Avant-Cheap. Forward Thinking On A Budget : I love handicrafts!!!!

I meant to put these photos up sooner but I've been a little behind on my posting. When I was in Lima, I fell in love with the handicrafts made by the Inca's. Every village or region has it's own specialty and it's usually something that has been passed on from generation to generation for hundreds maybe thousands of years. The handmade world is very large in South America and there are some very talented artisans and designers. They use the resources that are rich in there area and sell there products to make a living so they can feed their children. Wool and Alpaca are common materials used . There are many fair trade co-operatives that help market and sell these products. They are also many small business men and women who manufacture these goods in there own homes with machines and hand sewing. I found Peru to be filled with many entrepreneurial minded people. Every where you look someone is trying to sell something. Shoe shining services, woman with babies on their backs selling candy and snacks to drivers at red lights. Old men sitting on the sidewalk selling shoelaces, toothbrushes, and hairbrushes, Inca ladies selling Humitas and Tamales out of baskets. Everywhere you look, whatever you could need, someone is trying to sell and make a buck. During my window shopping trips and the artesianal markets and boutiques scattered throughout Miraflores, I fell upon a designer with the business name of "creaciones Yessica". I saw many little stalls filled with all her products. She makes purses, jewelry and accessories by hand and machine. I started investigating and found her phone number on a tag that was on one of her bags. Like I said before, it is very difficult( for me at least) to make a phone call. I tried calling but no success. I went online and started googling her name and digging for contact info.There is very little online presence for businesses in Peru , so I had no luck. I found an address and went to it , but no Yessica ! I was on a quest to find her!! I wanted to be able to buy her products wholesale and sell them in the U.S. I had left an email message on some random sight she was connected to and some man speaking Spanish called giving me a phone number. I called it and no answer. I had pretty much given up. I wanted to go back to the market and just look at her designs, I happen to ask the girl working if she knew Yessica. She said in Spanish, "Un momento". She made a phone call on her cellphone and a few minutes later a Peruvian woman in her 30's appeared. It was her in the flesh! I found this young entrepeneur had set up shop in her home with her family. Most of her products made by hand and then finished with a sewing machine. She had numerous locations showcasing her products. What I liked about her designs was that it had the Peruvian style but with a contemporary twist. Some of the items below are designed and made by other people. If you like these products , drop me an email and tell me what you think. I would like to have these available online in the near future. We will be working out the details when we get home from our travels. We're also looking for products from Ecuador.