Immerse yourself in culture and in natural dye pots! In this extraordinary hands on workshop, we will work side by side with a coop in Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, where each member is dedicated to environmental, cultural and community sustainability. We will work with "pericon" that is cultivated in their organic orchard, to develop our yellows. Then using cochineal, a bug from the scale family that hosts on the prickly pear cactus, we will develop our various red hues. Finally, using indigo from the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, we will produce a range of blue hues as well as many overdyes that will result in about 20 colors/hues, all from three primary colors! We will visit ancient Zapotec sites to learn of the iconography and motifs that are still used today. Sampling regional dishes of mole and tamales will also be in order. Our previous dyers have all loved this trip!

• Learn of the History of Cochineal
• Prepare cochineal, indigo and "pericon" dye baths
• Dye wool in primary colors and overdye to produce many colors and hues
• Receive a take-home "how to" recipe chart of all dyes prepared and used during workshop
• Visit organic orchard where dye stuffs are grown
• Take a Guided Tour of the Botanical Gardens
• Explore Ancient Zapotec and Mixtec sites of Mitla and Monte Alban
• Learn of the Ancient Motifs used in weavings

Download Complete Itinerary (PDF)

• Day 1: Arrive in Oaxaca City and depending on arrival time, stroll to the Zocalo to people watch. We enjoy a welcome dinner at Los Pacos to learn of the world of mole sauces!(D)
• Day 2: We begin our day by visiting the Museo Textil de Oaxaca, a jewel of a museum that showcases textiles & artisans from Oaxaca, Mexico and the world. Following, we enojoy a very special guided tour of the Ethnobotanical Gardens adjacent to the Santo Domingo Church to learn about plants used for dyes, medicine and food. We break for lunch at a favorite Oaxaca restaurant, Itanoni, to learn about Amado's project to revive native corn varieties. After lunch we enjoy free time in Oaxaca City to visit craft shops, coops and museums.(B,L)
• Day 3: Traveling East in the Oaxaca Valley we visit one of the regions best open air markets, or "tianguis" in Tlacolula. Following, we enjoy a guided visit of Mitla, the ancient Zapotec and Mixtec site that is knows as the place of the dead. We will study the symbols and motifs carved into the walls of this Late Classic site. We will later see how these motifs are still used today in their weaving designs. Lunch en route. Evening is free to explore independently in Oaxaca City. (B, L)
• Day 4: We get an early start and transfer to the The Centro de Arte Textil Zapoteco, Bii Dauu, a fabulous coop in Teotitlan del Valle, where we will begin our three day workshop in the History and Use of Natural Dyes in this Zapotec weaving community. Workshop Day One: Focus Color: Yellow. We will prepare dye baths from "pericon" tagetes lucida, a type of wild marigold. Before we dye, we will wash the wool, mordant the wool and before we begin our dyeing magic. We enjoy a delicious meal of tlayudas,tamales and quesadillas all made from native corn. (B,L)
• Day 5: On Day Two of our workshop, we will extract colors and prepare dye baths with a focus on the primary color red and various red hues. Red dye in Oaxaca is synonymous with cochineal, a small bug of the scale family, that feeds on the nopal cactus. A stir was created when the Spanish saw the vibrancy and color fast qualities of this dye source and great attempts were made to export this bug for foreign cultivation and use in Europe. Before the microscope was invented, much debate existed as to whether this was an animal or a plant! In the early evening the coop members will lead us on a walking tour of their village, Teotitlan del Valle to learn more about the sacred traditions of the Zapotec people. (B,L)
• Day 6: On day three of our workshop, we will begin using the fermented indigo dye bath that we initiated on day one. Here, we will derive a remarkable range of colors, including various shades of blue, greens from overdyeing our yellow wool, and purples by overdyeing our red wool. We have closing remarks from our friends at the coop and return to Oaxaca City. (B,L)
• Day 7: Today, we continue our learning of the early Zapotec and travel to Monte Alban, the first urban center in Mesoamerica. Thursday is market day in Zaachila, so we pay a visit to this village, stopping for a family style lunch at La Capilla. We visit the nearby artisan communities of Atzompa and Arrazola, known for their pottery and whimsical wood carvings.(B, L)
• Day 8: Fridays are known in the Valley for the market in Ocotlan. We spend our morning visiting this vibrant community along with adjacent San Antonino, known for their floriculture. Returning home, we stop in the craft villages of Tilcajete, Jalieza and Coyotepec, known for their whimsical wood carvings, belts and bags woven on backstrap looms and the austere black pottery made by burnishing and firing in oxygen reduced environments. Returning to the City, we have a farewell dinner at Cafe Casa Oaxaca.(B,D)
• Day 9: Return home or extend your stay in Oaxaca

A Perfect Red, Amy Butler Greenfield