Giorgiana and Miloika Penon

Artisan Organization: Giorgiana and Miloika Penon

Country: Costa Rica

Giogiana y Miloika Penon are sisters and artisans whose work focuses on showing the beauty found in nature. At a young age, Giorgiana created sculptures with driftwood she found on Costa Rican beaches. "In 1999, my grandmother inspired me to go to college, where I studied industrial design. It was wonderful to develop my design skills and explore new ideas," she says.

"Miloika had been working as an interior designer for 15 years and has worked with many prestigious design firms. In 2011, I had been working on a design project with university students in a town known for its colorful carts and beautiful handcrafts. We saw that the people there had extraordinary woodworking skills.

"We realized that we could help them design items that they could sell to international shoppers at better prices than the souvenirs they currently crafted. I decided to create designs that could be used in the home.

"Miloika joined me in this project and fell in love with it. We've formed a wonderful team with the artisans and we're growing together. This project is a solid one that has helped many people in the community.

"By introducing modern, utilitarian designs, our goals continue to grow and the artisans are becoming known.""