In this video we travel to Ecuador, to take a closer look at one of the country’s famed garment products – the handwoven panama hat.

The finest expressions of these hats have more than 4,000 weaves per square inch – a weave so fine it takes a jeweller’s loupe to count the rows. And every single one of those weaves is executed by hand. No loom is used – only dexterous fingers, sharp eyes and Zen-like concentration.

As we learn in the video, this expertise has sustained weavers in the small village of Puzhio for over a century, but many are now dropping the trade and leaving the country to find more lucrative work. Unsurprisingly, the weavers that remain fear the tradition will disappear from Puzhio completely.

View the original video here.

Good Living is the Cyprus Mail’s portal of curated content from across the internet, showcasing local and global ideas, cultural highlights, and scientific and technological developments to inspire a sustainable life.