Who We Are
Artisan hosiery born in Alcoi and active since 1989.
La Tortugueta is a family workshop that documents and reproduces traditional socks with historical manual knitting machines. We work without stock, on demand. We are committed to proximity: both the yarn and the packaging are bought from suppliers in the Valencian Community. In addition, our environmental commitment is total: both the labeling and the shipping boxes are made of recycled material.
Macu's History
La Tortugueta was born in Alcoi (Alicante) in 1989 by Macu García, founder of the "grup de danses" Sant Jordi, researcher of traditional clothing, and turtle collector. She detected that there were almost no socks faithful to the originals and began to reproduce them together with a local knitter.
Instead of inventing, she reproduced with the old socks in hand, transferring the exact pattern to gauge 10 (adapted to early 20th-century machines, since the 19th-century originals were gauge 12). The first pairs were made exactly like the old ones and, later, colors were adapted at the client's request. They were so liked in her "danses" group that orders soon began.
During the 90s, she traveled weekly to Valencia to show the samples in traditional clothing stores. In 2000 she obtained the Craftsmanship Seal of the Valencian Community (DECA No. 2324) —the only artisan hosiery with this accreditation—, in 2002 it was constituted as a limited company, and in 2011 received the Parcs Naturals Brand of the Carrascal de la Font Roja Natural Park for its environmental commitment, of which our recycled cardboard labeling is a good example.
The Workshop Today
Today it continues as a family business: the next generation keeps the manual knitting machines alive, documents each model, and preserves the trade with the same philosophy as always. We do not invent new designs; we rescue historical pieces so they continue to be worn as they were conceived, finding originals in people who lend them to us, in museums, books, and visits to historical archives where we photograph old models.
We guard an archive with more than 287 models described in detail and have been knitting, restoring, and disseminating this trade for 36 consecutive years without industrial shortcuts.
Our Products
Our day-to-day is divided between several families of pieces, all knitted in 100% cotton number 12 or 8, and with the side seam sewn by hand.
The best known are the striped socks: stockings below the knee (as the old ones are) with geometric stripes and historical color combinations. We also create embroidered socks, plain pieces to which handmade embroidery with floral motifs, or even animals, is added using old embroidery machines.
We offer plain stockings with a drawing in the same color made on the manual knitting machine itself, identical to those of classic Valencian clothing. We recover pieces like leggings and booties, used by farmers, and make caps, hats, and garters on demand. The latter are ottoman ribbons reproduced from old models, and we also have them embroidered with old phrases (in Valencian or Spanish) taken from historical archives.
In addition, we carry out orders for "danses" groups from other communities that send us their old models, having worked for Zamora, Zaragoza, Burgos, Galicia, Catalonia, and Mallorca.
Recognitions
Official recognitions accompany, but above all, they are a guarantee. We are proud of our Craftsmanship Seal of the Valencian Community (DECA No. 2324) since 2000, as well as the Parcs Naturals Brand of the Font Roja Natural Park (2011) for our respectful processes.
We are members of the Craftsmanship Center of the Valencian Community and have been finalists in the Craftsmanship Awards. Our work has also reached major productions, having created hosiery for cinema, theater, and opera, including films like “Libertador” and “The Promise” (with an order of more than 200 pairs) or for the sopranos of the Teatro Real in Madrid. Behind each seal is a manual process that checks tension, steaming, and hand finishing before storing each sock in its recycled material packaging.
How We Work
We reach people just like in the nineties, now reinforced by digital communication. We attend direct orders by phone, mail, or WhatsApp, since all our pieces are made to measure: we ask for leg height, calf thickness, and foot size. Our collections can also be found in specialized traditional clothing stores and we continue to be present at craft fairs and festive events. We maintain remote attention with national and international shipments, relying on social networks.
Textile Memory
We share processes because textile memory needs to be public. We do this through reports in blogs like “Diario de una Peineta”, local press, and festival magazines, and through our participation in theater and film productions. We maintain a constant presence on Facebook and Instagram (@latortugueta.calcetines), where we show processes and news.
We make a call: if you have old socks, photographs, or family stories, we can document them and return them restored or replicated so they continue to be present in festivals, stages, and folklore groups.
How to Contact
To speak with us, just write to +34 653 45 22 49 (WhatsApp), or Instagram or book an appointment with Macu García. We answer without intermediaries, and every order is knitted to measure.