And "F" is for "Fair Trade!" With another school year fast approaching, you may be wondering how to make ethical and sustainable choices for back-to-school items. Here are some ways you can do this when you shop:
Choose Fair Trade
Look for backpacks, bags, and pencil pouches made by artisans who are fair trade certified. These bags are often handmade by means of traditional techniques, using handwoven and embroiderd fabrics. When you shop fair trade, your purchase directly gives back to the artisan's local community. To learn more about the positive impacts of fair trade, head to our blog and check out the artisan spotlights about Carmelita, Diego, and Guillermo, just a few of the artisans we're proud to work with.
Consider Eco-Friendly Materials
Look for backpacks made from repurposed fabrics, like those we carry made of repurposed cortes and huipils from Guatemala. These fabrics are typically better for the environment and often have a longer lifespan than other non-organic materials. Using recycled fabrics also helps cut down textile waste and keep these usable materials out of landfills.
Support Local and Independent Designers
When you shop locally for back-to-school items, or buy from independent designers, you support small businesses and keep money in your community. Shopping locally also helps reduce your carbon footprint.
Check for Certifications
Look for certifications like the ones conferred by the Fair Trade Federation and B Corp. These indicate that a brand has met certain standards for ethical and sustainable business practices.
When you choose to shop ethically and sustainably, you reduce your environmental impact and make a positive difference in the world. An important lesson as we head back to school!
Guatemalan textiles, particularly huipils, are more than just articles of clothing; they are canvases for self-expression and cultural preservation. Using visual symbols, vibrantly colored, each textile tells an age-old story.
Motifs
Artisans in Guatemala weave their textiles on backstrap looms, continuing a tradition that has lasted for generations. Not surprisingly, the fabrics incorporate traditional motifs with deep cultural significance:
Plants, especially flowering ones, represent the cycle of life, death, and rebirth. They also symbolize the interconnectedness of all living things.
Zigzags and broken lines represent serpents, which serve as messengers of the Mayan sun god. These, too, can symbolize rebirth and renewal.
Colors
Colors play an essential role in Guatemalan textiles, with each one conveying specific meanings:
Blue represents the sky and water, embodying the life-giving forces of nature.
Red signifies sunrise, daytime, energy, and power, reflecting the vitality of life.
Yellow symbolizes the sun and corn, both crucial elements in Mayan culture.
Black represents sunset, nighttime, death, recovery, and war, acknowledging the darker aspects of life.
White embodies air, spirituality, and hope, signifying the aspirations of the people.
Green represents plant life, royalty, and the Quetzal, Guatemala's national bird, highlighting the connection between nature and the divine.
When you buy bags and clothing made from repurposed huipils, you help preserve the rich symbolic heritage of Guatemala. In a very concrete way, you experience the beauty of Mayan culture.
We're proud to play a part in this, by offering a wide selection of goods made with authentic Guatemalan textiles. Fair trade is our way of supporting skilled artisans and their traditional craftsmanship.
The artisans of Santiago, Guatemala have a deep, abiding affinity with nature. Their distinctive creations, from textiles to beadwork, celebrate the flora and fauna surrounding them.
Birds, in particular, inspire their vibrant designs, with depictions both abstract and realistic. There's a fascinating story behind the artistry and symbolism of these designs -- a story we're delightedto share with you!
Why Birds?
Bird species were abundant in the ancient Tzutujil Kingdom, which once encompassed Santiago. As a matter of fact, the Tzutujil people knew the area around Lake Atitlan as theTz’ikin Jay, or Bird House. Not surprisingly, their great appreciation for birds found expression in their cultural traditions.
Embroidered Birds
The influence of the ancient Tzutujil people can still be felt -- literally. When you explore Santiago today, you can't helpbut notice the traditional fabrics and avian motifs. These consist of intricate embroidery, used to embellish pants and the blouses known as huipiles. Clearly, the modern-day practice of embroidering birds is a testament to Santiago's history and identity as part of the Bird House.
Beaded Birds
Beadwork is another craft that showcases the Tzutujil reverence for birds. In the process of stringing beads together, artisans work to represent a wide variety of species. Often, they refer to bird books to find inspiration and ensure accurate depictions. This dedication to accuracy is one more sign of the love that birds inspire in Santiago.
Diversity
Within the region, you'll find styles as diverse as birds themselves. Techniques and designs vary from one area to another, even one family to another. When you explore these variations, you get a better understanding of an age-old cultural tapestry, reflecting the natural beauty of Santiago. What's more, you come to feel a passion shared by artisans and enthusiasts -- a passion for preserving regional traditions, so bird-inspired artistry will continue to soar.
We invite you to share your thoughts and questions about the avian artistry of Santiago. The more we learn about these traditions, the more they continue to enchant -- for generations to come!
We in the developed world live in a privileged economy. Most of us have excess resources for and access to surplus choices in the “managing of our households”. (Economy is borrowed from the Greek word oikonomia which means just that: management of household). These luxuries make us ideal targets for advertisements. We are bombarded with them everywhere we look and listen.
The questions I propose will be a pain to execute. Careful regulation of our commerce will cost us in time and energy, yet the wide range of gains will be profoundly motivational.
Are you ready to tip the scale?
3 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Buy (I made it as easy to remember as do-re-me.)
1 DO... DO I have one?
Is there already one of these in my household? Is it still acceptably useful, fulfilling its function?
The staggering statistic of annual textile waste in the USA, 100 pounds per person, is Exhibit A of the frequency and ease with which we shop for clothes. When I lived in Guatemala, “paca” shops stuffed with the overflow from thrift stores in the States were viable businesses. What resulted in a welcome resource for the locals also displayed the shocking reality of dissipation up north.
We easily get tired of our old stuff, and the “lure of the latest” is real and strong. Instead of discarding, consider creative up-cycling or re-purposing for a fresh look. Recognize and value what you have, add to it, reconstruct it, or re-imagine a way to increase its life. A de-cluttered closet will only enhance your sense of well-being. Guaranteed.
My Eco Closet shared some useful suggestions on the theme of sustainable shopping.
2 RE... Did I REsearch the seller?
Ethical vs Fast Fashion
Since the year 2000, twice the amount of clothes are manufactured worldwide. An average person today buys 60% more clothes than fifteen years ago. Because clothing is replaced faster, the production rates increase to keep up with demand. This affects the accelerating negative impact on our environment. 92 million tons of textile waste per year! Read up on Fast Fashion statistics here.
The resulting low quality of Fast Fashion creates the need for replenishment, increasing demand, so the evil cycle continues. I spoke to an 84-year-old lady this week, who said she still wears clothes she made twenty years ago. I wonder if any of us still fit in our 90s outfits!
Consider too the cost to human lives in the fast fashion industry. Atrocious conditions in factories and low wages of workers are well-documented. Find a list of 12 films about fast fashion that may quickly cure your shopping compulsions here.
The definition of ethics clashes with the popular philosophy of relativity in the third millennium: Ethics is the discipline dealing with what is good and bad, and with moral duty and obligation. The Cambridge Dictionary defines the meaning as “relating to beliefs about what is morally right and wrong.” If we propose an ethical attitude to shopping, we must “conform to accepted standards of conduct, involving or expressing moral approval or disapproval” (Merriam-Webster).
As much as we can know the facts about a company, let us make informed decisions about where we drop our dollars. Burying our heads in the sand, as ostriches do, won’t make the evil go away. Do the work: research and stop supporting the exploitation of vulnerable people and our beautiful earth.
As a seasoned fair trade partner, Unique Batik has earned its place on the ethical shopping platform. Up-cycled garments form a large chunk of the items we offer. The stories of its decades-long personal relationships with the artisans are told in previous blog posts. These individuals are not faceless numbers to us.
3 ME...Does this MEet my budget?
Is this purchase within my budget limits? Advertisers specialize in appealing to our innate greed by offering credit – buy now & pay later campaigns. The sale and discount aisles lie littered with the fallen! “My heart never beats as fast as it does when I see a 'reduced by 50 percent' sign,” admits Rebecca Bloomwood in Sophie Kinsella’s Confessions of a Shopaholic. (How I do relate!)
The strong link between debt and poor mental health is widely known. The distressed mind chooses the temporary excitement of a new purchase, overspends, and so starts another cycle that is harder to escape from.
Stop and assess the benefits compared to the costs. Be wise.
The Sugar Boycott
Late in the 18th Century British and American Quakers launched a public campaign against purchasing products made by slaves. Brutal working conditions and inhumane treatment on Caribbean sugar plantations caused a high rate of mortality in slave populations. About 300,000 protesters participated in the two-year-long sugar boycott. The campaign, along with the tireless efforts of people like William Wilberforce, resulted in an effective end to British involvement in the slave trade.
Change will happen much slower and harder than singing Do-Re-Me. But as a friend of mine constantly reminded us, “If you change nothing, nothing will change."
What one thing can you change that will turn the tide?
That is us, living in the 21st century. “Pretty cushy lives” compared to the limited choices our primitive forbears suffered, specifically when you consider clothing.
The various raw materials woven into the fabrics we use every day are a fascinating discovery for those who care to check labels. Natural or synthetic, and blends of these. Fibers from organic cotton or recycled soda bottles. Claims of astonishing versatility and benefits to your skin, to reassuring protection of endangered species.
For our conversation today, we are looking at cotton, the most widely used natural fiber cloth.
The Plant and Process
Gossypium, a genus of flowering plants in the mallow family, Malvaceae, is native to tropical and subtropical climates. The plant develops short-lived white blossoms about three months after planting. In their place appear green triangular pods, which are called bolls. During the next two months, seeds and seed hair (or cotton fiber) develop inside the bolls. Once mature, the bolls burst into white fluffs, each containing about ten seeds embedded in the mass of seed fibers.
The opened bolls are harvested by hand or machine. In most underdeveloped nations, cotton is still hand-picked – a labor-intensive, tiresome, and costly process. It takes about eight hours to pick a pound of cotton! However, this method generally produces cleaner cotton due to the selective capability of humans.
In ancient times, the seeds were also tediously removed by hand. The invention of the cotton gin (short for engine) in 1793 by the American Eli Whitney lowered cost and allowed the removal of the seeds fifty times faster than the manual process. Modern gins operate on the same principle as the rudimentary contraption Eli developed: the harvested cotton passes over a cylinder covered in sharp teeth that grabs the fiber and pulls them into narrow openings, separating the seeds from the fiber strands. The seedless fibers are cleaned from debris, packed into bales, and shipped off to be spun into yarn and eventually woven into cotton cloth. Watch a demonstration of the original cotton gin here.
Cotton is a zero-waste product. Linters (shorter strands stuck on the removed seeds) provide cellulose for manufacturing plastics, explosives, paper products, and padding for mattresses. The crushed seeds become cooking oil, livestock feed, fertilizer, and high-protein concentrate in some food products. The stalks and leaves of the plant get plowed into the soil.
The History
Ancient civilizations in the Americas, Africa, and Asia cultivated cotton and made cloth from the strands. The fabric made its way to the Middle East and was eventually traded by Arab merchants around 800AD in Italy and Spain. In Britain, wool was king of the fabrics. Compared to cotton, wool was easier and cheaper to produce. Wealthy English were so drawn to the exotic new cloth from the tropics that the wool industry suffered economic losses. So much so that in the late 17th century, the wool barons pressured the British Parliament into signing several laws against cotton imported from India. But, the tide could not be stemmed for long. Trendy cotton quickly became how the growing middle class could display their wealth and status.
The word cotton originates from the Arabic qutun, describing any fine textile. (I love the German word for cotton: baumwolle = tree wool.) Calico, our word for plain-woven textile from unbleached cotton, got its name from Calicut, the city in India where the fabric was traditionally woven, dyed, and printed in bright colors.
The Quality
Cotton quality depends on how long the fiber strands are after ginning. The longer the thread, the finer the cotton.
The many beneficial properties of cotton products led to its mass adoption globally. Cotton cloth is durable and tear-resistant due to the plant's strong cell structure. It is soft on the skin, comfortable, and static-free. Its absorbent nature makes it a breathable fabric and an unwelcome environment for lingering bacteria.
The well-known cotton seal was designed 50 years ago. It is still a powerful influence on designers and an effective sales builder. When age-old cotton is compared to modern synthetic fibers so popular these days, it seems the verdict is still out on which fiber is superior in texture and sustainability. What do you say? Is Cotton King? For me, it is an easy yes when choosing clothes and linens. I'm very happy I live in an age where I have buying options and free access to information about the process and production of what ends up in my shopping cart.
This month Unique Batik is highlighting a wide variety of cotton garments from Thailand. Explore our wide range of comfortable flowy tops, bottoms, and dresses. And choose cotton!
Most people love BLUE. Claimed to have soothing effects on humans, the color blue often evokes feelings of peace and tranquility. Blue is also the most common clothing color. Think the ubiquitous blue jean.
Blue Jeans
Genoa, Italy, was known for producing a hard-wearing cotton cloth, which became known asjeane, named for the city. Attempting to replicate this fabric, weavers in Nimes, France, developed a unique and sturdy fabric using a twill weave. They dyed the warp thread blue with indigo and left the waft thread white and called it Serge de Nimes, which became de Nimes and then denim. Read about it here:
King of dyes
Indigo blue is one of the seven primary colors in the color wheel and the rainbow. Natural indigo dye is an extract from the leaves of Indigofera, a tropical genus. Because the dye acts by attaching and wrapping its molecules to and around each string of fabric, it protects the fabric in a way that makes it last longer. And so they call indigo the King of Dyes.
The name means “from India” since India was the primary supplier to Europe between 30 BC and 400 AD. But the origin of this fascinating natural dye goes back even further in time and to the other side of the world. Archaeologists discovered an indigo-dyed cloth in Peru and dated it at 6,000 years.
Widely used among all the major ancient civilizations in the Americas, the Spanish started exporting Maya Blue in the sixteenth century from the region that is now Guatemala. France and England eventually joined the lucrative trade, and two centuries later, indigo was successfully cultivated in Mexico, Venezuela, and the Caribbean.
Blue Gold
Eliza Lucas Pinckney, born in the Caribbean, was sent to the family’s Charleston plantations as a teenager, along with her mother and sisters. Passionate about and naturally skilled in botany, she started experimenting with indigo cultivation and processing. Persisting for years, despite setbacks and ridicule from her peers, she finally succeeded in growing enough to begin dye production in 1774.
Indigo became a major export crop of the Atlantic economy, its profits fast outnumbering sugar and cotton. The colonists even used indigo dye bars as currency during the Revolutionary War!
The Indigo Girl, by Natasha Boyd, is a delightful re-telling of this remarkable person, the first woman inducted into the South Carolina Business Hall of Fame.
Green leaves to blue dye
Turning leaf into coloring agent is complicated, involving many chemical reactions. The green basil-like leaves are immediately submerged in water after being harvested, to initiate fermentation. They are left to soak for at least a day, after which the leaves are removed and used as a rich nitrogen fertilizer. The liquid in the tank is still lemon green with a purple-blue floating froth. Vigorous whisking for an hour oxidizes the water. Only during this phase does the green water turn reddish blue. Skilled artisans often taste the brew, ascertaining its potency and readiness. The final product, dye cakes or powder, is achieved after several additional processes. Indigo in this format is what a fabric dyer uses, adding only water and a reducing agent such as natural fructose or chemicals.
We source indigo-dyed products from Thailand, where traditional indigo dyeing has been going on for generations. The Indigofera plant is called hom in Thai. The women artisans of northern Thailand demonstrate an unusual emotional relationship with their dye vats. They believe their brews are alive, of “having souls” needing loving care beyond maintaining the chemical balance. They often sing to their vats as they “feed” them, and the vats are kept alive by vigilant care and supervision.
I always get excited when Isee the Arrivals sign at the airport: the sense of joyful anticipation in watching for specific faces in the crowdsemerging, the delight of reunions.Upin the air, the passengers have startedto gather their things, freshen up, and fasten their seat belts in preparation for landing.
Arrival.Destinationreached.
Here at Unique Batik, the arrival of new merchandise from Guatemala and elsewhere always causes great excitement as well! The journey of our garments, bags, and jewelry, from the artisans to Raleigh, is a road strewn with obstacles. Anything from roadblocks or road washouts to volcanoes erupting or bureaucratic hurdles can be expected.
At this point of our calendar year, we are entering the season of Advent.
The word "advent" meansto arrive and is generallyused to signify the arrival of an event. In Christian circles around the world, Advent refers to a four-week season celebrating the arrival of Jesus Christ on earth many centuries ago.
Advent is also a season to focus on four topics, one per week leading up to Christmas:Hope, Peace, Love, and Joy. Four Advent candles are lit in Advent wreaths as the countdown raises enthusiasm and longing.
Our unique holiday traditions are handed down from one generation to another. The specific customs around festivals are simultaneously the distinguishing and unifying elements in families and cultures.
One such practice in America is decorating an evergreen tree the week after Thanksgiving. The boxes of tinsel and lights come down from the attic, and many memories are revisited as each item is unwrapped. The richhistory of this traditionis a fascinating read.
Take a look at these magnificent decorations from Unique Batik:
“Science and technology revolutionize our lives, but memory, tradition, and myth frame our response.” (Arthur M. Schlesinger)
Indeed. Our emotions fray as we speed to the conclusion of 2023. And I am aware of the dread these holidays can conjure. However, helpful traditions can frame healthier responses. Think about your family's holiday customs for a minute. Do they draw your attention to deeper realities than the commercial overload this season often induces? (Feel free to share any in the comments below.)
Dread is the opposite of expectancy.
Jeff Hutchings shares a fresh insight by connecting the upcoming holidays: “Thanksgiving is like an appetizer for Advent... Thankfulness is the perfect soil for expectancy.” Read the articlehere.
Here is how you connect the dots: Reflect on the past ten months. Remember. Count the gifts. Give thanks. Share gifts. Fill up on hope.
A way to let off the pressure as we descend onto the tarmac.
We weave in and out of traffic. Stories are experiences woven together. Long hair, baskets, and dough are braided. Knitting and crocheting are basically weaving with yarns.
But when we speak about weaving here, it's in the context of textiles, the interlacing of fibrous threads to create fabric. Every piece of clothing on your body is woven fabric. The sheets you sleep on, bath towels and dishtowels, rugs, curtains, table linens. Living as we do in the modern age, most of us are oblivious to the intricate processes involved in manufacturing the items we daily use and enjoy.
Fabric is one such article commonly utilized and taken for granted.
Imagine yourself in 6000 BC, in need of a blanket or shirt. After planting and harvesting, you spin natural fibers like cotton or flax into threads. Or you twist sheared sheep wool or manipulate silkworms to obtain yarn. If you are feeling creative, you dye some of the threads with plant or insect extracts in order to incorporate a design in the weaving. For the next few days or weeks, you patiently insert the transverse weft yarn over and under the tightly stretched lengthwise warp yarn. Back and forth. Painstakingly slow. Mesmerizingly meditative.
Due to the use of fragile organic materials, we have no samples of these early woven pieces, as we do of ancient pottery shards. Tombs in Egypt unveiled fragments of woven textile, preserved in the dry climate of the sandy desert, as well as a 5000-year-old terracotta plate depicting women weaving on a vertical loom.
The basic need for cover meant that a loom featured prominently in households everywhere, and the skill was passed on to each new generation. As an art form woven pieces also communicated cultural values, traditions, and personal emblems. The care, skill, and time it took to create a weaving enhanced its value, affording extra income or means of trade. Weaving remained the unique product of time-consuming manual operation for centuries.
Similar to what happened with most “cottage industries” during the Industrial Revolution, the demand for mass production required the mechanization of looms. Thus, in 1786, the first power loom was introduced. This machine enabled a faster weaving process and larger output but came with certain limitations. One important feature, the weaving of complicated designs and textured fabric, remained a manual operation.
Until
Several decades later, French entrepreneur JM Jacquard, built an attachment to the loom that used interchangeable perforated cards to guide the warp threads automatically. A desired pattern could be woven by simply changing the cards, effectively automatizing even complex weaving.
An English inventor, Charles Babbage, adopted the idea of punch cards in 1837 to store programs in his “Analytical Engine”, a proposed general-purpose computer. Mathematician Ada Lovelace recognized the symbol-manipulating potential of Babbage’s computational machine. "We may say most aptly that the Analytical Engine weaves algebraic patterns just as the Jacquard-loom weaves flowers and leaves," she noted. Before the same century ended, an American inventor designed a tabulating machine to input data for the 1890 US Census. Punch cards were used in digital computing for close to another 100 years until electronic devices replaced them.
Mayan weaving
While punch cards and antique looms populate museum exhibits in fast-paced modern societies, manual weaving is still widely practiced as it has been for millennia in many cultures. In these places, everyday garments and house linens are still exclusively made with fabric woven on traditional looms.
The rhythmic sound of the wooden treadle The muted thud of reed against breast beam The soft claps of hands shaping tortillas The daily symphony in a Mayan household.
As part of their traditional outfit, the Mayan women of Guatemala wear a skirt known as a “corte”. It is similar to a wrap-around skirt, except three times as much fabric is involved. It is generally the work of men to weave the 7-meter-long piece on bulky treadle looms. In dressing, the women wrap the fabric around, around, and around the lower half of the body and secure it with a decorative girdle. The final ensemble resembles a long, straight pencil skirt, which you can imagine being very restrictive. Till you encounter the same women in traditional dress on a steep mountain trail: sure-footed, graceful, and confident like a mountain goat!
The quality of these woven skirts is undeniable. Even used and discarded pieces are highly valued and repurposed. If you think of the hours that went into handwoven textiles, prolonging their lifespan in every possible format is a way to honor the ancient craft of weaving.
Here are some of our unique re-creations of Mayan "corte":
Can you remember your first day in kindergarten? Your first class in college?
I was six years old on my first day in a formal school setting.
Those days first grade was called Sub A in South Africa. Three front teeth missing, two braids, a brand-new uniform a few sizes too big, an empty bookcase (the boxy kind), and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich wrapped in wax paper. Me being the firstborn, this was a well-photographed threshold in my development, and everyone in the family was equally excited. Our house was across the street from the primary school. My mom walked with me to the classroom on the hill, where many of the little faces were tear-stained as the new students clung to their mothers' legs in trepidation of the looming separation.
Not me.
“You can leave now, Mommy. I’m not a crybaby.” (My mom was quite offended by my declaration of independence that day.)
SKILLS
Twelve years later, an immature 18-year-old emerged, again without tears because I was happy to be “free”. For a long time, I was ignorant of the benefits I gained by my enrollment year after year. Only after I met young people from different backgrounds for whom formal education was an impossible dream did I realize the extraordinary bonus of having parents and teachers investing in me. The necessary skills for learning that attending school equipped me with, like reading, concentration, and endurance, continue to bear fruit today.
However imperfectly a traditional school system performs, the mere access to a world of knowledge and opportunities for growth that they provide justifies its vital existence in our communities. We often remember and talk about the positive influence of dedicated teachers in our formative years.
So, who is going BACK to school these days?
Most to be admired and cheered are the individuals who return to college as adults in their second half of life. A friend of mine went to nursing school as a single mom in her late 30s, graduated, and celebrated with a backpacking trip in Europe!
Distance learning became necessary during the lockdowns of the last few years and continues gaining momentum. The number of learners enrolling in MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) increased from 300,000 to 220 million in the decade between 2011 and 2021. Even so, most students will get on the bus or a bicycle, walk, drive, or be driven to a schoolhouse this month.
We have heard, “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.” Yet we know that filling bags with textbooks and computers is the reality all students deal with daily. At Unique Batik we offer a range of bags for this very purpose. Buying your bags here will enable a Guatemalan student to plan on going back to school too!
DROP OUT
Approximately 5% of high school students in the US do not graduate, and the drop-out rate for college students is around 40%. In striking contrast, the financial limitations and a general lack of motivation in Guatemala mean that 41% of teenagers (aged 13-18) do not attend school. Only 10% of youth enroll in college education. Fortunately, several non-profits in Guatemala are focusing on changing this trend. I have interacted with some of these organizations and have seen firsthand the impact of mentorship and practical friendship. Forging My Tomorrowis the brainchild of a dynamic Mayan couple in Panajachel. This leadership and mentoring program has been the instrument of breaking cycles of poverty and ignorance for many families in rural Guatemala. Read about their work here.
“The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows.” (Sydney, J Harris, American journalist for the Chicago Daily News)
And that is what any worthwhile education will do: develop the skills to see. To peer through to the expansive beyond, instead of fixating on the smallness of self.
These days you can explore virtually any place on Earth or under the oceans without getting up from your couch. Travel vlogs and blogs abound. Google Earth can zoom you to even the remotest locations for a 3D view, a street view, or a bird’s eye view. Very little is left for the imagination. Minimal risk and expense. Zero suffering.
ADVENTURE
Yet, as many who wander agree, virtual experiences pale against the thrill of live encounters in foreign contexts. To have your own adventure, to overcome the fear of the unknown, to live to tell the story – this is why we get up and go. For us, new friendships and firsthand knowledge far outweigh any awkward discomforts or hair-raising challenges. Adventure, fortune, chance, risk, and wonder - these words all share the same root. The same sense of momentum lurks in the word Adventas well. Advent on the Christian calendar celebrates the arrivalof Christ.
An anonymous 16th-century Danish educator wrote, "Go, my sons. Burn your books. Get away to the mountains, the valleys, the shores of the seas, the deserts, and the deepest recesses of the earth. In this way and no other, will you find true knowledge of things and their properties."
LUGGAGE CLAIM
When you do head out for the open road, you very well need to consider luggage to transport your essentials. (Evidently, the word originates from a Middle English word which meant to pull by the hair or ear!)
Long before suitcases on wheels enabled us to conveniently drag or pull our stuff around airports, carpet bags were the common carryalls of travelers. Does anyone remember Mary Poppins’ ever-present wondrous bag? “The carpet bag was invented as a type of inexpensive personal baggage, light enough for a passenger to carry, like a duffel bag, as opposed to a large rigid wooden or metal trunk, which required the assistance of porters.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carpet_bag) Often these decorative bags were made from cut-off pieces of oriental rugs, and depending on the design, could also open flat and serve as a blanket.
CARPETBAGGERS
After the Civil War, many opportunistic Northerners traveled to the South seeking private financial or political gain. People in the South feared exploitation and referred to them as carpetbaggers because they typically arrived with their belongings in carpetbags. Today the term stands for political candidates who seek elections where they have no local connections.
The exploitation of artisans in developing countries is still a matter of deep concern. This is why, as a registered fair trade company, Unique Batik is committed to operating in a manner that guarantees a sustained welcome on both sides. Our relationships with the artisans in Guatemala, Ghana, and Thailand have morphed into the dearest friendships over decades of trade.
The various travel bags we sell resemble the carpetbag tradition. Woven and embroidered cloth pieces are made into fashionable luggage, with styles and sizes for every kind of passenger.
LUCKY DRAW
Which bag do you grab when packing for a trip?
Our bag contest is on!
Of the four styles depicted below, do you have a go-to? Click on each picture to see the bags we offer in that style. Then, in the space for comments at the end of this blog, write the word sling, tote, backpack,or messenger.
On August 31, we'll draw three lucky responders, each of whom will win a bag in the style of their vote.
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