Eastern Navajo. My grandmothers.

Werito Family, Huerfano, NM Eastern Navajo Reservation

I have been doing research of my family for the past five years. Using the historic photographs taken by my grandmother Jane Werito Yazzie I have found inspiration to begin collecting stories and therefore the oral histories of my family.

This photo depicts my great grandmother Louise Begay Werito, and her children. Her daughter, Jane is seated on the right of her. I love this photograph for many reasons, but I adore this becuase it clearly shows how they have ADORNED them selves via their cultural jewelry and velveteen and calico cotton clothing.

My great grandmoher is wearing a velveteen blouse that features coins as a decoration on her sleeves and has small solver buttons along the line of her collar. My grandmother Jane is also wearing a velvelteen blouse with more decoration on the sleeve, front and down her collar. In this photograph my grandmother is a teen and wears her hair in a modern style, while my great-grandmoher is wearing hers in a traditional style.

The veleveteen during this era (late 1940s-50s) is the pure cotton velvelteen with no polyester content. This kind of velveteen is hard to find nowadays. My family still has some of this attire in our possession.