Hand Beaded Earrings from South Africa

Over cocktails in a friend's garden, I am trying to talk with brilliant Jennifer Griffin, national security correspondent for Fox News in DC, but as our conversation roams over global and women's issues of great significance, I hate to admit I'm seriously distracted by her earrings. Not because they're distracting, but because they are so fresh, so chic, so original - metallic beaded things that looked like they might take off in flight. When we finally take a breath, I jump on the chance.  
Oh, she remembers as she touches them, these are beaded by women in South Africa - I bought them when I was there. They'd be perfect for Ibu! Well, count on Jennifer to not only keep up with Pentagon issues but send me also the link to the South African group who had hand-crafted her lobe dressing, so that the Ibu team immediately sussed out the ingenious creative pool in CapeTown and asked if we might collaborate with them.

They're called the Grace Jones earrings. Why, I wonder? Because Grace Jones is powerful, outrageously bold, resilient, irreverent? Because Grace Jones is an icon to women in South Africa who know she fought her way out of a box to claim her own life? I'm not sure, but the team at ibu fell for the Grace Jones earrings for all those reasons and more . . . because they are great looking. And different. And super-light. 

You often ask how we find the artisans with whom we work and here is one fine story of how we find them because of you. The women in CapeTown are now new friends because of Jennifer's good taste and remarkable recall and generosity in sharing. 

This is how the movement moves . . . women getting together in a friend's garden, women pushing the limits of their craft to new heights, women giving each other a hand . . . or an ear :)  And a little bit of Grace Jones thrown in to keep us fierce and bold. 

All the Best,

Susan Hull Walker

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