How do we at Harlan pledge to "...save the earth and not cost the earth"?

How do we at Harlan pledge to "...save the earth and not cost the earth"?

Recently we tagged ourselves as being crusaders of the earth (isn’t she pretty?!).

Earth

KAPOW what a statement!!

So how do we back this up?

The people behind the Crafty T brand are not your archetypal renegade environmental fighters.  We don’t wave banners (although one day we may), we shave our arms and legs (each to their own), wash our clothes, and more importantly….we look just like you

You’ve sat next to us on the train, stood in front or behind us at the supermarket (with our eco shopping bags), we may have even shared a smile or knowing look as one of our children throws themselves on the floor in the middle of, well, anywhere really.  We get up and shower every day, brush our teeth, eat breakfast, go to work.  We eat, sleep and repeat (if we’re lucky or not so lucky depending on your outlook).

Simply put, we are lovers of our planet.  Whilst we all may be here for a relatively short time, we know that many more will come long after we're gone and we want to do our best not to stuff it up too badly so they too can enjoy our crisp vibrant oceans, blue skies and green forests.

We also love people.

How does this relate to our business?

Slow Homewares

Much akin to the “slow fashion” movement we are hearing and seeing more of, we align ourselves to “slow homewares”.  We believe that when people spend slightly more on ‘forever’ pieces, they look after these items better, think twice before throwing them away and retain them for longer, and therefore buy less. 

This approach and ideal forces the makers and producers of these products to invest in quality, meaning customers can keep these items longer as they don’t fall apart, retain shape and colour.  Producers use better quality production processes and materials.  Think ripped seams due to a lower quality cotton or poly / blend thread.

Buy Local

Shopping local means we are not filling our airways with logistical pollutants.  Airplanes, ships, cars and vans.  Crafty T advertises on local newspapers and community groups and offers free local collection.  We do ship internationally as some of our products aren’t available anywhere else, however, this is more by exception than as a sales strategy.  We wouldn’t want anyone to miss out on what we have to offer!

We love people and everyone deserves to be safe and paid fairly

Paying a fair price means that workers, craftists, artists, can be paid fair wages for their work.  It means that the mark up on these items is more closely associated to what the worker actually earned.  Money to clothe, feed and educate their families, something a lot of Australians take for granted.

We see many items for sale in large department stores at much cheaper prices than we can purchase fabric alone, let alone the additional costs to then prepare, produce, advertise and sell our products.  6 placemats for $10?  I don’t think so.  If you think you’ve scored a bargain somewhere, ask yourself who made it, what were they paid, are they safe, are they old enough?

The more we demand fair working conditions and wages for all global workers, the sooner these stores will make changes.

Support Small Business

“The most recent ABS data for 30 June 2014 shows: there were 2.1 million small businesses operating in Australia—consisting of 1.27 million non-employing businesses and 771,000 businesses that employed between one and 19 employees. Small businesses accounted for 97.4 per cent of all businesses operating in Australia.” Source: https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp1516/Count

2.1 million businesses employing less than 20 people.

Small businesses account for 97.4% of all businesses operating in Australia. 

This country is nothing without our small businesses:

SUPPORT THEM!

It’s not big business that keeps this country great, it’s the mums & dads businesses out there working 17 hour days, the entrepreneurs going it alone and breaking away to effect change, do it differently, make a difference, earn a dollar.

Next time you pass a small store, take a look in and see what they’ve got to offer.  Wouldn’t you rather give them your own hard earned dollar, or would you prefer it to line some unknown shareholder’s pocket earned from someone else’s misfortune of unfair, unsafe conditions and poorly paid wages?

“Australian handmade homewares and gifts that "...save the earth and don't cost the earth" with a FREE feel-good factor”

  • I am the in-house designer Gili’Te, I live in Empire Bay on the Central Coast and I source all the fabric I use locally or from rural Australian communities directly. I create all my own patterns for every product I make.  Like other mums & dads businesses, I also work a full-time job as a Project Manager and design and create in my spare time.  The products I design and create are aimed at meeting (and sometimes exceeding) the needs of every day Australians at an affordable price with the environment in mind.
  • I believe everyone should be able to afford thoughtful homewares, made by lovely people and therefore the claim to not cost the earth is twofold being monetary and environmentally.

I would love to hear your thoughts on supporting small business, reducing waste, slowing down production, paying fair wages and eliminating child labour, and making workplaces safe.  Comment below!

Sew-long for now,

Gili'Te

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