A bit about us

  Hi, my name is Sylvia and my long suffering,  very understanding husband, is John.

  To-wards the end of 2005 we had this great urge to travel the world.The kids had done it. Now they had all left home we thought, why shouldn't  we. So with a little determination and a big pinch of luck, within just a few short weeks we had  let the house. Our tickets bought, our bags packed and we were off on our journey of a lifetime.

  So it was after nine months, three continents, eight countries, and three days on a slow boat up the Mekong from Vietnam, we had arrived at the boarder. With our backpacks and my suit case (a sore point) we clambered down the side of the boat. It  was just after mid-day and the heat and humidity seemed overwhelming. Hauling our luggage and my case along the track, we made our way past the the now familiar group of children offering their services, (always US$1) to what seemed to be the only place we could take shelter from the heat. With its patchwork roof held up by poles and no walls, the place was filled with the chatter of other  backpackers and locals. Taking refuge away from the glare of the sun they sat around tables laden down with bottles, bowls and overflowing ashtrays spilling onto the red plastic check cloths. While we waited for the boarder post to open, we sat and ate steaming bowls of noodle soup,  gulping down bottles of water and sipping ice cold beers. We watched mice play among the food drying on sheets laid out on the ground beside our table. Other entertainment provided by cyclists wobbling past along the dusty potholed track with crates of rats strapped to their bikes. 

Time to make our way back along the track and to the boarder post. We stood around forming a sort of que, melting under the heat from that unforgiving sun. Taking a break  the guards where sitting down, dressed in shorts and vests.  We waited. They put their uniforms on.  After much stamping of passports we passed through. At long last we had arrived, we had made it to Cambodia.    I  couldn't wait .......

   Though poor in resources and money, there is a wealth of resilience and determination in this small country. A life of make-do and mend, and mend again and again for many of its people.( I doubt the word disposable is part of Cambodian language). With thirteen million people and 80% of the population earning less than US$2 per day, it makes Cambodia one of the poorest countries in the world. Constant drought followed by floods, leave many families in absolute poverty and with debts they have no hope of ever paying off. Day to day life becomes a never ending struggle. There are many disadvantaged people living here and so many children living on the streets and in such poverty, with nothing but the most beautiful smiles, to melt even the hardest of hearts. I admit, I was hooked.

 Cambodia became one of the worst countries in the world to suffer from the appalling effects of land mines. The legacy from wars and the Pol Pot years has now claimed many thousands of lives. With as many as forty thousand people having lost limbs, or sustained terrible injuries, due to these unmarked mines.

In our very small way, these are some of the people we are trying to help. Never having done anything like this before, it is proving a steep learning curve. Taking one step at a time, our goal is to try and help some of these people to generate an income. Helping to encourage independence and bringing a sense of fulfilment.

   From this point on is where we need your help.........

   The Cutting Room

" this is mine" is a range of Eco-Friendly bags from this source.  

We are very proud of the high quality of these products. Handcrafted by these highly skilled artisans, they won the UNESCO-APHADA Seal of Excellence for their handicraft products in 2004.

      Bringing independence, security and hope. Taking little from our fragile world.