In late 2018 I procured 2 tons of freshly cut Pochote / Ceiba / Kapok seed pods to explore and research its use as a fiber. The Pochote tree is a native a species to Mexico and is particularly sacred within the Mayan culture. Souls of the deceased ascend to the heavens because the tree is at once connected to the underworld, heaven and earth.

This particular batch was harvested in the mountainous mezcal producing region of San Luis del Rio, Oaxaca, Mexico from five old-growth trees. The fiber is known to be resistant to mold and bacterial growth, traditionally used as a hypoallergenic stuffing for pillows and mattresses. It is short and silky, difficult to spin by hand on its own and generally requires that it be mixed with another fiber such as cotton to build its strength as a yarn. I collaborated with talented spinner / traditional healer (curandera), Sofia Vargas, in the mountains of the Sierra Sur Oaxaca, Mexico to create a workable and refined yarn hand spun on a Charka Wheel with regeneratively grown native Oaxacan cotton. In this process of exploration we joyously discovered that the seed pod’s outer shell works as a beautiful natural dye, giving jewel like tones of of dusty rose, lilac, mauve, deep purple, shades of grey and black.

I have been regularly been working with this fiber spinning it myself usually blended with native cotton (70/30) for a more durable yarn (it can be spun on its own but it is very delicate) in addition to experimenting on the most efficient manner to extracting the fiber from the pods.

After many years of research, I am ready to publish a PDF on the findings, scheduled to be released January 2025. We are also creating extremely special items with the fiber and natural dyes such as our Huesito quilt and other textile art works.