The traditional loom is the back-strap loom, a portable loom (see picture) that a woman can easily move as she conducts her household chores, watches her children or meets with friends at the market. The loom is made of 5 essential sticks with one end fastened to a pole or tree and a woman creates the tension for the loom by the belt or back-strap she wears around her waist. The Europeans brought the treadle or   foot- loom to Guatemala in the 15^th century and it is usually the men who weave cloth for skirts and export on it.    To view traje and scenes from different villages click on the pictures on the left of this screen.

Essential elements of a woman’s dress are the huipil (blouse), corte (skirt), and faja (belt). The huipil (blouse) is usually hand-woven on a back-strap loom. It is likely to take several months to make with a woman weaving 3 to 4 hours each day among her other tasks. The fabric for the corte (skirt) is generally made by men on a treadle-loom and then pieced together by a woman for her own use. Many of the skirts have ikat patterns woven into the textiles. Other skirts, sometimes called morga, are dark blue, once made from indigo, but now from commercial dyes. The faja (belt or sash) is both decorative and functional, holding up the often tube-shaped skirt. The wider faja also provides additional strength as a woman carries her babies and heavy loads on her back.

The tzutes (all-purpose utility cloths) is another important textile. Tzutes are variable in size and function – they carry goods and babies, cover the head against the sun or the shoulders for warmth, keep tortillas warm or are worn on the arm as a decorative accessory. Many traje also include a cinta (head scarf) and rebozo or perraje (shawl).