molas

I was at work the other day thinking about how many more conference proceedings I had to catalogue, when my colleague Merryl came to my desk with a her beautiful collection of Molas.

These textile panels are made by the Kuna, an indigenous people of Panama and Colombia. They are made using appliqué and reverse appliqué (reverse appliqué! I have only just entertained the idea in my own sewing up to now).

Now as I look closely at these pieces I notice two things, firstly they are sewn by hand, and secondly both the appliqué and reverse appliqué are hemmed (tiny hems on all the tiny details!). For so long I have wondered, am I crazy trying to hem all my applique? Am I trying to do impossibly small hems or will I improve with practice? Well it seems that it can be done, and with such precision. I will persevere!

Also, I found out from the wiki that mola means "clothing" in the Kuna language. These beautiful works of art are for wearing!

Thanks so much for showing me these Merryl!