Products

A lovingly produced range of products has evolved and we are working to open our online shop. Great suggestions and feedback from supporters overseas helped us modify and refine our products.

We are located 540 km east of Kathmandu and are committed, wherever possible, to using locally obtained materials. We are thrilled that our silver findings are purchased locally (see our silversmiths here).

Polymer clay is not currently available in Nepal and our heartfelt thanks goes to polymer clayers from Australia and US who have made very generous donations to allow us to create our unique polymer beads.

Kitchen Wear

Using traditional Nepali dhaka woven fabric, the ladies make very stylish aprons, potholders and oven mitts in earthy colours. Patterns and designs vary but the colours are consistent. There are two designs in the aprons-those made totally of dhaka, and those in hard wearing black or maroon cotton with dhaka trim. The mitts and potholders coordinate with the dhaka.

The fabric is washable and the mitts and potholders very heat resistant. You can’t help but be a sensational cook wearing one of these. Each set includes a recipe for dal bhat which is every Nepali’s favourite meal!

Woven purses

These hand loomed woven pouches and purses are great for mobile phones or as pencil cases and coin purses. They are hand woven from wool that has been scoured and combed and then sewn up with zippers. They are a colourful, durable reminder in your handbag of the resilience of the ladies of Nepal. Colours, sizes and shapes will vary from those in the photo.

Jewellery purses/coin purses

The ladies of Sammunat make two styles of jewellery or coin purses. The first is a small round design made in dhaka, the traditional woven fabric, combined with cotton and two strong drawstrings. This is the style of the thauli coin purses used by women from the hill regions of Nepal. They tuck their thauli coin purses away into the folds of their voluminous waistbands. You will probably use yours differently!

The second jewellery purse is made from brocades and is a square shape. Both purses are perfect for any jewellery you may purchase from our range.

Jewellery

Stranded pote beads

We have two main ranges in our jewellery. The first is a range of simply elegant stranded beads made from pote (pronounced poh-te) beads. These traditional Nepali wedding beads are combined with silver findings that are made locally to our design.

The beads are worn by all married women in Nepal, traditionally in red or green but available in a rainbow selection of colours, and come usually from Czechoslovakia. The designs include necklace, bracelet and earrings and these can be stunningly coordinated with the scarves shown below.

Bahini Beads

The Bahini Beads (bahini is pronounced bye-knee and means “little sister”) are inspired by the colour and vivacity of Nepal. No two are the same. While the sisters prefer to be able to look out and see what is going on, if you don’t feel like facing the world, most beads can also be worn facing inward. In effect, you get two necklaces for the price of one! Each little sister is handmade with polymer clay using the millefiore technique and the ladies of Sammunat are the pioneers of polymer clay art in Nepal.

After being cured, each bead is painstakingly hand polished using a range of fine grit polishing papers and finished with a muslin brush. This produces the gorgeous mirror like shine that enhances the detail of each bead. No glosses or glazes are used. The whole process is a labour of love and a way that the women of Sammunat can regain their dignity, independence and lives. Choose from the following ten colours:

• Coral-the colour of a popular precious Tibetan stone
• Laliguras-a celebration of Nepal’s national flower, the rhododendron.
• Mountain Stream-the turquoise of a glacial river
• Dzi-a dramatic Black and White combination
• Shrawan-a combination named after the month where many women wear green saris to celebrate the greening of their post-monsoon world.
• Chocolate-a dark, sweet treat
  
• Lapis-inspired by yet another gorgeous precious stone
• Masala-the muted olives of Australian gums and Nepali masala leaves
• Winter sky-the clear blues of the winter skies
• Marigold-the colours in the flowers in the necklaces worn at festivals

Sari beads

Sari beads are also inspired by our environment. The ladies have painstakingly hand-decorated each bead in filigree designs reminiscent of the hand tattoo designs painted with henna.  They come in light, bright summery colours in a variety of combinations and are carefully matched with strands of coordinating seed beads.

Loose beads

We are exploring the option of selling some beads as loose beads for you to create your own jewelry. We may also offer a limited range of locally handcrafted silver “pipes” which are a gorgeous way of highlighting beautiful feature beads.

Scarves

These were the first items that the ladies of Sammunat sold internationally. The scarves are a version of the dupatta worn by ladies with their kurta surwals. The shorter version (approx 150 cm) caters to more restrained Western tastes.

The scarves are made from chiffon, hemmed and then fringed by hand with thousands of tiny pote beads. The fringe is approximately 6 cm long and some are patterned. We have a range of jewel coloured plain chiffons. We also offer printed chiffons but these will change seasonally and with a limited number of each pattern available.

In our plain chiffons, we have:

• Navy
• Aubergine
• Cyclamen
• Ruby
• Black fringed with silver
• Black fringed with gold
• Mint
• Turquoise/ teal
• Tan/ Ochre
• Green

Coordinating jewellery is available for each.

Currently, the patterned scarves are available in:

• Rainbow-with a small gold motif and fringed with gold
• Autumn-in rich reds and browns fringed with coordinating beads
• Jungle-deep olive green with gold spot and matching fringe
• Mushroom-soft muted browns and creams fringed with pewter variegated beads
• Sky-blue and white pattern fringed with coordinating beads
• Mandarin-soft orange and white fringed with coordinating beads