My son, Patrick, and I during the 2011 holidays

I recently talked to Mare of Holistic Mamas about what inspired me to start Green Floral Crafts and how we’ve combined elegant, stylish decor with natural, sustainable materials, and how we simultaneously support micro-economies throughout Southeast Asia. You can read the original post that is part of the Holistic Mamas Making a Difference series, but Mare has also graciously allowed me to re-print it here. Enjoy!

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Many of us dream of getting out of corporate America and launching something we’re passionate about. How did you make the leap?

I always knew that I wanted to do something more creative and artistic than my former corporate jobs. And I’ve always been passionate about designing and decorating. When I realized that I spent most of my free time outside of work designing and remodeling the different homes I had lived in, I thought, “This is how I would like to spend my day!” In fact, my favorite type of project was to renovate rundown, “fixer-upper” houses, transform and decorate them into beautiful living spaces.  I started thinking about how I could use my experience and interest in decorating and design to create a business that could help other people do the same. I was also very passionate about being green and environmentally conscious in my day-to-day life, and I wanted to do something that would keep me in touch with my cultural heritage and Southeast Asian roots. I thought to myself, “Is there a way to merge all three together? Is there a way I could sell beautiful decor that supports rural communities in Southeast Asia and also the environment?” The answer was, “Yes!”

So how did Green Floral Crafts come about?

Well, first I founded the company, Shopping the Globe, to sell elegant lifestyle decor pieces sourced sustainably and renewably from southeast Asia. These included vases, throw pillows, candles, furniture, and other home accents. I found cooperatives of artisans in developing countries like Thailand and Vietnam to handcraft these items from natural and renewable materials, then built a web site to sell them on-line.

Over time, I took a hard look at Shopping the Globe’s bestsellers, which were our signature large vases that we refer to as our floor vases. Basically, they’re BIG vases, with some of them standing as high as 5 feet tall. Floor vases make a striking style statement in your home, but they also pose some environmental challenges. First of all, floor vases that are made out of metal or ceramics are extremely heavy, cumbersome, and difficult to transport. They put a heavier load on our fossil fuels to ship them to people’s homes. Secondly, even if you make a big vase out of a lighter material – say, a plastic or fiberglass – these materials are generally not biodegradable and consume energy resources during production. What we did at Shopping the Globe was create a process for making big vases out of bamboo and mango wood, two very eco-friendly, sustainable, renewable, and biodegradable materials that are also very light and easy to ship.

Are those the primary materials you use to make your vases?

Yes, they are. I wanted to go back and answer your previous question, which was, how did Green Floral Crafts come about? I know I’m taking a long time to answer it, but I’m getting there, I promise. I realized the large vases were our bestsellers at Shopping the Globe. I also realized that more and more of our customers who were buying these vases were asking us: “What should we put inside our vase that complements its style?” Or, “I’d like to add even more height, what can you recommend that goes well with this vase?” From those questions, I got the idea to create a line of natural, dried floral accessories to pair with our large vases. You see, fresh flowers require frequent watering, and last only about a week, while artificial flowers last forever, but are made out of non-natural, synthetic materials that don’t fit in with our green and earth-friendly theme. So I wanted to create a line of dried, preserved, and handcrafted floral products using once-living plants and botanicals. Then, to go one step further, I decided to offer pre-packaged kits that combine a floor vase and the dried botanicals that complement that particular vase.  This way our customers can pick out the design they like, and just put together a ready-to-go, beautiful vase-and-floral arrangement right out of the box. And THAT’s how Green Floral Crafts was born!

Okay, I get how your company is good for the planet. How would you say your company contributes to the good of the people of Southeast Asia?

Since I’m from Southeast Asia, it was important to me to help preserve the culture of many of the small villages and communities there. This is what happens in developing countries (and is applicable to most countries in Southeast Asia and also Eastern Europe, for that matter): as the country goes through economic development and industrialization, most of the jobs are created in the cities, where the factories are built and the manufacturing is set up.  The rural population either has to move closer or into the main cities to get jobs, thus leaving their homes in the countryside to get work.  My company goes into these villages and works with the various co-ops there to consign work and projects to the artisans who make our vases and other decor items by hand, according to our specifications. The artisans can work from their own home or in village workshops, which helps these families stay together and keeps their traditions intact.

That is wonderful! It would be a shame to lose those cultural roots and traditions.

Yes, it would. The good news is, more and more companies are becoming conscious of the value of supporting village communities and micro-economies.  So it’s creating more choices for the local people, who can choose to continue with their way of life, or choose to migrate to the cities.

Switching gears now, how green are you in other areas of your life? Do you do things like wear eco-friendly clothing and compost?

Yes. These days a lot of the clothing we wear was once a plastic bottle or some recycled material – which I think is fantastic.  I’m an avid re-cycler and a total believer in organic goods. Both my husband and I drive hybrid electric cars (Priuses) and we use mainly earth-friendly “stuff” in our household supplies.

So, I have to ask (since I write a blog called “Holistic Mamas”): What is your style of parenting? Do you consider yourself a “Holistic Mama?”

I think so!  I raised my son Patrick on organic foods, and when I had more time some years back, I grew a lot of the vegetables we ate at home.  To treat ailments, I always try to supplement medicines with natural and/or herbal remedies so that Patrick understands that popping pills is not the only way cure something.

And how have you tried to instill in your son your same passion for being “green” and thinking about the planet?

I’ve strived to teach him the importance of conservation, minimizing waste, and not propagating “the disposable society” way of consumption.  I remind him to “take only what you can reasonably use” and try to re-use as much as you can.  Now that he’s a teenager, he probably thinks I’m a bit overboard because I’ll re-use a water bottle 5 times by re-filling it with the filtered water from the fridge (it saves on plastic and just as importantly, reduces the number of times I have to lug those heavy cases of water into the house!)

Thank you for taking the time to talk to me, Leia. I wish you lots of success!

You are welcome, Mare. Do you think you might like to host a giveaway of one of our beautiful vase-and-floral kits? Would your readers like the chance to win an elegant, eco-friendly design statement for their office desk or entryway table?

You bet! I’d love to host a giveaway…let’s get one set up ASAP!