Shop Heart of Haiti at Macy's for the Holidays

Today is Cyber Monday and lots of folks are shopping online for great deals. I've written before about Heart of Haiti, the collection of artisan-made goods available exclusively at Macy's. The working fair trade partnership between Haitian artists and a leading American department store is especially compelling at this time of year, with holiday gift shopping looming large and everyone watching Miracle on 34th Street for the umpteenth time. 

My feelings about shopping are complicated. I love to buy pretty things, true, but I'd also like my purchasing power to mean something. If I can buy hostess gifts that also help build economic security for artists, that's a no-brainer. Macy's Heart of Haiti and Rwanda Path to Peace Collections do just that. There's something for almost everyone on your list, from jewelry to baskets, quilts, ceramics and metal home decor.

Macy’s Heart of Haiti upholds the belief that “trade not aid” is a powerful way to create sustainable work and much needed financial opportunities. The initiative allows opportunities for the artists to work with US designers, helping strengthen international artisan relationships and making their products viable in the US market. The Heart of Haiti campaign pays in excess of fair wage to the talented artisans who create the product, giving them the dignity of work and economic self-determination.

To date the program has employed 780 artisans, which has improved the lives of over 6,200 individuals. The Heart of Haiti initiative provides artists with an opportunity to make a living, feed their families and pay their children’s school fees.

This bracelet is hand-carved from cow horn. Talk about upcycling!

We've been inundated with news of how Hurricane Sandy has affected US communities but it's important to think about how it has impacted Haiti's fragile recovery process, too. While you're making your holiday gift lists, please consider purchasing goods from a fair trade vendor, like Heart of Haiti! Your dollars do make a difference.

In accordance to the FTC Guidelines and the WOMMA Code of Ethics, I am disclosing that I received the bracelet pictured above to facilitate this review, which is part of a Fair Winds Trading/Heart of Haiti awareness campaign by Everywhere. Rest assured, however, that all opinions are– as usual– entirely my own.

Rwanda Path to Peace Baskets

A few months ago, I wrote about fair trade and the Heart of Haiti project. Macy's sells lovely artisan-made gifts from Haiti through a collaboration with Fair Winds Trading, and their partnership also distributes gorgeous baskets woven by women in Rwanda via Rwanda Path to Peace.

Rwanda Path to Peace was founded in July 2005 as a way to promote lasting economic security to the women of Rwanda. The country's volatile political history has been divisive, to say the least, and the project gives women a way to use their traditional crafts as a sustainable way to take care of their families. It is strengthening the sense of community by allowing women who were once on opposite sides of the conflict to work together. The steady income provides confidence and independence, as well as more tangible necessities such as food, clothing, healthcare and education. Mothers are providing for their children's brighter future. 

Did I mention how beautiful these baskets are? They are stunning, especially when grouped, as in the photo below. I want to live there.

I received the bold, black and white Imvura Rain Fruit Bowl:

 

The pattern, woven of sisal and sweetgrass, represents the life-giving rain.

Baskets woven by the women, exported to the US and sold exclusively at Macy’s Department Stores are the number one export out of Rwanda under the African Growth and Opportunity Act. 

Here are just some of the ways Rwanda Path to Peace has impacted the basket weavers.

• Strengthening Families
• The Rwanda basket weaving project is strengthening families. Domestic violence in Rwanda is not uncommon, but now that women are bringing income into the home husbands are showing increased respect for their wives and in many cases domestic violence has ceased.  Husbands now offer to tend the children while their wives weave, which helps create stronger family bonds. The men are also assisting by harvesting and transporting raw materials and finished baskets, creating another income stream. Earning a steady income eases much of the stress of domestic life, and we have heard many stories of homes that are now more peaceful because there is an income from sales of baskets.

• Impact on HIV/AIDS
• The project has greatly improved conditions for HIV positive weavers. They can now afford good nutrition, so their medications are much more effective. Weavers with HIV no longer feel hopeless and stigmatized, but instead are respected for earning an income, like anyone else. They have their pride back, and are no longer ashamed.  Instead of being resigned to hopelessness, as they often were in the past, they are now making plans for life.

• Changing lives of children
• The Rwanda Path to Peace project has directly impacted the lives of thousands of children. Income from the weaving project provides food, clothing, healthcare, school uniforms, shoes, and school supplies.  We heard that before our project many of the children had only one set of clothing. Their clothes could not be washed during the week because they didn’t have another set to wear.  Now many children have two sets of clothing, so they can wear clean clothes all the time.  Their mothers can also afford to send them to school with a biscuit so they can eat during the day.  They are drinking clean water because the mothers can afford water-purification tablets.  As in many African nations, adolescent and teen girls would often drop out of school due to difficulties based on the lack of feminine hygiene products.  This problem has been solved so girls remain in school – free to learn and engage in sports activities.  The children have paper and pencils so they can learn to write.  The weavers’ children are very proud of their parents’ ability to provide them with these life-changing luxuries.

• Public Health
• Weavers are now able to afford mosquito netting, greatly reducing the incidence of malaria.  Many families now have clean water because they can purchase water purification tablets.

• Reconciliation
• The Rwanda Path to Peace Project is helping Rwanda in the process of healing and reconciliation. Weavers, organizers, suppliers, and government officials are working closely together to insure the success of this important project. Where there had been conflict and separation Rwandans are now working together for their common good. Weavers whose families had been at odds now work side by side making baskets and providing an income that helps improve their families and communities

One criticism: Fluffy says they should make the baskets much, much bigger…

In accordance to the FTC Guidelines and the WOMMA Code of Ethics, I am disclosing that I received the bowl shown above to facilitate this review. All opinions are, as usual, strictly my own. 

Heart of Haiti: Trade, Not Aid

Heart of Haiti is an amazing collection of handmade goods at Macy's that lets you feel good about shopping. Not just because you have fabulous taste– which is obvious, dahling!– but also because the Haitian artisans who create the collection receive half of the wholesale price from each piece. This initiative, a partnership between Macy's, Fair Winds Trading and the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, allows the artisans to foster self-sufficiency and helps them to become an important part in rebuilding the economic infrastructure of Haiti. Much of the Heart of Haiti collection is steeped in folklore and tradition, so showcasing it in select Macy's stores nationwide makes the artisans de facto cultural ambassadors for their country. I hate the term "win-win" but it definitely fits, in this case!

I have long been a fan of folk art and handmade goods, so I was really excited to be asked to review an item from the Heart of Haiti collection. They have a wide selection of jewelry, sculpture, housewares and textiles so it was hard to choose one thing! I remembered an intricately carved firescreen in a magazine years ago (before I had kids…) and being impressed that something so ornate and delicate could be made from repurposed steel drums. Incised metalwork is a craft that has a long history in Haiti so I decided to choose the Heart of Haiti Songbird Picture Frame for my review. In person, it is even more lovely than I had hoped.

Choosing a photo to encase in this frame was hard! I didn't know if I should use it on a snapshot or a Gocco print from my collection. I decided I would put one of my favorite pictures of Roo in it, showing her as a toddler, leaning against one of her daddy's big wooden sculptures. It seemed to strike a nice balance between art and home life, what do you think?

I love the way it looks against my chartreuse office walls!

The process the artisans use to create the metalwork is really interesting. They make a template on a flattened sheet of metal and then pierce it and emboss it to render a dimensional effect. This video gives you an overview:

See more videos on the Heart of Haiti site at Macy's about metal working, painted wood and papier mache artisans.

In accordance to the FTC Guidelines and the WOMMA Code of Ethics, I am disclosing that I received the frame pictured above to facilitate this review, which is part of a Fair Winds Trading/Heart of Haiti awareness campaign by Everywhere. Rest assured, however, that all opinions are– as usual– entirely my own.