Tin Decorations.

The tin decorations are hand made in Mexico from a family of tinsmiths.The decorations are inspired by the Milagros that adorn the church walls of Mexico. Milagros are the small silver of gold votive offering that come in the shape of body parts, animals, foods, houses and plots of land. Milagros would have traditionally been given to the preferred saint in the hope of a pray answered or to give thanks for a pray answered. Hearts would represent a romantic connection. The objects are made from tin, a metal that is light, has strength and has similar visual qualities as silver.

Prior to the advent of plastic, tin plated sheet steel was the material commonly used creating tough lightweight corrosion resistant containers and utensils. Tinsmiths specialised in these utilitarian objects. However the lustre of tin also lead to it being used as poor mans silver. Religious niches, picture frames, mirror frames and candlesticks were created in decorative styles crudely mimicking similar objects made in silver. Some craftsmen worked in both materials following the Mexican Revolution, In Mexico in the 1930s a fresh appreciation among artists and intellectuals emerged for the crafts of this country. This lead to tinsmiths creating a whole new range of decorative objects made by cutting, hammering and bending and soldering tin. The market for these objects was further broadened by the advent of mass tourism in the 1950’s and 1960’s.

Most Mexican tinwork is now made in the Mexican states of Guanajuato, Jalisco and Oaxaca in small family run workshops. We buy and commission work from one such workshop in  Guanajuato and Oaxaca.

Price: £3 each

Dimensions: 10 to 15cm at their widest point.

Tin heart
TDH1
10cm x 10cm
£3
BUY

Tin heart
TDH7
10cm x 10cm
£3
BUY

Blue sea horse
TD1
10cm x 10cm
£3
BUY

Yellow sea horse
TD3
10cm x 10cm
£3
BUY

Angel with Trumpet
TD7
10cm x 10cm
£3
BUY