A bag is just a bag…or is it?

We don’t really think too much about our bags except at the time of buying them. Most of us put a lot of time, thought, and effort into our bag purchases, because a bag says a lot about us. It’s a very visible symbol of who we are and what’s important to us…an extension of ourselves.

Ekantha bags are special because every time you use one, it tells the world a story: each bag has an exquisite hand-made embroidered design patch or decoration. As you gently stroke the fine needlework, you are transported thousands of miles away to the mountains of China, with their clean, crisp air. You see Hmong village ladies, sitting in groups, bent over their needles and fabric to see their micro handiwork better, paying close attention to their work, but also, at the same time, smiling and chatting with each other, sometimes singing songs, laughing, loving. Children play in the dirt nearby.

This is how the Hmong villagers build community and also earn a livelihood for their families – that completed cross-stitch patch, hours of loving handiwork poured into it – each one different - will bring a little more money for food and clothing and warmth; for medicines and access to health care down in the towns when their little ones fall sick.

By purchasing and using one of these, you’re telling a word-less story about yourself: in the midst of your busyness and the clatter and stranglehold of life, you care…you reach out to these ladies bent over, and you sit in their circle, joining in the singing, sparkling eyes, and laughter. You’re one of them, and they are one of you.