Posts tagged fashion
Monsoon and Oxfam Homewares
Oxfam and high street retailer Monsoon have joined forces with artisan producers in India to design produce and sell a delightful range of ethical homeware products. Monsoon designed each item and then skilled workers fromSelf Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), Noah’s Ark and Tara Projects produced them to be sold in Oxfam shops.
The exquisite selection of kitchen textiles, including hand-embroidered oven gloves, aprons and tea towels. Plus, other home accessories are adorned with a fun, vintage cherry print for the Spring/Summer range. There are also brightly coloured, enamel elephants covered in a floral design which make fantastic gifts to decorate any home.
The textile products, including tea towels and oven gloves, were hand embroidered by Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) an organisation which empowers female skilled workers. SEWA have been registered as a Trade Union since 1972 representing who rely on their own labour for survival. They aim to help women workers develop and organise employment to become self-reliant and secure.
The enamel products, such as storage tins and plant pots are hand finished by Noah’s Ark and Tara projects who are both established fair trade organisations. The projects work to empower low-income artisans and preserve the cultural traditions of their craft whilst breaking the cycle of poverty.
Noah’s Ark is a Fair Trade handicrafts business for the upliftment of artisans and the community and was formed in 1986. They offer a range of hand made items from home accessories to jewellery. Tara works to improve access to health, education and economic opportunity in nearly two dozen different countries. Their focus is on community as opposed to a specialist area or country .
The range will be available from selected Oxfam shops nationwide and prices start at £2.99. There is also a fantastic introductory offer of 20% off until 29th May so find your nearest participating Oxfam shop here.
ABOUT THE PARTNERSHIP
Monsoon and Oxfam are working in partnership to produce beautiful and affordable, high quality products; hand finished by artisan producers in India. Monsoon launched Monsoon Boutique in 2011 with the aim to create beautiful hand-crafted gifts and homewares, while creating livelihoods for disadvantaged artisan communities.
Monsoon is proud to be a founder member of the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) and is committed to ensuring high ethical standards across their supply chain. For more information Monsoon’s website Ethical Trading
Monsoon, who has worked with artisans in India since 1973, is committed to creating opportunities for disadvantaged producers. Monsoon approached Oxfam’s Buying Team to collaborate on a range of products that are sourced through the Monsoon Boutique supply chain in order to provide the producer groups with greater access to market. All producer groups are either WFTO members or operate as community cooperatives. Sourcing through Monsoon is in-line with Oxfam’s Ethical and Environment Purchasing Policy and are working together to better inform our approach to sourcing from artisan producer groups.
Oxfam is very excited to be working with Monsoon because of the design kudos Monsoon has on the High Street that will appeal to our current customer whilst attracting new customers. Monsoon are supporting Oxfam in product advice, design and sourcing product to create a unique range to improve market access for artisan producers and generate more money for Oxfam.
All profits from the range will go towards supporting Oxfam’s work around the world.
By Helen Archard Online Fashion Content Intern
Measure up!
Do you ever wonder which fashion brands are the most ethical and sustainable? Our new blog post from Oxfam Fashion shows you a handy new way to find out! http://bit.ly/UFKxDy
Join the flock and shwop for Wool Week 2012!
Yesterday morning M&S models took a stroll down Oxford Street accompanied by a flock of sheep, in support of ‘The Campaign for Wool’s’ Wool Week (15 – 21 October).
Wearing customised slogan jumpers that read: ‘JOIN THE FLOCK, #SHWOP’, they were calling on the British public to donate unwanted woolen items to be reused, recycled or resold through our Shwopping campaign.
To celebrate Wool Week we’ll be hosting a live digital knitting installation in our flagship Marble Arch store. Inspired by the work of New York artist Andrew Salomone we are asking our customers to get creative and submit designs and slogans that they’d like to see knitted onto jumpers by tweeting them to @marksandspencer using the hashtag #Shwopping.*
The most interesting will be picked by our expert team and knitted live in store onto knitwear that has been donated to Oxfam through our Shwopping campaign.
M&S and Oxfam’s live knitting installation will be taking place in the Second Floor M&S Café at M&S Marble Arch on 15th and 16th October from 9am – 9pm.
So if you’re in London and love fashion hurry over to M&S to take part!
Fighting for a fairer, safer, better world.Oxfam is a vibrant global movement of dedicated people fighting poverty and injustice. Together. Doing amazing work. Together. People power drives everything we do.
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Syria crisis
More than a million refugees have now fled violence in Syria and are in desperate need of shelter, food and water. Oxfam is aiming to reach 650,000 people in the coming months and calling for more international aid and a peaceful solution to the crisis.Enough Food for Everyone IF
The IF campaign is a huge coalition of UK-based organisations, including Oxfam, who share the vision of a world where everyone has enough to eat.Between now and the G8 in June, we're joining forces to petition David Cameron relentlessly and every which way to use his presidency of the G8 to take a lead on hunger.
Through our actions, and his leadership, we can persuade governments to act too, and when they do, everyone on this planet will have the chance of getting the food they need to live a healthy, happy life.
