Bolivian sashes

When i went to Potosi in Bolivia I put the word out that I was looking for a weaving teacher. It is usually difficult to find weavers in the city but eventually I was introduced to Julia Quispe who had just arrived from the country and who was making a living washing clothes. Her husband made adobe bricks. Julia didn't speak much Spanish but, fortunately, her sister Hilda was visiting from Cochabamba and was able to translate Julia's Quechua to Spanish for me and the lessons proceeded. I spent six fun but rather back-breaking weeks learning to weave double warp faced textiles on the traditional  ground loom staked out in the dry sun-baked yard. We had to keep picking up the loom and moving it as Julia's husband dug up the yard to make adobes!!  Julia taught me other warp faced structures and I made a ''chuspa''- a small bag used to carry coca leaves and we also finished off my projects with flat and tubular bands.My project here is a couple of sashes made on my backstrap loom to use as wall hangings or to adorn the wooden shutters in my bedroom. Both are warp-faced. The apricot colored one is double weave with designs from Potosi, Bolivia. The other is pebble weave depicting the star pattern of the Guarani indians of lowland Bolivia. Some of the stars' inner designs are my own variations. My teachers are pictured here and there's me hard at work at the loom.