Haiti has a special place in my heart-even though I haven't been there. Most of it comes from the Compassion children we have sponsored there over the years. Then after the earthquake I was given the chance to help through Etsy with a shop, Hearts for Haiti, that raised lots of money for Doctors without Borders to help in the country. Lately, I have been helping in a small way with another group that also does work in Haiti, and thought I should share some info about them.
This group started locally a couple years ago. It is a non-profit organization that is helping women in Haiti to become self-sufficient and entrepreneurs, while also recycling. Super cool. The group collects donated and old pieces of denim, then chops it up and turns it into something beautiful. Right not most of the denim collection happens in the US, then it is cut into usable pieces by volunteers here (this is the part I have been helping with-and you would not believe how much of the jean material gets used! Pockets, seams, belt loops...) and then it is shipped down to Haiti. In Haiti, there are some ladies who sew the denim into things like bags, rugs and headbands for sale. Right now, five women are working for the Denim Project, but there are plans to expand.
One of the things with this expansion that I am excited about-they are working on recycling glass too! I have been able to give some "artistic advice" in this area as they plan on how to reuse old bottles and pieces of glass that are discarded all over in Haiti. I love it-cleaning up the environment and also making pretty things with glass bottles, and helping people become self-sufficient!
Please check out the Denim Project website if you are interested in more info. Denim Project
This group started locally a couple years ago. It is a non-profit organization that is helping women in Haiti to become self-sufficient and entrepreneurs, while also recycling. Super cool. The group collects donated and old pieces of denim, then chops it up and turns it into something beautiful. Right not most of the denim collection happens in the US, then it is cut into usable pieces by volunteers here (this is the part I have been helping with-and you would not believe how much of the jean material gets used! Pockets, seams, belt loops...) and then it is shipped down to Haiti. In Haiti, there are some ladies who sew the denim into things like bags, rugs and headbands for sale. Right now, five women are working for the Denim Project, but there are plans to expand.
One of the things with this expansion that I am excited about-they are working on recycling glass too! I have been able to give some "artistic advice" in this area as they plan on how to reuse old bottles and pieces of glass that are discarded all over in Haiti. I love it-cleaning up the environment and also making pretty things with glass bottles, and helping people become self-sufficient!
Please check out the Denim Project website if you are interested in more info. Denim Project
RSS Feed
