Story Scarves

I just wanted to post about the awesomeness of this organization  They are a Goodwill Organization that connects girls of South Africa to other girls in other areas of the world through Ubuntu Scarves or Story Scarves.  I took a photo of one of the scarves made for Nelson Mandela's 94th birthday and posted it here because I think it is beautiful.  FYI: through some googling I found out that Tata Madiba is Nelson Mandela's name in his native language.

Anyway, I haven't sewn anything in like 10+ years, but I love the concept of these scarves!  LOVE THEM.  I am working with a few people from different organizations I am associated with in the arts world and the not-for-profit world to see how we can get involved by exchanging and making scarves for these awesome girls!  At the very least, I am going to network and attempt to create a scarf.

The funnest part of brainstorming of planning for these scarves has been finding words that are meaningful to me in the various languages of Africa.  It makes what word to put on there very confusing and challenging.  This is where the help from the organization is very helpful!!!
I was thinking of some power words I would love to sew on to a scarf a few came to find:  Thrive (my power word for the year), Joy, Gratitude, Peace (kind of general, but I know that words in different languages also have different cultural understandings then the English translation).  I got some connecting and research to do :)


For The Record:  It is my current quest in life to network with different organizations like this one and others to make the world a little bit better through creation, volunteer, and giving.  I am fairly sure it is within these global efforts that people are able to find some sort humanity in people that live 1000s of miles away.




Story Scarves

Summary Paragraph

Story Scarves are handmade with fiber artistry from embroidery, beadwork, crochet, knit and upcycled fabric appliqué. They voyage on hope-fueled friendship journeys between girls, connecting makers and receivers. These young women dialogue with each other through visual metaphor and symbolic messages-with-meaning, a language that needs no translation.  Each feels seen, validated and connected with their peers encouraging the resilience of their feminine spirit, inner beauty, radiant strength and limitless imagination. By consciously giving/gifting, the girls focus on what they have to offer others - on the positive aspects of their selves. Story Scarves wrap with care and embrace diversity with indomitable hope, contagious peace and endless creativity. Their narratives thread diverse cultures, countries and contexts while sharing similarities... yarns  that weave webs of connection and spread goodwill, one scarf at a time. Piecing our continent together, peacefully.
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