Augustine Gonzales

We went for ten days...my sister, niece, and friend. We were met by 35 plus other women and men from Canada and and the US...all there for a rug hooking camp. We are talking about the centuries old folk art of hooking woolen strips of cloth through the holes of a canvas! The difference, and the beauty of this camp was its connection with the small village of Augustine Gonzales, five km. outside of San Miquel de Allende. Here we met the 20 women and one man who make up the 'Rug Hook Project', a grass roots effort started by 'Mujeres en Cambio' of San Miquel.
With out exception the best part of the trip was the time spent in the village. I didn't rug hook. I took pictures. Take a look...

A closer look at what they do...

The designs of the rugs are all from the individual artists. The wool is hand cut into strips 1/4 inch wide. The wool is given to them by people who visit them from outside the country. It takes many hours to complete one rug.

The money they make by selling these rugs has helped in paying for the surgery when one broke their leg during a farming accident (I believe it had something to do with the oxen). It has helped pay for new seed to plant, for a tractor to finally plow the fields, for

cancer treatment for one small boy.