As of last week, the TKS website features our beautiful, colourful new Samer bags, just in time to brighten up the summer of 2020! Behind the scenes, however, these bags have been a long time in the making, going all the way back to the early spring of 2019. Collaboration with Tekaya TKS launched its first capsule collection of upcycled handbags two years ago as part of our continuing push to bolster not only vulnerable people, but also our planet. Upcycling is a great way to create pieces that are beautiful and practical, but also salvage some of the many high-quality fabrics that are being ..read more

When you hear numbers like the aim of bringing “25,000” Syrian newcomers to Canada, it can sometimes make it hard to imagine the friendly faces those numbers represent. But behind everyone one of those numbers are stories of resilience and determination to overcome the odds and rebuild a new life after years of escalating conflict in Syria. In 2016 I had the opportunity to meet Canadians across Ontario, Canada who were actively working to bring Syrian refugees to Canadian soil safely, and when they did, provide them a warm welcome. Despite my broken Arabic, I also had the pleasure of meeting S ..read more

With Mother’s Day around the corner we want to share with you amazing gift ideas from the incredible brands behind the Good People Collective. Each featured piece is carefully handcrafted, ethically sourced and carries with it an inspirational story that will connect you and your mom to communities from around the world.  #1 – Hand-embroidered purse, inspired by middle eastern patterns Price: $65 Added bonus: provides dignified work to Syrian women in refugee camps Purchase here: https://www.tightknitsyria.com/product/samira-bag-blue-maze/ #2 – Handcrafted earrings made from war remnants ..read more

It’s hard to believe sometimes, but almost two years have passed since Tight Knit Syria first got involved with MADE51. This great UNHCR initiative provides organizations that work with refugee artisans, like Tight Knit Syria, with a wide range of support to help them provide fair livelihoods for refugees. This includes professional design input to improve our designs, and featuring items at international trade shows where buyers from businesses all around the world can scope out items for their own inventory. (The capsule collection of scarves we developed with MADE51 last year toured Paris ..read more

SHOP ALL ..read more

by Alexandra Den Hond At TKS, staff and artisans alike love the creative process of coming up with new items, designs, needlework techniques and colour combinations. We are therefore always thrilled when someone approaches us with a special request that challenges us to come up with something fun, unique and beautiful outside the scope of our usual collections. This spring, we were contacted by two young Syrian men living and working in Dubai, who asked us to cheer up their bachelor pad with hand-embroidered cushions that reminded them of home. We immediately started brain-storming with maste ..read more

At TKS have known for a long time that we wanted to offer the ladies we work with additional training to develop their skill-set and personal capital. Beyond the training in embroidery, knitting and crocheting they get from working with us, we wanted to focus on providing them with useful skills that will increase their self-sufficiency as individual artisans, but also as a collective. In the spring of 2018, we therefore decided to raise funds to launch a computer literacy course and – thanks to the amazing Thaki organization which donated five laptops, and the many kind donors who made financ ..read more

Now that TKS team members Dana and Alex have been in Lebanon for almost two months to work in the field full-time, we have finally been able to make some massive strides towards one of our long-term goals: embroidered pieces that are not only beautiful, but friendly towards both people and the planet! In the past we have resorted to working with some pre-made elements of purses that were readily available to our artisans in Shatila, but this fall we have finally been able to effect a major design overhaul, and we are excited to tell you all about it..! Materials Earlier this year, an upholster ..read more

  We believe in a bottom up approach and providing women with the tools to help themselves. So each bookmark purchase helps support our educational program, which teaches the artisans computer literacy, English, and product photography.   ..read more

When the Tight-Knit Syria team first met Malak, a thirty-nine-year old mother of six living in Shatila refugee camp, we were immediately struck by the loving, determined way she guided her large family through the poverty and hazards they found themselves in after fleeing their beloved home in Aleppo. What we did not realize yet was that her strength and passion were going to push dozens of women in her community forward, to create opportunity even in this unlikely place. Within the shadowy maze beyond Shatila’s gate, located in Southern Beirut, very little sunlight seeps in, creating an atmos ..read more