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MonkeygramHappily Made2018-08-31T01:28:19+10:00

Monkeygram

#magneticmonkey #sleepysnoogus

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You don’t want to miss out on these adorable Easter “bunnies” (🤫 they’re actually monkeys!!) There will only be a few made for our @kickstarter campaign so hurry and order some while you can 🏃‍♀️ 🏃‍♂️ 🏃‍♀️ 🏃‍♀️ Each one is carefully handmade by a woman in Cambodia and has “magic” hands which means it’s hours of fun ✨🧲✨

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What do these photos of kids in Cambodia got to do with my cooking adventures in suburbia I hear you ask 🥴 Well here’s another story... Remember how I visited one of our knitting villages to hand out certificates to the women who had completed the training course? Remember how pissed off I was watching the tour groups come past and after a quick walk through the village they were grabbing kids and shoving lollies in their hands and posing with them like zoo animals? (Ugh...I can feel myself getting angry just writing about it😡) So here’s what’s also pissed me off...the village has a tiny little gift shop as well. It’s open for any tourists coming through and filled with the usual things that you can expect from a gift shop. Only difference is that most of the items are handmade. Scarves, beads, bowls etc. They even make gift bags out of newspaper to be environmentally friendly 😍 So yes, a super sweet opportunity to support the women in the village. What made me so angry was watching most of the tourists come out of the shop empty handed! Hardly anyone bought anything. Now I’m all about not buying what is not needed...but for these same people to then start pushing lollies on all the kids was so wrong. I totally understand that their intentions were good...but seriously...surely it’s not that hard to realise that handing out lollies to kids is not a great idea. Especially in a place that doesn’t even have a dentist! Would these tourists be ok with strangers handing their grandkids treats?? Ugh. Anyways. All that to say that when I visited the village a year ago I bought this random bamboo kitchen utensil. I figured it would be good for making bechamel sauce. Turns out that I pretty much use it EVERY day. It’s so handy! Past two nights I’ve taken a photo as proof. So on this visit I bought an extra 5 to giveaway as gifts and now I just need to figure out how to do it. I might do some “these are a few of my favourite things” combo packs to giveaway✨

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These sloths are so keen to find out who will be giving them Forever Homes ✨❤️✨ They promise to provide a peaceful vibe and regular reminders to go slooooow✨ Know anyone who would be willing to love a sloth?✨❤️✨ Find them on our @kickstarter link and make someone happy ✨🦥✨

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Thank you to everyone who has helped us share the @kickstarter link. I’m constantly thinking up little gifts I can give out for those of you getting the word out ✨💙✨

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When I feel slightly less vulnerable I’ll write more about the process of finding a rental in Melbourne as a solo mum. But until then I’m just going to celebrate that I’ve found a house that’s a perfect match ✨ And you’d think it’s the colour scheme that I’m referring to...but it’s actually because my landlords are moving to CAMBODIA!!! ✨Super grateful ✨

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For those of you concerned about colour options for your Kickstarter pledges....no need to worry! 😎 I’ll be sending out confirmation emails and asking you which specific sloth and bag colours you want😍 For now it’s just about getting the pledges through and specifics will be handled later 😇

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Gotta love a “monkey pocket” on our new shopping bags 😍 These bags just get better and better the more I use them! Made from “upcycled” fabric (that means leftover fabric from factories that would otherwise end up in landfill) and handmade by four women in Cambodia. They not only help the environment and create jobs for marginalised women...but they are incredibly practical for (my list keeps growing) markets, teachers, artists, parents, groceries, wine bottles and so on and so on... You can find them on our @kickstarter link along with our other handmade treasures ✨

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Meanwhile somewhere in Canada two of our monkeys are having a snow adventure ❄️ ⛄️ Where are you taking your magnetic monkeys? @global.monkey.trails

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I’m just* a sloth...waiting for someone to love me 💛 *handmade, ethical, vegan, magnetic!! Kickstarter link in bio ✨

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If you’re looking for something unique as an Easter gift...look no further! 🐣 It’s handmade, ethical, won’t cause cavities and is ridiculously cute!! ✨💛✨ Our magnetic monkeys dressed up as bunnies to help with our @kickstarter campaign! Order yours through the link🐣

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Ha ha! I’ve just had such a funny conversation with the knitting ladies at Sloth Headquarters in Phnom Penh 😂 I was asking them about the baby sloths being knitted for upcoming giveaways and how many we will have from the yarn I brought over. I’m excited to say there will be about 15 going out to those of you really helping spread the word💥 What was so funny was when I asked them to take some photos for me so I could show you guys the progress. Let’s just say it’s very hard to explain “upside down” when giving directions 😂 We eventually got there and here is the evidence! I’ve added a photo of Rumi so you can see the size difference in these baby sloths that won’t be available to order and can only be given as a thank you😎

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These are the weavers that will be carefully making the blankets you order through our @kickstarter link💛 They are spirited, silly, ambitious, clever, skilled and determined to create a better future for themselves and their families ✨ Please consider showing them your support by making a pledge😍 In return you’ll receive a gorgeous blanket that will be loved for years to come 💛

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Do you know a Happily Made monkey fans that wants to add a couple of very very very limited edition magnetic monkeys to their collection?? ✨ All they need to do is comment below about how they either told their school mates, neighbours, work mates or any other promoting they did of our Kickstarter campaign... and I’ll pick a winner at the end of the week. Only two monkeys exist made from this very very expensive yarn I bought in a knitting cafe next to the hospital in Bangkok 😎

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So what has made me keep trying to create ethical jobs for women in Cambodia since I left 8 years ago? I’m going to respond with a story. Two years ago I flew to Bali with my closest friend for a getaway. It wasn’t one of those “eat, pray, love” trips. It was more of a “holy hell we survived!” trip. We had met when we were 20 years old and both studying in Sydney. Within a very short time we had four children each and trying not to drown in very difficult marriages. Whenever we ever ran out of food or nappies we would call each other and sure enough, one of us would have a few spare coins or some baby formula to give. Even writing this feels so strange because somehow it doesn’t seem as if I’m writing about myself. But that was me. A young mother who tried everything I could to rise above my situation. I have so much to thank my friend for as well as the many many women who supported me over the years, most of them probably wouldn’t even realise the impact their generosity had. It’s hard to explain but the smallest gesture can land the deepest when the world around you feels hopeless. So back to me and my friend in Bali🌴 While there I’m reflecting on our friendship and the “sisterhood” that we’re part of. All these good vibes flowing✨And I see this sign by the beach✨It makes me smile and feel even more good vibes. And it’s only then, while taking the photo, that I notice the women out in the ocean. Women out in the ocean with cement blocks on their heads😳 They are walking through the heavy water to deliver their load to a worksite building a new resort for women like me and my friend. My heart sinks. This “sisterhood” that I belong to by default as a woman in Australia can’t be exclusive. It much reach beyond our comforts and impact those women in developing countries who are literally trying to stay above water. Charity & aid will only do so much. Creating jobs and making sure their children have an education is where the real impact will be. And it’s women like these that remind me that I must continue doing what I do...even when the current feels too exhausting ❤️

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Oh hey! ✨ Rumi the Sloth here...just a friendly reminder that every pledge that is made on our @kickstarter campaign helps us create more jobs for women in Cambodia✨ It’s a slow slow process...but lasting impact ✨ If you could let your friends know and share our link, then we don’t have to spend money on marketing which is really expensive ✨❤️✨

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Cat approves ✔️

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This sloth will be leaving unexpectedly tomorrow for a new home 💜 If you’d like to order one you can find them on our @kickstarter link ❤️

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Our sloths are not just adorable, handmade and magnetic....they also create home based jobs for women in Cambodia ✨🦥✨ You can only order these through our #kickstarter link😬 Get in while you can 💛

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This is why I should have asked a graphic designer to help... but if you can overlook the basic quality..please let me know if you’d like some to share at your workplace ❤️

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@swifty3.2.0 took @global.monkey.trails to the next level while travelling through Turkey with his family😎 I’ll be posting some of the highlights in the next few days..but here they are flying back home from an eventful trip 😄

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The many faces of Happily Made monkey living his best life 😎

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As I start my first full week back since coming home from Cambodia, and feeling the stress of school starting and moving house looming on the horizon...I’m choosing to remind myself that the heart of what I do is creating jobs for marginalised women. And despite the process being slow, and most of the time I can’t see any progress... it IS making a difference! Women who have not have access to work or who have had to leave their children and families in order to earn any money are now able to create a different future for themselves. It’s a drop in the ocean...but for the women we’ve created jobs for it means so much ❤️

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Continued on from previous post... What struck me really hard today is that my four children have learned so much in their Australian curriculum about the Holocaust. The older two even learned about the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. Yet there was hardly ANYTHING about the genocide that took place in their own country. Even my 13 year old said today, why did we hear about Captain Cook and not this side of the story? I don’t have any answers and can only hope that people are finally waking up to the injustice that has taken place and continues to take place to the indigenous people of Australia. If I can use my online presence for something useful today, I’d like to encourage you to give some money to #paytherent and support them with their funeral fund. That’s what I’ll be doing ❤️ It’s small, but if enough of us do it, it will make a difference 🖤💛💔

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This morning, along with so many others, I caught the train into Melbourne to attend the #invasionday rally with two of my children. It’s taken me a few hours to process my feelings and decide what to write publicly. I’m very aware that the voices we need to listen to today are not from those of us who are the observers. As that sign says: WE NEED TO LISTEN What I do want to share with you is this; and I’ll try to make it brief (but have a feeling I might fail miserably) 🖤💛💔 These are my reflections: When I was newly married and had only lived in Australia for a short time, I went along to my first ANZAC Day parade. My husband had served in the Navy for 7 years and wanted to pay his respects to his grandfather who served in Tobruk, Gaza and Jerusalem. I remember standing there, watching the men walk past, they looked regal, proud and honoured to be there. Their medals displayed proudly on their chests. This went on for a long time and it felt important to be a witness. Then towards the end of the parade I noticed a different group of men walking towards me. Something inside me ached. The pain on their faces was impossible to hide. I had never seen such sad eyes. These men looked like they had suffered so much and that the suffering wasn’t a memory, but a constant companion. I wanted to look away, but felt compelled to give as much eye contact as I could and try to convey my support. It was moments later that I realised that the men I was looking at were the ones that had served in the Vietnam War. By the looks on their faces they had never left the battle fields and had continued fighting even once being back “home”. Today as I stood in the crowded Melbourne street, looking around at the people; I had a very similar feeling. There was so much pain and trauma etched on so many of the faces around me. They were still battling despite being “home”. It was so obvious that many who were there, have been victims of institutionalised racism and brutality. Generations of it. They have every right to be angry and demand justice from our leaders. As supporters we were asked to #paytherent To be continued in next post.

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