Hammocks Hamacas & Chinchorros (indígena Wayúu) from Venezuela
In Venezuela there are still areas that families use hammocks in their daily lives instead of beds. Learning to build a hammock is an essential qualification especially for women and so the art is passed from generation to generation. This is why Venezuela is considered a country with excellent artisans in weaving and manufacturing a hammock. These hammocks are perhaps the most elaborate and beautiful hammocks.
In Venezuela distinguish Hammock (Hamaca) and Chinchorros (indígena Wayúu), and this distinction has to do with the way the fabric is processed in the early stages of construction and the way it is knitted, too.
To create a Chinchorro web (indígena Wayúu), you don’t have to use any kind of needle. It is worked by craftsmen weaving yarns by hand. The Chinchorro hammock is elastic, with sparse weave, very soft when touched, but with very strong yarn quality. The fringes are made separately, using a needle, which varies depending on the type of every item and the style of each artisan. The fringes are a decorative element in the hammock, but used as a handy cover for the cold. The time required to manufacture a Chinchorro hammock is from 2 months to 4 months depending on the size and detail of each hammock, and each piece is almost unique.
Traditional handmade hammocks from Venezuela are always made from breathable materials, necessary for the climate, the difficult environment of the jungle that is full of moisture, as well as for protection from mosquitoes and other insects. The hammocks from Venezuela, was the model for many of the modern developments of the hammock, known today as hammocks of the Jungle (jungle hammock)
