Lula Mena
Handmade deposit
Thread by thread, stories that have been transmitted from generation to generation are woven in this community, to create textiles that carry in their design its cultural identity.
Located in a place where 40 years ago there were more than 50 artisans and 200 looms engaged in weaving in lever looms, our community Hand-woven Stories is the only one that survives, led by artisanal master Mr. Don Ciro Castro.
Don Ciro learned the technique of weaving in a lever loom from his father and has passed it on to new generations, who at present are the ones that produce the lines of textile accessories that Lula designs for the home.
Thread by thread, stories that have been transmitted from generation to generation are woven in this community, to create textiles that carry in their design its cultural identity.
Located in a place where 40 years ago there were more than 50 artisans and 200 looms engaged in weaving in lever looms, our community Hand-woven Stories is the only one that survives, led by artisanal master Mr. Don Ciro Castro.
Don Ciro learned the technique of weaving in a lever loom from his father and has passed it on to new generations, who at present are the ones that produce the lines of textile accessories that Lula designs for the home.
Thread by thread, stories that have been transmitted from generation to generation are woven in this community, to create textiles that carry in their design its cultural identity.
Located in a place where 40 years ago there were more than 50 artisans and 200 looms engaged in weaving in lever looms, our community Hand-woven Stories is the only one that survives, led by artisanal master Mr. Don Ciro Castro.
Don Ciro learned the technique of weaving in a lever loom from his father and has passed it on to new generations, who at present are the ones that produce the lines of textile accessories that Lula designs for the home.
Lula designs lines of products using artisanal techniques that are disappearing in El Salvador, such as weaving in lever and double frame looms, and markets them throughout the world. This enables communities of artisans to access fair and sustainable work opportunities by producing Lula’s designs.
INCOME
The norm in rural areas is that children between the ages of 10 to 12 work the fields with their parents taking care of crops.SCHOOLING
58% of the people that live in rural areas in El Salvador live in overcrowded conditions. When there is overcrowding in families, there is a higher risk of certain problems occurring, such as domestic violence, family disintegration, poor school performance, among others.
300 SALVADORANS TRY TO MIGRATE TO THE UNITED STATES DAILY DUE TO LACK OF WORK OPPORTUNITIES.
When Lula Mena began working in rural communities, many of the young women wanted to immigrate to the United States. Now that they have seen that there is an opportunity for a better life in their community, their perception of immigration has changed. They feel more confident that they will be able to provide for their families without having to leave the country. We want to continue to grow in order to offer more young adults the opportunity to work with us and avoid immigration.
One of the major challenges we faced when we began working with women was gaining the approval of their husbands. Most of the husbands and family members worried that the women would not be able to work and meet the household’s responsibilities.
Now, their husbands prepare dinner, take care of the children, and offer them support. There is still a strong sexist culture, “machismo”, in rural areas of El Salvador that we are trying to change by empowering women.