TRADITIONAL TEXTILES

Does your budding fashion designer need some design ideas for their next big line of couture? Take them to Brownsville and let them loose in the Costumes of the Americas Museum, a brilliant collection of authentic North, Central, and South American indigenous clothing and accessories. Archived in the Mitte Cultural Education Center near downtown Brownsville, the museum houses beautiful examples of hand-worked beading, embroidery, weaving, and dyeing in classic and historic costuming like the Papantla’s ceremonial dress from Veracruz, the huipil from Oaxaca, and a glittering Brazilian Samba costume called “The Butterfly”.

The museum opened in 2005 courtesy of members of the Brownsville chapter of the Pan American Round Table Movement, a non-political, non-sectarian organization established in the early 1900s by Florence Terry Griswold, a bilingual Texan determined to promote friendliness and understanding among the women of the Western Hemisphere. The collection is considered one of the largest of its kind and the curatorial efforts of its staff, all unpaid volunteers, help preserve the art, culture, history, traditions, legends, folklore, and crafts of the people of the Americas.

Watch the video below to learn more about Hispanic Cultures in Texas. This video was produced for inclusion in the Hispanic Texans mobile tour, more information about which may be found on our Hispanic heritage page at the following link: http://texastimetravel.com/travel-themes/main-hispanic-heritage