Pillow Pets

I heard from the good people at GlobeIn recently about a new product in store called ‘Pillow Pets’. These adorable creatures are made in Guatemala by a self-help group and proceeds from the sales of PillowPets help this community.

Here’s how GlobeIn describes the project:

“In 2005, Hurricane Stan hit Guatemala and destroyed villages and communities all along the coast. The Pacutama and Chuicutama communities were hit particularly hard. Forced to leave their homes, the communities sought refuge in the mountains -- a safe but high-altitude environment where the arid and cold climate kept agriculture from sustaining the community like it had on the coast.

To make up the difference, the women turned to their traditional skills.

Today, 20 women from these resettled communities have formed the “Pacutama and Chuicutama Weaving Cooperative.” High in the mountains, they weave Guatemalan cotton thread into traditional Mayan fabrics with inspired geometric patterns. Working with Y’abal Handicrafts, a local NGO, the Pacutama and Chuicutama women send their cloth to Quetzaltenango (the nearest city), where local seamstress Sylvia Mazariegos sews the Mayan fabrics into whimsical creatures called Pillowpets”

Browse through the lovely indigenous products on GlobeIn here.