SANTA CRUZ L.L. HUIPIL- FROM THE GUATEMALAN HIGHLANDS Start Price USD 32.75 Current Price USD 32.75 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Tuesday, August 26, 2008 End Time Tuesday, September 02, 2008 Location sweet home, OR See more about 'SANTA CRUZ L.L. HUIPIL- FROM THE GUATEMALAN HIGHLANDS' Description This is an almost new-seldom worn, older, Santa Cruz La Laguna Huipil. It is in excellent wearable and or collectable condition. The color is called PITALLA (pee ty' ya). It is  the color of a cactus fruit by that name. The color is quite magenta. It is a color that is by now, is traditional though it has only been in use about 15 years. The pin stripes are the ultra traditional celeste'-brilliant Sky. The stripes give the cloth a rich purple undertone.The base fabric is cotton. Probably Mish, the premium Guatemalan brand. The feel is soft. The pattern is embroidery rather than supplemental weft and is made of acrylic. Very traditional to do the back decoration in acrylic. The first Santa Cruz I saw was in 1989 and though the pattern was much simpler, it was made in acrylic yarn. This pattern is called relampago-lightening. The neck decoration is made of embroidery thread and either rayon or mylar to give it some sparkle. Bling at the neck. Note the San Jaun touch in the inner collar; that band inside the triangles. Photos 2 and 3. The band inside the triangles is usually just a thick single ridge of embroidery thread. Everything is nicely done.   SIZE: Referring to picture 1, the decorated back, it is 36 inches from upper corner to upper corner. It is 35 inches from the upper corners to the bottom corners. Pictures. 1.The full back.2. the back and neck detail. 3. The neck detail. 4. The sleeves5. Back pattern detail 6. Lucia at my house last Winter. She is ultra traditional. Expensive clothing. Lots of beads. Successful woman!  The last picture is of Lucia Mendosa, the vendor at my house. Normally I would be doing this business with Lucia's mother. Lastima, doña Sebastiana is too ill. Sebastiana put together a huipil cottage industry. Lucia does ALL the warps. Other sisters or Sebastiana's daughters in law weave the warp. Others assemble it. Others decorate it. Anyway, I now do the business with Lucia and her younger sister Maria "tiniq'", both of whom I met when they were children.  They now run the clothing cooperative. As well as working outside the home and taking care of mom and the kids.   This huipil comes from that  family industry. Lucia has already been paid a base price. If we make any money, she gets half. The starting bid is within a dollar of what it costs to offer it to you on Ebay. It is not some abstract number pulled out of the sky. Lucia took this huipil in as part of the price of a new Huipil made by her family. It had a value in the exchange. I give that amount to Lucia for those I like.  I try to sell them. Those I don't want go into the Chichicastenango clothing exchange. I like to be part of the industry, the flow of textiles and other small businesses the family operates in. I do musical instruments with Lucias cousins and one of her brothers in law.  I like most of the people in that extended family. I have known them a long time.  Santa Cruz is one of the Municipios of Departmento, Solola', in Guatemala's Western Highlands. It is one of the towns on the North shore of Lake Atitlan. The town is one of the few remaining towns anywhere without access BY MOTOR VEHICLE. There is no diesel smell! The styles of the town are less well known than cities and towns more on the tourist track. Prices are unusually reasonable.This is a very nice huipil that is exactly correct for its time and place of origin.  The thread that goes into this kind of hand made clothing costs more than my starting bid. It is an unimaginable bargain. I know quite a bit about this kind of clothing so feel free to ask questionsFree shipping to USA addresses.Winning Bidders  living outside the USA  will be given a discount on shipping costs of equal value to Free Shipping to USA. Place a Bid!