Nothing shows off your summer glow like silver! Luminous and eye-catching, silver is simple and elegant enough to wear every day — from afternoons at the beach to evenings at the symphony. When the silver is recycled or produced in fair-labor/ conflict-free conditions, silver jewelry goes beyond beautiful.
Here are some gorgeous, thoughtfully designed and meticulously crafted silver baubles that we found for him and her: all friendly to the Earth and to its people and animals — and all frankly fabulous.
Elegant Roots is proud to be the first to offer C5’s Avenue Green collection of stunning recycled silver pieces. The “Circles” line, shown here, draws its inspiration from the Bronx Botanical Gardens, a haven of nature within a bustling urban environment. The result: sleek, modern lines with unpredictable design, all handcrafted in Bali.
Sturdy brushed-silver dog tags by Pineapple Seed contain the Thai symbols for “peace” and “wisdom” hand-etched in clean, simple lines. Crafted in fair-labor conditions by artisans in Chiang Mai, this is a beautiful unisex gift with special meaning.
This gorgeous “Paia” bracelet by Stephen Estelle resembles luminescent drops of molten silver. Inspired by leaves, this striking design was handcrafted by a family of artisans whose lineage has been making jewelry for the maharajahs of Nepal for more than 400 years.
RedStart has done it again with these Infinity Loop cuff links, a new take on the mathematical symbol for infinity. A contemporary design inspired by ancient symbolism, these distinctive sterling cuff links are part of RedStart’s “Stream” series, which follows the curves of flowing water.
Perfect to keep you in mind of the beach when you’re in the city on Wednesday.
This is a BIG DAY for Elegant Roots. Maybe even a profound day.
Milyoni, Inc., (said like “million eye”), the leader in Social Commerce, announces a new social merchandising tool within its popular Conversational Commerce™ solution. Its new Instant Showcase allows users to conveniently purchase select products right on the Facebook wall.
Elegant Roots is about connections. Connections between an artisan and a customer. Connections between cultures. Connections between a customer’s green values and a customer’s purchases.
And Facebook is maybe the biggest way to connect, person-to-person, that has come along since the telephone. Facebook enables communities. Though they exist only on line, they are communities with interactions no less personal than the telephone. And remember the Six Degrees of Separation?
Well, a study by Microsoft based on 30 billion instant messages among 180 million people worldwide in one month concluded that “it takes just under seven steps to link every one in the world…on average, any two people are linked by fewer than seven acquaintances” (actually 6.6). Redorbit.com.
Facebook is a vehicle for unlimited connections and community creation.
Why is this so big for ElegantRoots.com? Because that’s where we connect.
Elegant Roots exists only online — in a dotcom store and in a facebook iFan shop. And ElegRoo exists only because of the “long tail” of the internet — that enough people browse to make it practical to offer products that only a slim percentage of people might want.
A little background is in order.
Elegant Roots, as an online boutique, exists to:
Bring hot, design-forward items that use artisan, traditional techniques on designs that appeal to the American market;
Promote eco-consciousness and social justice by carrying only “green” products (eco-friendly and fair trade/fair labor);
Promote traditional arts and preserve traditional lifestyles by creating a market for jewelry, accessories and home decor;
Foster connections — making Personal through Story a direct connection between artisan and consumer, throughout the world, eliminating “middlemen” whenever possible; and
Promote transparency, so consumers will increasingly ask Who made this, Where it was made; of What it is made and under what conditions; and Why, beyond its beauty and function it aligns with the consumer’s values.
ElegRoo currently has somewhere over 4000 Facebook fans (or “likes”) from all around the world, (though we can presently ship only within the US). That’s 4000 people who connect with us nearly every day. And the growth is astonishing.
Now, through Milyoni’s Instant Showcase, we can highlight to our facebook community a few of our wonderful, meaningful, artisan-made products. Our fans need not leave the Wall to buy. Connection remains intact.
All the rich cultures, colors and textures of the African continent are expressed so beautifully in the artworks made by tribal artisans. Elegant Roots is proud to work with fair-trade collectives across Africa to help bring some of their stunning creations to North America. How lucky we are to support these talented people and keep them at work, doing what they love.
CREATIVE WOMEN — Founded by one-woman dynamo Ellen Dorsch, Creative Women brings us the exquisite textile craftsmanship of Ethiopia and Swaziland. A company that provides work training and excellent pay to talented women, Creative Women is known for its luxurious mohair and vibrant silk items through its luxury Sabahar line. By pairing fashion-forward Western designs with traditional African craftsmanship, Creative Women merges cultures beautifully.
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DWELLING — Connecticut product development consultant Gloria Delaney was traveling in Kenya where she discovered artisans creating remarkable handcrafted items, such as gorgeous bowls carved from a single piece of sustainably harvested olivewood. She also tapped into a women’s knitting collective to bring huggable handmade plush toys to children in the U.S. Gloria has gone far beyond just providing economic opportunities to artists — she and Dwelling strongly support literacy, health and other programs for the well-being of the workers and their families.
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TRIBAL HOME — This U.S.-based company brings us the work of amazing Zulu Master Weavers from South Africa. Tribal Home’s three founding partners discovered these women in the remote KwaZulu-Natal Province, skilled in the traditional art of weaving watertight Zulu baskets but unable to make a living from it. Tribal Home introduced the baskets to the Western market — where they’ve been selling so successfully that the weavers can now support their families and keep these traditional Zulu crafts alive.
I just finished reading Creating A World Without Poverty by Muhammad Yunus, the gentleman who created micro-credit and won a Nobel Peace prize for his micro-credit work in Bangladesh. The book is the most inspiring business book I have ever read. Part One, especially, created a one-person think-tank brainstorm in this head.
Dr. Yunus is a visionary AND he’s a hands-on practitioner committed to transforming his homeland through outside-the-box thinking, flexibility and effective implementation. Brings to mind a modification of the old Sinatra refrain from New York, New York: “If he can do it there, we can do it everywhere.”
Do what? you might ask. Use business to tackle social problems. Micro-credit is an inspired notion and an effective reality. ElegRoo supports micro-credit through the totally great KIVA.org.
But we at ElegRoo are taking a lead from Dr. Yunus beyond micro-credit. In Creating A World Without Poverty, Dr. Yunus proposes the idea of “social businesses”, that is, businesses organized as for-profit enterprises, but whose sole goals are to achieve some social benefit. All profits are plowed back into the company. Investors receive no dividends, no profits whatever. They can expect to receive back their initial investment and will still own the company and direct its efforts.
A “social business” must compete head-to-head with ordinary for-profits by dint of the value of its products and/or services.
LuAnne Speeter reports that “[65%] of consumers believe businesses are responsible for having a greater social purpose beyond profit … that businesses have a shared responsibility to address and solve today’s social and environmental issues through a blending of social initiatives and business operations.”
But other attempts at formalizing business commitments to social issues, like B Corporations, are hybrids that attempt to serve two masters — social benefit and investor profit. Dr. Yunus predicts that, at some point, each of these hybrids will face a choice, and that investor profits will prevail. No such Hobson’s Choice can afflict a “social business” — investor profit motive is simply not present to diverge from the social benefit motive.
100% of the ownership of Elegant Roots agrees with these notions and believes also that the vision and mission for Elegant Roots [to promote social justice and eco-consciousness by providing a market for goods that further these goals] fits squarely within the notion of “social business” propounded by the good Dr. Yunus.
100% percent of the ownership has directed that ElegRoo management begin the process of formally converting Elegant Roots into a “social business.” Watch this blog for the ANNOUNCEMENT when the conversion is complete.
World Environment Day (WED) is June 5. It began on that day in 1972 when the UN Conference on the Human Environment began. The First WED was celebrated on June 5, 1973. The day calls attention to the environment and is intended to stimulate political and public action. Each year WED is hosted by a different city/country, commemorating a different theme.
For 2010, the host is Rwanda and the theme is “Many Species. One Planet. One Future”, celebrating the thrilling diversity of life on Earth as part of the 2010 International Year of Biodiversity.
Around the globe people will hold all sorts of activities to recognize the day — while people of the US Gulf Coast regions fight the massive petroleum spew from BP’s mile-deep sea-bed well; while animals are tarred with the inescapable goo-tide; and wetlands are turned to sludge.
On this day, we can celebrate a traditional human interaction with the natural world that creates a thing of beauty and function — without any petroleum, no plastic, no chemical processing.
The Zulu are one of only two peoples on the earth who create water-tight baskets. (The other are natives of Central America.) Zulu weavers use only grasses native to their KwaZulu-Natal homeland and local ilala palm, dyed using only natural, locally-derived vegetable dyes.
This weaving is traditional with the Zulu people, though was once a male-oriented skill. Different shaped baskets are designed for local beer, others for seeds, grains, greens, all purposes imaginable. But then the men were taken to work the mines and imported tin vessels replaced the baskets — the art nearly died out. In the early 70s, a missionary organized weaving classes after Sunday services and enlisted four female master weavers to teach at what became known as the Vukani workshops (named for the missionary).
Traditional skills were passed along; new designs and colors were created; an art form was saved that sustainably uses a few of the great diversity of earth’s species. Over the decades since, many weavers have reached Master-level status, had their work displayed in museums around the world and create astounding works of beauty.
Of the original four teachers at the Vukani workshops, one remains — and she still weaves. That living treasure of Zulu basketry is Laurentia Dlamini.
On World Environment Day, let’s celebrate the diversity of species on our earth — and the diversity of people and their creations without petroleum.
Facebook privacy has the been the talk on lots of media lately. Some of the complaints raised make no sense; some are impossible to discern; and some may very well be valid — BUT — Elegant Roots’ facebook shop customers can RELAX.
Facebook does not have access to any information provided during an Elegant Roots’ customer’s session in Elegant Roots’ Facebook Shop.
The Elegant Roots Facebook Shop was created by and is powered by Milyon*i. During checkout, our customer’s connection is encrypted, so Facebook cannot possibly see any part of the Checkout process or the information provided during Checkout. Even if Facebook was being more devious than claimed, we can say without reservation: Facebook does not have access to the financial or identity information provided during Elegant Roots Checkout. For technical detail, check out the Milyon*i blog.
Their quick answer is “rest assured you are secure.” When you have finished selecting products and start to check out, the pages are secured. Each step in the Elegant Roots Facebook Shop (#1 – Billing and Shipping Information, #2 – Shipping Method, #3 – Transaction, #4 Completion and Registration) is protected with up to 256-bit Secure Socket Layer encryption. FACEBOOK CAN’T ACCESS IT!
Bottom line — whatever the validity of privacy concerns re Facebook — they don’t apply to a transaction on the Elegant Roots Facebook Shop.
Social justice has become a controversial notion. Glenn Beck instructs his viewers to run from churches that call for social justice. He also warns of other telltale phrases: “shared community”, and “collective responsibility” — all totalitarian tells, according to Mr. Beck.
And that’s the subject of today’s Is It Just Me . . .?
Is it just me, or is Mr. Beck pushing a pernicious new political correctness movement — trying to rid our society of the notions of social justice, community, and the common good?
Glenn Beck’s neo-political correctness would stigmatize as Nazis and communist totalitarians anyone who uses “social justice”, “shared community” and the like to describe a vision.
If we’re going to throw out “social justice” and “shared community”, we’d have to eliminate “common good” — it screams of communism under Mr. Beck’s “reasoning”.
And we’d have to eliminate “common goals”. No more “common decency”. No more common sense.
But let’s not eliminate any words simply because of their fraudulent use by Nazis or anyone. Their Big Lie about “social justice” can’t change the true and positive meaning of the term. Just like the fraudulent use of “fair and balanced” can’t change its real meaning.
ElegantRoots.com continues to promote social justice by offering wonderful gift items on a fair trade basis. We’ll continue to say it. And we’ll continue to resist this new, pernicious political correctness.
That’s it for today’s Is It Just Me…? from Elegant Roots. (check our new shop on Facebook/ElegantRoots)
This is a great book! Don’t be put off by the notion that it is some kind of technical running book or aimed only at crazed running fanatics. It’s not.
Born to Run, by Christopher McDougall, has all the elements of a great story — colorful, larger-than-life characters, adventure, joy, heartbreak, courage, heroism, lurking danger, the wisdom of indigenous peoples, the warmth of rural Mexicans, the openness of Americans, all in an other-worldly landscape and wrapped in a quest worthy of any mythology. Nearly every chapter is a cliff-hanger.
And — it’s NON-FICTION!
The locale of much of the story — the inaccessible Copper Canyon region of Mexico’s Sierra Madre — is home to the Tarahumara people as well as Mestizo farmers. This is the region of the town of Norogachi — the little town where the exquisite jewelry of Julio Pagliani is made — by the same people who populate the great story in Born to Run.
From Born to Run: “The Barrancas are a lost world in the most remote wilderness in North America, a sort of a shorebound Bermuda Triangle known for swallowing misfits and desperadoes who stray inside. Lots of bad things can happen down there, and probably will; survive man-eating jaguars, deadly snakes, and blistering heat, and you’ve still got to deal with ‘canyon fever,’ a potentially fatal freak-out brought on by the Barrancas desolate eeriness. The deeper you penetrate into the Barrancas, the more it feels like a crypt sliding shut around you. The walls tighten, shadows spread, phantom echoes whisper; every route out seems to end in sheer rock. … Little surprise that few strangers have ever seen the Tarahumara homeland–let alone the Tarahumara.”
But into the Barrancas is where the good people of Julio Pagliani go in order to help the people of the Barrancas utilize their traditional beading techniques to create striking jewelry for the outside world and bring it out to support the traditional lifestyles of these remote peoples. This, too, is courageous in its own way — courage in support of social justice.
And, into the Barrancas go Christopher McDougall’s cast of thoroughly engaging characters.
I highly recommend Born to Run; and I highly recommend that you support the peoples of the Barrancas in their traditional arts. Enjoy their beautiful jewelry, designed by the folks at Julio Pagliani and rendered exquisitely by the peoples of the Barrancas using — and preserving — traditional skills. Learn more about Julio Pagliani here.
ElegantRoots.com is committed to becoming the top destination for high-concept and high-design green jewelry — wearable art, artisan-made and promoting eco-consciousness and social justice.
We’ve taken another step toward becoming that premier eco-gallery by being the first in the U.S. to offer C5 company’s Avenue Green Collection from designer Meghan Connolly Haupt. Avenue Green is 100% recycled sterling silver and is C5’s FIRST ready-to-wear line inspired by the blending of sleek urban lines with the irrepressible shapes of nature.
C5 has always used only recycled precious metals and ethically sourced gems and has made it’s name in the most exclusive end of the jewelry sector — commission-only, custom pieces of fine jewelry designed in collaboration with the person commissioning the piece.
C5 has brought the same exacting standards and attention to detail to this first ready-to-wear line. Check it out along with our other fantastic assortment.
Avenue Green is the FIRST ready-to-wear jewelry collection from C5 company, known for its exclusive, by-commission-only, custom-designed fine jewelry — and exclusively using recycled precious metals and ethically sourced gems.
Avenue Green is a compelling line inspired by the South Bronx — multi-cultural urban living against the backdrop of the incredible natural beauty of the Bronx Botanical Gardens and the Bronx Zoo. Haupt has perfectly rendered the urban-natural counterpoint with sleek lines within nature’s most profound shapes.
Here are some gorgeous, thoughtfully designed and meticulously crafted silver baubles that we found for him and her: all friendly to the Earth and to its people and animals — and all frankly fabulous.
Elegant Roots is proud to be the first to offer C5’s Avenue Green collection of stunning recycled silver pieces. The “Circles” line, shown here, draws its inspiration from the Bronx Botanical Gardens, a haven of nature within a bustling urban environment. The result: sleek, modern lines with unpredictable design, all handcrafted in Bali.
Sturdy brushed-silver dog tags by Pineapple Seed contain the Thai symbols for “peace” and “wisdom” hand-etched in clean, simple lines. Crafted in fair-labor conditions by artisans in Chiang Mai, this is a beautiful unisex gift with special meaning.
This gorgeous “Paia” bracelet by Stephen Estelle resembles luminescent drops of molten silver. Inspired by leaves, this striking design was handcrafted by a family of artisans whose lineage has been making jewelry for the maharajahs of Nepal for more than 400 years.
RedStart has done it again with these Infinity Loop cuff links, a new take on the mathematical symbol for infinity. A contemporary design inspired by ancient symbolism, these distinctive sterling cuff links are part of RedStart’s “Stream” series, which follows the curves of flowing water.
