Handmade belts made in Palencia by Artesanía Villarramiel.
It's not the first time Amazon.es invites us to support local businesses with initiatives in which artisans become the protagonists of our purchases, as it did last year with The Handmade Tour. But this 2021 the e-commerce company, on the occasion of the Xacobeo year, has wanted to give a twist to his original journey through the history, workshops and pieces of Spanish creators and has centered his itinerary (or should we say itineraries) on those craft brands located on different routes of the Camino de Santiago.
From today –and under the name of The Handmade Tour: El Camino– we can travel to Santiago de Compostela through three of the most representative Jacobean routes –the French Way, the Northern Way and the Vía de la Plata– hand in hand with seven artisans who work with their hands (and hearts) in Seville, Salamanca, La Rioja, Palencia, Asturias, Cantabria and, of course, Galicia.
Ceramics created by Marco Terranova in Tierra de Sevilla.
SEVEN ARTISANS, THREE PATHS
There are three routes -with seven stops- that represent the varied wealth of national crafts (remember that, in Spain alone, more than 2,000 artisans sell more than 80,000 products on Amazon Handmade).
1.The French Way: On the route with the greatest historical relevance, since most of the medieval European pilgrimage routes converge on it, there are Villarramiel Crafts (Villarramiel, Palencia), dedicated to leather goods with leather from the land (pay attention to the saying: "In Villarramiel everyone is a leather worker, even the priest") and ElyEli (Arnedo, La Rioja), a firm that designs handmade leather bags.
2.The Northern Way: On the longest route, just behind the Vía de la Plata, you can find the artisan stationery of Artpapel (Ganzo, Cantabria), whose creators intend to keep alive the heritage of the ancient bookbinding trade, and the educational toys made of wood in Gijón by Tuquinos, based on the Montessori and Pikler methodology.
3. Via de la Plata Way: In this itinerary –the most important from the south of the peninsula–, whose origin is based on different Roman roads, the ceramic creations and tile work from the 16th century from Tierra de Sevilla (Seville), and natural cosmetics Sarabell Natural (Salamanca). Finally, at the point where all roads converge, Galicia, Pau Decò Natural Design (Lugo), offers decorative pieces with a sustainability component.
Solid shampoos from Sarabelle Nature (Salamanca).
HOW AMAZON HANDMADE HELP ARTISANS
Craftsmanship occupies a very important place for Amazon, which is why since 2016 customers can discover and support the work of local artisans from all over Spain through Amazon Handmade, where each creator has a profile page to grow your business and in which, in addition to selling its products (customisable, in many cases, thanks to a specific tool developed by the company), **disseminating its history and artisanal manufacturing techniques. **
Jewellery, decorative objects, stationery, babies, accessories and fashion garments... any product made by hand has a place in Amazon Handmade, an initiative that favors customer purchase (it's easy, comfortable and fast), but it also helps the craftsman, who has a first-class seller support service from Amazon so that he can dedicate all his time, energy and sensitivity to what really matters: create beautiful and exclusive handicrafts so that we can buy them at the click of a button from our homes.
Handmade toys manufactured by Tuquinos, in Gijón (Asturias).