Our Makers

Makers

 

We have brought together a collection of products that are made ethically by different artisans from different places and all with different stories.

 

India

 

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All our silk knits and a large number of our cotton knits along with some additional Jersey items are made in the Viluppuram district of South East of India.   

 

These skilled artisans and crafters are paid fairly and work within ethical workshops. 

The project that employs these artisans has been helping the local people for over 50 years and has been involved in education, environmental and social projects and is a major source of employment for the surrounding villages. The community works closely with these villages to improve their infrastructure, education, social justice and health care.

 

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Our kids pyjamas are made by a Dhonk Craft which is a Craftmark certified social enterprise that works in Ranthambore tiger Reserve with the objective of providing sustainable job opportunities to the Tigers neighbour’s through skill training in crafts.

 

They work with the ex-poachers families and local villagers who were once involved in wood cutting and cattle grazing in the tiger’s forest giving them training in crafts and giving them an outlet for their goods.

Through this project the artisans have access to many benefits such as microloans, Education Scholarships for young girls as well as pension plans and life insurance.

The work carried out by these crafts people gives them opportunities and creates a working environment that is not only good for them but helps the cause of protecting the wildlife especially tigers in this region.

 

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Our ladies robes and pyjamas are created by a small business based out of Jaipur, Rajasthan.

They work closely with the local artisans to create handmade clothing with an emphasis on sustainability through using eco-friendly and low impact material. They use organically grown fibres and where possible materials are sourced locally to where the products are made.

For block print, dying the fabric is every bit as important as the type of fabric used and throughout the process non-toxic, safe and eco-friendly natural dyes are used

This small business works to preserve and promote the traditional art of hand block printing that can provide a sustainable income for workers and the planet and keep alive a traditional set of skills that can be passed on to the next generation.

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Nepal

 

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Our slippers, cosmetic bags and brass jewellery are sourced from a not for profit, fair trade organisation that has been a member of the World Fair Trade Organisation since 2003.

 

Situated at the foot of the Himalayas they take careful and deliberate steps to preserve their environment.

They also provide various benefits for their producers some of which are given below:

Foresight Fund –

At retirement for those who have completed 4 years continuous service are provided with an annual payment of 1 / 12 of their previous annual earnings. This is paid into an interest-bearing account.

Child Education Allowance –

Recognising the need for education particularly among girls they allot a monthly allowance for up to 3 years to producers who keep their daughters in school for at least four consecutive years. They then support the three most outstanding students for a fourth year.

Medical Allowance –

After completing 6 months in the association, producers are eligible for a medical stipend to use for themselves or their family. 

Workshop Cafeteria –

Producers that work in the main facility unit receive hot, nutritious meals and hygienic drinking water at a subsidised rate.

 

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We also feature Knitwear made by a vocational training centre based in Kathmandu which was awarded Guaranteed Fair-Trade status by the WFTO in 2011.

The items they produce are made entirely by hand from New Zealand wool.

They were originally established in 1983 to help the local Pode community of street sweepers who were disadvantaged by the caste system which denied them education and employment opportunities and now offers educational and vocational training supporting the needs of low-income families throughout Nepal. They have also opened a childcare project for street cleaners’ children, providing adult literacy classes, a nutrition and health clinic and an immunisation programme.

 

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The majority of our ladies and all our kids T/vests are  sourced from an award-winning ethical clothing company who has strived to show clothing manufacturing can be done in an ethical and sustainable manner with care to everyone in the supply chain.

 

These items are manufactured in Tanzania and Bangladesh where people are paid a fair wage and work in fair conditions. These pieces are manufactured in SA8000 & BSCI compliant factories to ensure decent working conditions.
Their employees receive many benefits that we in the UK take for granted but are not standard in other parts of the world such as Freedom of association and rights to collective bargaining, paid maternity leave, a clean, healthy and safe work environment and on-site health clinics or a first-aid centre.
 

The protection and preservation of the local environment is also a key consideration, the manufacturing partners are committed to the carful waste management, consideration of scarce resources, policies to reduce, reuse and recycle and the use of effluent Treatment Plants to ensure clean water is returned to local water systems.

Many of these products are produced fully or in part with organic cotton (certified to GOTS and OCS Standards) and are PETA Vegan certified as well as carrying a STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® label.

STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® is one of the world's best-known labels for textiles tested for harmful substances. A textile that carries the STANDARD 100 label, has been tested for harmful substances and that the article therefore is harmless in human ecological terms.

Further information regarding the OEKO-TEX standard 100 can be found on the OKEO-TEX web site.

 

 

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As each item is hand crafted by different artisans you may notice little quirks and minor imperfections that add to the character and uniqueness of each piece, something we love! We hope these differences from mass machine made clothing and bags remind us all of the hand made and ethical way in which the products are produced. Kindly note: Due to the difference between monitors, the picture may not reflect the actual colour of the item. Please consider this before the purchase.

 

We hope that by us supporting them and by you supporting us we can continue to help this wonderful project that is doing so much for so many people.