Bags of Ideas for Exclusive World Fair Trade Day Competition

Do you have an interest in design? Would you like to see your work produced by skilled artisans in India? Do you support Fair Trade? Then we have the competition for you!

The Textile Directory is launching an exciting new competition to celebrate World Fair Trade Day. We are inviting all artists and designers to submit a design for a fabulous fairly traded organic cotton shopping bag. The theme of the competition is ‘India’. This theme is open to your own interpretation and we welcome you to incorporate your own creative ideas to produce a vivid design. Your challenge is that you are only able to use one colour, so use your imagination to make your design stand out.

The winning design will then be exclusively produced for The Textile Directory by pioneering Fairtrade company, Bishopston Trading, who provide work for tailors and handloom weavers in rural India. The Textile Directory recently published an article about them, which you can read here.

The closing date for this competition is 30 April and voting will begin on the website on 1 May, so don’t forget to visit The Textile Directory to choose your favourite design. The overall winner will be the design that receives the most votes and will be announced on 9 May 2009 – World Fair Trade Day. The winner’s exciting prize is to see their design made into a beautiful bag, 100 of which will then be available to buy from The Textile Directory. The bags will be priced at £4 each plus £1 for delivery, and £1 from each sale will be donated to The Fairtrade Foundation. The winner will receive a free bag featuring their design.

We have included a few images with this article to show you the size and style of bag we will be producing:

If you are interested in entering the competition, please have a read through the following details.

• At the bottom of your design you must incorporate the following lines of text in font size 12:’100% organic cotton fairly traded from South IndiaBag design by (insert your name) for The Textile Directory (http://www.thetextiledirectory.com%29%e2%80%99/
• Your artwork must be submitted in black and white even if the design is to be printed in colour. If your design is to be printed in colour (one colour only), then please also submit a version of your design in your chosen colour OR tell us the pantone reference.
• Your design should be 11inches wide and 13inches long.
• The jpeg of the design should be 300dpi.
• The design is to be printed on a plain cream cotton bag

If you would like to submit an entry please send your artwork Jpeg and a brief explanation behind your design to Sara Drinkwater at mailto:sara@thetextiledirectory.com?subject=Contact%20from%20the%20Textile%20Directory by Friday 30 April 2009.

If you are not able to submit your entry electronically then you can send us your original drawing and we will scan it for you. Please note that the deadline for this will be Monday 27 April 2009. Please send artwork to Sara Drinkwater, Design A Bag Competition, The Textile Directory, 8 King Charles Court, Evesham, Worcestershire, WR11 4RF. If you would like your artwork sent back to you please also include a stamped addressed envelope.

If you have any other questions, please contact Sara at mailto:sara@thetextiledirectory.com?subject=Contact%20from%20the%20Textile%20Directory.