Article22

Are a social enterprise, reinvesting the majority of their profits and transform weapons into symbols of love. Each piece is handmade by rural artisans in Laos from Vietnam War shrapnel, plane parts, military hardware and other scrap aluminium, melted and recast in wood and ash moulds.

This jewellery gives the people of Laos the chance to make some money, feed their family, get them an education and further themselves.

About Article22

Article22 celebrates stories of positive transformation and makes real impact through this jewellery handcrafted in Laos.

It all started when one man learned to melt the war scrap into spoons, then in 2009 Article22 began working with the village. 15 families in the village now work part time and earn at least 5x the local hourly minimum wage, providing them with the disposable income for books, school, fuel,and medicine that their subsistence farming livelihoods cannot.

Buying back the bombs

Shop with purpose from Article 22

Why Shop Article22?

Embracing Fair Trade principles, partnering with artisans in off-the-beaten-track places to create modern hairlooms that are not only beautiful but also meaningful.

Each peice helps MAG (Mines Advisory Group) clear unexploded ordinance, making land safe and providing new metal to artisans to create more beautiful designs.

Article22 has been recognised as pioneering not only the transformation of weapons into jewellery but also the tangible value of fashion that looks and does good.

The artisans have become agents of change, healing their land, making it safe to play and grow rice.

About Laos

One of the poorest nations according to the World Bank, Laos also has the unfortunate distinction of being the most heavily bombed country in history per capita.

Between 1964 and 1973, against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, the Secret War was waged in neutral Laos. To contain the spread of communism, American B-52s dropped an average of one bomb-load every eight minutes, 24 hours a day, for nine years. 80 million of the 250 million bombs dropped failed to detonate, leaving a deadly legacy that plagues the agrarian population today.

Laos should not be defined by this war torn past.