Designer Maria Elena Padilla is building a sustainable fashion brand that will last past the label
When it comes to fashion-forward trends, designers could never have predicted the events of 2020. Yet, the latest collection of ALMAweaving — a brand of beautifully handwoven accessories and homewares fashioned in El Salvador — feels as if the designer peeked at a crystal ball offering a glimpse into the world’s future. Months before the pandemic began, the brand released a tribute to Mother Earth: its new Terra collection of handbags, swathed in earthy tones and naturally accented with wooden beads, knots and chains.
“We had no idea that we’d be launching during the COVID-19 crisis, but it couldn’t be timelier,” says Maria Elena Padilla, co-founder of ALMAweaving. “I was at a point where I needed something to reflect how we were living. We are very conscious about the materials we use, the respect we have for time-honored techniques, and what the earth brings us.”
LABOR OF LOVE
While the word sustainable is often loosely thrown around, it’s not a buzz word for Padilla, who derives 80-percent of the brand’s materials from local sources. “Sustainability is more than just taking care of the planet, it’s also about taking care of the people around you,” explains Padilla, who created ALMAweaving with her sister-in-law, Alessandra, to make a social impact in their home country of El Salvador. A chance meeting with a student named José, who was struggling to work and commute ten hours a day to his university, sparked the idea. “We wanted to help students gain an education, while preserving the ancient craft of artisans that are fading away,” says Padilla. “What we learn from our older generation is priceless, and if we lose those teachings, we won’t recover them.”
ALMAweaving employs local artisans in El Salvador, paying them fair wages to hand-weave the handbags’ base, using recycled plastic threads from their family’s recycling company (the largest in Central America). Students are given the materials to embroider and hand make the tassels, pom poms and woven handles from home or school. “The main goal is for them to graduate,” says Padilla, adding, “right now, we are paying for the tuition and transportation of four students.”
WEAVING A FASHIONABLE STORY
The company started with handwoven baskets embroidered with a variety of hearts, perfect for the beach or market. (They were a hit at a trunk show in North Carolina, where they sold enough to pay for José’s first year of university.) The brand has now evolved to luxurious buckets with three- bags-in-one that include leather pouches, clutches and totes, embroidered T-shirts, statement-making earrings and a homewares line, all sold at approachable prices. The best seller is the Almita, a petite bag in an array of colors with a handwoven handle, adorned with tassels and pom poms. “The mini is a conversation piece,” says Padilla. “You can wear it anywhere and people will ask about it.”
The accessories are beginning to garner worldwide attention — ALMAweaving was tapped to create gift bags for the Latin America Fashion Summit in 2018 — and are sold in Miami at Boho Hunter, The Bazaar Project, as well as e-commerce platform MODE Revolution. For Padilla,the mission always comes back to the company’s name, Alma, a combination of the sister-in-law’s names. “The meaning in Spanish is “souls”. What we’re doing is weaving soul, community and education together.” A fashionable pursuit we can all support. almaweaving.com.