Artisans

Mission

As a social enterprise, Faire Collection substantially reduces poverty in the disadvantaged communities where we work. We also inspire further positive change through our social programs, such as educational scholarships and no interest loans, which are funded through your purchase.

Faire Collection has an extensive impact on the lives of their artisans providing everything from no-interest loans, disaster assistance, training, mentoring and scholarship programs.  The artisans are able to work less and earn more.  Faire Collection is an excellent example of the positive force Fair Trade can be in artisan communities as a whole as much more than a fair wage.

Materials

Harvesting the seeds of the rainforest is part of a natural, sustainable cycle. By working with communities and building a profitable alternative to logging or farming in the rainforest, we can help protect traditional ways of life, as well as the environments in which our artisans have lived in for generations.

Tagua nuts grow in pods on Ecuadorian Palm Trees. When ripe, the pods are either harvested from the trees or fall to the ground where they can be collected from the forest floor. The nuts are then dried naturally in the sun for several months. Once the dark shell is removed, a beautiful, hard ivory-like seed emerges, ready for our artisans to carve.

Açaí trees are found in the swamps and floodplains of South American Rainforests. They’re best known for the fruit they produce, the small purple berries are harvest by hand by traditional forest farmers.  Inside the fruit is a seed and once dried and polished, the seeds of the açaí berries, create some of the most exquisite, natural beads.

The Pambil seed is found on a tall South American palm which reaches heights of 70 feet and forms part of the canopy of the rainforest. The wood is often used to build houses and the leaves make great thatched roofs. The fruit of this tree contains a small seed which we use in our jewelry collections.

Coconuts have been used to make jewelry for generations in the rainforests and coastal areas of South America. The shell is lightweight and soft, and its natural properties add beautiful, warm tones of light and dark brown to our jewelry.

Each brass element can take up to a day to perfect, with every part of the cutting and polishing process being done by hand. By combining brass with natural elements such tagua or horn, our artisan designers create a contrasting elegance, resulting in a beautifully modern interpretation of a traditional artisan craft.

Artisans use upcycled cow horn to create incredibly textural designs to sit beautifully with our handmade brass. By applying heat and water, our artisans are able to cut and mold the upcycled bullhorn, which would otherwise go to waste.

Wood offers a striking yet natural contrast to other materials in the collection. Ecuador is well known for exceptional wood carving and our artisans use both traditional carving methods and modern laser cutting techniques, respecting traditions and adding a modern-day interpretation.

Founder