Kipepeo
Kipepeo means butterfly in Swahili, the language of East Africa
Measuring 10 x 15cm, blank leaf inside
Creation of the cards
Cards are made from recycled office waste via pulping and pressing until the textured paper emerges. The shape you receive has actually come direct from the press, including the centre relief where the design is fixed. Lastly, the work of applying one of a number of motifs is done. Either dyed cow bone (via filing and dying the bone), African wire art or beaded cloth. Lastly, one leaf of machine finished paper is sewn into the card with a mixed colour cotton thread being tied off outside the card for an added touch.
Features
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Cards are made from start to finish at Kipepeo so each card’s speckles and texture set it apart as a complete one off!
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Every card bears the signature, on the back, of the lady who did the final workmanship.
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This back panel also contains a brief explanation of the group’s aims.
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Cards arrive in a fine plastic sleeve to protect them and include an envelope and centre leaf for your greeting. They are blank inside.
and for you...
The value of a card made with this amount of care and time far outweighs those mass produced in China or other locations. To take part in this small way in the lives of these ladies is a thing of joy as you buy knowing the benefits it has brought to them. The receiver also receives a little news of this group and may well open their eyes to buy in the same ethical manner.
Group : Kipepeo, Nairobi, Kenya
Kipepeo Designs is all about empowerment of the poorest women in the largest slum in Africa. From the sales of cards the ladies in Kipepeo Designs are able to buy food for their families, buy clothes, pay the house rent and send their children to school. The project recognises that poverty impacts people at more than just at a financial level and so its teaching is at practical as well as a spiritual level. Kipepeo means ‘butterfly’ in Swahili and their hope is to transform many as they work alongside these women.
For more on the vision and practices of Kipepeo click here