Black History Month puts black business front and center – and that’s a good thing. But the truth is, any time is a good time to support black-owned businesses; in particular, black female-owned brands, which have historically received less funding and fewer in-store placements than their male and female white counterparts.
It’s a lending and a business issue, but as consumers we also have power. (You’ve probably heard the phrase “vote with your wallet”.) small enterprises cultivates community while showing stores and investors that we want more trade representation. According to the 2022 US Census Bureau Annual business survey, only 19.9% of businesses in 2020 were black-owned. The numbers in the home design and decorating space are even more dire. Inc. magazine reports that only 2% of interior designers are black.
With that in mind, we’ve rounded up five of our favorite black women owned by women. home decoration brands. Valentine’s Day may be over, but it’s never too early to shop for Mother’s Day, graduations and even Christmas! (I like to be prepared.)
For a colorful house: Estelle’s colored glass
Want to make your drinks even prettier? Check Estelle colored glassa black woman-owned brand specializing in stylish glassware that comes in gorgeous colors ranging from rich jewel tones to soft pastels. Cups – which include stemmed and stemless wine glasses, champagne coupes, martini glasses, etc. – are mouth blown by Polish artisans and available in a variety of sizes and sets (you can even mix and match to create a multicolored set). If you prefer baking cakes to drinking wine, Estelle also sells amazing cake stands. Brand Owner Stephanie Summerson Hall, says Estelle is named after her grandmother, who enjoyed shopping for antiques and collecting colored glassware for Sunday dinners. With Estelle’s beautiful glasses, you too can enjoy old-fashioned hospitality.
For a bohemian home: Jungalow
If you like the bohemian style, you will love Jungalow. Its products — whose dreamlike and intricate designs featuring animals, plants and celestial images are based on drawings by the founder Justina Blakeney — include carpets, wallpapers, and home items like pillows and throws, among others. The goal, according to Blakeney, is to “inspire you to tap into your own creativity, connect with nature, and help bring good vibes home.” In keeping with the bohemian spirit of Jungalow, the boutique keeps things new friend wherever possible, incorporating natural, recycled, recyclable and compostable materials and limiting the use of plastic and polystyrene packaging. Best of all, Jungalow’s prices are reasonable; they even have a range of products made in partnership with Target. Grab this brightly colored throw pillow featuring a tufted embroidered design (Buy at Target, $25) to instantly make your couch more inviting, or a planter adorned with a meditative image of the sun (Buy at Target, $20) to bring a bohemian touch to your greenery.
For a Culturally Savvy Home: BLK MKT Vintage
BLK MKT Vintage is a Brooklyn-based brick-and-mortar shop that sells vintage items with roots in black history. Founded by Kiyanna Stewart and Jannah Handy, their one-store “curated love story” has everything from books and political memorabilia to photography and art. Here you will find a poster for Miss Black Teenage America next to African paintingsretro travel pennantsand old numbers black family magazine. Stewart and Handy also do interior design and accessory styling, leveraging their historical expertise and range of collectibles. On their website, the founders stress the importance of “centering black cultural artifacts through thoughtful curation and diverse modes of accessibility.” Their possessions – which range from the everyday and ephemeral to the rare and highly valuable – do just that and bring black history to life today.
For a classic home with a twist: Harlem Toile
Harlem Canvas is a collection of wallpaper, upholstery, tableware and other homewares that reinvent Toile, the prolific French print whose pastoral scenes of 18th century gaiety have long been associated with the whiteness of the upper crust, in Harlem-based designer Sheila Bridges’ version of the popular motif, black figures dance, play basketball, jump to the rope and braid their hair. “After searching for many years for the perfect canvas for my own home,” Bridges writes on her website, “I’ve decided it just doesn’t exist.” Thus, she created Harlem Toile as a way to “deride some of the deep-rooted stereotypes in the African-American experience”. Harlem Canvas Wallpaper — which has been exhibited at the Studio Museum In Harlem, the Cooper Hewitt Museum, the Museum of Art and Design in New York and the Musée De La Toile De Jouy in France — is the brand’s flagship product. Available in ten colours, it imbues the rooms in which it hangs with visual opulence and subversive humour.
For a sustainable home: sustainable household items
Are you passionate about buying beautiful home items And sustainable? Based in Georgia and founded by LaToya Tucciarone, Sustainable home products is committed to selling handcrafted and environmentally friendly products. Tucciarone, who draws inspiration from the African art and music she grew up with, puts down roots his company to support marginalized artisans — because, in his words, “we all have something to offer each other.” (Hear! Hear!) The store features items from a variety of smaller brands, partners with global and local manufacturers, and prioritizes eco-friendly products made with natural materials. Its reusable glass straws, for example, are intended to reduce single-use plastic (Buy at SustainAble Home Goods, $20). Interior decor pieces are earthy and minimalist, and include pottery, planters, and wooden cooking utensils. We especially love the extensive collection of hand woven basketsthat make chic storage solutions.
Tribute to Black History Month
For more diversity in commerce, support black businesses this month and throughout the year; and to celebrate women and support global sisterhood, support Belonging to a black woman companies, in particular. Your stylish home will thank you.
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This article originally appeared on our sister site, World Woman.