One Sandal–Six Different Looks

In honor of Triangle Restaurant Week last week, we paired up with 6 local eateries to highlight their specials. We used our FAVORITE Fair Trade Ribbon Sandals in the collaboration, and we illustrated 6 different ways that you can wear one sandal.

By changing out the ribbons and the ties, you could wear the same sandal every day of the week and never wear the same look twice! Just in case you missed a tie, or wanted to learn one of the tying techniques, we’re recapping them on the blog today!

Day One – Braided Crown

 

Braided Crown with Silver Sparkle Ribbon /// Learn this tie here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pb6tN2jq-8U

Day Two – Floppy Ribbon Flip-Flop

Floppy Ribbon Sandal with Chroma Chiffon Ribbon /// Learn this tie here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwfpRr1oJag

Day Three – Sseko Sparkler

Sseko Sparkler with Teal Cotton Ribbon /// Learn this tie here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ca7kD6whh0M

Day Four – Sidewinder Slip-On

Sidewinder Slip-On with Olive Green Cotton Ribbon /// Learn this tie here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPBOx0ft77A

Day Five – Classic Sseko

Classic Sseko with Navy Ikat Silk Ribbon /// Learn this tie here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyQ0sKG4msA

Day Six – Zebra

Zebra Tie with Roseline Chiffon Ribbon /// Learn this tie here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdGaVDbPp2c

Sseko sandals are handmade by talented women living in Uganda. Sseko began as a way to generate income for high potential, talented young women to continue on to university. And it is working! Every woman who has graduated from Sseko is currently pursuing her college degree or has graduated from university and is on her way to making our world a more beautiful place.

In addition to the university-bound team, Sseko also employs women from all walks of life. By creating an environment of dignity, honor and dedication, Sseko Designs provides the opportunity for women in East Africa to end the cycle of poverty and create a more equitable society.

We believe that every woman has a dream. When she has the opportunity to pursue those dreams, we are collectively walking towards a brighter and more just and beautiful world.

It helps that the sandals are super cute and comfortable too!

Shop the sandals in the store on 9th Street, or online HERE.

Thanks for supporting Fair Trade!

A Party with Sole – One World Market and Sole Hope

 

To celebrate World Fair Trade Day on May 11th, we are throwing a party – a party with SOLE!

One World Market is teaming up with Sole Hope, an amazing organization changing lives in Uganda, to host a Cutting Party. Not familiar with a Sole Hope Cutting Party? Here to tell you all about it and a bit more about what Sole Hope it working to accomplish, is one of our amazing Volunteers and Certified Fair Trade Warrior Diana!

Take it away Diana:

Last month, I had the pleasure of staying at the Sole Hope guesthouse in Jinja, Uganda. While there, I was able to talk to the interns and staff and learn more about the incredible work Sole Hope is doing in Uganda.

The guesthouse is just part of the Sole Hope story, which began when Asher Collie saw a video (link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajdVs3s2k3U) about the jigger problem in sub-Saharan Africa. Jiggers (NOT the chiggers we know here in the South) are small parasitic sand fleas that burrow into skin and lay eggs, causing painful wounds in infected people. Jiggers often find their way into the bare feet of children and adults in Uganda, making it difficult and painful to walk, play, or go to work or school. Jiggers can also cause infections like gangrene and tetanus, which can be fatal if left untreated.

Image: Sole Hope

Inspired by what she saw, Asher, her husband Drü, and their three children, moved from Asheville, NC to Jinja to become a part of the solution. Now, everyday in Uganda, big green vans emblazoned with the Sole Hope logo drive to villages to perform foot-washing clinics, where staff and volunteers work to wash villagers’ feet and remove jiggers.

Image: Sole Hope Instagram/Gary Chapman

The worst cases of jiggers are taken to the Outreach House in Jinja. Here, they receive needed medical care, plus education about jigger prevention. As a teacher, I love the education piece of the Sole Hope mission. Simply removing jiggers and washing feet is a short-term solution. Teaching people how to prevent jiggers is a long-term solution.

Image: Sole Hope Instagram

When kiddos and adults leave the Sole Hope outreach house, they get a brand new pair of shoes to protect their feet from jiggers. This is where WE come in! The shoes that each person receives are made from recycled jeans! Volunteers around the world cut and donate old jeans to be made into shoes to empower people in Uganda to live a healthier life! PLUS, the shoes are handmade by fairly paid Ugandans in a factory on the Sole Hope campus in Jinja! The #fairtradewarrior in me loves that part of the Sole Hope mission! Simply giving a kid a pair of shoes is a short-term solution. Giving people sustainable and fairly paid jobs is a long-term solution.

Image: Sole Hope Instagram/Kayla Cervenka

So, we hope you’ll join us this Saturday, World Fair Trade Day, to be a part of the long-term solution! Bring some old jeans to One World Market’s first-ever Sole Hope Shoe Cutting Party! You’ll be supporting a great organization and empowering some pretty amazing people in Uganda!

Image: Sole Hope Instagram/Mary McLeod

Artisan Spotlight: Meet Achiro Paska

Meet Achiro Paska, an artisan in Uganda, and a member of the Ember Arts Artisan Group.

Nearly all of the women we partner with through Ember Arts are mothers, and part of the privilege of working with them is the opportunity to see their children grow throughout the years. The women of Ember frequently have babies and toddlers teetering through their office, and during training sessions, older children stop buy regularly to deliver messages from home and watch their mothers at work.

Achiro Paska's two youngest daughters, Emily and Evelin, have been staples at the Ember Arts office over the last few years, and she was happy to be asked to show them off and speak more about their lives.

When prompted to share her favorite part about being a mother, Paska couldn't choose; from pregnancy to teenagers, so far, she's loved it all. With six children from ages 14 months to 14 years,  she has certainly seen motherhood from many different angles. While she admits to getting annoyed when her children are quarreling with each other, most days she is happy to see them playing well together. They even have a favorite game that she couldn't quite explain through her laughter, apparently it's so funny that even the thought of it makes her giggle. 

Paska herself was left with relatives at the age of three, and grew up without a mother. She is determined to live her life differently, no matter what sort of trials she faces. Her advice to other mothers is "Love your children, whatever you are facing, and educate them. If you educate and love them it is good, because they are the future."

She is most proud of her children when they do well in school, and working to earn money for their school fees is her greatest concern. Her dream is that they will all finish their educations and never have to struggle the way she did growing up. 

We are thrilled to be partnering alongside hard-working mothers like Paska, and so grateful for the support of all the women- mothers and otherwise- that help make those dreams a reality.

Happy Mother's Day and thank you for supporting Fair Trade!

Spring Preview: NEW Outdoor Rugs

With cold temperatures on the way, we here at One World Market stay warm by wearing Fair Trade wool ( of course! ) and by looking forward to Spring!

We recently received a wonderful preview of some indoor/outdoor woven rugs that are produced in Senegal. Perfect for an outdoor deck or patio, we squealed when we saw the punch of color and pattern.

Two things Durhamites love: outdoor living and color! And we have to agree. A morning at the Farmer’s Market followed by a hike at the Eno – what could be better?

Following it up with a homemade meal (or glass of wine!) on your deck or patio of course! Which would be all the more fun with one of the gorgeous rugs:

Other color choices available in the zig-zag pattern:

We love the idea of bringing a bit of Africa to your home with these rugs. In Senegal where these are produced, the locals call them “Mingle Mats”.

Find a group of women weaving together in Senegal, or a family dining together, and chances are you will also find a Mingle Mat. These gorgeous African outdoor rugs are produced in a lively weaving facility in Dakar, Senegal's capital city, from long strands of extruded plastic.

We are so excited to bring these rugs to Durham this Spring!

Your Impact in Malawi – Fair Trade Skirts to Save the World

Here in Durham, we are lucky enough to have an ample summer season followed up with an absolutely wonderful autumn. As we head in to mid-August, we are starting to look for great TRANSITION PIECES for the store.

Transition pieces are items that can carry you through the seasons, meaning it works in warm and cooler weather. Jewelry can easily transition, but clothes can be tough. That’s why we LOVE our new Fair Trade skirts from Dsenyo!

Dsenyo works with artisans living in Malawi. The artisan group that makes their beautiful skirts: Mayamiko. Mayamiko is the Chichewa word for praise.

Mayamiko provides training in sewing and tailoring to local women who are affected by the HIV pandemic or are caretakers of HIV orphans. This artisan group helps people lift themselves out of poverty and end injustice through skills training, education, nutrition, sanitation and promoting fairer trade practices, which is so important everywhere, but even more so in Malawi.

And the skirts that Mayamiko creates are beautiful!

And completely transitional! Pair with a tank top or short sleeved shirt and sandals for summer.

Tights and a jacket or cardigan for fall! We could even see these skirts with leggings and tall boots for winter, because we have a feeling that once you tried one on…

you’re not going to want to take it off or pack it up for winter!

Recently, when Dsenyo visited Mayamiko artisans to pick up skirts and give them payment, they asked their artisans what they would do with the money they were being paid. Many replied that they would pay their rent for the next six months to a year, depending on how large a room they leased.

But there were two replies from two separate women that literally made us catch our breath. It stopped us in our tracks and yes, brought tears to our eyes.

Shoes. School for her children. Simple necessities that we could take for granted every day.

What a wonderful blessing to be able to support these women half way around the world. We’re excited that through these beautiful skirts…

we can support a talented artisan. We can help her earn the FAIR WAGE she deserves. We can ensure that she owns shoes and that her children can attend school.

That is beautiful fashion that we can feel good about! That my friends, is a skirt that can help save the world…or at least it can help save the world of 89 women living in Malawi.

And the fact that these skirts can transition from summer to fall to winter…well that’s just delicious icing on the Fair Trade cake!

Stop in to One World Market and support these women today!