Costa Rican Hand-Carved Dried Calabash Gourd Iguana Wall Art 'Iguana Charm' Item ID: 2671769995

"Hello, I am Sandra Guevara Cabalceta, a craftswoman and cultural artist from Costa Rica. For over 28 years, I have been sharing my knowledge and experience in the realm of culture with students, women, youth, and children.

"My concern for the preservation of the Santa Cruz culture, its customs, and traditions, which have been fading over the years, motivated me to teach my skills to my daughters, who are also craftswomen and cultural artists by family tradition. We are reviving certain values and customs of our ancestors that have been lost in modern times, thus promoting the development of techniques applied in our products. Our purpose is to use Chorotegan craftsmanship as a means to create a sustainable craft. This involves utilizing natural resources as raw materials, making jewelry from natural elements, and creating decorative items that allow for the cultural enrichment of living spaces in homes or offices.

"A conscious people defends its identity - We aim to broaden the reach of our products and thus address the socio-economic challenges of the region. Moreover, we seek to raise awareness among community members about the importance of making the most of crops suited to the area and crafting environmentally-friendly handmade products that preserve our culture and identity. We provide additional income to the elderly by purchasing their crops and contribute to the environmental reforestation of native trees.

"We have received recognition for our work, such as the Women Connecting Leaders 2020 award, Cultural Artists award from the Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Sports in 2019, Digital Transformation Program for Productive Units 2022, and Emprende Joven Boost 2022.

"We take great pleasure in sharing more of our art with customers around the world, offering products that tell a story."