in 2015 was a weaving workshop in Guatemala.
Since then, our offerings have expanded to include a range of regional crafts like pottery, candle making, paper making, embroidery, basket weaving, natural dyes and more. Yet despite this diversity, weaving will always be at the core of our offerings, not only as a tribute to our own origin story, but as a tribute to the human origin story as whole. For milenea, textiles have not only provided human bodies’ protection, they have been a way to distinguish distinct cultural group and communicate through cloth. When learning about a place and its people through the lens of craft, weaving and textile traditions will always be at the forefront of this understanding.
We are proud to offer a selection of all-levels weaving-focused trips, which include hands-on workshops as well as immersive experiences connecting guests to the respective communities and landscapes. Below, we share a little bit more about each of these trips, the type of weaving styles and what makes them each unique.
PERU
Set in the Sacred Valley surrounding Cusco, this trip connects participants with indigenous Quechua artisans to learn about natural dye and backstrap weaving traditions in the region.
Backstrap weaving is the traditional Mesoamerican form of weaving, in which a strap is fixed around the weaver’s waist holding one side of the warp threads, while the other side is connected to a fixed post. The human body creates the tension that allows the weaver to weave the warp threads. (If you are a beginner weaver and aren’t familiar with these terms, it is all explained during the trips!).
While sheep fiber is used today, sheep came post-colonization. The traditional fiber from this region is alpaca. We will learn from an artisan Juan and his family who raise alpaca high in the Andes mountains. We’ll learn about the alpaca and llamas, as well as the advanced Quechua agricultural systems. Guests will participate in a full day natural dyes course using local plant materials, followed by two days weaving textiles on the backstrap loom. The weaving workshop will be conducted 1-on-1 with a local teacher, and is open to all skill levels, from total beginner to professional weaver!
Additional experiences include delicious meals, a hike in Ollantaytambo, visit to a textile market and more. See the full itinerary and sign up here.
photos by Miguel Palomino for Aula Artesana + Thread Caravan
MOROCCO
Our Morocco weaving trip takes place on the foothills of the Atlas Mountains outside of Marrakech, in southern Morocco. The weaving style is a knot-tying technique, woven on a frame loom, the very same style used to create the intricate Moroccan rugs decorating beautiful homes around the world.
What we believe makes this trip particularly special is the connection to the local women. In conservative Muslim culture, it’s common for most women to work inside the home, while men have more outward-facing jobs. We are lucky to partner with a cooperative of mostly-women artists who both retain their respect and privacy while still opening up to share with our group.
During this trip we begin with washing the unique Siroua sheep wool in the Oued Kat river with guidance from Imazighen women, as we sing with them in call-and-response and drink tea on the shore. We then practiced spinning, dye wool threads with henna dye, and spend two days weaving the traditional berber knotting technique from the region.
Most new rugs in Morocco are now produced using industrially processed and synthetically dyed wool. It is rare to find communities still hand-spinning the wool and using all natural dyes, which makes this process even more special!
See the full itinerary and sign up here.
photos by Kate Berry for Thread Caravan
LADAKH
The Ladakh trip takes place just outside of Leh, a small city in the Himalayan mountains of northwestern India. In a totally different region of the world from the previous two trips mentioned, the Ladakh landscape is home to yaks, large fiber-producing animals who have been raised by Ladakhi shepherds for centuries.
This trip is longer than most, as it is more remote, and at an elevation. We intentionally planned the first few days with a slow paced itinerary, to allow guests to acclimatize to the altitude.
During this trip guests will visit with remote shepherd families to learn about the animals and be immersed in the landscape. There will be a day of natural dyes followed by two days of weaving on the backstrap loom (a similar loom to the Peru and Guatemala trips). Guests will also have the opportunity to visit a ceramics studio, Buddhist monasteries and for light treks. Again, this experience is open to all levels, from total beginners to advanced weavers looking to expand their weaving knowledge. See the full itinerary and sign up for the trip here.
Photos by our partners We Are Kal
OAXACA
Set in the Pueblo Magico town of Mitla, an hour outside of Oaxaca, City, this trip feels more like a retreat as it invites guests to slow down and immerse themselves in the surroundings. We start the trip with a hike to nearby caves in a protected bioreserve, and then visit the Zapotec archeological site of Mitla. Our first dinner includes an in-depth mezcal tasting, and the next day we learn about Mesoamerican backstrap weaving traditions.
For the next three days, we venture to the nearby town of Teotitlán del Valle, where we work with our parter Susi Vicente Galan Sosa to guide our group in a floor loom weaving workshop. During the amount of scheduled weaving time, guests can expect to weave a small rug, wall hanging or set of pillows. We will work with wool thread on a two-heddle pedal floor loom. The style of weaving is tapestry weaving, but woven using a heddle mechanism with peddles, rather than a vertical frame loom. (Again, if these terms aren’t familiar to you, we will explain more in depth during the workshop!). This workshop is open to all skill-levels.
We intentionally schedule this workshop just before Dia de los Muertos holiday, when Mitla and the surrounding towns come alive with preparations for the holiday. The families we visit will be preparing their altars, and Mitla bakeries will be baking traditional pan de muertos. See the full itinerary and sign up here.
Photos by Lottie Rose and Andrea Tamayo for Thread Caravan.
GUATEMALA
This is the very first workshop we ever hosted back in 2015. While we have changed the format slightly, we still work with the same family of weavers that we started this project with! Guatemala is home to a diverse groups of indigenous Maya artisans, who create some of the most intricately woven textiles in the world.
This trip starts in the charming town of Antigua, Guatemala. We then travel to the shores of majestic Lake Atitlan, adorned with three inactive volcanoes. Here we spend a day learning about traditional natural dye techniques, and two days backstrap weaving 1-on-1 with a cooperative of weaving instructors. Participants will be weaving warp-faced designs with cotton threads and can expect to make a small scarf, wall hanging or table runner.
While at the lake, we also have time to learn about our Nahuales, hike through terraced farm fields to a waterfall and more. We then return to Antigua where we participate in a jade jewelry making workshop with our friends at Xibalba. See the full itinerary and sign up here.
Photos by Celine Gaiardo and Molly Berry for Thread Caravan.
We hope to see you on one of these immersive textile trips! AS always, please feel free to contact us if you have any questions at all.