Lucy Aguilar

Embroiderer

©Andrés Díaz

©Isabella Martínez

Embroidered gardens

Lucy has 50 years of experience in needlework
She dresses her clients for the Guabina Festival
Embroidered dresses from Vélez were the inspiration for some of Disney’s Encanto costumes

Vélez has a long-standing folk dress and embroidering tradition. Religious pilgrimage, festivals and family celebrations are the main gala events where women from Vélez and neighbouring towns exhibit their dresses. Lucy Aguilar works on embroidering these complete typical attires. Her earliest memories of needlework come from her religious schooling and the nuns who taught her the craft. The simple embroidery over a black, pleated skirt that she learned to make in her youth has evolved into elaborate colourful floral designs she expertly executes today in her workshop, Taller de Lucy. Her daughter Andrea has inherited her love for the craft and nature-inspired decorative elements. Today they work together, Andrea from abroad, and Lucy sowing and embroidering to perfection from her Vélez workshop.

Interview

©Isabella Martínez

©Andrés Díaz

What are your sources of inspiration?: Nature and local folklore. My grandmother’s garden inspired one of my dresses and Maestro Lelio Olarte’s song about a partridge inspired another one. These dresses were filled with garden imagery.
What is your definition of something well made?: When you put all your heart into your creation, bringing satisfaction and emotion to others. Well made requires attention to detail. I remember the nuns grading our needlework sampler. They taught us the flawless finish, with no visible marks inside and out.
Is there something most people do not know about your craft?: It can take up to three months of working 12 to 14 hours a day, to develop a complete dress. The meticulous embroidery requires much dedication for a perfect finish.
Would you consider your craft to be endangered?: Not in Vélez. We have a love for our cultural heritage, but many of us worry the manual work will eventually be replaced by machines for commercial purposes. We need the institutional protection of our craft.

Lucy Aguilar is a master artisan: she began her career in 1985 and she started teaching in 1985