Our products have appeared in different publications, and we are very proud of that! We’ll try to keep this page updated with the latest appearances of Handmade Expressions in the news (including magazines, newspapers, blogs, etc.)

Unfortunately we can’t have all of our stories here, since sometimes they are written in another city’s local papers.

If you come across a story that is written about us, please let us know :) Thank you!

Skulls as fashion attract a wide variety of fans

Appeared on: Athens Banner-Herald
When: March 10, 2008
Written by: Beth Jones

This regional publication wrote a story on skulls as an enduring, cross-generational fashion symbol. Our founder, Manish Gupta, was quoted several times talking about how our skull messenger bags and journal have been a success.

This article gives us satisfaction and inspiration, since our products are gaining popularity that is not directly related to fair trade. People are getting a great, fashionable product, and on top of that they are discovering that it is fair trade!

Home accents with soul

Appeared on: Home Decor Buyer
When: February 2008
Written by: Megy Karydes

Handmade Expressions was featured with the tree of life appliqué wall hanging. The whole article focused on the commitment companies have to fair trade. The writer mentions: “Doing good and doing business aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive”. We are proud to be featured in a positive business article like this one!

Playing Fair
Appeared on: Gifts & Decorative Accessories
When: September 2007
Written by: Meredith Schwartz

Our Life Comes to Leather journals were featured in this article about fair trade gifts. The article talks about issues such as sustainability, social responsibility, fair trade going mainstream with products that are not necessarily ethnic, certification, among others. We are displayed as an example of a socially responsible, yet successful business!

Guilt-Free Shopping
Appeared on: G Living
When: October 2, 2007
Written by: Winston Gieseke

What’s black and white and carried all over town? Not a nun in a parade…

Considering how trendy it is, I’m surprised more retailers aren’t offering reusable shopping bags for customers. I’m not talking about the high-end grocers that charge you $15 to buy a “sustainable” bag that lets you walk around town advertising for them. I’m talking about the every day sort of store that cares about the amount of plastic they spread around the planet.

Well, here’s a BYOB idea every store can fly with: Handmade Expressions (whose motto is “Fair trade = justice + peace + love”) has cool grocery bags that measure 12”x16” and are made of several layers of used newspaper and sturdy cardboard. They’re inexpensive and customizable. Best of all, they save new paper from being produced by using paper that would otherwise go into a trash bin.

And they’re totally affordable. At 60 cents a bag, now even Mom & Pops can get you to walk around town advertising for them.

Note: Handmade Expressions has increased the price of the bag to 75 cents a bag. This has been implemented to be able to ship the bags faster now that many are being ordered.



This is a Paper Bag
Appeared on: TreeHugger.com
When: September 25, 2007
Written by: Jasmin Malik Chua, Jersey City, USA

Here’s an idea for eco-retailers, especially those who can’t rely on their customers to always BYOB (which is to say, all of them). Measuring 12×16 inches, these paper carriers are made from several layers of used newspaper, along with sturdy cardboard bases, so no new paper is used in the process.

Each bag costs 50 cents, with a minimum order of 50 bags. You can even customize the bags with your store’s logo for an extra 10 cents per bag, although you’ll need to order a minimum of 500 bags to begin with.

Comment on the post:

Wow, those are really cool. I’m no expert on bag prices, so I’m not sure about costliness, but those could be an awesome marketing opportunity. If you’re the only store in town with newspaper bags, every time someone saw one they would know it was from your store. Not to mention, you could at least call yourself eco-friendly, too.

People writing multiple blogs and news sites made a reference to the story, so we were featured in places such as: www.blogowogo.com, www.eco-cide.com, news.speeple.com, www.buzztracker.com, www.blogjunkies.com, www.kinja.com, lifehacker.com, www.myfeedz.com, us.keegy.com, www.personalbee.com, and more!



Wood log journals featured in Giftware News, May 2007
Appeared on: Giftware News magazine
Written by: Jolene Turner for the “Show on!” section

The “Show on!” section of Giftware News informs about the hot companies in upcoming shows. In this issue, Jolene Turner wrote about Handmade Expressions as an eco-friendly source for the National Stationery Show, May 20-23 in New York City. The picture of our product was on page 32, and we were mentioned again on page 38

The company, Eco Friendly Papers (Handmade Expressions’ sister company when selling paper) produces sumptuous leather journals and innovative and earth friendly papers. In Booth #2444, the company will be showing leather bound journals with embossed designs and thick journals handmade of cotton rag paper. All the leather used is cruelty free, which means the leather is obtained from naturally dead animals.



Phoenix Home and Garden

There was an article written about a company who does special packaging. Our embellished eco-friendly papers were used as an example of how to make wonderful Christmas packaging!