Trama Textiles
Who visits us?
Our mission is to create work for fair wages for the women of Guatemala, support our families and communities, and preserve and develop our cultural traditions by maintaining our textile arts and their histories.
What to do here?
Volunteer, join our Weaving School sessions, homestay in San Juan at Lake Atitlan, San Martin, Pujujil, and Chirijox and more!
Top 3 reasons to visit
- Our weaving school offers you the rare opportunity to learn the ancient art of backstrap loom weaving from our expert women weavers.
- We offer unique homestays where travelers can share the daily lives of our weavers and their families in rural Guatemala. This experience gives home stayers a first-hand chance to learn about Mayan culture with real women weavers at the heart of Trama's organization.
- Volunteer!
Our Story
Trama Textiles
Trama Textiles is an association of artisan women backstrap loom weavers in Guatemala. We work directly with 400 women from 17 weaving cooperations across 5 regions in the western highlands of Guatemala; Sololá, Huehuetenango, Sacatepéquez, Quetzaltenango and Quiché. Our association was formed in 1988 after some of the most devastating years of the Guatemalan civil war.The civil war was a time when most of the men from our communities disappeared: our grandfathers, fathers, brothers and sons. During this time, the women in our community united and decided to use our skills as weavers to support ourselves and our families. This lead to the birth of Trama Textiles.The cooperative gave us a sense of purpose and empowerment. We started to work together, exploring different colours by naturally dyeing the fabric and creating new designs. Little by little, we began to grow stronger and started to look towards a better future. Weaving is a century-old Mayan art form still very much part of Mayan life across Guatemala. Every region can be identified by the unique patterns on their woven clothing. Some of the pieces worn by the women can take months to make because the designs consist of so many intricate details. Despite their expertise, it’s often hard for weavers to make a living from their art, especially as many of them do not speak Spanish. The women usually speak their respective Mayan language. They are often forced to sell their products to middlemen for very low prices. This is where Trama Textiles intervenes. Our weavers decide on the price we pay them for each product. Each woman is paid up front and in full for her work and is guaranteed a fair wage for what she has produced. This allows the women in our communities to earn an income to support themselves and their families in a region where paid work is hard to find.
Our Activities
Trama Textiles is cooperative of around 400 women, who work in their homes across the Western Highlands of Guatemala. Our central location in Xela (Quetzaltenango) is run my our elected President and Vice-President, who run weaving classes and demonstration, and they are supported by a team of national and international volunteers who support in the team office and store. As our President & Vice-President live on-site with their families, Trama has a very friendly family feel to it. Walking into Trama is like walking into our home - we welcome everyone with warmness and kindness.