Etsy Around the World: La Chapina

Etsy Around the World holiday trip takes us to Latin America to visit a shop with some local color. La Chapina recycles beautiful textiles into ornaments, and fabric mosaics. Come with me to Guatemala for a twist on traditional materials.


Who are you (actual name and/or shop name)?
My name is Erin, and my shop is called La Chapina. (You can read more about Erin at her blog http://huipil-crafts.blogspot.com/)

Where are you located?
I've been living in Antigua, Guatemala, for a little over a year and a half, but I'm moving back to the US in about a month.

What do you create?
I make things like ornaments, dolls, cards, mosaics, and fabric art from used Guatemalan textiles called huipiles (traditional hand-woven blouses worn by indigenous women in Guatemala). I also make jewelry from eco-friendly seeds from the South American rainforest.

Have you ever visited North Carolina (if so, what was your favorite part of that trip)?
Yes, I went on a family vacation to North Carolina when I was a teenager. We stayed in a cabin and went canoeing.

What is your favorite place to visit in your hometown (and why)?
Antigua, Guatemala, isn't my hometown, but it's been a great place to live and is very popular with tourists. The site below shows provides a lot of information about things to do here. I especially like getting an ice cream cone and walking around the central park.

http://www.aroundantigua.com/antigua.htm

What inspires you?
Browsing at the local mercados (markets) and shops is what inspires me. The colors here are amazing, and I always manage to find something interesting that makes me think, "Somebody could make something really cool with this!" And sometimes that somebody is me :)

Why did you choose your shop/company name?
There are affectionate nicknames for people from different Central American countries. For example, the nickname for a person from Nicaragua is nico (masculine) or nica (feminine), and in Honduras it's catracho (masculine) or catracha (feminine). In Guatemala, it is chapin (masculine) or chapina (feminine). Because it is almost always women and girls who weave the beautiful Guatemalan huipiles, I have named this site La Chapina to honor them and their beautiful work.

What is you most popular item that you create (any why do you think that it’s so popular)?
Recycled huipil Christmas ornaments have been my most successful product. I sold hundreds of sets last year. I think they're popular for a number of reasons: They're colorful, they provide a touch of Guatemala to holiday decor (important to those families who have adopted from here), they are eco-friendly, and they are unique - I've never seen any other ornaments made from these textiles.

Why did you choose your medium?
At a local shop last fall, I came across scraps cut from used huipiles at a local store and began sewing things like Christmas ornaments, baby dolls, mosaics, and fabric collages from them. After posting some photos on my personal blog of things I'd made, people started wanting to buy them. Learning about where the different textiles came from and the methods of making them became a new passion for me.

Do you have any advice to share on how you have made your business grow?
My Etsy sales took off when I began offering related supplies. Realizing that Etsy is a market full of creative people, I began selling craft supplies like fabric scraps, beads, and embellishments, all from Guatemala or other Latin American countries.

What is your most cherished handmade item that you own? why?
One of my most treasured handmade items is a baby quilt made by my great-grandmother for the occasion of my mother's birth in 1951. It's got wonderful pastel vintage fabrics and little animals hand-embroidered in the squares. My mom gave it to me when we started the process to adopt our daughter!