“Jhola-ma” means “It’s in the bag !”

“Jhola” is the word our Nepali people use when they want to say “handbag.” I’m told the Jholas one is most likely to see in the SASAC neighborhood closely resemble a bag popular in the sixties: long-handled, brightly colored, and with a jaunty fringe on the bottom. We’ve updated the style of these traditional Nepali bags, and we employ a group of ladies to weave them by hand on wooden looms that are also built by our craftspeople. Our new bags are made of resilient, colorfast acrylic material that stretches to hold an amazing amount of “stuff” and snaps back to its original shape when it’s empty. Because every bag is handmade, every bag is slightly different – a unique “work of art”!

Recently, our Jhola enterprise took an exciting turn when we started working with one of our supporters, Liz Wickham, who lives in California. Until then, we sold our Jholas in ones and twos locally or through our flock in Canada. But Liz discovered a new market for Jholas among her fashion-conscious friends who think our “retro” Jholas are the cat’s pajamas! Thanks to her friends’ demands, our previously tiny group of weavers now numbers 21 with plans to expand still further. Not only is Liz selling our traditional Jhola style, but now her customers are demanding other items – such as Jholas with pockets for their cell phones, a special Jhola for holding yoga mats and accessories (who would have thought?), a lovely “runner” to decorate a dining room table, a colorful striped scarf, and other styles of bags I can’t even imagine. Frankly, a plain old “pocketless” Jhola is just fine for Father Abe, and because these things never seem to wear out, mine has stood me in good stead through years of constant use and abuse. It has even gone through the laundry a few times. And yes, it’s perfectly appropriate for a man to carry a bag – as long as it’s a SASAC Jhola!

And if it weren’t enough that the Jhola is beautiful, sturdy, versatile, washable, stylish and “unisex,” people who buy Jholas can feel good about directly helping some very poor, hardworking people.

Now, you’re probably wondering how you can get your hands on one of Father Abe’s miraculous “feel good” Jholas. If you live in the U.S. or Canada, you can contact Liz Wickham directly through her web site, www.jhola.com. Her site explains the philosophy of the little business she has created, and you will see even more pictures of our Jhola-related products than we’re able to show you here. By ordering through Liz, you’ll receive your “special order” Jhola much more quickly than if you had to wait for India post to deliver.