September 27, 2011–I’m a crafty individual. Not like tricky-crafty, but like actually arts-and-crafts type crafty. Just ask my roommate. I made a window seat today. With plywood and upholstered it. No big deal. So, it goes without saying I love the handmade Christmas craft fairs, and generally any sort of artisan shop. Ten Thousand Villages is one of my favourites, by far.
This store (which you may have seen around, depending where in Canada you live) hosts a wide-variety of handmade products from around the world. It was started in 1946 by a Mennonite Central Committee worker visited a third world country and brought home goods that she sold to friends–the products were so popular, she was able to bring other handmade items from a variety of places around the world, eventually opening a store. Today, Ten Thousand Villages is a non-profit Fair Trade Organization that operates stores across the country where the products sold are made by communities in which their livelihood is made from the artisan products they make. The products are purchased at a fair price and sold to consumers who can be wholeheartedly assured that what they are purchasing are fair trade. At Ten Thousand Villages, relationships and partnerships come before profits. The stores are run by volunteers, and their products are also hosted at various festivals and sales during the year.
On October 1st, Ten Thousand Villages is celebrating it’s 65th Anniversary, and with that will come festivities in their stores across Canada. You can join them for draws, entertainment, balloons and more–and perhaps start your Christmas shopping early. To find your closest Ten Thousand Villages store, visit their website HERE or by clicking on their logo. You might not be as artsy or crafty as me, but you can always buy some handmade and pass it off as your own (don’t actually do that).
365 Days. 365 Causes. 