In the Mexican mountain town of San Isidro Buen Suceso, Virginia Arce begins her days as she has for decades: seated at her vintage Singer sewing machine.

Arce is part of a group of talented female Indigenous artisans who create the embroidered dresses and blouses that have become a closet staple for Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and earned her a spot on the New York Times "Most Stylish" list.

Since launching her campaign for president, Sheinbaum has worn garments that honor the textile traditions of different Mexican Indigenous communities.

The president wore one of Arce's Nahuatl embroidery designs sewn on an elaborate purple gown to lead her first Mexican Independence Day celebration on Sept. 15.

When Sheinbaum stepped onto the balcony of the National Palace to wave the Mexican flag, millions of Mexicans saw Arce’s work.

"When she came out and was wearing the dress, it was a very emotional to see her with it, with the embroidery from Tlaxcala," Arce said, describing how her family gathered in front of the TV to spot the familiar stitches.

It wasn’t the first time Sheinbaum had worn something made by Arce.

One of Arce's traditional huipiles was worn by Sheinbaum during her presidential campaign and later readapted into a formal suit by Olivia Trujillo Cortez, one of the president´s seamstresses.

Sheinbaum's team often recycles her clothes. When Sheinbaum has worn a blouse or a dress a few times, she asks to readapt the piece into a suit or a jacket, giving them new life without spending too much.

Using embroidery and textile patterns from Indigenous artisans from Oaxaca, Chiapas and other places, Trujillo began producing suits, dresses and formal ensembles for debates, campaign rallies and, eventually, the presidential palace.

"People from all social backgrounds now want a dress like the president’s. It’s become a trend," Trujillo said of Sheinbaum's embroidered pieces.

For years, if someone wore a huipil "it looked bad," the president said, adding that disdain for the clothing, which is an expression of racism, remains in some places in the country until this day.

"She is giving textile art greater visibility so that people appreciate it, and so that our work isn’t dismissed just because we are Indigenous and live in remote towns," said Arce.

AP Video by Fernanda Pesce