Impact

BN 2015 GIFT GUIDE: BEAUTIFUL SOUL TO WEAR NOW

Lapis. Turquoise Mountain Collection by Pippa Small Jewellery. Photo by Tierney Gearon.

by Tierney Gearon. Courtesy of Pippa Small Jewellery. Lapis. Turquoise Mountain Collection.

We’ve curated a list of gifts that perform multiple acts of beauty. They delight your eyes, warm your heart, and deepen your soul.

1. THE TURQUOISE MOUNTAIN COLLECTION -- PIPPA SMALL

London-based jewelry designer Pippa Small has developed new jewelry lines that enables artisans from challenged parts of the world to live more beautiful lives.

Partnering with jewelry makers from tribal villages to slums, in Rwanda, Botswana, Kenya, Panama, Bolivia, Small draws from their heritage in conceiving her designs. She employs their high-level craftsmanship to make the pieces.

The Turquoise Mountain Collection, Pippa Small’s newest BoHo collection, was made in partnership with Turquoise Mountain Organization, which trains young Afghan men and brave young women in skilled trades and entrepreneurship.

Each piece is extraordinarily beautiful, not just because if the incredible quality of the gems, the designs, and the workmanship, but also because each gives sustenance and hope to one of many talented artisans who were forced, by the Taliban, to give up their craft or flee.

2. NADZHIDA’S JURAB STOCKINGS -- THE BOOTSTRAP PROJECT

These gorgeous Jurab Stockings totally warm both feet and hearts. They were made by The Bootstrap Project, in partnership with artisans from a remote region of Tajikistan. Nadzhida is the woman who made this pair, using an ancient knitting/weaving/crocheting technique.

Bootstrap microfinances these artisanal collectives, helping the artisans and their communities to live well and prosper, something they were extremely challenged to do before. And 5% of all Bootstrap sales proceeds are donated to the effort.

Offered by ethical fashion mecca, Zady.

3. CASHMERE POM BEANIE -- THE BOOSTRAP PROJECT

The Cashmere Pom Beanie, made by The Bootstrap Project, in partnership with a women’s development organization in Bakhtapur, Nepal, enabling widows, for the first time, to pridefully sustain their families.

Made of local cashmere, the hat boasts textured stitching, a ribbed bottom and a fluffy pom-pom

For more stylish, timeless, sustainably and ethically produced apparel and accessories gifts, check out Zady.

4. FONDERIE 47

Turning something ugly and capable of producing horror and death into something beautiful sounds impossible. But Fonderie 47 does just that. It makes very cool jewelry and art out of illegal guns.

A pair of cufflinks made from an AK47 mean one less killing machine on the planet, and one more beautiful pair of wrists!

So far more than 40,000 assault rifles, gathered from African war zones.

If you’ve got a friend who loves peace, any of Fonderie 47’s pieces would make doubly beautiful gift.

5. SAUGHT

Another admirable effort to turn weapons into adornment comes from Saught, founded by Pamela Yeo, Ng Sook Zhen, and Adeline Heng.

Nearly 2 million landmines and unexploded ordnances have been found in Cambodia and destroyed by the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC). Saught artisans take the remnant safely neutralized scrap metal, using it to make jewelry.

Saught works with artists, designers, and students, to create the designs. It employs artisans from partner NGOs – Rajana Association and Fileo Development Organisation – to handcraft the jewelry.

Profits are reinvested to help create even more employment opportunities for people in post-conflict countries.

6. SATYA JEWELRY

Satya, means “truth” in Sanskrit. The Satya Foundation uses proceeds from the sale of its Satya Jewelry lines to help fund children’s charities around the world, include local orphanages and charity: water.

We love the gold mandala earrings and bracelets. A stack of chunky stone bracelets would make a lovely gift as well.

7. TROIS SOEURS

Anie, Marcy, and Emilie are Les Trois Soeurs: Three Sisters, a social entrepreneurship that partners with artisans in Benin, in West Africa, to make a line of handcrafted apparel and jewelry. They make beautiful funky gifts! Proceeds are donated to improve living conditions and opportunities for young people in Benin.

8. MARISOL UMBRELLAS

Marisol Umbrellas protect women in more ways than one.

Made by Joyaux Marisol, an umbrella brand based in New York, these umbrellas add color, beauty and protection from the elements. Joyaux Marisol donates 20% of profits to support programs for survivors of sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The first collection was made in collaboration with The Mandela Women’s Art Group of Nairobi, Kenya.

The umbrellas are made with African textiles, like Kanga, using wax prints, traditionally worn by African women. They are sourced and waterproofed locally.

Joyaux Marisol recently sponsored a new workshop with women from W.R.A.P., a safe house in Nairobi, Kenya. They are planning workshops in the USA, Haiti, and abroad.

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IMAGE CREDITS:

Image: by Tierney Gearon . Courtesy of Pippa Small Jewellery. Lapis. Turquoise Mountain Collection.
Image: Courtesy of Turquoise Mountain.
Image: Courtesy of Pippa Small Jewellery. Turquoise Mountain Malika Suraya Necklace with Tiger's Eye.
Image: by Lalage Snow. Courtesy of Pippa Small. Pippa Small with Turquoise Mountain pupil Saeeda in Afghanistan.
Image: Courtesy of Pippa Small Jewellery. Turquoise Mountain Charity Lapis Lazuli Ring.
Image: Courtesy of Zady. Nadzhida’s Jurab Stockings. The Bootstrap Project
Image: Courtesy of The Bootstrap Project.Turkish Kilim.
Image: Courtesy of Zady. Cashmere Pom Beanie. The Bootstrap Project.
Image: Courtesy of Fonderie 47. Polished Antique Finish Earrings, by Philip Crangi for Fonderie 47.
Image: Courtesy of Fonderie 47. Crucible Cufflinks.
Image: Courtesy of Saught.
Image: Courtesy of Saught.
Image: Courtesy of Satya Jewelry. The Mandala Collection.
Image: Courtesy of Satya Jewelry. Assorted Bracelets.
Image: Courtesy of Les Trois Soeurs. Wax Print Teardrops Earrings.
Image: Courtesy of Joyaux Marisol.
Image: by Emily Scott Pottruck. Courtesy of Joyaux Marisol.
Image: Courtesy of Joyaux Marisol.
Image: Courtesy of Pippa Small Jewellery. Small Tibetan Ring.
Image: Courtesy of Les Trois Soeurs. Original Painting, by Joseph Njie.
Image: by BN App - Download now!
Image: by Tierney Gearon. Courtesy of Pippa Small Jewellery. Lapis. Turquoise Mountain Collection.