Ingrid and Andrea Products - UNICEF Market Canada

Ingrid and Andrea

"We transform nature's beauty into unique decor items with an elegant, functional design. I began this project in 2013 when the company where I worked closed its doors and many of us were left without jobs. My goal was to work with natural materials to create designs that could be used in the home," Ingrid Gamboa says. "In 2014, Andrea Benavente joined the team to design a line of decor items. From the first moment, we got along fabulously and decided to continue working together. "This really is a beautiful project. We work with women in different Maya communities in Guatemala and we've been able to help many families in villages that are somewhat isolated, where money is scarce." "It's exciting to know that we can do something for Guatemala's development, and this fills us with pride. It's our motivation day by day. We want to do better and better for these people. We've formed a bond with the artisans and we're so happy to have met one another. More than colleagues, we're like a big family today," Andrea adds. "We're totally committed to preserving our culture and want to stabilize the economy of women weavers with a decent and steady income. "All of our designs have a small label depicting a ceiba, or kapok tree, which is Guatemala's national tree. Another meaning it has for us is the "tree of life," representing shelter for those needing protection."