Feb. 4 Incredible Imagination

Feb. 4

Feeling a bit shaky, I ate fruit (papaya with lime juice) and a couple of spoonfuls of Vincent's oatmeal. We took a taxi after breakfast to Fernando and Yolanda's home and finishing workshop. We were greeted by two huge (and quite friendly) dogs, one a St. Bernard. The entire visit, they flopped themselves in the courtyard, on the stairs, anywhere that was in the way, Yolanda said in order to communicate that they were hungry. That made me smile.

Fernando and Yolanda are the designers of a line of clothing and accessories called "Etnia." I suppose it has to do with the word "ethnic" in Spanish, but it really should be related more to imagination, because what I saw was the very latest fashion, very much at home as much in European boutiques as American department stores. They use only the finest, softest wool, similar they said to merino. Fernando handed me a twist of it to demonstrate--it was indeed, very soft and fine. I am bothered by most wool products anywhere near my face, hands or neck, but these were exceptions. Yolanda designs the hats, gloves, scarves and other accessory knitwear, Fernando the jackets, pullovers, coats, shrugs and other large pieces. Ladies, rejoice! Armando has found the way to prevent your losing your scarves. He ingeniously makes them part of the coat. Also, he has designed the most chic-looking accessory I've ever seen. One arm is as if it were part of a raglan sleeve sweater. It stretches across the back as if it were a shawl. The other arm is a scarf. Scarf buttons at the neck to the raglan sleeve, voila! It looked stunning on Yolanda, and I really, really wanted one for myself. Not practical for living in Chicago, though, even though it was warm enough. It would have been for a chilly evening in northern California, or perhaps the Mojave. Yolanda designed a pair of mittens that use a cable stitch to form an owl's body and has two jungle seeds for its eyes. Very clever--she really enjoys imagining new designs.

Vincent, Romel and Chris took turns wearing and/or admiring the cable knit pullover for men that was one of the samples we were interested in. Everyone laughed when Vincent suggested Chris remove the sweater in case the St. Bernard thought he was stealing it.

We asked where the clothing is assembled and who does the work, and Fernando replied that they are mostly women living in the remote areas and he spends a lot of time traveling between their homes. It is much more convenient that way for the knitters and weavers. It's possible we might have the opportunity to visit with some of them when we return to Otavalo in a few weeks.

Yolanda and I had great fun playing "model" and talking together in Spanish. She taught French here for a while (after living in Paris for several years with her husband) and she knows how important it is to speak slowly so that people can understand when they are shifting gears on the tongue (once the gears are found, that is). She told me that she had two separate sets of children, two in the six- to ten-year-old range, and two in their late teens, early twenties. We enjoyed some contented laughter when we reflected that she is not that far from having a "third family" when her older sons get married and have children. She told me that her mother says she loves grandchildren twice as much as children. I think it would be a bit disconcerting to hear that from one's own mother!

Chris ordered some samples here and negotiated prices and we took a little walk to a place for lunch, where we had some lovely fish and papas fritas, with some pickled red cabbage. Very nice, and none of it seems to be disagreeing with me on that estimation.

Then we went to the Males' family's scarf store, about 100 or so square feet completely full of scarves, a festival of edible colors. We liked a lot of the colors and some of the new designs, had a lengthy discussion on how soft a scarf should be and ordered one of the new designs that has a marvelous texture. We think customers will like it.

Vincent had a twenty-minute nap while I wrote, and then we are off to dinner, exploring on our own while pobrecito Chris keeps working. . .

It is interesting to think about how much imagination and creation feeds the soul. If only we could incorporate the imaginative faculty into all of our work, how much happier we would all be. Yolanda is somewhere in her forties, but she is beautiful as a young girl, with a brilliant smile that lights the room. She feels happy and blessed not only in her family, but also in her work as a designer, because she is free to create so many beautiful, new things. I wish that for all of our artisans.