Creative Women

Creativity Squared

Last November I wrote about Dining for Women ("Dining for Change," November 5, 2009), and how much we appreciated being able to help their mission by supplying products for one of their fundraising dinners. We participated again this year, again with excellent results.

One of the items we sent was a bag of cocoon flowers, made from silkworm cocoons after the silk has been removed. Carolyn Mayers, who has been our DFW contact person for the past three years, used the ones we sent to finish her own creative effort, this brightly colored scarf:

 

In our own product line, we use undyed flowers to edge our Cocoon Shawl:

Isn't it wonderful to see how many ways there are to use the same objects? Love to see that creativity in action!

 ~ Amy

P.S. Before the holiday shopping stress gets you down, take some time to check out the Fair Trade Federation's new  downloadable Shop Fair, Give Fair Holiday Guide. Beautiful, hand-made gifts that give back to the people who made them; that's the holiday spirit.

 

 

Still thinking about the NYIGF ...

It's been a few weeks and I've still got the NYIGF on my mind.  Yes, we still don't have all the Blue Striped Napkins and tablecloths that have been ordered (if anyone has advice on how to keep inventory, please be in touch), but I've decided to think about the more pleasant parts of the show and this business.  So, for the next few blogs I want to tell you about some of the people I met at the show and things they have "turned me on to".  

To start, if I didn't own Creative Women, I probably would never learned about Edna Lewis, the Grande Dame of Southern Cooking.  But thanks to Angela Hederman, who ordered 13 Striped Napkins for her friend Scott Peacock (another grand name in southern cooking), I now have watched a fascinating video about Edna and her influence on cooks, especially Scott.

About.com described Edna this way, "A tall, commanding woman, Edna Lewis was also a giant in the culinary world as well as in life. The granddaughter of freed slaves, Edna would grow up to be a great chef, culinary ambassador, and caretaker of genuine Southern cooking. She would inspire a generation of young chefs and ensure that the traditional folkways of the South would not be forgotten. More than a skilled cook, Edna Lewis touched the lives of those around her with grace and the beauty of life. She will be deeply missed."

So many women have made a difference; Edna definitely is one of them. I seem to be meeting a lot of them along the way ... Creative Women all over the world.  And, I just thought that I'd learn more about business when I started Creative Women.

 

Scott Peacock and Edna Lewis

Dining for Change

What's better than getting together with friends for a really good meal? Easy--getting together with friends for a good meal, and doing some good while you're at it.

Every month, women across the U.S. get together under the aegis of Dining for Women, a non-profit organization through which small groups can gather big money to donate to charitable organizations seeking to support and empower women and children living in some of the poorest countries in the world. It's a creative approach (love that word, creative!) to getting people involved, and bringing some of these issues that can feel so far away right up front and center.

How is Creative Women involved? Well, two years ago we supplied textiles for a fundraising dinner meeting of the Eastern Shore of Virginia chapter of Dining for Women. Here's the cool part: the featured program that month was the Fistula Foundation. Much of the silk used in our Ethiopian textiles is spun by women recovering in the Fistula Foundation Hospital in Addis Ababa. How's that for synchronicity?

This year, we were happy to be able to supply goods for a Fair Trade sale and education event put on by that same chapter, more than doubling our previous sales record. Hurrah for hungry women!

Amy