Welcome to our global maker-to-market movement where, together with 20,000 artisans, we ignite social change. We create opportunities for individuals, families, and communities in developing countries to thrive through strong relationships, fair wages, safe working conditions, and sustainable practices.
Make every meal a celebration with 100% cotton block printed Green Bounty Cloth Napkins. Each napkin is one-of-a-kind because they are block printed by hand by artisans with Asha in India. Block printing is a heritage craft, a multi-step process that includes mixing natural dyes, sketching designs, then carving these intricate patterns into thick wood blocks, a separate block for each color in the design. This is all before the textile is woven, often by hand, washed, sun-dried, then prepped for printing. Which is done by the steadiest of hands, repeating the pattern over swaths of cloth draped over long tables. It’s an ancient technique carried on by artisans who handcraft these stunning one-of-a-kind pieces. When you hold one, you can feel the richness of its story and how it was made.
HANDCRAFTED IN INDIA
SKU: 6807010
THE MAKERS
A fair trade organization, Asha represents more than 6,500 artisans in 10 states of India. The association’s name, meaning "hope" in Sanskrit, represents its goal to sustain the marketing ability of individual and family–based artisans. A not–for–profit organization, Asha works to ensure that benefits of handicraft production reach the craftspeople themselves. Asha promotes sustainability and helps eliminate producer debt through direct purchases and advance payments. Producer benefits include educational assistance for children, medical checkups and treatment, a health center at Saharanpur, savings programs for artisans and spouses, nonformal education projects and relief–related social projects. Ten Thousand Villages has purchased products from Asha since 1976.
Tenthousandvillages.com