About Our Beads
Paper, Glass, & Textiles
Our store consists of three lines of products:
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- Paper Beaded Jewelry made by Water is Life Kenya’s Wonderbead Team
- Maasai Glass Beaded Jewelry which is purchased from traditional Maasai bead workers
- A textile line in which products are manufactured in our Kenyan workshop
Our Paper Beaded Jewelry is made by first finding paper destined for the trash. Led by our talented Workshop Manager Stephen Musyoki, our skilled crafts people bring out the beauty and colors of the recycled paper by cutting, rolling into varied sizes and shapes, then varnishing each bead to provide a clear, durable coat. It’s then that the beads are ready to be assembled into the necklaces, bracelets, and earrings available in our shop.
Our Glass Beaded items are made by our local friends from the Maasai tribe in Southern Kenya, many of whom have benefited from our clean water projects. In the Maasai tradition, donning handmade beadwork is more than a fashion—beads make music, play important roles in ritual, and are made together in community which has become tribal pastime. Dozens of Maasai women create the intricate, beautiful, and unique products on this site.
Lastly, our textile line features Kenyan fabrics that make their way into bags, pouches, masks, and other accessories. These fabrics represent more than just Kenya—they are emblematic of the bold, courageous, resilient, and beautiful people that call this region home.
Being a proud member of the Fair Trade Federation, our products come with the simple guarantee that the women and men who made them are treated and paid fairly. Our team of artisans earn up to $10 a day, twice what is typically made elsewhere. The work is challenging but being able to create something beautiful that’s proudly worn by others is worth it.
To learn more about the people who make our products, visit Meet Our Beaders.
How Beads Become Water
Our process works like this:
For our Paper Beaded Jewelry, we pay our beaders for their handiwork upfront, ensuring they’re paid fairly for their time and effort spent in our workshop. Then it’s up to us to share their creations with others. The more we sell, the more others know about Water is Life Kenya and the more work there is for our artisans. The cycle of goodness continues.
After covering production costs, all profits from our Beaded Handicraft products go directly towards our clean water fund. With every sale, our customers aren’t only benefiting our beaders but the 35+ communities that have benefitted from WILK’s presence, commitment, and development efforts. Buying jewelry from this site ensures clean, sustainable water supplies are more abundant for the wonderful rural communities of Southern Kenya.
We told you about us. By wearing our product line, you could tell others our story and that of our artisans. Don’t you want your jewelry to do more than just look nice?
Ethical. Sustainable. Impactful. That’s our commitment. What’s yours?