
I am Able Campaign x Amanda Booth
‘I am Able’ in collaboration with Amanda Booth
At its core, Kondor is about recognizing the power of community. One of our main missions has always been to give back to the communities we work with. In addition to supporting Ecuadorian artisans by incorporating their creations into our designs, we as a brand have always aimed to partner with nonprofit organizations. So we are pleased/ so excited to announce the first of many collaborations to come, ‘I am Able’ with Amanda Booth!
We came across Amanda on Instagram about a year ago. We fell in love with her, her beautiful son Micah. We especially lauded her efforts to educate people about Down Syndrome. She inspired us to visit a nonprofit that supports underprivileged families with children with Down syndrome in Ecuador, ‘Fundacion Reina de Quito’. From that visit, this beautiful collaboration was born.
A little about Fundacion Reina de Quito
'Fundacion Reina de Quito' in Ecuador provides support, therapy and education to underprivileged children with Down syndrome. Their mission is to equip them to live as independent members of society. The children attend sessions at the center every weekday, some traveling for as long as three hours daily to get the therapy they need. The parents are able to pay based on their financial situation and the payments can vary between $5-$40 per month. For the rest, the center relies on donations. The Foundation has done exemplary work in the 20 years that they have been open, and this year they have two of their students graduating from a regular high school.
‘I am Able’ campaign in collaboration with Amanda Booth will donate 10% of its proceeds to Fundacion Reina de Quito. These funds will be utilized to train therapists, so that the children can have access to the most up to date techniques, which will give them a chance to have a brighter future.
Q/A with Amanda
What’s your main effort/goal as Micah’s parent?
My goals as Micah’s parent shift and I believe will continue to. Long term, I hope to be able to give him the tools necessary to lead a happy and fulfilling life. I hope he is as independent as he chooses to be. I hope that he grows up and can say he always felt encouraged to go for his wildest dreams. Right now…I just want to help Micah learn to self-regulate, and gain the best communication skills that he possibly can. I see him frustrated that he understands more than he can tell us, and that’s really hard to witness. That is why this campaign means so much to me! The goals I have for Micah are possible with all of the professional help that we have and will continue to receive. It isn’t fair that all families do not have access to the same, life altering resources. The opportunities that we are now able to give to our children with Down Syndrome, are exactly the reasons why they are going on to lead happy, and independent lives. It is NECESSARY!
Why the phrase I AM ABLE? (The Rumi Tote has this phrase embossed on the inside)
I AM ABLE. Because, we are all able. Able to learn, play sports, work, give and receive love, and find happiness. We are able, we just need the opportunity to show .
What would be the best advice for parents of children with Down syndrome?
I will give the same advice that I have been given. That is, to sit back and allow your children to fall. Allow them to explore, and choose their own way. Support them in their dreams, and push them just like you would ANY child. It’s okay to have worries and doubts. It’s okay to teeter between hope and reality. And in those times, connect with someone in our community. We are big and we are strong. And I am so lucky to be a part of it.

Jetlag Mode x Kon-Dor
Empowered Women Empower Women
Meeting and getting to know designers who are going through the same challenges you are going through is inspirational. Meet Carolina Baena the beautiful designer of JetLag Mode and get inspired by her style and advice.

Disfunkshion Mag

Growing up in Ecuador, Carmen Maria Correa and Laura Carrion were inspired by their home’s vivid landscapes, beautiful crafts, spectacular people, and most importantly, sartorial choices — such as the waist-cinchers, the traditional garb of Ecuadorians — which inspired the design for the popular bag strap so present in their collections.
The brand’s story is a true example of innovation sparked by creativity. In New York, Correa and Carrion discovered that they wanted to create something that would not only embody their enchanting home of Ecuador, but also the wealth of experience they had gained through their travels. Thus, the creative brainchild, KON-DOR was born. Named after the Ecuadorian Condor a bird symbolizing power, health, virtue, and beauty, KON-DOR was established to provide luxury handbags with artisan accents to fashion-forward women all over the world.
A strong focus of the product development stage is creative design using the most high-quality leather to create luxury leather handbags. To accentuate the bags, the designers add a colorful band, or strap, resembling the traditional Ecuadorian faja or belt —a style they coined nearly three years ago before it was seen elsewhere in the fashion industry.
“That’s how we got the inspiration for the bands, we saw it everywhere around us. It’s what the people here wear,” says Correa. The pair believes in small details that make a large difference. They use recycled polyester and organic cotton to line their bags, which ultimately makes a positive impact on the environment. Because the straps are easily interchangeable, the style of each bag can change in minutes.
KON-DOR pieces fit perfectly into a travel-filled lifestyle. “Travel is key, living life to the fullest, and KON-DOR is this and much more,” Correa explained. “We want KON-DOR to be perceived as a lifestyle.”
The designers can say with confidence that no two bags are the same. Correa is a strong believer in the transformative power of positive affirmation and self-love in the form of beautiful words. Each bag, has a unique message crafted solely for the wearer — “I am beautiful” and “I am grateful” being among the two beloved phrases they insert onto the inside of the bags to remind the wearer of her worth every time she uses it, and thus be inspired to feel confident in herself.
The pair not only wants to impact the fashion world but also lend a humanitarian hand. Their first movement is to help a small orphanage of children living with HIV in the province of Imbabura, become self-sustainable. Purchasing one bag also helps support Ecuadorian artisans as the brand donates part of its proceeds to different causes that are close to their hearts. “We believe in giving back,” Correa gushed. “We know how lucky we are to be following our dreams and are very grateful for this and much more, so even if we change the life of one person [less fortunate]our business makes so much more sense.” They are pushed to do better, to grow, to follow their dreams with a vengeance and live with a purpose bigger than themselves.
THE END....
IT'S SO AMAZING TO READ ARTICLES THAT CAPTURE YOUR BRAND SO PERFECTLY, SO THANK YOU DISFUNKSHION MAG AND THANK YOU FOR READING IT!!

Vaccination

About a year ago we were asked by one of the doctors at a public hospital in Ecuador if we could help her get funds for a new vaccine that could be life changing for HIV+ children. In the past we have been involved with an orphanage of HIV+ children so we said yes with out even knowing how we were going to do it.
We were about to launch the Kon-Dor website and had no funds ourselves, as entrepreneurs we knew it was going to take time until we made money, 2 years maybe, but we also knew everything is possible if you set your mind to it.
So…
We created a GO FUND ME page to get the $4,000 dollarswe needed for the vaccines, most of it were donations from family and friends but there were also some generous strangers from around the world who donated (how cool is that?!).
Its been a year and we managed to raise $1705, not our goal, but still with the help of PFIZER Ecuador we vaccinated 45 kids.
This vaccine is called PREVNAR 13 and it helps to prevent pneumococcal infections. We were fortunate enough to be present in the last vaccination at a orphanage called ORPHAIDS, it was such a beautiful experience seeing how brave these kids are and how well they are growing up despite their circumstances.
We learn more and more from these experiences and we dream of the day that we don’t have to ask for help but instead we have enough funds to do this and so many other things we dream about. Buy products that give back and that can make a change, no matter how little you think this change is it can mean the world to somebody else.
Again, we wanted to thank everyone who donated and trusted us, we donated every single dollar to this cause and can't wait to complete our goal and give this gift to even more children.
Also, thank you everyone who has bought a KON-DOR bag, with your purchase our dream of giving back (BIG) is closer.
Here are some pics, we hope you enjoy and if you donated enjoy even more because without you this couldn’t have been possible.
PS- Our Go-Fund me page is still open and is still receiving donations, it's never too late. gofund.me/x6u4xk

Why are our straps so special?

photo by Michael Reich
One of Kon-dor's mission was to support artisans in Ecuador through our designs, we wanted to mix their creations with ours, we knew it would be a challenge, but we also knew this mixture would convert into beautiful, unique, one of a kind products. We grew up seeing these beautiful handmade textiles called ‘fajas’ that were used in traditional costumes for wrapping the waist or hair and thought that they could be our start point. After much thinking and testing we discovered that these long pieces of art where not only beautiful but also very strong and could serve not one but many purposes in our designs just as they do in Andean cultures.
An example of how fajas are used in the waist on traditional Andean costumes.
‘Fajas’ are usually handmade using a combination of patterns and colors. If a ‘faja’ was made by a different person the slightest change in a thread changes it as whole. Finding two ‘fajas’ that are exactly the same is almost mission impossible which means that finding a Kon-Dor bag exactly as yours would be a very hard task, so don't even try, simply enjoy your bag.
Uniqueness is our motto and so should yours, no person is the same, we are all one of a kind, so why should your bag be any different?
Buy products that not only look great but that have a story, a mission.
BUY A KON-DOR

KON-DOR Travels, Cabo San Lucas
May 06, 2016
or if you love real Mexican food and want to get a taco that is the real deal you need to try LA TAQUIZA or LA TAQUERIA EL BUEN PASTOR they have no website, this should tell you just how genuine and good they are.
Ask for directions they are both in Cabo San Lucas.
What to do?
If you are feeling very adventurous we think you should definitely swim with whale sharks. They are amazing gentle giants that will give you the experience of a lifetime. Try booking in advance (you get a better deal this way). The most recommended company to do this with is CABO ADVENTURES if you are not really into this kind of stuff, they have other really cool activities....
All in all we think Los Cabos is an amazing place with delicious food and weather so if you are thinking of going somewhere this summer you should consider Cabo San Lucas.....
#KONDORTRAVELS
Its never too late to say...HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
January 12, 2016
Welcome to the LIVING KONDOR STYLE Blog!