Our Soapstone is carved by the artists of SMOLArt a group of artists who live in the rural village of Tabaka in western Kenya, the heart of soapstone crafts. SMOLArt is a shortened version of Small, Medium, and Large Artists and refers to the size of the soapstone products that are lovingly crafted by hand from locally mined soapstone.
This traditional pre-Spanish three-legged mortar and pestle is the mixing bowl for salsa. The food is left in much larger chunks, unlike using a modern blender or food processor. And the demand for this item is growing world-wide
Felting is a labor-intensive process and involves many stages and people to create beautiful products. Watch this video to find out more and meet some of the artisans in Nepal.
In 2012 Davison and Grace Kantha were facing uprooting their tea bushes on their one-acre “shamba” because their tea earnings did not provide them with basic family needs – food, water, sanitation, and education. With the help of part earring with Justea, the Katah family and the Nandi Hills community were able to establish Kenya’s first-ever “Artisanal Tea Cottage Factory” owned and managed by small-scale tea farmers!