What better way to celebrate our lives than with the spirited hummingbird adorning your wrist? A lovely piece that is hand crafted by women in Guatemala, the hummingbird is rich with symbolism.

In many traditional cultures of the western world the hummingbird has powerful religious and spiritual significance.  In the high Andes of South America, for example, the hummingbird is taken to be a symbol of rebirth. This is because each hummingbird becomes lifeless and seems to die on cold nights, but it comes back to life again when the miraculous sunrise brings warmth.

The Story

The Hummingbird Bracelet is handmade by a group of hard-working, multi-talented and entrepreneurial women in a cooperative just outside of Guatemala City. The mission of the Unidas Para Vivir Mejor (UPAVIM) Cooperative, meaning United to Live Better, is to empower women in its community.

First established in 1988, UPAVIM has approximately 80 members who live in marginalized communities on the outskirts of Guatemala City. Many are the sole providers of economic support for their families. The ambition of the cooperative is to improve the quality of life for themselves and their families by gaining access to education and employment opportunities. UPAVIM provides health and childcare services and personal and professional development programs to its members.

Guatemala experienced a 30 year civil conflict that left many of its women and children, impoverished and abandoned.   Over these past years, a spirit of regeneration through enterprise has swept through the country as women are introduced to vocational skills that lead to sustainable enterprises.  The spirit of the hummingbird indeed lives on!

Handcrafted with two strings of gleaming green freshwater pearls and adorned with a delicate golden hummingbird made from antiqued gold pewter at the closure, this lovely bracelet fits snuggly on your wrist.

GIFT BOX:   This gift is available gift boxed.  It will arrive in our signature white gift box with raffia ribbon and will be presented with a lovely copper Cambodian peace bell - once part of a disused landmine and now recreated into bells for their cows and oxen by Cambodian villagers.  Your gift box option is available at checkout.