A handmade wooden tray curved with long, dark-rooted lines, placed over a cotton blanket embroidered in dark lines of black, mauve, and olive green beads, with people passionately asking for their price and the governorate they were made in. That was only a side of Fair Trade Egypt’s launch of its winter collection. The collection was released last week with hundreds of loyal fans attending the opening which took place at Fair Trade Egypt’s shop in Maadi.
The collection consists of 40 different products, all themed in “Earth Tones”. The theme was applied by way of colours reminiscent of plant roots and the products were carved with long, twisted, curved lines.
Attendees were fond of three artisans who sat in a corner making their handmade accessories upon people’s requests.
The products, which were mainly home accessories, were unique in their designs and colours, and were made out of five main colours: mauve, green, and grey with white and black to add different shades.
“These products come from eight different governorates and were made by over 700 artisans,” said Dina Mahmoud, one of the designers. “We unified the theme and colours in order to create different, interesting products that match.”
Unlike the summer collection, which was also titled “Earth Tones”, the spectacular products ranged from bed sheets, blankets, embroidered pillow covers, and medals, to personal objects like jackets, scarves, rings, necklaces, key chains, and leather purses.
Although both collections hold the same name, the summer collection mainly featured personal accessories of gold, representing the sea and the sun, unlike the winter colours of grey shades.
Fair Trade Egypt is a non-profit organisation aiming to empower local communities. The organisation does that through supporting the artisans and marketing their handicrafts. It supports more than 2,300 artisans from all around Egypt, providing them with the needed training and technical assistance in order to compete in the international market.
