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Center for Traditional Textiles of Cusco

For those interested in buying authentic handwoven textiles from the Sacred Valley, this is the place to come. The nonprofit center was established in 1996 to support the textile traditions in communities in and around Cusco. In the large, gallery-like space, you will find wall hangings as well as purses, place mats, carpets and shawls, all made by local weavers using centuries-old techniques and patterns. Colors come from natural dyes, and locals can read the meanings in the weavings. Often women demonstrate their art at looms in the back of the store.

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Centro Artesanal Cusco

Away from the historic district at the far end of Avenida El Sol is a large warehouse-like building painted bright red and yellow. There are several entry points and vendors around them, and the scene gives you a sense of what lies within: a large market for regional artisans, who arrive daily to sell their crafts. You won’t find any real treasures, but if you want to pick up ponchos, purses, necklaces or other small souvenirs or gifts, they’re likely to cost less here than around the Plaza de Armas.

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Claudia Lira

Peruvian jeweler Claudia Lira studied silver and goldsmithing and design in the Netherlands and designed in Florence and Amsterdam but returned to her native Peru to establish her namesake company. Her clean, contemporary lines incorporate precious metals and stones as well as local materials, such as Andean opals, spondylus (a seashell), titanium, even seeds from the jungle.

Ilaria

Ilaria Ciabatti, a Florentine artist who once taught school in Lima, may have done more to raise the profile and awareness of the traditions of Peruvian silversmiths than anyone else in the past two decades. She founded her company in 1992 to export sterling silver and jewelry to a store in Milan and then to Paris, Switzerland and Spain. The work she commissioned from local artisans sold so well abroad that she began to work with them to create jewelry that used local materials, such as Andean opals, sodalite and Peruvian turquoise. Today she has multiple stores in Peru and is considered the Elsa Peretti of her country, both for her jewelry and for her home designs.

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Apparels at Kuna, Cusco, Peru

Kuna

Kuna may be considered Peru’s version of Benetton. It has shops all over Peru, including in the airport in Lima, in the seafront mall Larcomar, on the main plaza in Cusco and in the Hotel Monasterio. It now also has outposts in Argentina, Chile, even Dubai. Fine alpaca is part of everything it sells—from men’s and women’s sweaters and coats to scarves, hats and gloves—but its designs are very fashionable. Some scarves may be 85 percent baby alpaca and 15 percent silk; many are in bright, fun colors. If you want to buy alpaca items that you will definitely wear at home, you will find the best selection and prices here. During sale time, you may find the best items in the hotel shops, which are less trafficked than those in airports or major shopping streets. There is a branch in the Hotel Monasterio.

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La Casa de la Llama

The House of the Llama is a Peruvian chain that specializes in knits made from the wool of the llama, which may not get as much attention as the alpaca but which this house argues is an even finer fiber. The designs are attractive if slightly more classic than those at Kuna. La Casa de la Llama also carries stylish fur and suede vests and many handbags in both leather and woven styles.

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Sol Alpaca

Another one of the Peruvian fashion houses that specialize in clothing made from South American camelids (vicuña, guanaco, alpaca and llama), but here the focus is really on the two finest: alpaca and vicuña. If you are looking for a classic stole, pullover, coat or scarf in butter-soft vicuña or baby alpaca, this is the place to come. Many of the designs are traditional (cable-knit pullovers and reversible overcoats and capes).

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