Did you know that they are all made from exclusive hand embroidered and hand woven fabrics?
7 years ago I moved with my family to Mexico and there I got to know the amazing colourful textiles Mexico has to offer. I immediately knew I wanted to do something with them. I started out making pillows. From there it took its own way and now I am making lamps, runners, stools, poufs and other home decor items, but it all started with the pillows.
For example, the amazing colourful pillow, hand embroidered by the Otomi's from Hidalgo, Mexico
https://www.uniqueworlddesign.com/search?q=otomi+pillow
Or these modern and abstract, handwoven pillows from Chiapas, Mexico
https://www.uniqueworlddesign.com/search?q=chiapas+pillow
Since then, I moved back to Europe and found some amazing treasures in Morocco and Turkey. Vintage Kilim fabrics, again woven by skilled hands from the berber woman in the mountains.
https://www.uniqueworlddesign.com/search?q=kilim+pillow
Now, I am living in the Philippines and I am still exploring and discovering beautiful ethnic fabrics that inspire me and hopefully other people.
https://www.uniqueworlddesign.com/search?q=inabel+pillow
I believe no home can do without a couple of amazing, one of a kind colourful pillows! Stay tuned because I am not ready traveling and exploring. And I am sure I will ding more beautiful fabrics to share.
Petra
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250 years ago, during the Spanish colonization there was a lively trade between The Philippines and Acapulco, Mexico. (Galleon trade 1565-1815)
This is interesting, because you can really see the similarity in the textiles found ;in both countries.
The tick and durable Iloco canvas became sails for the ships and among many exchanges, Abel Iloco blankets were a popular trade item. These blankets and sails had traditional kantarines/ Banderado design (stripes and plaids) with colours in bands, such as red, indigo and yellow
Abel Iloco is a rooted tradition. It has een genuinely substained by domestic trade within the multi ethnic province of Ilocos Sur and neighbouring communities in the east.
Cordillera textile
Weaving among Cordellera tribes takes back to pre colonial Philippines and embody the artistry that runs deep in local heritage. Inspired by native, Cordillera weaves are typically dominated by red, black and brown stripes that represent the sky and the earth. Patterns are interlaced with yellow, green ad white depicting fertility and growth.
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The fabric I use now has been used to make the daily skirt for the women and is called a 'Bontje'. The white, blue and red striped skirt was stiffened and embroidered on the top. With this fabric I made some amazing accent pillows, that are traditional and stylish at the same time.
Next to the 'Bontje' fabric I also use the fabric that has been used for centuries to make the fancy dress skirt, which is called 'rode rok'. This skirt was worn only on special occasions and holidays.
This fabric is nice and thick woven cotton and it is perfect to make trendy striped pillows and bags.
Finally, I could not leave behind the beautiful blue and white fabric that reflects the century old famous 'Dutch Delft Blue' tiles from the Netherlands
The little blue pompoms i use on most of my items reflect the pompoms on the winter head covers called 'Kapers'.
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Recently I travelled to Morocco, where I found some amazing treasures.
In Marrakech I bought these beautiful vintage Kilim fabrics and poufs. I immediately fell in love with the colourful, vintage look of these items. My creative site got triggered and I loaded up on fabrics, carpets and poufs. From the vintage fabric I made pillows in different sizes. They are cool, boho and very decorative. They will fit any style.
The poufs are amazing. They are made from vintage kilim tapestries and you can fill them with for example, down, foam, blankets, old cloths, plastic bags and even paper.
They may have some irregularities and signs of usage. But this is the charm of the vintage character.
*A kilim is a flat tapestry-woven carpet or rug traditionally produced in countries of the former Ottoman Empire, Morocco, Iran, Azerbaijan and Turkic countries of Central Asia.
The items I sell where handwoven by Berber woman from the middle Atlas Mountains of Morocco on a traditional loom with sheep and camel wool and coloured with vegetable dye. Using century’s old handcraft technics.
Kilims can be purely decorative or can function as prayer rugs. Later they start using these rugs to make poufs, pillows and even bags.
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The "flowering" of Maya culture is more than a metaphor in Zincantan, Chiapas where local dress is a lavish field of ever changing flowers. For every major festival, families wear new sets of clothing embroidered with fresh designs and the current color palette.
Two decades of experimentation with embroidery and brocade created an endless splash of colours and styles in Zincantan. The simple brocaded lozenges along the hem grew into complex tapestries. As women mastered new embroidery techniques, bigger and bolder flowers enveloped men's fashion.
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Many here still speak Otomi, with a portion speaking only this language. Although there is contact with the outside world via the handcraft and migration out, this has affected the development of the craft.
The embroidery is a simplified version of embroidery done for centuries, adapted for products to be sold to the outside world. Pieces generally have multiple figurative elements in stylized form, which are arranged onto the fabric in a geometric pattern, mostly or completely symmetrical. The most common elements are the flora and fauna found Tenango de Doria area including chickens, dogs, wild birds, rabbits, horses, flowers and trees. Sometimes people and other objects appear as well.
All elements may be of a single color, or multicolored. If the latter, the colors are most often combined as a series of stripes over the elements. Better tenangos have small, tight stiches, with a well-done tablecloth or bedspread takeing up to six months to make.
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