Collection: Nepalese Felt
In 2009, whilst trekking through the Himalayas in Nepal, we were drawn in by the beauty of the mountains; humbled by their majesty and awed by their grandeur. Â Like many others before us, it was a life changing experience, helping us to clarify what is important in life; to question the value we place on possessions and then search out ways we could make meaningful contributions to the lives of the many people we met.
Handicrafts make up a large proportion of the economy in Nepal and they reflect Nepal’s rich culture and heritage. In Kathmandu, the streets of Thamel is a maze of shops selling trekking supplies, trekking companies touting for tourists to guide through the mountains, money changers, coffee shops and family shops selling handicrafts; handmade paper, products made with handwoven textiles, silk and cotton garments, handmade pottery, bright woollen felt, metalwork and beautiful silver jewellery.  As we had a retail store, we considered hat by purchasing some of these beautiful products to sell in our retail store we could provide meaningful assistance.
Over time we learned what products our customers liked and developed relationships with producers of paper, felt, and textiles. We buy handmade tissue paper that we wrap our soap at point of sale – we visited the place where the paper was made and watched their process – completely by hand with no machinery assistance. We also connected with small Nepali driven organisations that provide the opportunity for women to develop skills leading to income generation for their families, including weaving, sewing and felt making. We have visited all our producers to ensure fair wages and working conditions. We have also developed a partnership with a fair-trade group to assist us with purchasing ethically produced fair trade products. Over the 13 years that we have we have been purchasing from these families we have directly seen the children grow and their family situations improve. We are very grateful to our customers who support them by purchasing these products.
Customers who have visited our Maleny store are familiar with the range of beautiful colourful felt, flower garlands, animal hangings, bags, purses, brooches and Christmas decoration – all handmade by women who have been given an opportunity to earn money to support their families. We often get phone calls from customers who are wanting to purchase something they saw in the store, so we have made the decision to gradually add our fair-trade products to our on-line store. As the store is an hour’s drive from the factory/warehouse we will begin by adding products that we have a backup supply of.
In 2009, whilst trekking through the Himalayas in Nepal, we were drawn in by the beauty of the mountains; humbled by their majesty and awed by their grandeur. Â Like many others before us, it was a life changing experience, helping us to clarify what is important in life; to question the value we place on possessions and then search out ways we could make meaningful contributions to the lives of the many people we met.
Handicrafts make up a large proportion of the economy in Nepal and they reflect Nepal’s rich culture and heritage. In Kathmandu, the streets of Thamel is a maze of shops selling trekking supplies, trekking companies touting for tourists to guide through the mountains, money changers, coffee shops and family shops selling handicrafts; handmade paper, products made with handwoven textiles, silk and cotton garments, handmade pottery, bright woollen felt, metalwork and beautiful silver jewellery.  As we had a retail store, we considered hat by purchasing some of these beautiful products to sell in our retail store we could provide meaningful assistance.
Over time we learned what products our customers liked and developed relationships with producers of paper, felt, and textiles. We buy handmade tissue paper that we wrap our soap at point of sale – we visited the place where the paper was made and watched their process – completely by hand with no machinery assistance. We also connected with small Nepali driven organisations that provide the opportunity for women to develop skills leading to income generation for their families, including weaving, sewing and felt making. We have visited all our producers to ensure fair wages and working conditions. We have also developed a partnership with a fair-trade group to assist us with purchasing ethically produced fair trade products. Over the 13 years that we have we have been purchasing from these families we have directly seen the children grow and their family situations improve. We are very grateful to our customers who support them by purchasing these products.
Customers who have visited our Maleny store are familiar with the range of beautiful colourful felt, flower garlands, animal hangings, bags, purses, brooches and Christmas decoration – all handmade by women who have been given an opportunity to earn money to support their families. We often get phone calls from customers who are wanting to purchase something they saw in the store, so we have made the decision to gradually add our fair-trade products to our on-line store. As the store is an hour’s drive from the factory/warehouse we will begin by adding products that we have a backup supply of.
