Masterly weaving and other Oaxaca de Juárez, Mexico Shopping Tips

Name of Shop: Craft and gift shops, markets, etc, everywhere


What To Buy: The villages of the Central Valles of Oaxaca are particularly noted for the fine weaving done there by men and women and you will find a huge variety of work available for sale - from eye-catching (if not down right gaudy) tourist-oriented pieces to rugs and other pieces that will cost you far more but are really masterly works of art. The town of Teotitlan near Oaxaca is particularly noted for the weaving done there, and Oaxaca itself has some very good shops selling woven goods. Particularly worth looking out for is the MARO co-operative on 5 de Mayo which sells all sorts of work done by local craftswomen, including their weaving. There was another small weaving co-operative outlet selling village Indian women's work at the far end of Plazuela Labastida, up the hill near the Iglesia de Santo Domingo.

Traditionally in Mexico, women weave on a backstrap loom whilst men work on a foot-operated treadle loom. The backstrap loom was in use long before the arrival of the Spanish and whilst the weaver can produce wonderfully complex work on it to any length, the piece can only be as wide as the weaver's arm - though narrow pieces can be joined together to create a wider finished item.

If you are a purist about these things, you will want to buy something made with traditional natural dyes , such as cochineal (deep red), indigo (deep blue), onion skins ( yellows and greeny-golds), wild walnut shells (dark brown) and alder bark (orangey tones). Bright colours are usually synthetic chemical dyes - the difference is quite easily apparent once you really start to look.

What To Pay: Prices vary enormously. Quality - natural dyes, individual designs, etc - will cost, $100s and up - and up. Pieces that are mass-produced for the tourist trade will cost as little as $20 - and even that can be negotiable.

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Theme: Local Craft
Directions: Teotitlan is 28km from Oaxaca,several buses leave each day from the 2nd class bus station
Santa Ana del Valle is another (slightly lesser known) weaving village, 35 km from Oaxaca - prices here can be quite a bit lower than in either Oaxaca or Teotitlan.

Name of Shop: Street sellers


What To Buy: How could you resist buying flowers from this woman. Her quiet dignity was wonderful, and her little posies of red roses or sweet-scented gardenias were only a dollar. We bought one every evening and our hotel room was all the more pleasant for that.

The children selling small items - Chiclets, purses and other embroidered small items (made in Guatamala) , etc, were somewhat less dignified but they were good-humoured and the glasses case on a neck cord that I bought for a couple of dollars served me well for years - I wish I'd bought one a night of those too - I'd still have a store set by.


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Theme: Other

Name of Shop: Craft shops on Alcala


What To Buy: I collect Nativity scenes, and the ones from South and Central America appeal to me particularly. I found my Mexican one in Oaxaca. The choice was huge, themed in every colour imaginable, but I liked this little rustic one - its natural colours and naive charm were more to my taste than the rich reds, purlpes, emerald greens, etc of others I saw.

I also found Christmas tree balls - not of glass but woven grass, another Oaxacan craft.

What To Pay: The Nativities are priced according to how many pieces make up the scene - some have an enormous number of characters. There's one for every budget.

My straw balls were less than $1 each.

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Theme: Local Craft