OWP
Handmade Recycled Cloth & Wire Wastebasket-SM or LG-Fair Trade
Handmade Recycled Cloth & Wire Wastebasket-SM or LG-Fair Trade
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These wastebaskets are hand-crafted with recycled cloth scraps and wire and make a colorful way to separate paper and other recyclables from trash. A versatile design blends perfectly in any room. Show your eco-conscious side with this fair trade purchase.
Handmade using recycled materials by artisans in India at Mohd Israil's workshop, one of many fair trade workshops sponsored by Noah’s Ark. Noah’s Ark is an NGO founded in 1986 by Samuel Masih, one of the leaders in the movement to pay fair wages to artisans in India.
- Small Wastebasket measures 9-1/2" high with a 9-1/2" diameter
- Large Wastebasket measures 12" high with an 11" diameter
- Please note no two are the same colors due to being handmade.
Handmade in India and fair trade imported.
To learn more about the artisans who create these wonderful eco-friendly items and the techniques they use, please click on "About the Artisans" below.
About the Artisans
About the Artisans
Chichicastenango, Guatemala, has become one of the most important heritage centers in Guatemala during the past 10 years, due to its predominant indigenous Maya Quiche population and their traditional textile products. Yet, despite increased tourism and a renewed interest in traditional Mayan crafts, work opportunities remain few for the indigenous population, many of whom are uneducated and otherwise unemployable.
Enter De Colores Art, a local business that levels the playing field for villagers by offering free training to anyone who demonstrates the initiative to learn a trade. The company employs 30 women and 18 men to knit and embroider textile products, with the option of working at home using materials provided by the company. De Colores recognizes the culture of its Mayan employees, and as such allows flexible hours and gives time off for sowing and harvest days.
De Colores also invests in community education projects by funding two local schools in the neighboring towns of Chujupen y Pachoj, and by providing scholarships to qualifying students.
In addition to stimulating the local economy by creating new jobs, De Colores makes a conscious effort to use recycled materials whenever possible. The reason for this is twofold: to preserve Mayan culture, as recycled textiles showcase traditional knitting patterns that aren’t often seen in newer textiles, and to reduce scraps and waste.
Communities collaborate in the production process, as men work on the biggest textiles and women do the embroidery, crochet and macramé seen in smaller pieces. In some cases, in order to be competitive, sewing machines are used to assemble the finished product, although all the components are handmade and hand embroidered from cotton, wool and/or silk.
