Colombian handmade Wayuu Bags - Mochilas (The Guajira Peninsula, Colombia)

Handmade (hand-woven) bags by two strands of thread made by the indigenous Wayuu People (pronounced "Wah-You") from The Guajira Peninsula, Colombia.

The Wayuu Artisans spend more than 10 days to weave each piece. Weaving is a symbol of wisdom, intelligence, and creativity for them. It is a tradition that has been passed from generation to generation.

The bags are made of %100 cotton, the threads are extremely durable and colorful. Each design is unique and tells a story through the colors and patterns used by the weaver.

No two bags are the same as each design is very elaborate.

"According to legend, the tradition comes from "Wale 'Kerü", a spider that taught the women how to weave their creative drawings into the mochila bags".

Women's hand made Barniz Rings (Pasto, Colombia)

These attractive rings are handmade in Pasto, Colombia.

The rings are made using a technique called Barniz of Pasto (Pasto's Varnish) which is a unique art practiced in southern Colombia.

Barniz from Pasto or Mopa Mopa, is a technique that is used to decorate wooden objects of native origin. The artisans use a resin which comes from a tree named Mopa Mopa found in the Amazonian forest of Putumayo - Colombia.

In the city of Pasto - Colombia, the artisans process the resin that comes in small balls by cooking, hammering, grounding, cleaning, dyeing, and eventually stretching it to get a very large thin, flat, and sticky sheet with beautiful bright colors.

It is very much like wet plastic, but much more fragile. The sheets are cut with a sharp pointed knife in different types of shapes which the artisan uses to make the given designs. The sheets are then applied with heat to different wooden surfaces that have previously been treated.

Finally, a protective cover of primer is applied to the art pieces to guarantee their quality and durability. (Sometimes the protective cover of primer is glossy or matte)

Greek Style Leather Sandals (Bogota, Colombia)

Handmade leather sandals by a local artisan from Bogota, Colombia. The artisan uses recycled tires from airplanes to make the sole, and he uses natural colorants to paint the leather.

All his parterns are his original designs and because they are handmade every sandal is unique as they don't all look the same.

Pre-Colombian Figures Placemats and Coasters (Bogota, Colombia)

The figures on the sets are hand made in Bogota, Colombia by a local artist. They show case a fusion of colorful figures originally made by Colombian Muiscas and other Pre-Colombian cultures using modern painting techniques.

These attractive MDF (Medium-Density Fiberboard) placemats and coasters look modern and stylist on any dinner table, while showcasing Pre-Colombian original art by the Colombian Archeologist Antonio Grass.

These placemats were created using vinyl and acrylic on 3.0 mm MDF wood along with 3 different types of waterproofing solutions.