Guest Post - We Are Bound Together

Here's another new humanitarian shop - We Are Bound Together.  Read, in her own words, how Andrea has combined her bookbinding skills with her desire to help others.

" My journey into bookbinding started when my husband and I began thinking seriously about where our stuff came from .  We started making an effort to buy products where the workers were being treated the way we would want to be treated - ethically and fairly.


This was before I knew much about Etsy.  I had the hardest time finding photo albums.  So I decided to look into making one myself.  I had always been artsy, so I figured that there must be some way.  Hence my adventure of bookbinding began.


I found that I really enjoyed the craft of creating hand bound books.  I love working with the pretty fabric and the different styles available to bookbinding.  At this point all of my books were gifts to people I knew.  But I felt that this was something I could really get into.


Parallel to all this, the desire to help others was something my husband and I both possessed.  We didn't always do it right, but we learn through our experiences.  At one point I really wished I could do more, especially for persecuted Christians around the world.  They are our brothers and sisters in Christ, and as a family we should support them.  We donated bits of money here and there, but the desire to help remained a passion of mine.

One day the idea came to me of the possibility of making hand bound books to sell and the proceeds going toward those who are suffering.  I had heard of Etsy by that time and that seemed like the perfect market.  I was unable to fulfill that idea at that time, but it remained a dream of mine.


A few months ago, the opportunity came where I could go through with my dream.  My husband greatly encouraged me, and now I have a store on Etsy, opened only just very recently.  Currently it features my "duct tape" books.  The covers are recycled book covers, covered with duct tape.  People like duct tape wallets so why not books too?  I will be producing my fabric covered books soon.


My store, "We Are Bound Together" combines my work of bookbinding with my desire to help persecuted Christians.  The name has a double meaning.  We are bound together as believers, and by binding books I hope to serve.  I do no donate to a single organization, but rather through a few.  Currently the three that I focus on are "Voice of the Martyrs", "Open Doors" and "International Christian Concern".


My store is still in its infancy, so I don't have any great advice for those considering something like what I'm doing.  Only take it one day at a time and try not to get too overwhelmed.  Getting started is more work than it looks, but I believe it's worth it in the end.


You can find me at:
my website, www.weareboundtogether.com
my etsy store, www.weareboundtogether.etsy.com
my facebook, http//www.facebook.com/pages/We-Are-Bound-Together/377723042240600 "

"If we cannot now end our differences,

at least we can help make the world safe for diversity."

- John F. Kennedy