Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Are the aluminum tabs recycled or are they bought from a factory?
- Where do all of the tabs come from?
- Did Escama Studio invent this crochet-with-tabs craft?
- Who designed the bags?
- Are the artists compensated fairly for their work?
- What are you doing to benefit the women other than including the name of the individual women on your website?
Q: Are the aluminum tabs recycled or are they bought from a factory?
A: The tabs are 100% post-consumer recycled aluminum pull tabs.
Q: Where do all of the tabs come from?
A: The tabs are gathered from discarded cans locally in Brazil. Tabs are sold by the kilo by scrap dealers who specifically sell aluminum pull-tabs to the crochet-with-tabs cottage industry. The craft cooperatives then clean, disinfect, polish and trim the tabs for use in their crochet work.
Q: Did Escama Studio invent this crochet-with-tabs craft?
A: Absolutely not. Crochet-with-tabs is a craft that’s found throughout Brazil. Escama Studio has adapted the craft with our own contemporary designs and we’ve introduced new materials in an effort to make a good thing even better.
Q: Who designed the bags?
A: Francisca Ribeiro de Souza designed the first Socorro bag in late 2003 and this established the design theme for our current line. The other bag models have been developed jointly with designers and with the cooperatives who are experts in the art of crochet.
Q: Are the artists compensated fairly for their work?
A: Yes. Individual artists working in the cooperatives are earning a fair living wage for their work. Income generated from their craft work is significantly higher than the Brazilian minimum monthly wage.
Q: What are you doing to benefit the women other than including the name of the individual women on your website?
A. Escama Studio will provide a 1% ‘rebate’ of 2008’s gross annual sales directly back to the cooperatives. Annual ‘rebates’ for the years 2006 and 2007 were 3% of gross annual sales. 2006 ‘rebates’ were used for capacity building: DSL was installed in their workshops, computers, scanners, printers were purchased and pull-tab raw materials were purchased in bulk. Escama Studio advocated on behalf of the cooperatives to establish business accounts and personal accounts for approximately 70 individuals with HSBC. 2007’s rebate will be applied to educational programming.
‘People must believe in themselves, that they are capable of transforming small things into big things’
– Leide Maria Santana Nina of Cia do Lacre
