lovely decor

Guatemala's jaspe fabrics are varied and beautiful. A type of ikat weaving, the threads are tie-dyed before they are placed on the floor loom. Members of the Women Artisans of Santa Cruz cooperative place 15 jaspe flags in assorted colours and patterns on a decorative garland. "These represent Tibetan prayer flags," the artisans say. "Their colours have meanings of their own — blue is a symbol of water, red is for fire, green for air and yellow for the earth. The cloth is woven by hand with much love. Many Maya hands have touched each textile, and we're proud to use recycled fabric. For us, recycling is another form of promoting peace and prosperity for ourselves and for our Mother Earth. Please remember that your attitude when installing these prayer banners is very important, and we ask that you take a moment to wish for peace for people everywhere so they can receive the benefits of our blessings. We want everyone to be free and at peace."

The pre-Hispanic period influences Mexican artisan Margarita Revilla for this greeting card engraved by hand in aluminium with a frog motif and featuring a strawberry amate paper frame. Just picture the face of your loved ones when you hand them this unique gift they won't find anywhere else and it will be reason enough to get it.

Surprise your loved ones with this original greeting card or gift tag crafted with a pre-Hispanic motif in aluminium engraved by hand and featuring a lavender amate paper frame. A wonderful gift idea from Mexican artisan Margarita Revilla who takes inspiration from the beautiful quetzal, Guatemala's national bird that is also very common in Mexico and was revered as sacred by the Maya and Mexicas.

These adorable dolls are here to bring some love into your home. Elias Garcia arranges them in two interlocking heart-shaped wreaths covered with colorful handloomed fabric and finished with a wooden plaque reading "Connected Heart to Heart." Each doll is handmade by Elias' sister, Aura, and she dresses each one in a unique handwoven dress.

Quitapenas or "worry dolls" represent Ixmucane, a princess who was gifted with infinite wisdom. Children are instructed to confide all of their worries to their quitapenas and then place them underneath their pillow at night. The dolls will impart their wisdom to them while they sleep and in the morning they'll wake up knowing what to do.

Elias Garcia links two open hearts to represent love. Diminutive worry dolls in handwoven apparel stand shoulder to shoulder on a cheerful and unique double wreath; they are crafted by his sister of the Lopez Garcia family. Centering the hearts, a wooden plaque reads "Blessed." This charming design hangs from a golden cord.

According to Maya legend, the sun god gave princess Ixmucane the gift of solving people's problems. With time people started making dolls in Ixmucane's honor and they would tell her their woes, hoping she would solve them through the dolls. Many people whisper to the dolls, then place them under their pillows at night, hoping that the doll will provide a solution as they sleep.