WAYUU Green, yellow, gray beige.

Our work with the Wayuu land.

We have been working with a Wayuu community for many years. We choose color combinations from a range offered to us. We have 5 hammocks per color combination. Since these hammocks are entirely handmade, you will receive a model that will be slightly different from the one in the photo. The colors will be the same, but only the fringes may vary. However, they will always feature geometric shapes and not figurative ones.

We are happy to be able to bring such beautiful pieces into your cozy corner. Take good care of them. Rare product.

A little personal story with the Wayuus.

My first visit to Colombia dates back to 1993. At that time, the civil war was really intense. The paramilitaries occupied almost the entire northeastern territory of Colombia, the Guajira desert, land of the Wayuu Indians. This land was highly coveted because, rich in coal, many train convoys attracted the interest of the various guerrilla factions. It was then impossible for me to go there. Too dangerous. I knew that their hammocks were among the most beautiful in this country and a Colombian friend helped me make the connection remotely with the Wayuu. I ordered my first hammock asking for a particular embroidery in the fringes. First the name of my company "Tropical Influences" then lizards as well as butterflies. The lizards being fixed in the fringes cannot catch the butterflies. As a sign of eternal peace, that was the message I wanted to convey to the artisan who would put all her heart into weaving this hammock for a Frenchman she could not meet.

The hammock arrived many months later. I had not provided a drawing for the lizard because, for a desert dweller, I was convinced they would know how to represent it wonderfully. Oops, they look a bit more like mice!!!

This hammock below is over 20 years old. We regularly display it in front of our shop in full sun. Its colors are still very vivid and have faded very little.

Many years later (2005), a Colombian president named Alvaro Uribe managed to carry out a major cleanup in the country. The guerrilla was held at bay and that’s when I was able to start traveling all over this country and finally meet the Wayuu Indians. I never knew who had woven my first hammock. During my first trip to the Guajira desert, I was able to see the damage caused by the civil war. There was a place with exploded railway tracks and about twenty train wagon axles abandoned on the roadside.

This country is magnificent and its people so smiling, generous, supportive, and caring.