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Mexican Blankets

The most common style of Mexican blanket, the sarape/serape style blanket is a Mexican icon.

The Mexican sarape blanket is considered 100 percent Mexican. The blanket can be used as a bedspread, lounge suite cover, living room decor. Any room in your home becomes inviting and warm with a Mexican blanket. The blanket colors can even make a room look larger. It can be thrown on any piece of furniture and having one handy on the couch is great for those colder nights. You can use it just to wrap up.

It is great as decoration for the home. You can fold the blanket and arrange it in fanlike formation on furniture. It can be used as a tablecloth. It can also hang on a wall, such that the Mexican serape blanket transforms into a unique piece of art.

The Mexican blanket is versatile inside or outside. Its soft feel makes it popular for exercising or yoga. It is excellent as an outdoor accessory and can be used on a picnic, for a day at the beach, or for gazing at the stars. On colder days, it is great on a Mexican hammock or in front of a fire.

The Mexican blanket has become very popular as a car seat blanket, and often it is upholstered onto the seats of classic automobiles.

Beyond question, the Mexican sarape blanket has left its mark.

Uses

Long and rectangular, it served many purposes; wrapped around the body much like a shawl or blanket for protection against cold in mountains and ravines, as a pillow to sleep outdoors, and cover during rain.

Origin

The origin of the serape blanket is pre-Hispanic. Although there is no exact date or specific place, it is estimated that the origin is located with the Tlaxcaltecas. They used the sarape to cover themselves from the cold. They also marketed the blanket in craft fairs.

Serapes can also be traced back to the Chichimecas in north-eastern Mexico, in Coahuila. These indigenous inhabitants migrated from Northern Mexico to central Mexico. The descendants of these many people in present day Saltillo trace their roots back to the early Chichimecas.

In the 16^th century, the serape blanket was brought by the Tlaxcalans to the city of Saltillo, in the state of Coahuila.

The development and proliferation of the Mexican blanket occurred in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In cities like Zacatecas, Saltillo, San Miguel El Grande, Querétaro, Puebla and Tlaxcala many workshops rapidly grew.

Description

The blanket at its origins was a rectangular shape. It had a design in straight or zigzag lines, with a rhombus in the center.

The traditional striped weave makes up the Mexican sarape blanket design of today.

The Mexican sarape blanket is a colorful striped, handwoven blanket, available in a wide range of colors. It consists of a main thick striped solid color with multiple, auxiliary, colored bands of various sizes.

It is handwoven and consists of a main thick striped solid color with multiple, auxiliary, colored bands of various sizes. Usually there will be variations in the secondary colors, such as yellow, orange, red, blue, green, or other vibrant colors.

Authentic Mexican sarape blankets are soft, made with thinner finer cotton material and are lightweight. Each blanket is unique.

There are different quality grades. The higher quality sarapes are very soft and gentle to the touch, with more vivid colors and more defined stripes.

Modern Mexican blankets

Today, Mexican sarape blankets have a more versatile blanket design.

Authentic high-quality Mexican sarape blankets continue to be created in the Saltillo region. Saltillo is the capital of the state of Coahuila, which is now famous for locally woven multi-colored blankets. In authentic Saltillo blankets, the colored stripes include the colors of the Mexican flag, red, white, and green. Saltillo blankets are created by artisans using a difficult and time-consuming process.

Recently, there has been a rise in production of imitation Saltillo blankets, due to decorating styles. These are sold at a cheaper price.

Mexican Falsa blanket

The weave of Mexican falsa blankets is loose and appears to be knitted.

Mexican falsa blankets are made up of blended fibers, cotton, acrylic and polyester. They have an X design and thick threads. Their weave is loose and appears to be knitted. These blankets are thick and can be washed regularly.