Joyce is back, Button Tree and all! This may not be a big deal to you yet, but I frequented Bags for Darfur (and Joyce's personal anecdotes at Chronicles of Blunderview) so regularly that bags4darfur appears in the title bar if I so much as tap the b key with my left index finger. Besides the fact that I'm attached at the hip to one of her beautiful creations, I am also inspired by Joyce's tenacity and creativity in taking on one of the world's biggest issues. May we all learn to, like her, grow where we're planted and give what we've got.

.

Check her out at http://www.bags4darfur.blogspot.com.

.

Re-joyce. I've always been a scrounger. Raised by a frugal prairie farm woman who reduced, reused, and recycled long, looooong before it was trendy; I've come into the concept of re-purposing honestly. I am silly-in-love with anything vintage-ish, and am powerless against it when I discover it stacked on card tables in someone's garage, or stale and lonely in a thrift shop. As a responsible consumer, here's what you can feel good about: *the bags are primarily made from recycled fabrics purchased at thrift shops, garage sales, and fabrics donated by generous supporters. * Most of the thrift shops are themselves humanitarian aid fund raisers. *while keeping this stuff out of the landfills, you get to enjoy little pieces of history. Fabrics that used to function as tableclothes, aprons, bedspreads, sheet sets, coats.... Well, you get the idea. *the proceeds of the project are intended for food aid to people in camps in Darfur, Sudan via the United Nations World Food Programme.

.

I would also like to take a load of fabric to this lovely lady when I move to Manitoba in January. Move?!?! Is that news to you? Mwa ha ha... more on this later.