Ichimay Wari

At the southern edge of Lurín, a working-class enclave that lies 50km south of Central Lima on the Panamericana, are the studios belonging to the crafts collective Ichimay Wari. The group consists of more than a dozen artisans from Ayacucho who produce traditional retablos, pottery, Andean-style Christmas decorations and the colorful clay trees known as arbolitos de la vida (trees of life). The central shop is small, but the pieces are well crafted and the prices are a bargain. The best bet, however, is to make an appointment 24 hours in advance to tour individual studios and meet the artisans.