Divine – Fair Trade Trends

Hippity Hoppity, Your Fair Trade Easter’s On Its Way!

Delight your wee ones with these fabulous Fair Trade finds, including Global Exchange's Bundle of Bunnies Zippered Toy (shown above).

As our loyal readers know, we love to provide you with the inspiration and resources to Fair Trade your holiday celebrations (check out our complete guides to Fair Trading your St. Patrick’s Day, Valentine’s Day, & Halloween). If you’re new to Fair Trade or aren’t yet able to make Fair Trade part of your day-to-day purchases, holidays are a great way to support the movement and show your family and friends you don’t just care about them, but you also care about the farmers and artisans who worked so hard to produce their treats and gifts.

We, at Fair Trade Trends, love Easter, a time of remembrance and renewal. Whether you celebrate Easter as a religious holiday or simply enjoy the time to gather with friends and family, we’ve got some fabulous Fair Trade finds for you!

We hope you enjoy our Complete Guide to Fair Trading your Easter!

FAIR TRADE CHOCOLATE TREATS:

Sjaak’s Organic Chocolates’s Milk Chocolate Sitting Bunny (Vegan Dark Chocolate Sitting Bunny also available):

Sweet Earth Chocolates’s Bunny and Egg Gift Bag (Available in Milk and Dark Chocolate; Chocolate Bunnies also available individually and in a Bunny Gift Box; Mini Chocolate Egg and Regular Chocolate Egg gift bags also available):

Divine Chocolate’s Milk Chocolate Speckled Eggs (Available at SERRV and Greenheart):

Divine Chocolate’s Milk Chocolate Mini Eggs and 70% Dark Chocolate Mini Eggs (Available at SERRV):

Sweat Earth Chocolates’s Decorated Chocolate Egg (Available ganache fillings: Hazelnut, Aztec, Vanilla Creme, & Classic Dark Chocolate; available vegan fillings: Peanut Butter, Coconut, & Vegan Caramel):

Sjaak’s Organic Chocolates’s Assorted Chocolate Filled Egg Box (“Five tantalizing filled chocolate eggs. Flavors include; Raspberry, Vanilla, Creamy caramel, Almond Butter and Peanut Butter”):

Divine Chocolate’s Praline Eggs (Available at SERRV):

Coco-Zen’s Bunny Truffles – 2-Piece Tin (“Choose from: White Chocolate with Dark Chocoloate Coconut Ganache, Milk Chocolate with Milk Chocolate Latte Ganache, & Dark Chocolate with Dark Chocolate Orange Ganache; 1-Piece Box and 6-Piece Tin with 2 Truffles of each flavor also available):

Coco-Zen’s Bunnies and Bears Peanut and Milk Chocolate Ganache Covered in Milk Chocolate (Also available in Chai Spice Milk Chocolate Blossoms and Butterflies Truffles, Espresso Bean Dark Chocolate Blossoms and Butterflies Truffles, and Dark Chocolate Ganache Bunnies and Bears Truffles):

Sweet Earth Chocolates’s Easter Egg Gift Box (Both Classic and Vegan available: “Classic will have a milk chocolate bunny, a mixture of dark and milk chocolate eggs, a chocolate ganache egg, a vanilla creme egg and a caramel filled egg. The vegan version will have all dark chocolate bunny & eggs with a peanut butter filled egg, a caramel egg & a toasted coconut fondant egg”):

Theo Chocolate’s Spring Confection Collection (“This 8 piece box includes 1 each: Lime Coriander, Pearl Jasmine, Burnt Sugar, Lemon, Mint, Hazelnut Gianduja, Lavender Caramel & Ginger Rose Caramel”):

Sjaak’s Organic Chocolates’s Milk Chocolate Bunny in A Chocolate Basket (Also available in Vegan Dark Chocolate):

FAIR TRADE EASTER BASKETS:

Sjaak’s Organic Chocolates’s Bunny in Basket in Blue (Also available in Pink, Green, & Yellow):

Greenheart’s Fair Trade Easter Baskets in Small, Medium, and Large:

“Small teal-colored Basket includes: Divine milk chocolate Easter bunnies, Divine milk chocolate speckled eggs, Women’s Bean Project jelly beans, Women’s Bean project espresso beans”:

“Medium red easter basket includes: Divine milk chocolate Easter bunnies, Divine milk chocolate speckled eggs, Women’s Bean Project jelly beans, Women’s Bean project espresso beans, chocolate chip oatmeal cookie mix”:

“Large yellow easter basket includes: Divine milk chocolate Easter bunnies, Divine milk chocolate speckled eggs, 2 Women’s Bean Project jelly beans, Women’s Bean project espresso beans, snickerdoodle cookie mix, one small Divine milk chocolate bar, one small Divine dark chocolate bar, and one super soft Alpaca stuffed bunny”:

Children of the World Basket (“The colorful Children of the World Garland (Sasha, India), Children of the World Ornament (Manos Amigas, Peru) and Divine Milk Chocolate Eggs packaged in a handmade basket”; available at SERRV):

Bird Lover’s Basket (“Homemade basket contains papier mâché Perching Dove Box (Asha Handicrafts, India), Divine Dark Chocolate Eggs and the realistic Bird’s Nest with Eggs, made with dyed tagua nuts (Camari, Ecuador)”; available at SERRV):

Global Exchange’s Easter Bunny Gift Box (Includes a handmade carrot zippered toy with three mini bunnies nestled inside and two bags of delicious milk chocolate coins):

FAIR TRADE STUFFED BUNNY RABBITS & Spring Finger PUppets:

Alpaca Stuffed Bunny (Available at Greenheart and Global Goods Partners):

Fair Indigo’s Cutie the Lamb Organic Stuffed Animal (Cutie is an award-winning, Fair Trade friend who is part of the Joobles line, which was featured on NBC’s Today Show. Other Joobles characters include: Jiffy the Giraffe, Icy the Penguin, Pip the Dog, Mel the Monkey, Flop the Frog, Roar the Lion, Racky the Raccoon, Squeaky the Pig, and Calley the Cat. Matching Blankie, Hooded Cardigan, and Hat/Mitten Set are also available):

Bundle of Bunnies Zippered Toy (Available at Global Exchange):

Lucuma Designs’s Girl Rabbit Finger Puppet in Organic Cotton (Acrylic Girl Rabbit Finger Puppet, Acrylic Rabbit & Backpack Finger Puppet, Organic Cotton Rabbit & Backpack Finger Puppet, Acrylic Rabbit Finger Puppet, Cotton Rabbit Finger Puppet, Organic Cotton Rabbit Finger Puppet, and Alpaca Rabbit Finger Puppet also available):

Lucuma Designs’s Duck Finger Puppet in Alpaca (Also available in Acrylic and Cotton):

UPAVIM’s Recycled Cotton Rabbit Set:

FAIR TRADE EASTER GIFTS & CARDs:

Much in Little, Inc.’s Hungry Bunny Coin Purse (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

The Community Crafts Association of the Philippines’s Coco Rabbit Planter (Available at SERRV):

The Community Crafts Association of the Philippines’s Wooly Rabbit Planter (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

CORR – The Jute Works’s Bunny Lantern (Available at SERRV):

Asha Handicrafts’s Floral Papier Mâché Eggs (Available at SERRV; Kashmir Papier Mâché Eggs also available):

Mata Traders’s Mes Amis Ring in Yellow (Also available in Blue):

Cards from Africa’s Eggs In One Basket Card (Also available at Good Paper):

Salay Handmade Paper’s Bunny Love Card (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

FAIR TRADE RELIGIOUS GIFTS & CARDS:

Union Progresista Artesanal’s Resin Blossom Cross (Available at SERRV):

Kumbeshwar Technical School’s Abalone Cross Necklace (Available at SERRV):

Munay Rumi’s Filigree Turquoise Cross (Available at Partners for Just Trade):

Apikri’s Cross Wrap Necklace (Available at SERRV):

El Renacer Chalateco’s La Palma Bird Cross (Available at SERRV):

Mai Handcrafts’s Recycled Paper Cross (Available at SERRV):

Casa Romero Artisan Workshop’s Tree of Life Cross (Available at SERRV):

Comite Artisanal Haitien’s Cut Metal Vining Cross (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Cards from Africa’s On a Hill Far Away Card:

Cards from Africa’s To the Going Down of the Sun:

Hoping you have a joyful Easter!

[Update: Check out these darling Fair Trade Easter dresses for your little girl!]

Peace and Love,

Your Fair Trade Trendsters

Fair Trade Your Valentine’s Day!

THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO FAIR TRADING YOUR VALENTINE’S DAY!

In preparation for the mushiest, lovey dovey-est day of the year, we’ve gathered an awesome collection of our favorite Fair Trade Valentine’s Day gifts. (BTW February 14 is also known as Singles Awareness Day. If you find yourself flying solo on 2/14, we highly suggest you treat your beautiful, spectacular self to a fab Fair Trade present [or two, or three, or four…]).

Unfortunately, as much as we lurve the warm, fuzzy feelings of V-Day, the presents we give to announce our love often also carry unseen messages of injustice and cruelty as the farmers who grow our chocolate and flowers and the miners who unearth our diamonds are often exploited, if not enslaved, in the production of these gifts. However, thanks to Fair Trade Certification, you can give your honey a truly sweet gift, one that protects the rights of workers, women, and children; builds up communities; and helps to sustain the environment.

OUR FAVORITE GIFT IDEAS:

FLOWERS:

While women love flowers (“over 90% of gift flowers in the US are given to women”), the flower industry, which notoriously pays its workers poverty wages, clearly doesn’t love women back. Over half of the women working in Ecuador’s flower industry have faced sexual harassment at work. Further, The U.S./Labor Education in the Americas Project and The International Labor Rights Fund also reports that:

“66% of Colombian and Ecuadorian flower workers suffer from work-related health problems. [Since] pesticide abuse is rampant – flower workers experience higher-than-average rates of premature births, congenital malformations, and miscarriages.”

And yet, these facts are hidden from us consumers, and we continue to give flowers as signs of our affection. However, thanks to Fair Trade, we can give breathtaking bouquets (like those pictured at the top of this post), which empower women and protect workers and the environment. For more information, visit Fair Trade USA’s Fair Trade Certified Flowers page. (Fair Trade flowers can be purchased online at Organic Bouquet and Organic Style.)

DIAMONDS:

While they’re not in everyone’s price-range, if you are planning to give the gift of bling, we urge you to support companies like Brilliant Earth, which provide a Conflict-Free Guarantee.

CHOCOLATE:

While Marilyn told us that “diamonds are a girl’s best friend,” we know better. Check out these yummy gifts that will definitely show your cutie you’re sweet on her/him. (To learn more about the importance of buying Fair Trade chocolate, see our post on Fair Trade Films: Child Slavery in the Cocoa Industry):

Chocolate Love Gift Box Featuring Divine Fair Trade Chocolate (Available at SERRV):

Theo Chocolate’s Casanova Caramel Collection 12-Piece Box: (“This collections contain 3 each: Ginger Rose Caramel, Honey Saffron Caramel, Grey Salted Vanilla Milk Caramel, and Lavender Caramel”; 4-Piece Box also available):

Theo Chocolate’s Aphrodisiac Collection (“This 8 piece collection includes 1 each of the following: Dulce de Leche, Fig Fennel, Licorice, Ginger Rose Caramel, Hot Ceylon Cinnamon, Honey Saffron Caramel and Tequila Lime”):

Sjaak’s Organic Chocolates’s Valentine Heart Truffle Box (A handmade box “filled . . . with 20 delicious dark chocolate creamy truffles. Flavors include: Raspberry, Almond, Hazelnut, Cherry and Orange”):

Divine’s Milk Chocolate and Dark Chocolate Hearts (Available at SERRV):

Global Exchange’s Thinking of You Gift Box (“Chocolate covered Brazil nuts from Candela co-operative in Peru, 40 pieces of Equal Exchange mini dark chocolates, beautifully packaged in a box with a heart, Cinnamon scented heart candle, & 3 bars of Organic Chocolate from Divine, [assorted Flavors]”):

WINE:

Wandering Grape’s Cabernet Sauvignon-Shiraz from South Africa (Available at Organic Wine Trading Company; also available from Wandering Grape: a Malbec-Merlot from Argentina and a Sauvignon Blanc from Chile. Organic Wine Trade Company also carries bottles from the following Fair Trade wineries: Fairhills, Neu Direction, Step by Step, & Los Cowboys):

PAMPER YOUR SWEETIE:

Global Exchange’s Bath and Beauty Spa Basket (“A natural hand-woven basket from Cambodia filled with: Choice Organic Chamomile Tea, 2 Organic Divine chocolate bars, Tea Infuser Mug, Citrus Blossom Bath Salts, Afghan Rock Soap (set of 5), Putumayo’s Women of Africa CD, & Pumice Baby Foot”):

Anti-Body’s Bath and Body Gift Set in Petal (Available at Greenheart; also available in Lemongrass & Lavendar):

Anti-Body’s Massage So Nice Gift Set (Available at Greenheart):

Palam Rural Centre’s Handmade Heart Soap Set (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Beeline’s Honey & Brown Sugar Body Polisher & Exfoliator (Available at Greenheart):

Silence’s Melt My Heart Candle (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Silence’s Floral Tapestry Candle (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Beeswax Jumbo Heart Candle (Available at Global Exchange):

JEWELRY:

Butterfly Wing Valentine’s Jewelry in Heart-Shaped Recycled-Paper Box (Available at Global Exchange; Jewelry and Box also available separately; Jewelry also available at Greenheart):

Mata Traders’s Heart Earrings (Matching Necklace also available; also available at Greenheart and Revive):

Archana Handicrafts’s All My Love Bead Choker (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Intercrafts Peru’s Milagros Necklace (Available at SERRV):

Saffy Handicrafts’s Ocean Sunset Capiz Earrings (Available at Ten Thousand Villages; matching Necklace also available):

Saffy Handicrafts’s Ruby Treasure Capiz Necklace (Available at Ten Thousand Villages; matching Earrings also available):

SAFFY’s Shades of Pink Earrings (Available at SERRV):

Mata Traders’s Specked Bone Necklace in Pink:

GIFTS THAT SHOW YOU CARE:

Ruth and Nohemi’s Naomi Bear (Available at SERRV):

Putumayo’s World Music’s Tango Around the World (“Passion, style and elegance are interwoven to create this musical tapestry of international tango and tango-influenced songs”):

Putumayo’s World Music’s ¡Salsa! (“A hip-shaking music collection featuring many of the hottest salsa bands in North and South America”):

Wayan Rendah’s “Harmony” Wood Statuette (Available at Seven Hopes United):

Undugu Society of Kenya’s Embracing Couple Kisii Statue (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Mother of Pearl Picture Frame (Available at Greenheart):

Asha Handicrafts’s Love Birds Box (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Mai Vietnamese Handcrafts’s Lovebirds Cinnamon Box (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Asha Handicrafts’s Lidded Heart Paper Mâché Box (Available at SERRV):

Asha Handicrafts’s Shesham Heart Puzzle Box (Available at SERRV):

Seven Hopes United’s Hearts for Africa (“The sale of each heart helps fund the rebuilding of a primary school in war zones or conflict-ridden areas of Africa”):

Nyabigena Soapstone Carvers’s African Soapstone Heart (Available at SERRV):

Apikri’s Batiked Heart Ornaments (Available at SERRV):

Recycled Sari Blanket Throw (Available at Greenheart):

CLOTHING & ACCESSORIES:

One Mango Tree’s Party Dress in Cherry:

Indigenous Designs’s Wrap Hoody in Red Apple:

MarketPlace’s Very Pink Batik Scarf (Available at SERRV):

Fair Indigo’s Baby Alpaca Scarf in Pink (Also available in Dark Charcoal Heather, Camel, Deep Pink, Bay Blue, Burnt, Orange, and Charcoal Heather):

Mata Traders’s Purple Scarf:

Recycled Sari Scarf (Available at Greenheart):

Hearts Abound Silk Scarf in Gold (Available at Revive):

Maggie’s Organics’s Patterned Knee Hi Socks in Pink Tye Dye:

Fair Indigo’s Vegan Leather Clutch in Red (Also available in Purple and Turquoise; Vegan Leather Tote Bag and Mini Wallet with Mirror also available):

Autonomie Project’s Ethletic Cranberry Red Low-Top Sneakers:

CARDS & GIFT WRAP:

Get Paper Industry’s Valentine Gift Wrap Set (Available at SERRV):

Get Paper Industry’s Love to Read Bookmarks (Available at SERRV):

Prokritee’s Lovebirds Card (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Lydia Trading’s Love Comes Running Card (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Salay Handmade Paper’s Bunny Love Card (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Prokritee’s Loving Valentine Banner Card (Available at Ten Thousand Villages):

Casa Bonampak’s Mini Fuchsia Paper Heart (Casa Bonampak offers an exceptional selection of paper decorations, including intricate, delicate papel picado paper garlands):

We hope you’ll spread the love and fabulousness of Fair Trade this Valentine’s Day!

Peace and Love,

Your Fair Trade Trendsters

Fair Trade Your Halloween!

In yesterday’s post, we encouraged you to consider Reverse Trick-or-Treating this year to raise awareness about child slavery in the cocoa industry.

[UPDATE: To learn more about the important (but hidden) horror of child slavery and abuses in the chocolate industry, check out Fair Trade Films: Child Slavery in the Cocoa Industry.]

However, if you’re planning to stay home to pass out candy, don’t worry; you can join in the Fair Trade love, too! Make your Halloween sweet for the kids in your neighborhood (and the kids in cocoa producing countries) by passing out Fair Trade chocolate.

Check out these fun options:

Global Exchange’s Fair Trade Trick-or-Treat Action Pack – $17.50 (40 chocolate minis, a stack of kid-friendly info postcards, traditional Papel Picado Mexican party streamers, a 100% Eco-friendly mulberry paper Trick-or-Treat bag from Thailand, and a “Fair Trade is Boo-tiful” poster to hang on your door):