Mochilas wayuu
What is the origin of a mola, the traditional Kuna blouse? The first references to “Cuna” women in the early 16th century described them as paying careful attention to their appearance with elaborate body painting, wearing skirts of pounded bark, multiple necklaces that covered their bare breasts, and a ring in their nose. By the mid-18th century, cloth was introduced by European settlers, and women eventually started wearing a cloth blouse which they began to paint in the same way they had painted their upper bodies, with indigo from jagua juice, red from annatto juice, and yellow from turmeric; root. How is a mola made? Reverse appliqué has been used to make a mola since Victorian times. A mola maker places two or three pieces of different colored cloth on top of each other and bastes them together. Then she cuts into the top layer, cutting out her design (she may have drawn her design first in pencil, but often she just follows the idea in her head.) Only the bottom layer remains intact to be the background color and support the stitching of the other pieces. She hems all the cut edges with very fine stitches, making sure that her thread exactly matches the color of the cloth. The color of each lower level creates the outline of the design. She may then add additional elements - decorative embroidery, positive appliqué, slits showing different colors from cloth that has been inserted between layers - to complete these intricate designs.