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Zipping it Up….

November 21st, 2017

If you’ve been following here for a while, you know I’ve been making zipper pouches for charity. Last summer, a friend and I made 100 to send to an orphanage in Indonesia of girls affected by the tsunami a few years ago. After that project, I decided to make 400 *gulp*, one for each child in the school I work with in Colombia. It was definitely a lesson in perseverance, many times I thought I was never going to finish. But I am finally finished!!!!! This bag is filled with 200 of the zipper pouches, the other 200 are already back in Ohio.

I have been collecting school supplies and raising funds to purchase additional supplies (stickers, erasers, small toys, etc). to fill the bag. So far I have quite a stockpile going. In February, a group of 15 is heading down to the school and they will be taking them to the kids. I’m looking forward to seeing photos of them receiving the pouches. Most of these kids are so poor they can barely afford clothing, let alone good school supplies. The charity I work for runs a sponsor a child type program where we raise scholarships to pay for their education.

This project was not only a lesson in perseverance for me, but also a great lesson in the value of small pieces of time. I very rarely sat down and made large quantities of these pouches. Most of the work was done in 5-15 minute segments when I had a few minutes here and there. Over the course of a year, a lot can be accomplished in seemingly small chunks of time.



Now that this project is finished, I’m moving on to make more zipper pouches for my marketplace. Yesterday I made the one pictured above, which is probably my most favorite of any I have made. These pouches will be slightly bigger (9″x6″), many of them will have metal made in USA zippers, and there will only be a few made in each pattern. I will most likely make different sizes as well. For each zipper pouch purchased, I’ll make another zipper pouch to donate somewhere in the future. No doubt I’ll find another charity that can use them, when I have enough, I’ll send them along. If you’ve been looking for a few gifts for friends/family, check out the market when it launches.

What charitable projects have you been working on recently?

7 Comments to “Zipping it Up….”
  1. Susan on November 21, 2017 at 11:45 am

    You could fill them with feminine hygiene products and donate them to a homeless shelter. Here in California I do this but with simple gallon ziplock bags. Homeless women have to sometimes chose between eating and tampons due to the expense. But things like wipes, chapstick and dry shampoo can bring simple relief also. Just an idea! I love the pouches they are so simple and beautiful.

    Reply to Susan's comment

    • Susy on November 21, 2017 at 9:25 pm

      Great idea!

      Reply to Susy's comment

  2. Nebraska Dave on November 21, 2017 at 5:31 pm

    Susy, my big charitable project for this year was 8 days in Texas helping with hurricane cleanup. Outside of that is the normal neighborhood helping of elderly neighbors to doctors, shopping, and hanging out. I support people that can go to foreign lands to help in orphanages and some times just supports blogs that I like and follow.

    Have a great Maine day.

    Nebraska Dave

    Reply to Nebraska Dave's comment

    • Susy on November 21, 2017 at 9:26 pm

      Love that you do so much!!!

      Reply to Susy's comment

  3. Jeanette on November 21, 2017 at 6:52 pm

    What beautiful bags!

    Reply to Jeanette's comment

  4. Nikala Smith on November 22, 2017 at 12:06 am

    Love this idea! Where do you get all the zippers? Do you buy them brand new? I’m just trying to source some zippers for an affordable price

    Reply to Nikala Smith's comment

About

This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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