Sometimes you meet people and know immediately you have been blessed to do so. The exceptional aluminum jewelry made by Carla and Fernando is wonderful, but no more than the quality of these two people who make it.

Carla and Fernando work in their home in Jacaraipe, Brazil, producing exceptional designs and the ultimate high quality jewelry from aluminum. They met in 1989 in the southern part of Brazil in Porto Alegre. Both of them are college graduates and were planning to establish programs for mentally handicapped people to work and become more independent.

Their plans did not meet with success because to earn enough money to live reasonably was just not possible. For about three years, they tried and had some handicapped people working with them. Then they found it very difficult to find enough handicapped people to help because once they had graduated, the connections they needed to find such people were not possible. They tried to make this plan work until about 1997 when finally they accepted the fact that their dreams were not feasible. About this same time, mostly out of curiosity, Carla had attended some classes on making jewelry. Little did she know what a major part of both of their lives these classes would become.

The couple moved to Jacaraipe in 1997 for one month before moving to Vitoria for a year. Fernando studied jewelry making with a jeweler, but mostly for relaxation and because he became curious after he saw what Carla was making. Soon they were devoting their attention to making jewelry. The first jewelry Carla ever made was a pair of very small and simple earrings. From that simple beginning has grown an outstanding art form that we are so happy to bring the customers of Beleza.

Be sure to check out their beautiful pieces in the store - and a few select pieces are available online, too!

We are still receiving support from our customers for the Haiti outreach. We still have a definite need for vitamins, especially chewable forms, pain medications such as Tylenol or Ibuprofen (not aspirin), skin rash ointments especially those with hydrocortisone, and benadryl tablets. Please remember that donations are eligible for tax credit through Together We Can, Inc. All donations for Haiti received by the end of February can still be used on your 2009 tax returns.

We need these by March 15 since the medical team that Philip is taking to Haiti is leaving March 20. This team has already purchased all medications that are not over-the-counter and so this help would be great! Just drop this by the store.

MERCI in Goldsboro is still shipping items and will be for a long time. You can see their list of items here. You can continue to bring these items to Beleza.

Monday morning Philip met with a woman who had just returned from three weeks of helping set up temporary clinics in Haiti. She told him about a woman who walked in with her lower arm wrapped in dirty strips of cloth. When asked about her arm, she said it hurt a little. When the medical personnel looked at her arm, they saw mostly exposed bone and not much else. She had received no medical attention since the earthquake. They sent her for an amputation. How this woman is alive is hard to understand. This just points to what we all know. There will be need for caring support in this country for a long time.

You can see just how things have progressed, and read future updates, online at the Shop Beleza blog!

Located in Raleigh's Cameron Village | 2014 Cameron Street | Raleigh, 27605 | Phone: 919-832-4775
Hours: Monday through Saturday - 10am until 6pm, Sunday - 1pm until 5pm