Atitlan Studios offers timeless pieces made by artisans in the Highlands of Guatemala by Lake Atitlán. We want to bring the beautiful textile designs made by the Mayan women and the craft of the backstrap loom to the world through contemporary styles that are made to last and keep in the wardrobe forever.

The weavers create each garment from naturally dyeing cotton thread using local plants and non-toxic methods and materials, to weaving the textiles with a backstrap loom and sewing it together using embroidery stitching.

The brand emerged in 2020 during the first months of the pandemic with a core focus to support indigenous Mayan women and their families, who had lost their usual income from tourism. Our mission now extends to preserving artisanal practices, designs, techniques and indigenous knowledge without causing stress to the environment. At the core of our brand are the women weavers, the natural environment and the ancient crafts of the backstrap loom and plant dyes.

The founder of Atitlan Studios, Deimante Lersten, first came to Guatemala to conduct her Environmental Anthropology Master's degree fieldwork research. There she met a group of local women who were weavers and recyclers in their community. This uniquer encounter soon blossomed into a brand . Deimante resides in London with her husband and two little boys, seizing every chance to travel to Guatemala.


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ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC IMPACT

TRACEABILITY

  • Our production is independent, avoiding complex chains.
  • We source all materials locally, from plants to cotton thread obtained from community members through local shops.

CULTURAL HERITAGE

  • Weaving with the backstrap loom is an ancient art vital for preserving traditional wear reflecting cultural heritage. We offer opportunities to practice this art while ensuring financial value.
  • Plant dyeing, another ancient tradition, enables experimentation with hues and raises awareness about local colorant plants.
  • Every design is a fusion between modern aesthetics and traditional craftsmanship expressed by the artisans.

EMPOWERING PEOPLE

  • Women lead our brand, choosing flexible working hours working from home, based on clear communication. The main coordinator of the brand is a local Mayan woman which is not a common practice.
  • We pay a living wage, up to four times higher than local pay, set by women's estimated working hours.
  • Artisans continually learn and share skills through informal capacity training sessions.
  • All our profits are invested back into the business.

SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES

  • Textile leftovers and yarn are never wasted; they're reused, repurposed, donated, or kept. Kaftans are designed to minimise cutting.
  • Small batch production minimises waste. The nature of the production ensures that.
  • Plant dyeing employs endemic local plants, with a focus on efficient water reuse and safe chemical handling and disposal.

NEXT STEPS

  • We would love to provide as much regular work for our weavers as possible. Our beloved customers are the ones who can enable us to do that.
  • Organic or recycled natural cotton bought as close to home as possible. We believe that is the best environmental solution for our product.
  • Transitioning from open fire to a wood-fired cooker for dyeing threads
  • Atitlan Studios is completely new to the fashion scene, with many areas of improvement. Thank you for sticking with us.

VEGAN CONSIDERATIONS

  • Note: For those practicing veganism, please be aware that our pink garments utilise cochineal, a pink dye sourced from a pest insect grown on cacti exclusively for its colour properties.

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