In northern Mexico, indigenous Mazahua textile artists produce embroidery in the smallest possible form. Each stitch is a weave of the fabric. This is done with two needles working at the same time with two different tones of thread. The thread is usually black and red or black and blue, which is the typical Mazahua style.
The Mazahuan is the largest group of indigenous people living between of the state of Mexico and Michoacan. Mazahua means people of the deer in the Nahuatl language and many of the designs reflect this sacred animal. Symmetrical horizontal bands are also common in Mazahua embroidery as are birds, flowers, and eight-pointed stars called Mazahua stars. Most of the designs come from the patterns that have been shared over generations.
These complex patterns are created without drawing on the fabric. Instead the artists (mostly women), count threads to keep designs straight and evenly spaced. One unique feature of Mazahua embroidery is the use of decorative stay stitching which prevents the piece from becoming distorted during embroidery.