Weave a better tomorrow
Supporting Legacy Weaving Communities and the Local Plants They Harvest and Weave
A Purpose-Driven Partnership between Living Willow Farm and HANDMADE to MARKET
› Grow communities
› protect nature
› Sustain Craft
About the initiative
HANDMADE to MARKET is partnering with Living Willow Farm to connect people who value handmade, land-based craft with weaving communities in Latin America, India, and West Africa. Through this collaboration, appreciation for craft becomes long-term investment in artisan livelihoods, traditional knowledge, and sustainable raw-material sourcing.
Across cultures, basket making and weaving are deeply tied to local plants, land stewardship, and community knowledge. From willow grown and woven in Ohio to grasses, reeds, palms, and willow harvested and woven around the world, Weave a Better Tomorrow supports the full craft ecosystem—from the land to the maker to the market.
What the funds support
Funds raised through this partnership support practical, market-led investments: design and technical training, access to tools and materials, community-based workshops, and strategies that help artisans reach stable markets.
Projects are implemented by HANDMADE to MARKET, with opportunities for Living Willow Farm to contribute technical and design expertise where appropriate.
This approach benefits everyone involved. Supporters know their purchases are helping sustain meaningful craft traditions. Artisans gain skills, income, and long-term resilience.
And craft traditions—rooted in local environments—are valued, protected, and passed on through opportunity rather than charity.
About Living Willow Farms (lwf)
LWF is an organic, historic farm in southeastern Ohio dedicated to growing willow and preserving traditional weaving practices. Through basketry, sculpture, living willow structures, and hands-on workshops, the farm connects people directly to land-based craft traditions.
about howard peller
Founder of Living Willow Farm, he is an internationally recognized artist, craftsman, organic farmer, designer, and teacher whose work spans more than 50 years. His practice encompasses a wide range of natural materials—including plant fibers for weaving, ceramics, textiles, wood, metal, and other handcrafted home and tabletop goods.
Central to Howard’s work is the role of agriculture and legacy cultural weaving skills in creating products for both local use and global markets. He has worked with dozens of different plant materials across diverse international contexts, collaborating with rural artisan communities to develop products rooted in traditional techniques while introducing thoughtful design and technical innovation.
He has led successful artisan businesses, served as Vice President of Design and Product Development at Longaberger Basket Company, and worked as an international consultant for HANDMADE to MARKET with rural artisan cooperatives in Haiti, Jamaica, Guyana, Belize, and India. His collaboration with HANDMADE to MARKET helped shape market-led approaches to artisan development that continue to guide this partnership today.
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