Nepali Market Basket

OUT OF STOCK

This tightly woven and versatile market basket comes in a wonderful feast of bright colors created from recycled candy and food wrappers. High in the foothills of the Himalayas, Nepali village women are busily creating a flourishing enterprise incorporating their fine basket weaving skills with a recycling initiative that sustains and supports entire families in this mountain community.

Each sturdy, tightly coiled market basket come in unique colors and makes for a perfect carry all for your groceries, beach towels, books and magazines. Each market basket measures 14” across x 9” deep and has two sturdy handles. A story card is included with your purchase. Please note, this is not available gift boxed.

The Story

Nestled along scenic river banks, terraced fields and forest ridges at the foothills of the Himalayas you will come across the remote mountain villages of Lapa,Tipling and Shertung. Here in a region which has been devastated by the recent civil war, artisan families are rebuilding their lives and earning their livelihood by weaving these stunning colorful tote baskets – all skillfully woven using discarded plastic food wrappers, transported from nearby towns. Women in the villages collect popular snack food and potato chip wrappers, wash them thoroughly and then weave them tightly around coils of natural grass or reed that grow abundantly in the fields around their villages.

Today, 500 Nepali families are being supported through this recycling and basket weaving initiative launched by Spiral Foundation, a non profit humanitarian organization that is committed to the preservation and revival of local handcraft traditions in this culturally and artistically rich region of the world. Net proceeds from sales of the Nepali Market Basket fund primary health care, medical and educational projects in these remote mountain villages.