LILY'S HOUSE

Kakheti, Georgia
May 2023

Entering Lily’s house is like turning back the clocks 100 years ago. The old world sensibility of local villagers and farm houses in the vineyard-laden Kakheti region of Georgia is a trip in itself. Rarely does one get to enter the home and meet a women who has herself been designated a local hero and protector of traditional Georgia culture, specific to this region. On a warm spring day last month, Ana from Lopota Lake Resort guided and introduced us to Lily Murtazashvili, who for nearly a century, has been practicing the art of hand woven and wool-pressed carpets, tapestries and ornaments that are elegantly displayed in her home as a de factor museum. Fashion designers, culture seekers and travelers from near and far have been lucky to arrive in Lily’s home to get a first-hand glimpse of her nonchalant talent in craft. Lily extracts the colors and fibers from kiwi plants, sun flowers, treebark and other flora that she grows in her Provence-style garden to serve as the color schemes and dies for her yarns and threads.

For a taste of local tradition and heritage, below is a sample of the scenes and interactions we had with Lily during our time in her home.