(Beirut, Lebanon) - Located down a narrow alleyway in the Palestinian refugee camp of Shatila in Beirut, is a workshop where women are busy making pillow covers, tablecloths, scarves, caps, wallets, baby clothes and other needlework products.
This is the headquarters of the Syrian volunteer organisation Smile and Olive, where one of the rooms has been turned into an embroidery and sewing centre for Syrian and Palestinian refugees.
The workshop launched on May 20, 2013, and daily work is divided into three morning, lunchtime and afternoon shifts, with the last session dedicated to the most experienced needle-workers.
The workshop gathers together women from a large number of different Syrian provinces: Aleppo, Daraa, Idlib, Hama, Homs, and the Damascus countryside, as well as Palestinians who were themselves refugees in Syria.
Damascus Bureau correspondent Malath al-Zoubi visited the workshop in the first week of December to document some of the work that goes on.
The Syrian and Palestinian-Syrian women who produced this work all receive training in the art of Palestinian embroidery from a 45-year-old woman who goes by the name of Um Jihad. December 6, 2013
Fancy women’s hats are some of the items produced by this small workshop. December 6, 2013
The women make small wallets or medium-sized bags, all of which have proven quite popular. December 6, 2013
With the onset of winter, they began working on a number of woolen products, including slippers, hats and scarves. December 6, 2013
There are about 50 women at the workshop, aged from 19 to 55, some of whom bring their children along for the day. December 6, 2013
Most of the women prefer working on canvas embroidery or crochet. December 6, 2013
The women also produce some seasonal items, like this Christmas cover. December 6, 2013
The workshop is both a meeting point for the women as well as an opportunity to make some extra income to help the refugee family face their difficult living circumstances. December 6, 2013
Smile and Olive provides all the raw material required for the work, purchases all the items produced and then sells them at approximately cost price. December 6, 2013
The items produced by the workshop are on sale at bazaars in Lebanon, Jordan, Denmark, Holland and Qatar, and are also available directly from the organisation’s headquarters in Shatila camp. December 6, 2013
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