Haiti By Hand

a special lady indeed

Just like with my children, it's impossible to pick favorites with the women in Haiti.  But some of them are just special to me for one reason or another.

Matid (mah-teed) is one of those.

Matid is a lady who sort of hangs in the background most of the time.  At least when I'm around.  She's quiet and comfortable in almost any setting.  These ladies can get pretty fiesty sometimes, but not Matid.  When the others are clamoring for my attention and wanting to try something new (like every 10 minutes), she just plugs away making her little 'hippie' bracelets.

Back in December, my daughter (who's a bit of a hippie herself) taught Matid how to make these bracelets and she just took to it right away.  So when I returned to Haiti in May and took the beads and cord that you ladies sent, Matid just settled in and got busy.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I would like to hold most of the Haitian's handcrafts for the event in September.  But since Matid's bracelets are so fun and summery I thought I would offer some of them to you here, for those of you who won't be able to make it in September.

If you'd like to purchase one of Matid's bracelets please email me at haitibyhand@att.net.  They are $12 each (that includes shipping) and I hope you'll be okay with me picking one for you.  As always here at HBH, every penny of proceeds goes directly to the artist, in this case dear sweet Matid. 

UPDATE: ONLY 7 BRACELETS REMAINING  ALL SOLD--THANK YOU!!

Thanks to each of you who check in now and then.  Basically, thank you for being one of the few who haven't forgotten about Haiti :)

grace & peace,

Rebecca

i *heart* haiti

made in haiti

I love the sound of that, don't you?  I am the lucky one who has boxes of items made by the Haitian women, sitting here ready to sell.  I would love to be able to list each one of them in the HBH etsy shop.  But for those of you who have etsy shops you know how long and involved that process is.  And my days are already so crazy-busy.  And it's just me here, not me and my staff :)

That's why I'm so excited that Nancy and Jo at The Creative Connection are providing me with a booth to sell the Haitian handcrafted wares at their much-anticipated event.  I've decided this is the perfect venue for buyers to see firsthand what the women have been creating.  For each item that sells, 100% of the proceeds will go directly back to that Haitian artist.  I'm really excited about this event and if you haven't thought about going, I wish you would.  Really, I think it's going to be the place to be in mid-September.

And I still have many stories and information that I want to share with you here about Haiti by Hand.  The slow blogging isn't a reflection of what's going on behind the scenes...much to share!  So thank you for allowing me to update you at such a snail's pace.  You are, as always, appreciated for your support.

the women are smiling

They are oh-so-grateful, speechless really, by the crafting supplies and materials that you bestowed upon them.

I remember when my children were itty-bitty, that look when they rounded the corner of the living room on Christmas morning.  I saw some of those same looks when I was distributing the supplies you sent to the women of Haiti.

During my trips to Haiti I have noticed one thing in particular.  The women rarely if ever smile.

And just look at this photo.  Do you see what I see?

Couldn't have done it without you, my dear friends.

(ha ha, and little do they know that they still have lots of supplies coming their way!)