Fellow graphic designer and Carried Away TM Marrissa of Perry Art Studios spent some time living in Malawi, Southern Africa and gained a huge horde of wax print African textiles as well as a deep appreciation for the women of Africa, whose spirit seems to infuse her work with light and strength.

"I started collecting Chitenje fabrics at these markets (in Malawai). Chitenje is the traditional wrap-around skirt that women wear for their everyday activities like cooking, collecting water, chopping fire wood, and cultivating the land. Fabric is sold in two lengths, one piece is worn as a skirt and the other is wrapped around the head, a sign of modesty that women can choose to practice."

Today, Marissa divides her time between painting (her other love) and making up new bag designs. She makes the first 50 of each design herself, which she test markets through platforms like her etsy shop and her website. If the design goes over well, she then directs a larger production run through a sewing shop in Colorado with the help of friends in Africa, who find and import the fabrics.

Marissa has an uplifting vision for the changes her bags could make in the lives of African women.

"I am committed to supporting community development at the grassroots level in South-East Africa. Through collaboration with Sambah Naturals, sales of Dsenyo purses help build schools and wells in Zambia. When selling through other outlets, Dsenyo is dedicated to developing several projects in Malawi: a community library and computer center called Ungueru, providing sports equipment for the Malawi Northern Region Women’s Soccer League, and resources for the Ekwendeni Youth AIDS Center with the Presbyterian Church.

I have big dreams for the company in the next three years. I plan to move production to Africa in order to give more to the people who inspired me. By having the purses produced in South-East Africa the company will be creating much needed, reliable jobs for women who will spend the money to send their kids to school and rise out of poverty. Dsenyo will adhere to Fair Trade pracitces and plans to be certified after demonstrating our equitable treatment of workers, supporting the economy by sourcing our materials locally, etc.

Helping build viable businesses in developing economies is one of the best things you can do to empower people to move out of poverty and diseases like HIV/AIDS. By using your consumer purchasing power to support businesses like Dsenyo, you are electing to let the people of these countries build their own future."

Visit her blog to see what else this driven designer is up to. How she finds time to make bags with all of her art showings is beyond me, but I've always been drawn to people with vision. Glad to have you on the team Marissa!