Living here in Phuket reminds me of the book “A Year in Provence”. There are few commons between Phuket and Provence, except both being stunningly addictive on their own. The similar sentiment I might be able to share with the author is the constant flow of visitors. Instead of being annoyed like Peter Mayle, on the contrary, I am very grateful for all my friends and families who choose Thailand as their first travel destinations after COVID. With my son’s condition, it is very challenging for us to be mobile. Hence, every visit is precious and much appreciated
I have developed a ritual to gift each of our young visitors a handcrafted stuff animal which is light enough to carry back home as a Thai souvenir of their stay with us. I came across elephants made by Seeds of Change one day at a shop, and these elephants have become my go-to ever since.
Indeed, no two Seeds of Change elephants are the same, since they are made out of donated fabrics from various sources. However, you can easily tell from those adorable elephants that each piece of fabric has been thoughtfully mixed and matched. I find such uniqueness very fitting to gift to children as each of them is special and their uniqueness should be embraced. The eco and charitable factor also make it easy for me to convince the parents to let their children having that one more stuffed animal. The craftsmanship is also admirable. They are nothing like the generic elephants you find from a night market. Hence, again it intrigued me to want to meet the master behind it.
The Earn as You Learn Institute
Samantha, the soul behind Seeds of Change and the master sewing bee at its sewing studio, greeted me enthusiastically while simultaneously introducing her fabric sourcing room to two visitors from the United States.
I quickly asked if I could join and take pictures. Usually, the interviewees could be quite fussy about photos so I ensured Samantha that I would send her the photos to get her permission prior to publishing. She told me not to worry about it. “The more exposure we get, the better.” In fact, she wouldn’t mind being included in the photos and did not even pause to check how she looked in the mirror. When you live in Thailand, it’s natural for us to check on the damage of our hair by the humidity since we last combed, or how much our outfit has already patched onto our skin by our own sweat.
Samantha’s enthusiasm was contagious. She wore the measuring tape on her neck like it was a necklace. While I thought I was going to hear everything about the fabric elephants, she was chatting away and telling us about the hospitality training program Seeds of Change was about to launch. “It’s going to allow us helping to train up more people who need a job. We have the space here and are very lucky to have a hotel, which is going to renovate, to donate us all their existing furniture and equipment.” Samantha led us to a one-story bungalow which she called The Kitchen. “This is where the Food and Beverages training going to happen. From cooking to serving, it is a 8-week course to get someone ready to get a foot into the hospitality industry.” I looked around the space which led to the expansive land around it. I came to a realisation where Seeds of Change was, was very different from what I imagined. I expected a small studio space. Instead, I was looking at multiple small buildings on a big piece of land. “We are sitting on 4 rai (a Thai unit of measuring land) of land here. It used to be a charity housing families affected by HIV, but as such support are no longer needed in modern day, the estate has been abandoned. We took it over, and with some philanthropic help, we had the first year of rent covered. Now we are trying to put it into good use. Besides training workers to sew, we would like to help more to get into the employment now tourism is back. We would like to work with hotels and resorts to provide basic training to newly joined staff, so by the time they start working at their hotels, they already have a solid foundation and will be more trainable to adapt to that particular environment.”
”We are going to be gifted many bathtubs with legs!” Exclaimed Samantha while pointing at some grassland. “I am going to plant flowers into those bathtubs and put them there. The bathtubs have drainages so would be ideal to be flowerbed.” I immediately imagined how lovely that abandoned garden was going to look like. Samantha continued to show us buildings where the training classrooms were going to be, boarding house for the trainees and the suites that would be rentable by visitors to help them with constructive feedback on the quality of the hospitality service by their trainees.
I am quite certain when Samantha is done with the improvements, with the help of volunteers and donations, that place will become enchanted.
The Egg or Chicken Question
With the unexpected turn of conversation from sewing to hotels, I had to ask Samantha the egg or chicken question, whether there was the foundation first or the opportunity of such space came first.
“It all began with COVID. I was bored and started to sew something with a pattern of an elephant. Then my helper saw it and came to me to ask if I could teach her friend sewing, who lost everything during COVID, so she could earn a living. After that one elephant turned to many. One day with my very first sewing student, we took the elephants to the morning breakfast organised by the British Consulate. I would like to see what other ladies think and what could be done from there. At the end of the function, all elephants were sold, and we got offer a shop at a hotel to sell the elephants.” The rest then became history, Samantha has accidentally started a charity that was going to delight many shoppers and changed many lives.
The sewing trainees at Seeds of Change range from youngsters to more mature age group who want to get back to the employment market but lack of employable skills. All profit from the sale of products go to the training programme and trainees.
A More Meaningful Thai Souvenir
When asked if there would be any more exciting development besides the hospitality training programme and we could be the first to know, Samantha shared Seeds of Change would soon be launching a special Birthday Collection. Since all their elephants are unique, each would be issued a birth certificate with its name and creation date on. I cannot think of a more adorable and meaningful birthday present, one the receiver can keep for life.
Besides elephants, there are many remarkable creations by the skillful craftsman at Seeds of Change. One of my favourites is the reversible Octopus. Each side is made of different patterned fabric, one side is stitched with a smiley face while a sad face when it is turned inside out. It is a lovely tool to teach children emotions, or for a more functional way, a cute and subtle way to tell your other half your mood of the day!
I find most products are priced in a reasonable range between 100 baht (coin purses) and 2,000 baht (XL size elephants). However, it can shoot up to 20,000 baht at special auctions, such as the one collaborated with Tim Newton who donated all his loud, floral shirts worn on the show to make various sizes of elephants to be auctioned off. Watch the space on their Facebook Page SOC.Phuket so you are not going to miss out their next exciting auction. Samantha tipped me off that they are looking at the possibility to auction these up-cycled lounge chairs. It was absolutely a love at first sight for me when I saw them in their showroom. Then Samantha showed me what it used to be, well, I was speechless looking at the transformation.
Everyone brings home souvenirs from Thailand, but Seeds of Change can give you the opportunity to really make a difference at the same time! You can support Seeds of Change by purchasing meaningful Thai souvenirs from their online shop www.seedsofchangephuket.com. They also welcome visitors at their studio which is located in no 10, Thepprathan Road, Ratsada, Mueang Phuket District here in Thailand. If you are visiting Phuket and are staying in these hotels, you can find Seeds of Change goodies at their boutiques: Angsana Hotels and Resort, Banyan Tree Resort, Grand Mercure Pating, Novotel Avista Resort in Kata, Skyview Resort Phuket and Rosewood in Patong, Como at Point Yamu, Le Méridien in Karon and The Racha on Racha Island.
