Each month, The Studio loans money to artisans in need in order to help them advance their business and livelihood. You can read more about this project here.
This month The Studio is supporting a potter in El Salvador and a pattern designer in Tonga who both create traditional crafts that are in high-demand in their communities.
Patricia is a potter who creates traditional ceramic vessels used for decorative purposes, cooking, and serving for daily life and special occasions in El Salvador. The Studio is helping her purchase raw clay, sand, and black dye in bulk so she can create larger matches of her pots at once and sell at local markets.
Susana designs patterns for large "tapas" (traditional Tongan cloths made from mulberry bark used as wall hangings or rugs). These cloths are highly valued in Tongan society and are often used for ceremonies and events like weddings, funerals, or milestones like births and marriages, so it's no surprise that when she finishes one of these projects, they immediately sell out.
At the same time she struggles to keep up with demand and production as she is the caregiver to her five grandchildren who lost their mother. The Studio is helping Susana purchase large batches of mulberry bark which will enable her to get help from community members and her family to produce multiple tapas at once, in turn providing more stability for her family.
In July, The Studio is supporting a Tongan artisan who makes traditional garments for special occasions, and a women's group full of artisans and farmers who work together to support each others businesses.
This group of artisans work together and support eachother in their entrepreneurial efforts, and The Studio is helping them purchase a large batch of thread for weaving traditional blouses called "huipiles". The women help each other tend to their gardens, chickens, and arts based businesses, supporting each other through offering labor and educational opportunities.
Talita creates kiekie, a traditional Tongan ornamental belt worn only on special occasions. The items are made using colorful cotton dyed with natural materials, and The Studio is helping her purchase a large batch of cotton to use for making a large number of kiekie for a special holiday in their village. Many local community members rely on Talita to produce these traditional good, but she struggles to purchase the materials to make enough to meet the demand. This loan will help her meet her goals for this upcoming event that the whole community will take part in.
In June, The Studio is helping a toy maker and a traditional hammock weaver in rural areas that typically don't allow access to loans for small businesses.
Özlem is a mother of two children who hand sews dolls, toys, and traditional clothing for members of her community in Turkey. With this loan, she will be able to purchase a large batch of fabrics, threads, beads, and felt so that she can participate in larger craft markets in her city.
Verónica is a mother and wife who weaves traditional hammocks and sells them in outdoor markets in her village in El Salvador. The Studio is helping her purchase silk and synthetic threads so that she can increase her production and work towards her goal of saving enough money to open her own indoor shop.
In May, The Studio is helping two artisans purchase materials for their businesses so they can provide more stability for their families.
Ronalyn is a Philipino artisan, wife, and mother who creates decorative wall hangings and artwork made of shells. The Studio is helping her purchase a large batch of shells, which enables her to prepare for markets where she sells her crafts. Her dream is to help her family purchase their own home, and selling at larger markets is helping them get closer to that goal.
Suhni is a seamstress who specializes in embroidery using sequences and stones to produce traditional Pakistani clothing and decorative cloths. Her work is in high demand, but she struggles to purchase the quantites of materials she needs to keep up with demand. The Studio is helping her purchase a large batch of sequences, stones, beads, and threads so she can meet the demand and help her family improve their living conditions.
In April, The Studio is helping support an artist in Tonga who creates artwork made of natural materials, and an embroidery artist in Tajikistan who creates traditional fabric items.
Evalani is a 20 year-old artisan who helps support her mother by creating wall hangings and traditional Tongan clothing, all made from natural materials like sea shells, flowers, and coconut products. The Studio is helping her purchase a large batch of natural materials so she can start exporting some of her crafts in order to sell larger batches at a time.
Nikoshbi is a mother of four who creates traditional Tajik embroidery for dresses, blankets, and pillow cases. She currently uses an old embroidery machine in her process, and The Studio is helping her purchase a new machine that will speed up her process and reduce the amount of work required to make each piece, thus enabling her to sell more items to support her family.
In March, The Studio is supporting an artisan who produces hanging art made of sea shells, and a seamstress who designs and produces traditional cloths for her local community.
Lordesa is a Philippino artist who uses shells and recycled scrap materials to create wall hangings and decorative shell art that she sells locally. The Studio is helping her purchase a large batch of shells that will help her increase her output.
Manuzura is a seamstress, wife, and mother in Tajikistan who uses her profits from her business to help provide essential support for her family. She wants to expand her business in order to provide more support and stability for her family, which requires being able to purchase lager batches of materials at once. The Studio is helping her purchase fabric, colored threads, and beads that she uses to produce "kurok" cloths, a traditional quilted and beaded cloth that is used as tablecloths and bed covers.
In February, The Studio is supporting artisans in the Philippines and Pakistan
Farhana is a wife and mother who creates hand embroidered cloths. The Studio is helping her purchase thread, beads, sequins, and stones so that she can create larger batches of work that will help her reach new customers. Her big dream is to help provide the funds that will allow their family to build their own home rather than renting, and this loan will help her get closer to that goal.
Manzoran is a wife and mother of eight children who helps support her family through creating hand embroidered cloths. The Studio is helping her purchase more beads, threads, and frames to meet the demand of orders she receives for her work. This support helps her provide funds for the education of her children and the growth of her business!
In January, The Studio is helping these two South American artisans purchase large quantities of materials to increase their production and profits!
Criselda is an artist in the Philippines who creates traditional Philipino hanging art made from shells and twine. The Studio is helping her purchase more materials and equipment for producing her work, and plans to use the profits she can make from selling these items to provide more sustainability for her family.
Tania is a single mother who supports her children by making traditional bracelets made in the style of the indigenous people of Ecuador. She has been perfecting her craft and selling her bracelets in local markets for over four years, and is ready to start producing larger quantities that she can sell to distributors rather than directly to customers one-by-one.
The Studio is helping her purchase a large batch of materials so she can create a big batch of bracelets. Currently Tania and her children live in a shack made of boards that her mother is allowing her to use, and this increase in production will help her take her financial stability for her family to the next level by allowing her to purchase a home.
Susana is a weaver of traditional hammocks in El Salvador, a trade she learned from her late father. Susana and her mother work together to produce and sell the hammocks, and they are ready to increase their volume of production and quality of life.
The Studio is helping Susana purchase a large batch of silk and polyester thread to produce hammocks and pay for additional labor that will speed up her production process. This loan will help her improve her living conditions and provide additional support for her aging mother, who is economically dependent upon her.
See the artisans we supported in 2023 here.
