Happy Birthday to The Gift Closet!

Happy Birthday to me! Can't believe I've been blogging here for 1 year now. Man how it has flown by. I have enjoyed it & met so many talented people along the way. To celebrate I will be having a giveaway every day for the next week!

Today I am giving away a $30 Gift Certificate to the Andean Collection. I came across the Andean Collection & really liked their unique, colorful, & gorgeous jewelry!

Amanda Judge founded The Andean Collection in the fall of 2008 while she was in Ecuador researching rural women’s survival strategies in the face of extreme poverty for her master thesis. The point of her research was to settle on a few tangible projects that an outside agency could do in order to help the community make long lasting improvements in their own standards of living. As it turns out, instead of just writing about these possibilities, Amanda decided to put her own ideas into action.

After discovering the amazing natural materials that were used in native jewelry making, Amanda knew that finding a market for jewelry made out of these natural seeds would be more beneficial than any academic paper could ever be. Amanda then extended her stay in Ecuador to lay the groundwork for The Andean Collection. The first task was to find disadvantaged artisans who had a drive to create a better life for themselves and their families. Next was training the artisans on order production and of course, showing them how to use email. Since the beginning, The Andean Collection has been training the artisans is jewelry design, helping them fortify their supply chains, and let’s not forget the endless cross-continent goose chases to find the highest quality raw materials in South America.

Artisans handcraft our designs from natural seeds that have been sustainably harvested from the rainforests and lowlands of South America. The commercialization of these seeds helps to ensure the survival of the world’s rainforests by providing an alternative income for its inhabitants rather than logging or selling their land to destructive industries. Through a very manual process, seeds are transformed into beads with gorgeous natural irregularities, both in color and form, which truly makes each piece one of a kind.

What an inspiring story!!!

Want It? Click here to shop.

Win It! How to enter to win a $30 Gift Certificate to the Andean Collection:
1.Visit the Andean Collection, come back here and tell me your favorite item. Be SURE your email address is in your comment if it is not visible on your profile.
2. Contest ends Tuesday August 25, 2009 @ midnight & is open to US residents only.



P.S. The winner of the 2 Disc Name Pendant, valued @ $45, from The Taffy Box is #83 Gabriel J. Congrats!!