Andeana Hats
Co-founders Laura Grier and Pats Krysiak created Andeana Hats to preserve the vanishing weaving traditions of Quechua artisans in Peru and K'iche artisans in Guatemala. Every hat is handcrafted using ancient techniques passed down through generations.
The story of Andean hats began on a trek across the Ausangate mountains of Peru, where Laura and Pats were stopped in their tracks by the extraordinary hats and weavings of the Andean women they encountered along the way. Moved by both the beauty and the fragility of these ancient traditions, which National Geographic has classified as vanishing arts, they imagined a way to bring these creations to a global audience while channeling real economic opportunity back to the artisan women who make them. Every Andeana hat and woven intention band is handcrafted by Quechua artisans, descendants of the Inca, using techniques passed down through generations. Because Quechua is an oral and woven language, not a written one, each hat is quite literally a piece of living history.
In partnership with Awamaki in Ollantaytambo and Artesanías Aylluyki in Ayacucho, Andeana connects talented female artisans directly to global marketplaces, empowering them with sustainable income, skills development, and creative sovereignty. Since their founding, Laura and Pats have been honored by the Embassy of Peru in Washington D.C. for their dedication to the Quechua people, recognized by National Geographic as Women of Impact, and celebrated by Forbes for their trailblazing philanthropic travel model. To wear an Andeana hat is to carry a story, wear an intention, and stand in solidarity with the women whose hands and heritage made it possible.