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THE WAYUU INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY:
The story behind the mochila bag.
You might have seen them in fashion magazines, blogs, or other media; the Wayuu traditional bags have become an essential fashion accessory. But do you know the story behind this indigenous handmade item? Made of myths and legends, this is the story of the Wayuu bag. ( See our collection of Wayuu bags).
THE WAYUU PEOPLE: THEIR CULTURE AND TRADITIONS.
Located deep in the Guajira desert, close to the border between Colombia and Venezuela, the Wayuu people are a traditional, historical, and indigenous community known as the people of the sun, sand, and wind. The Wayuu used to be a nomadic tribe that moved from the Amazon rainforest and the Antilles to the Guajira region around 3000 years ago. To reach their villages, one must take isolated trails through steep dunes and dry forests. The Wayuu people settle their homes in huts bound together called rancherías, furnished with little more than rope hammocks called chinchorros and a fire pit for cooking. Traditionally, the walls are made of yotojoro — a wattle and daub of mud, hay, and dried canes. Each ranchería is named after a plant, animal, or geographic place, and the Wayuu never congregate to form large settlements. They live in small and isolated communities to avoid mixing their goat herds.
The Wayuu have several ancient traditions and rituals that they keep alive. Their culture combines legends, myths, stories, traditions, and customs. According to the Wayuu cosmology, everything on Earth is connected. Every vegetable, animal, human, or mineral has a soul and a language.
Each community has its own government. Organized in matrilineal clans, the Wayuu children carry their mother’s last name, making women cultural and economic leaders for their clans. The Wayuu indigenous community is unique in that the woman of the household owns the house and runs the family, while the man works with the animals and land.
Wayuu communities survive through agriculture and aquaculture in coastal areas, but in general, their economy is mainly based on the creation of handicrafts such as the famous Wayuu bags, hammocks, and blankets woven by the women of the community who are expert weavers and skilled artisans.
MYTHS AND UNIQUE TECHNIQUES.
The Wayuu people are best known for the beautiful and colorful crochet textiles created by their women. Their weavings are a symbol of tradition, myths, and legends. Things in Colombia are always magical and the most ordinary things become extraordinary; therefore, crocheting and weaving cannot be the exception. The Wayuu people attribute these arts to a talented little spider called Walekeru.
One spring day, a brave young hunter called Irunúu went hunting and discovered a scruffy and dirty little girl lying on the floor and playing with ants behind the bushes. Concerned, Irunúu asked her where her parents were, and if she was alright. The little girl, whose name was Walekeru, burst into tears. Irunúu took the little girl’s hand, lifted her off the ground, and carried her back to his home. Upon their arrival, he told his three sisters to clean up the poor child and teach her the ways of a Wayuu woman. But the sisters didn’t welcome Walekeru very well and conspired to mistreat her.
After some time, Irunúu started noticing wonderful woven items appearing in the house. He had no idea where these items were coming from until one evening when he arrived home earlier than usual. As he entered his hut, he realized that Walekeru had transformed herself into a beautiful maiden. She was quickly weaving the threads that were coming out of her mouth as she turned them into beautiful fabrics. Irunúu fell in love with her. Walekeru told him she could stay that way as long as he could keep her talent a secret.
One day, evil spirits invited Irunúu to an event. He went wearing many of the beautiful fabrics Walekeru had made for him. The spirits asked him about the origin of the fabrics, but he knew he had to keep the secret. As the evening went on, the spirits got Irunúu drunk, and the truth came out. When Irunúu woke up the next morning, he ran home. His sisters were nowhere to be seen, Walekeru had turned them into bats. As he walked over to embrace her, Walekeru disappeared. In her place, he found a spider who escaped into the mountains to never be found again.
Irunúu collected all the beautiful threads Walekeru had made for him and sent them to a Wayuu artisan so she could imitate the techniques and pass them on to other Wayuu women. As a result, the art of crocheting spread across the land and the mystical and magical Walekeru came to be known as the mother of weaving for the Wayuu people.
The crocheting techniques are passed from generation to generation among women. The more ability a woman shows in her woven creations, the more prestige she will have in her clan. The Wayuu people even have a popular saying: “To be a woman is to know how to weave”.
The most common woven creations are the Wayuu bags, also known as mochilas. They are small bags made of colorful yarn. Through intricate patterns and motifs, the weaver shares her cosmological view of the universe and her traditions. She tells a story through each unique bag which will take her approximately 10 days to complete. Creativity and wisdom are demonstrated through the colors and shapes of each bag.
Mochilas and other woven creations have become a source of income for Wayuu women who sell them to tourists and people outside their tribe. As the Wayuu struggle to survive, making mochilas has become one of their main activities.
THE WAYUU BAG: AN ESSENTIAL FASHION ACCESSORY.
In recent years, Wayuu traditional bags have become an essential fashion accessory. You might have seen them in fashion magazines, blogs, or during the New York, London, Milan, and Paris Fashion Week. There are many reasons why these bags are on-trend and have become so popular for women and men.
Far from mass-market products, each Wayuu bag is handmade, and of course, it is not a simple fashion item. Mochila bags are the ultimate artistic expression of an ancestral indigenous culture. Each mochila bag is unique to the weaver and it is extremely unlikely to find two identical bags.
A bag is not just a thing you buy, it is a part of who you are and what you believe in. You can always use a beautiful Wayuu bag to add a touch of color and personality to your everyday outfits. It is the perfect accessory to express your style through a trendy statement piece.
Wayuu bags can suit every outfit and occasion, and you can take them everywhere as they come in a variety of beautiful colors to complement your clothing. You could choose a neutral color, a soft one, or a colorful bag that makes you shine anywhere.
NOTHING CAN REPLACE THE REAL WAYUU BAG.
As they have become so popular, some vendors are quick to sell counterfeit bags, but there is a big price difference between a real handmade bag and a fake machine-made one. A big part of such difference is due to the amount of love and time spent to make one bag—approximately 10 days. Also, there are two crochet techniques: Single thread and double thread. A double thread bag will always cost less than a single thread bag because it takes less time to make. Besides, the difference in quality between the two techniques can be seen easily. Finally, the crochet stitch of a single thread bag generally looks finer and tighter than the stitches in a double thread one.
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