The Phu Khor women approached Khom Loy Development Foundation in 2003 and asked for help selling their handicrafts. We realized that the traditional products of the hilltribe communities, although beautiful, are considered too "ethnic" to sell in Western Markets without some design input so we focused first on creating "crossover" products. Now we go to these experienced artisans to produce our prototypes because of their understanding, interpretation and confidence.

Adtaw Mayeur runs the general store in the village and like most of the resident women, any extra time she has is spent working on handicrafts to earn extra cash. She values education and wants to earn money to send her children to school. Her eldest is over 800 kilometres away at a school near Bangkok, staying with a well-off relative. If Adtaw can earn the money, she will bring her child back to a local school so she can see more of him.

Women often have to go to other provinces or big cities like Bangkok to find work in factories because of a lack of local income opportunities. Their children board with a relative or a neighbour in the village.

She can only make handicrafts during daylight hours because her house has no electricity. This is not uncommon within the hill tribe communities but is slowly changing. One 3"x3" panel takes 5 days to create under these conditions. Before joining Izara’s handicrafts project, she would try and sell to passing tourists. These sales are seasonal and sporadic.

Adtew’s husband works as an officer for the forestry dept (the only local employer) so the family income is 7,000 baht ($315) per month. Working for the handicraft project would allow her to realise her dream of sending her children to college. Adtew wants them to have good jobs once they grow up, something she never got the chance to do herself.