K'uychi, Rainbow

K'uychi is the rainbow, and in the Andes the rainbow is not gentle. The weave packs scarlet against teal against gold in stripes a few threads wide, so from across the street it reads as one vivid field and up close it splits into colour. This is the pattern most people picture when they picture aguayo, and it is the loudest weave in the house.

The colours

Scarlet, teal, gold and ink, with white and violet cutting through. The stripes are narrow and the colour changes every few threads, so each cap is cut from a different part of the cloth and the pattern lands differently on every one. Where a figured band runs through the stripe, it is woven into the cloth, not printed on it.

Cut from K'uychi

It is the cloth we cut first and the cloth we cut most. On the full-weave caps the whole crown is K'uychi; on the white Paracas only the brim is, which is enough.

Pieces: Cusco, Písac, Huaraz, Maras, Paracas. See the whole collection: K'uychi.

The other families

Tuta · Qucha · Inti · Pacha · Killa. All six on the weaves. How the cloth is made and cared for: materials.