Normally my Greenists posts are on the subject of food, but this post is about the great program Hope For Women that helps economically disadvantaged women support themselves:

Hope For Women offers handcrafted Fair Trade, eco-friendly products made by economically disadvantaged women worldwide.

With the holiday season right around the corner this is a great way to not only help women support themselves with their fair trade, eco friendly and sustainable products, but also to get some really neat gifts that are quite unique.

A few weeks ago I received a package containing samples of greeting cards from the Hope for Women Himalayan and El Salvador greeting card collections, as well as one of their lovely Tagua bracelets, and everything that came was simply beautiful. The designs on the cards are made from local wildflowers and greenery and are really stunning. The bracelet is made from nuts found in the Colombian rainforest.

The Himalayan cards have pressed local wildflowers and leaves on the front of them:

The colors are really just fabulous!

The cards from El Salvador utilized pressed flowers and greenery to make “hats” and jewelry on the design of the cards:

These cards are really unique and could be used as cards, or even framed for a lovely, conversation starting piece of art.

I also received one of their Tagua bracelets:

The bracelet is really neat. They are made from nuts from the seed pods of the Ivory Nut Palm. Each nut has a unique pattern on the outside and one of the nuts even has a flower design etched on the front. It’s both unique and beautiful.

Hope For Women is headquartered in Burlington, Vermont and really has a fabulous mission: To make it possible for economically disadvantaged artisan women to be able to earn a wage with a fair trade product that is eco friendly, sustainable and unique. As the holiday season approaches, why not give a gift that is not only beautiful, but also helps out those in need. It’s a win win situation all around.