“Khutsala” means “hard working”.
The Khutsala Artisans Shop is a building that has been
designed to employ, train and empower Swazi women through the art of jewelry
making, crocheting and sewing.
 |
| The Royal |
The Khutsala Artisan Shop is located within the gates at Project Canaan near the chapel and it sports a magnificent view of the vegetable fields on the farm. A huge concrete pad was poured and three 40-foot containers dragged in to position to make a unique work and retail destination at Project Canaan. Next week we have a team of men going to Swaziland from the US who will cut holes in these containers to make doors and windows and finish the insides of each container with shelving, storage and office space for the Khutsala Artisans. It will be nothing short of extraordinary when it is complete (thanks to the wonderful and talented Jamie Klee!).
On October 1st we plan to officially open the
Khutsala Artisans Shop and begin working with two special women who we have
come to know and love. They are
two women who have been chosen to live in the Sicalo Lesisha Kibbutz and want
to be gainfully employed at Project Canaan. We know that in the future there will be dozens of women (and some men) who will work at the Khutsala Artisans Shop and be able to provide food, clothing, education and a future for their children and extended families. Employment and training is at the core of this important new project.
 |
| Hand painted Batik infinity scarves by Baobab Batik. |
In April 2013 a group of talented and wonderful women came
to Swaziland to work on designs that would incorporate local materials (i.e.
hand made ceramic beads from the wonderful women at Imvelo in Manzini), with
current western fashion so that all items made would be quickly purchased in
the US and Canadian markets. We
have dipped our toes in to the market place here with a few pieces and have
been met with positive response beyond our imaginations.
There were SO many outstanding prototypes designed that our
greatest challenge was which ones to start with. I have attached photos of a
few of those pieces. The scarves and Project Canaan Angel Christmas tree
ornaments are available now in our online store. The other pieces
will go in to production on October 1st.
 |
| Nomsa's necklace |
 |
| Litsemba "hope" bracelet |
 |
| Project Canaan Angel Christmas ornament |
 |
| Heart for Africa key chain or Christmas tree ornament |
Stay tuned for more information on this new and exciting
project in the weeks and months to come.
Live from Atlanta, Georgia … I LOVE selling African jewelry!
Janine
Those are pretty impressive.
ReplyDeletei love jewellery.really you are doing great work.keep it up.
ReplyDeleteMen's Jewelry Store in Canada
Thanks for the design shared with us. You can also buy silver necklace online and saves the time and money.
ReplyDelete