Except for missing out on the adventure of travel itself, armchair travelers can buy some of the same unusual objects. Crafts from faraway places can be found in home furnishings specialty stores, crafts galleries and, increasingly, via the Internet through dot-com companies and nonprofit groups. For example, the wares of Bangladeshi artisans were displayed to retailers shopping the New York International Gift Fair in January. In return, Americans have access to interesting decorative objects. One Nest is one of a number of Web sites now putting artisans from the developing world and American retailers together for mutual benefit.
Customers order directly from the maker.
In January, there was even a sale section with serving spoons from Africa, baskets and birdhouses from the Philippines and musical instruments from various countries. She became intrigued with the subject in 1995 and decided to take a sabbatical from her corporate consulting business to photograph and write about the phenomenon. She invited a former colleague, Toby Tuttle of Evergreen, Colo., to join the adventure. Before each of six trips, the women lined up interpreters knowledgeable about crafts who spoke English as well as the native language. Their book showcases the crafts and lives of some 90 women in 12 countries in Latin America, Eastern Europe, Africa, and Asia.