Bethlehem Fair Trade Artisans
New partnership that reflects our community and social outreach
As a community committed to a just peace for Palestinians and Israelis and in ethical consumption, we have partnered with the Bethlehem Fair Trade Association (BFTA) to bring Palestinian-made items that express to many of us our faith stories, heritage and traditions. Join us by purchasing the selection of item below that is made by a diverse group of Palestinian artisans using different raw materials, such as wool, olive wood and recycled glass.
Available Items
Inventory Updated December 6, 2023
Blown Glass products are handmade in Hebron where the original business started hundreds of years ago. Blown Glass products are hand-painted by women from both Hebron and Bethlehem. The Paintings on these products are done with high quality and somehow represent the heritage of Palestine. Blown glass is used for either home décor or as an ornament.
Blown Glass products are handmade in Hebron where the original business started hundreds of years ago. Blown Glass products are hand-painted by women from both Hebron and Bethlehem. The Paintings on these products are done with high quality and somehow represent the heritage of Palestine. Blown glass is used for either home décor or as an ornament.
Handmade felt wool by the artisans of Abu Nuwwar’s community. Sheep wool is cleaned, spun, colored, designed and assembled with basic tools and the utmost dedication of those marginalized artisans. All the designs are hand spun by the artisans in Bedouin areas. BFTA helps empower those marginalized artisans in remote areas and present their art across the world. Those artisans are in gratitude to be given the chance to show their work that they have been doing for years.
Handmade felt wool by the artisans of Abu Nuwwar’s community. Sheep wool is cleaned, spun, colored, designed and assembled with basic tools and the utmost dedication of those marginalized artisans. All the designs are hand spun by the artisans in Bedouin areas. BFTA helps empower those marginalized artisans in remote areas and present their art across the world. Those artisans are in gratitude to be given the chance to show their work that they have been doing for years.
Blown Glass products are handmade in Hebron where the original business started hundreds of years ago. Blown Glass products are hand-painted by women from both Hebron and Bethlehem. The Paintings on these products are done with high quality and somehow represent the heritage of Palestine. Blown glass is used for either home décor or as an ornament.
Knowing Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem, declaring it the Holy Land. Artisans have transformed the miracle of Christ’s birth into their art crafts using olive wood, Palestine’s most important raw material. Christmas ornaments are unique and each one tells a different story. These ornaments can make your home feel authentic yet modern and beautiful. Moreover, they last a life time and can be used all around your house, office or room.
The heritage of olive wood in Palestine exceeds thousands of years and it has been a huge part of the Palestinian export industry. Artisans in Palestine and especially in Bethlehem have been benefiting from Olive wood crafts for years to be a main source of income in their workshops. Those crafts express the authenticity of olive wood and how the artisans handmade and hand carved the crafts using basic tools but utmost dedication and skill.
The heritage of olive wood in Palestine exceeds thousands of years and it has been a huge part of the Palestinian export industry. Artisans in Palestine and especially in Bethlehem have been benefiting from Olive wood crafts for years to be a main source of income in their workshops. Those crafts express the authenticity of olive wood and how the artisans handmade and hand carved the crafts using basic tools but utmost dedication and skill.
Blown Glass products are handmade in Hebron where the original business started hundreds of years ago. Blown Glass products are hand-painted by women from both Hebron and Bethlehem. The Paintings on these products are done with high quality and somehow represent the heritage of Palestine. Blown glass is used for either home décor or as an ornament.
The heritage of olive wood in Palestine exceeds thousands of years and it has been a huge part of the Palestinian export industry. Artisans in Palestine and especially in Bethlehem have been benefiting from Olive wood crafts for years to be a main source of income in their workshops. Those crafts express the authenticity of olive wood and how the artisans handmade and hand carved the crafts using basic tools but utmost dedication and skill. Olive wood is widely known to be suitable for eating an
The heritage of olive wood in Palestine exceeds thousands of years and it has been a huge part of the Palestinian export industry. Artisans in Palestine and especially in Bethlehem have been benefiting from Olive wood crafts for years to be a main source of income in their workshops. Those crafts express the authenticity of olive wood and how the artisans handmade and hand carved the crafts using basic tools but utmost dedication and skill. Olive wood is widely known to be suitable for eating an
For inquiries and placing orders, please send an email to community@tgucvan.com
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About
Bethlehem Fair Trade Artisans (BFTA) is a non-profit NGO established in 2009. It works to spread the fair trade message in Palestine and links Palestinian producers to global fair trade markets.
In 2015, BFTA became the first guaranteed member of World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) in the Middle East. WFTO is the largest global network advocating Fair Trade principles.
While working with producers specializing in olive wood, embroidery, mother of pearl, olive oil soap, felt wool, and recycled products, BFTA promotes and celebrates the Palestinian culture and traditions. Through our mission of fair trade, we cherish these ancient crafts as we share their local stories with the world.
Wool
Bedouin weaving was traditionally carried out by women to create household items suited for the life in the desert. The thread was spun from sheep’s wool, colored with natural dyes, and woven into a fabric using a ground loom and the strong fabric produced was used for tents, rugs, pillows, and other domestic items. Nowadays, due to the constraints imposed by the coercive environment of the Israeli occupation and the extremely poor living conditions of the Bedouin communities, the use of the hand spun wool for tents and domestic items has been sadly replaced by cheaper second-hand materials. Despite that, the tradition of carding and spinning the wool is still
alive and deserves to be safeguarded, it is used to create amazing ornaments and decorations. The wool and felt crafts that are sold by Bethlehem Fair Trade Artisans are crafted by two Bedouin women groups living northeast of Jerusalem and by Together for Life, an organization involving people with intellectual disabilities. These artisans create beautiful crafts out of wool and felt, from Christmas nativities to ornaments and figurines. In each and every single product you can see their passion, creativity and joy for what they are doing. These products are perfect for nontraditional holiday decorations, beautifully made from raw wool and well designed.
Olive Wood
For millennia, the olive tree has been the pillar of Palestinian agrarian culture. This noble tree was domesticated during the Chalcolithic era (5300 to 1700 BC), and there is evidence of olive oil production from 5,000 years ago in this region. Although Palestinian life today is increasingly urban, still the olive tree remains a beloved symbol of the creative relationship between the people and the land. The wood of the olive, finely grained and beautifully textured, is ideal for delicate woodcarvings. Since the earliest days of pilgrimage to Bethlehem, visitors to the town have taken home olive wood souvenirs, rosaries, boxes, nativity scenes and carved statuary, all made by local artists. The necessary annual pruning of the olive branches provides ample material for carving, so farmers and woodcarvers enjoy a symbiotic economic balance. The exquisite carvings manufactured from the olive wood are artistic treasures of contemporary Palestinian cultural heritage. In recent years, sadly, due to the local conflict in the area, thousands of Palestinian olive trees have been damaged and destroyed, with grave consequences for the local agrarian economy. Replacing uprooted trees, aiding Palestinian farmers in the annual olive harvest, and of course the purchase of olive wood carvings, are increasingly recognized today as peaceful ways of giving moral and practical support to a people struggling to live in dignity and justice on their ancestral land.