Jordan River Designs

Al Karma Embroidery Center 

Established in 1996 in Jabal Al Natheef, Al Karmah Embroidery Center employs local women artisans who craft traditional and contemporary handmade embroidery products, which include everything from home furnishings, to gift items, to fashion accessories. Set up to support women seeking extra income, the project also aims to maintain and promote the heritage of handicrafts, offering a variety of products representing Jordan’s traditional and visual arts.

Bani Hamida Weaving Project

Launched by Save the Children in 1985, the Bani Hamida Weaving Project became part of JRF in 1998. Reviving an otherwise impoverished region, the project revamped the long celebrated tradition of Bedouin weaving, and  helped maintain the social fabric of the Makawir area. The project also leveraged the living conditions of the area’s local community.

Today, women  from 13 different villages are helping revive and sustain the art and culture of Bedouin rug making, while contributing to their families’ livelihoods.. Wooden spindles and floor looms are used to produce quality wool rugs that have been very popular internationally due to  their ingenuity and high quality. Over 1,600 women have benefited from the project since its inception.

Wadi Al Rayan Project

Established in 1997, the Wadi Al Rayan Project revolutionized the use of cattail reeds and banana leaves as raw manufacturing materials, which were previously burnt and disposed of, posing as an environmental hazard to the Wadi’s inhabitants. Today, cattail reeds and banana leaves are used to produce handwoven environment-friendly products, including baskets, coasters, mats, among other unique home accessories.

IKEA & JRF

JRF has partnered with IKEA to integrate Syrian refugees and local community women through a series of exquisite handicraft collections capturing Jordan’s tradition and heritage. The initiative will help sustain social and economic stability across host communities, offering local women and Syrian refugees jobs to produce handmade carpets and embroidery items, sold exclusively by IKEA, locally and regionally. The first limited collection of handcrafted textiles, titled TILLTALANDE, has been produced by over 110 women artisans, a number that will double this year;  reaching 400 by the end of 2020. IKEA Jordan was the first store to launch the collection, to be followed later by several GCC countries and stores in North Africa, the US and Europe.