mom

Mami Made

Mami Made is the sewing craft line I run with my Mom. Mami has sewn all her life. She learned  this necessary life skill while growing up in the rural countryside of El Salvador.  Her mother taught her to stitch as well as the insightful tactic of looking at fragmented pieces then making something out of it.  I write in further detail about Mami's handmade magic in My Mother's Hands.

The idea behind Mami Made was that Mami has always made beautiful practical things for me. After a night of listening to the purr of her sewing machine, my light bulb blinked on:  why not share her craft with the world? She thrives in the process of creating something from thread and fabric. My sister is an Art Therapist so the process of making art to heal runs in the family. Mami glows when she gives that item to its new owner. Mami Made is a way to nurture my Mother's creative spirit and share her craft.  

Below is a visual appreciation of the love that Mami stitches in each of her craft. Whether she's making my prom dress, a princess dress for her granddaughter, a vintage style cocktail dress to fit all my curves, Mami pours her humble love in every inch.

Thanks again to Remezcla for showcasing Mami Made. 

Tamale Gif Set

It has been years since I made tamales with my Mom. Mostly because it's very labor intensive and requires a crew for the assembly line folding. For Christmas 2017, we decided to make the jump and go for it.

With just Mom and I, we managed to stay up all night and made over 100 tamales. Well, I lost count but easily around that number. We peeled garbanzos, chopped potatoes, cleaned farm-raised chickens, all surrounded by anecdotes that started "cuando mi mamá lo hacia asi". The hours in the kitchen provided us the safe space to chat, share chisme and I learned how generations of women in our family cooked. Tamales brought us together and when cooked, they bring people together in a damn delicious way.  Radio Pulgarcito provided the perfect soundtrack to our midnight cooking session. 

In between roasting banana leaves, mixing the masa and getting the achiote spice just right, I managed to capture her movements with a few gifs. 

I definitely teared up when I had my first set of cooked tamales. You can taste our hard work. You can taste the levels of complexities. You can taste how every ingredient makes a melody to this sweet song in your mouth. Tamales are our family history wrapped up in a banana leaf. Savor it. 

The finished product:

Manos en Movimiento

I love watching my Mom's hand move. They're versatile. Arthritic. Nurturing.
I wrote a piece for La Liga Zine about my mother's hands. Read it here.
Additionally, below is a small gif set I made dedicated to them.

All photography by Yeiry Guevara