Guatamela textiles - suggestions for buying

I will be in Antigua and at Lake Atitlan and am interested in textiles but know nothing (tho I do have some nice Navajo weavings). Any suggestions or online resources. Is bargaining acceptable at the lakeside villages? Would I insult someone by offering 50% of their ask? Just curious.

I offer what I think the piece is worth. Quality and subject determine what I will pay. I've never played the percentage game.

Bargaining is expected in most places. The exceptions would be the weaving cooperatives (mostly in San Juan). However, at the cooperatives you will be assured that what you are getting is good quality.

If in fact you want quality, not just a good price, start off in San Juan. Many of the cooperatives will give you a tour and explain how they make their goods. They do it for free but appreciate if you buy something or make a donation for their time. Not all the cooperatives have someone who speaks English if that is an issue.

Every situation is different, but usually they give you a high price at first. I bought a flute earlier this year in Antigua. I was originally quoted 40 US dollars by a Mayan woman with clothing representing Solola, but I think she was living in San Antonio Aguas Calientes. Roughly 300q. In a couple short minutes, she gladly sold it to me for 35q. I didn't even try to bargain hard. One of my Mayan friends who sells other stuff even told me I got ripped off lol.
Usually if you ask around or are observant, you can see generally what the going price is for something. I don't necessarily want to spend 30 minutes beating someone down a couple more quetzals on price, but I don't want to pay 10X the going price for something.
kayak05 makes a great point. You might want to check out one of the places where they are weaving in front of you and familiarize yourself with some of the different products/materials, because some (not all) of the vendors sell Chinese goods that are misrepresented as being made in Guatemala. Some of my friends who travel much more than I do tell me this happens all over the world.

If you want to first get an idea of quality and what the prices are for tourist (hehe) head over to the Artisan Craft market which is next door to the main market in Antigua, where you catch the buses to points beyond its right there. Then you have an idea of what full retail is and also the quality. Then head into the market, and check out various stalls which can take a few hours easily, and see how your prices will come down even before bargaining...

As above says, you would be surprised to know what is actually not made in Guatemala, but in China, India and Vietnam etc. It depends what your buying and what you are using for. We pick up things for the home, placemats, pottery/cups/dishes, pillows, etc. My wife likes the oversize woven bags to take to the supermarkets, with a nice shoulder strap, as buying veggies and bottled times can get heavy fast.

Around the villages on Lake Atitlan,we enjoyed the artwork, tapestries and home decor, which is very colorful and unique.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g295366-d1651129-r158637055-Mercado_de_Artesanias-Antigua_Sacatepequez_Department.html

Specifically with regard to huipiles and other traditional garments, gringos and non-Maya Guatemalans are in fact generally quoted far less than the piece is worth, and less than a Maya person would pay for the same item. Price inflation definitely happens with tourist trinkets, but with authentic hand-woven textiles the opposite is true.

If the piece is second-hand, then by all means bargain away. This is a great way to get beautiful, "vintage" textiles without breaking the bank. Ditto for items sold in market stalls in places like Chichi. But around the lake, and especially if you are lucky enough to speak to the person who made an item, I would bargain gently, if at all. These are very poor people and their traditional textiles are treasures worth every penny that you might pay for them.

I agree with kayak05 that San Juan is a wonderful place to shop for textiles, and the weaving cooperative is a great place to visit. If you are lucky enough to spend some time speaking with an indigenous woman around the lake (e.g. a hotel proprietor, or even a particularly chatty vendor), you should consider asking her about weaving. You may be surprised at how eager people can be to explain the process and show foreigners their own work. A highlight of a recent trip of mine was when a local business woman showed my wife and me to her home, explained her backstrap loom to us, and introduced us to her young daughter, who had just (proudly) finished her very first handwoven belt.

As for internet resources, you could start here:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/travel/get-guatemalan-textiles-straight-from-the-weavers-hands/2015/07/02/55d7e66c-fa71-11e4-a13c-193b1241d51a_story.html

https://www.coloresdelpueblo.com/pages/mayan-weaving

There are some wonderful books on Guatemalan weaving, including the following:

https://www.amazon.com/Traditional-Weavers-Guatemala-Their-Stories/dp/0983886075

https://www.amazon.com/Weaving-Maya-Innovation-Tradition-Guatemala/dp/1480118095/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1479234123&sr=1-1&keywords=weaving+guatemala

I will be in Antigua and at Lake Atitlan and am interested in textiles but know nothing (tho I do have some nice Navajo weavings). Any suggestions or online resources. Is bargaining acceptable at the lakeside villages? Would I insult someone by offering 50% of their ask? Just curious.

I live in San Antonio Palopó. A lot of textiles and ceramics are made here. If you get off a pickup before it goes up the hill to the market/church, you will find a few stores on your left. Some are cooperatives. Ask and compare. There are also vendors by the docks and up by the market.
One, Maria Dulce, (easy to spot as most women here are stocky -- she is skinny) is a friend. I have brought her quite a few customers. That doesn't mean her first price is the right price. 50% less is pretty normal and if you buy 2 or 3 items you tend to get the best price. I know that she personally makes some of the stuff she sells.

Thanks. These are some good varied and concrete suggestions that will make my trip more interesting.

My husband and I were in Santa Cruz (Lake Atitlan) for almost 3 weeks in 2013 (absolutely LOVED our time there). I purchased a couple of huipiles while in tiny village cooperatives off the lake, never went to Chichi. We did go to one bigger market (maybe in Soala? Hard to remember), where I made my FAVORITE purchase - a really large (laptop and books fit in there!) real leather bag with the entire front/back decorated with their famous hand-dyed embroidery. It's held up remarkably well since then and I get comments on it constantly... I believe we bargained a smidge, but honestly, ended up paying $90 for a beautiful item that would've cost hundreds in the States. Everything is so cheap there already that it just feels wrong to really low-ball these folks.

My husband and I half-joke that we actually SAVED money while we were on vacation in Guatemala versus how we spend in the US!

Used textiles in front of Bomberos on Tues and Fridays, double check the days. Great bargains and lots and lots of textiles at good prices but bargain.

#6 Any pics? And listen, if you are ever in New Mexico check out the Crownpoint rug auction about 2 1/2 boring hours west of Albuquerque. http://crownpointrugauction.com/auction-info.php Genuine Navajo and prices 1/3 of a gallery. Top weaving went $3,000 for a 5 by 7 wall hanger.

In Antigua, you'll find a few vendors inside the Choco Museum (courtyard). I suggest going to the weaving museum, also in Antigua. You'll get a basic understanding of how things are made and the regional differences in the artwork. I bought some garments over the past for myself. I pay what the pieces are worth to me. A few extra dollars are probably worth more to them then they are to me.

I recently visited Oaxaca, Mexico, where they make beautiful hand-dyed wool rugs. The people are poor, their skills are high, and while it is important to have an idea of how much bargaining is appropriate, I recommend, as have others, to treat the weavers fairly. Ask a few weavers the price. Consider the size of the weaving and the detail. More detail, or larger, takes more skill, material and time. I bargain hard when at US swap meets, but very little when buying directly from the traditional artist/weaver, whichever country I may be visiting. Your respect for her traditional skills will help her feed her family.

Right on. Here on lake Atitlan there is an organization called Maya Traditions that, unlike the bigger NGOs, just helps people market what they know how to make. That includes fabrics as well as herbs.

Rather than "welfare" for people here, let's support them in what they can do.

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