XUXO

Jessica Helgerson is wild for Mexican textiles. “I love their optimism and joy,” she says. “The color, the intricacy, the different concept of time. Have you ever seen weaving on a backstrap loom?”

Jessica conceived of XUXO after the 2016 election. “I felt like people were getting the wrong idea about Mexico. I wanted to show them the country’s beauty and culture.” Jessica has traveled throughout Mexico her whole life and explored markets in the country’s far corners. Jessica enlisted Cristina Niculescu and Vail Fletcher in the venture, and XUXO was born.

XUXO, is currently housed at Cargo, reflecting these happy qualities and more. XUXO bursts with vivd pinks and reds, from handmade wool animalitos begging to be cuddled to delicately woven shawls. Cream and pink woolen cushions seem made to lean against for afternoons of daydreaming. Striped market bags seem destined to tote novels-in-progress as well as frilly-topped carrots. Vintage jeans jackets with huipil inserts blend traditional Chiapan craft with contemporary cool. 

Before long, the trio developed relationships with artisans who embraced the entire production process, from raising sheep for wool; to the wool’s shearing, spinning, weaving, and dying; to its final transformation into a product. These labor-intensive, generations-old processes mean that something as simple as a makeup bag could take a week to create. 

Today, XUXO works with several communities in Chiapas and Oaxaca, often with local collectives. For instance, Francisca, a proud single mom with an infectious smile, leads the collective in San Andres Larrainzar, where she and other women weave market bags and small, tasseled pouches on backstop loom. Many of their designs are based on traditional Mayan geometric symbols referencing the earth and natural world. 

A collective in Zinacantan, in the Chiapan Highlands, creates the gorgeous woolen pillows that splash color along XUXO’s south wall. Each pillow is different, depending on the whimsies of its embroiderer, and each pillow features a playful interpretation of the region’s flora and fauna.

Because of the pandemic, you may not be able to travel. But thanks to XUXO, you can immerse yourself in textiles from a culture where time slows, families work hand-in-hand, and the result is useful, beautiful, and expressive of another world. 

We invite you to Cargo to experience XUXO for yourself. Click here to shop XUXO online