Mi Vida Naca: Nacadas de Ancianas

Everything I've learned, I've learned from viejitas.

"Don't wear shoes that are too tight or they'll give you bunions." Mi abuelita and my mormon sister taught me that through example.

"Don't get involved with unmarried men over the age of 30. Chances are they have kids and maybe even a wife hiding somewhere." 100% accurate.

"Don't pluck your eyebrows too much or else they won't grow back." I think it's safe to say most cholas didn't get that memo.

Well, one thing that ancianas like LA Seño and her comadres taught me was the fine arts of crafting. Don't get me wrong, LA Naca is not down with scrapbooking because I don't have children and I'm not white. That being said, I love SUPER old lady traditions taught to me by my old ladies, like making guacamole in a molcajete, making tortillas a mano, and, most importantly, learning how to fake doing both of those things without your viejo catching on. Take my tía Coco for example. That enanita speed-knits while watching TV, reading a book and doling out advice. And by doling out advice, I obviously mean criticizing my life choices. But that is neither here nor there. The important thing is that she makes me scarves for Christmas.

And while LA Seño taught me to make my dolls dresses as a kid, my real love was cross-stitching with my abuelita. She would stitch, she would bitch, and she would do it all while looking glamorous and sharing her Winstons with me at the tender age of 5. Although I haven't kept up the smoking habit (quit when I was 9, thank you very much!), I did keep up the stitching and bitching habits. I've even decided to make my own little shop to celebrate my love of stitching.

I present to you the official Mi Vida Naca store on Etsy. It's called Puras Nacadas and can be found here.

Here's a preview of the first handful of items I posted.