Afro-pop legend Miriam Makeba, also known as "Mama Africa," died on Sunday at the age of 76 in the south of Italy, following a concert appearance. This
powerhouse songstress's long and varied life included marriage to Black Panther Stokely Carmichael, exile from her home country of South Africa, a starring role in the film Sarafina!, about the 1976 Soweto youth uprisings, and an appearance in the 2002 documentary Amandla!: A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony.
Over her lifetime Makeba made dozens of records and was responsible for bringing the issue of apartheid to the forefront in Western countries, though she always identified herself first as a singer, not as a political activist.
Who would've thought that such an angelic figure could come from such a surprising source? When empty oil drums washed up on Haiti after World War II, local artisans reworked the "trash" into metal sculptures. And while this simple and sublime
angel figure ($169) from VivaTerra wasn't in your
tree topper roundup, I think it would've fit in nicely.
Think this rug is made of wool? Think again.
Mad Mats ($36 for 4-x-6-ft.
I've heard of beer of the month clubs that let you sample different microbrews, as well as wine of the month clubs, which are a great way to discover small wineries. Now,
I've just discovered a similar service for coffee lovers, called
Citizen Bean. Guided by the principle of "coffee with a conscience," Citizen Bean sends its subscribers a new organic or fair-trade coffee each month, selected from micro-roasters all over the US.
I always keep my eye open for cute placemats to spice up my table with on occasion, because it's boring to always use the same ones. These cute jute
Lemon Placemants ($12) had me
planning a tea party at first sight. Aside from being super adorable, they're
fair trade and from a Bangladeshi producer group where Christians, Muslims, and Hindus work harmoniously together.
Let me just start by saying this is not a misplaced St. Patty's day post. By "green" I mean environmentally conscious.
While shopping the other day, I had the hankering for chocolate and I came across
Equal Exchange Organic Chocolate bars. Equal Exchange guarantees small farmers a fair price and a long-term relationship so they can stay in business, unlike many conventional cocoa bean manufacturers where small farmers and laborers receive only a small fraction of the profit. I call it chocolate with a conscience and I like to put my money where my mouth is - ya know.
There's a very cool project going on called
Made, which allows influential designers to source their designs to East African communities, where local artisans have been taught the skills of jewelry production and make fair wages for the jewelry they create.
All the jewelry is available at the
Made online shop, and the pieces are very affordable - earrings run $10-$58, necklaces run $10-$278, and bracelets run $16-$90. These
Kifundo earrings are really cool and made of glass and bone beads hanging on leather strings.
OK, so if you didn't already know, my friend Yum reminded me that today is
Free Cone Day at participating Ben & Jerry's ice cream shops!!!. Get there between 12 and 8pm today and get yourself a free ice cream cone.
I know it seems weird for me to be telling you this, considering Ben & Jerry's isn't exactly healthy for you, but you know how I feel about moderation -their scrumptious ice cream flavors are definitely worth experiencing.
