WORKSHOPS

We will be hosting 2 different workshops throughout the 7 day trip - backstrap weaving with Doña Lidia and embroidery with Doña Claudia. Each student will be working on their own project with guidance from expert weavers and embroiderers. 

Backstrap Weaving

Our artisans will guide each student through picking out colors for your project, warping your loom, weaving basics as well as various brocade design techniques for those who are interested. Students will go home with their weaving and their loom!

Embroidery

Instructors will teach numerous different embroidery stitches and their meanings. A variety of embroidery floss and pre-stenciled designs will be provided.

TEXTILE PRESENTATION

Casa de Artes is an incredible museum with a large collection of textiles from all regions of Guatemala including vintage pieces. We will get to learn about the history of Guatemalan textiles as well as explore their expansive inventory!

FOOD

We will provide 6 breakfasts, 5 lunches, and 2 dinners (welcome and goodbye), including home cooked meals in our artisans home studios. Other meals are free time. Antigua is filled with delicious restaurants and we will provide a list of recommendations. We will do our best to accommodate for any dietary restrictions for the meals we are providing!

PRICING

$2575 for single-room occupancy

$2375 for double-room occupancy

Non Refundable Deposit: $350

Total Balance Due: October 1, 2025

Minimum 10 / Maximum 14 

INCLUDLED

• All lodging (6 nights in Antigua)
• All workshops & materials
• Most meals (except for a few free time meals where we'll provide a list of recommendations)
• In-country transport
• Local and bilingual community guides. (The trip will be led by 2 group leaders from Kakaw and co-hosted by Alisha of Fiber Circle Studio.)

NOT INCLUDED

• Airfare
• Travel Insurance
• A handful of meals
• Any additional lodging or transportation outside of the itinerary dates.   

MEET YOUR HOSTS

Alisha Bright - Owner and creator of Fiber Circle Studio

Alisha has been working with fiber in 2008, since the age of 17, and has dedicated her life to exploring a range of different fiber arts. In Fall 2019, shortly after forming her dream into a reality of creating Fiber Circle Studio, she began travelling internationally to Latin American countries to connect with indigenous textile artisans. She often travels with her oldest son, Leland, who loves trying different foods, dabbling in workshops, drawing his experiences and making friends with trip participants during his travels. 

Mari Gray - Owner and creator of Kakaw Designs (pictured on the right)

Mari was born in Guatemala to a textile artist mother and a photojournalist father. She grew up in Guatemala, Japan, and the US, surrounded by textile beauties from around the world. As a young adult, she moved back to her birth-country and somewhat serendipitously decided to apply her studies and experience in international development alongside her passion for supporting traditional textile arts.

Since 2013, Mari has been the primary designer for her small business Kakaw Designs, which began as a direct online sale website. With now so many branches of the “cacao tree,” she multi-tasks from facilitating and guiding textile travel itineraries in Guatemala to organizing custom production for other businesses. She now holds an MSc in Sustainable Development from the University of Graz (Austria) and the University of Utrecht (Netherlands).

Our Artisan Partners (click here for more!)

On this tour we'll be working with Doña Lidia and Doña Claudia!

REGISTER HERE!  

EXTRA DETAILS

• We will reach out prior to the trip to gather information about food preferences, send out a detailed itinerary, schedule a zoom call to answer any questions and give flight recommendations. We will handle your transportation with safe, trusted drivers once you are in Guatemala. 
  
• Whats App Group - In order to have accessible communication, we will start a whats app group chat once we have all of our participants. This will be helpful before and during the trip. It's even great to stay in touch after! 
• Group size - In an effort to keep the group intimate and ability to provide a quality experience we have a maximum of 14 participants. We need a minimum of 10 in order to run the trip.
• Weather - The weather in Guatemala in February is generally mild, however, weather is never predictable so we recommend packing in layers for a variety of weather conditions. We will send a more detailed packing list prior to the trip.
• Travel Insurance - It is highly recommended to get traveler's insurance for BOTH your airfare and trip to have yourself financially covered should any unexpected situations occur. Allianz and Travel Insured are our preferred insurance companies. We can not refund or credit due to changes of participant circumstances. Please see cancellation policy for more details. 
• Food - we will do our best to accommodate any food preferences or allergies, however some meals will be in folks homes, or in small restaurants where options are limited. If you have food specifications, we recommend bringing your own snacks for instances where we aren't able to accommodate. 
• Getting from and to the airport - we will handle all transportation to and from the airport. 
• Currency - We will have several opportunities to visit an ATM on our trip. 
• If you would like a partner or child to attend with you, but not participate in the workshops, please reach out to us! There is a $500 discount for non-workshop participants.  

CANCELLATION POLICY

Any cancellations (for any reason) made by participants will result in a non refundable amount of $350. Below is the breakdown of percentage refunded (less the non-refundable deposit) based on time of cancellation.

• 50% of tour price is refunded if cancelled before September 1, 2025
• 25% of tour price is refunded if cancelled before December 1, 2025
• There are no refunds if cancellations are made after December 1, 2025

This trip is an all inclusive trip! We invite folks from all backgrounds, nationalities, sexualities, and genders. We welcome partners as non workshop participants, and participating children over the age of 8 at a discounted rate. We believe in supporting a unified connection while spreading knowledge, passion and inspiration in an effort to preserve and carry on traditions for many more generations!