GoodKaarma

Beautiful custom made glass

Selection of high quality glass jewelry.

Necklaces, pendants, rings. ear-rings, studs, cuff-links.

Other custom made glass items:- 
awards, light fixtures, sculpture...

Email soap (at) goodkaarma.com

A green cottage industry: handmade soaps

Farmhouse enterprise - GoodKaarma

GoodKaarma is a green cottage industry based on the island of  Saaremaa, Estonia, producing handmade organic soaps.

This thatched farmhouse in the middle of the Estonian countryside is where the organic soaps are made.

All the soap-making happens in the farmhouse kitchen using simple kitchen equipment and some custom-made wooden molds. The soaps are made by hand (using certified organic ingredients) in small batches of about 7 kg at a time. Production is year-round with soaps being exported to Eire, UK, Sweden, Finland, Denmark & Germany. The soaps are also available throughout Estonia.

In the summer months, the farm opens to the public and becomes a visitor attraction.

Over 5000 visitors made the journey to GoodKaarma Talu (farm) in the summer of 2007, including Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves and his family. (See our photos of the visit here).

GoodKaarma is open to visitors 10.00 - 18.00

01 June - 31 August

Entrance is free

There are workshops in the "Secrets of Soap-Making", an arts & crafts gift shop and a garden cafe offering organic food & drink.

Workshops: Child 25 EEK, Adult 100 EEK.
Duration: 75 minutes
Group discounts available
Maximum group size for workshop is 15.

Advance booking is required for the soap-making  workshop.


GoodKaarma's name comes from its location in the Kaarma region of Saaremaa island.

See map showing directions.

 

 

Muusa interview

Here are some photos taken earlier this summer by Kutt Kommel from Muusa magazine .

GoodKaarma seebid Kaubamaja osturallil, 10.-14. oktoober

Suurepärane võimalus osta GoodKaarma ökoseepe otse valmistajalt, hinnaga 55 krooni tükk.

Tallinn

KOLMAPÄEV - LAUPÄEV
kell 10 - 19
Kaubamaja B-maja Kaubamaja tänava poolsel küljel laadamüük

MAHETOOTJAD OSTURALLIL

Sea-Level Rise Impact on Coastal Areas of Estonia

"Due to long coastline (3,794 km in total) and extensive low-lying coastal areas, global climate change through sea-level rise will strongly affect the territory of Estonia. A number of valuable natural ecosystems (both, marine and terrestrial) containing rare plant communities often rich in species, but also suitable breeding places for birds will be in danger. Most sandy beaches high in recreative value will disappear. However, isostatic land uplift and location of coastal settlements at a distance from the present coastline reduce the rate of risk. Four case study areas characterizing all the shore types of Estonia have been selected for sea-level rise vulnerability and adaptation assessment. Preliminary results and estimates of vulnerability to 1.0 m sea-level rise by 2075 for two case study areas - Hiiumaa, West-Estonian Archipelago and Pärnu-Ikla, south-western coast of the mainland - are presented in this paper."  - Abstract by SpringerLink.

Implications of Sea-Level Rise for Estonia (ppt)

Are Kont¹, Urve Ratas¹ and Elle Puurmann¹

(1)	Estonian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Ecology, Kevade 2, EE0001 Tallinn, Estonia

Ökoseep ja taastoodetud paberist ümbris on nagu hea abielu

"Seebitootmine kasvas välja sellest, et Eal ja Stephenil oli kindel soov maal midagi tegema hakata. Ja kui vähegi võimalik, siis oma kätega toota midagi, mis oleks loodustoode, tervisele hea, ilus vaadata ja millel oleks lisaks ka ekspordipotentsiaali. Ühesõnaga toode, mida kõik vajaksid."

Oma Saar 07. sept 2007

www.goodkaarma.com

Tallinn Embassies delegation visits GoodKaarma

High Ambassadors & senior economic staff from Tallinn's embassies take a break from their fisheries tour to visit GoodKaarma.

Oma Saar article  (local paper)

Eesti maaelu arengukava 2007-2013, MAK

"Eesti maaelu arengukava 2007-2013 on suunatud Eesti põllumajanduse ja metsanduse konkurentsivõime tõstmisele, keskkonna ja paikkonna parandamisele, maapiirkondade elukvaliteedi ja maamajanduse mitmekesistamisele, võttes arvesse Eesti maaelu omanäolisust."

Põllumajandusministeerium - Eesti maaelu arengukava 2007-2013

MAK 2007-2013 (pdf)

GoodKaarma Talu, Saaremaa - Sügis/Autumn 2007

SEPTEMBRIST ALATES KÜLASTUSED ETTEHELISTAMISEGA
FROM SEPTEMBER, BY APPOINTMENT ONLY

KÜLASTUSAJA KOKKULEPPIMISEKS HELISTA
BOOK IN ADVANCE Tel. 53484006

AVATUD/OPEN 1st JUNE - 31st AUGUST, 10-18.
www.goodkaarma.com

New photos of President Ilves at GoodKaarma

We just received some more photos of the First Family's visit to GoodKaarma last month.

 

Klaasist ehted

Saadaval eksklusiivselt vaid GoodKaarma Talust

Saaremaa Organic Kitchen: opening times, Autumn 2007

New opening times from 1st Sept 2007.

Organic restaurant now serves lunch between 12-15, Tues-Sun.

Dinner for groups is available by advance booking only.

Cafe & organic shop open Tues-Sun 10-18.

Closed Mondays, except for seminars/courses.

Saaremaa Maheköök serves delicious food from Saaremaa's organic farms.
It is owned and operated by local organic entrepreneurs.

WWOOF Estonia - volunteering on organic farms

World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms

Register on the website, access the farm lists and start "wwoofing" in Estonia!

WWOOF Eesti

Maheköök: Uued lahtioleku ajad 1.septembrist 2007

Lõunasöök T-P 12-15.
Õhtusöök eelneval kokkuleppel.
Ökopood ja kohvik avatud T - P. 10-18.
E. seminarid, töötoad jne.

Meie restorani ja kaupluse sünd on olnud elu loomuliku vajaduse realiseerumine. Saaremaal juba teist aastakümmet hoogsalt arenev mahepõllumajandus on oma kvaliteetse toodangu realiseerinud paljudele toitlustusasutustele ja perenaistele üle kogu Eesti, tõstes sellega üldist toidu kvaliteeti.Kuid paraku puudus Saaremaal veel käesoleva kevadeni võimalus tunnustatud mahetoodangust valmistatud toidu nautimiseks, kus lisaks kohalikule mahetoorainele on kasutatud toidu maitsestamiseks ja valmistamiseks kogu maailma mahedaid võimalusi....

Saaremaa Maheköök

Loodusjõud - And/Tervisekontor/Maa

The Loodusjõud team came to visit GoodKaarma recently. Lots of great projects coming from this company, including the chic And lifestyle shops; the "Healthy office" project promoting organic choices for the office kitchen/ coffee area; and the new Maa health-stores being launched later this autumn in Tallinn. Movers & shakers!

And

President Ilves & family at GoodKaarma 09.08.07.

GoodKaarma was honored on the 9th August 2007 with a visit by the Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves, his wife Evelin & daughters Kadri-Keiu & Juulia.

 more photos
                   Pinus nigra (Black Pine) was specially planted to mark the occasion, and the President & his wife watered the tree. The President shook hands  with active local community members Maia Tõhk, Sulvi & Lemmi, Rein & Halja Orn , Eve Sagur-Õunpuu , Rein Õunpuu, Teele Koel, Liina & Teele. The First Family displayed great interest in all aspects of the GoodKaarma soap production, asking many questions, signing the guestbook and exploring the gift shop. This was followed by an informal gathering in the garden cafe where a  delicious sourdough bread (made by the Ilves family) was shared, along with relaxed conversation in the late afternoon sun. The President gave a limited edition print entitled "Morning in Kadriorg" to GoodKaarma founders Ea & Stephen Greenwood.

By GoodKaarma.

 

Oma Saar (original article in local newspaper)
Translation of part of the article:
GoodKaarma owners were glad that,  just before the First Family's visit, the Kaarma parish authority fixed a part of the village road leading to the soap farm which had for a long time been in very bad condition. According to Kaarma's roadworks manager, the fixing of the road was nothing to do with the special visitors, but the work was a scheduled road repair.

 GoodKaarma says...

While hundreds of people each week have come up the bumpy/muddy road to GoodKaarma throughout both this summer and last, and while journalists often noted it in their articles, only a very few visitors ever complained about it.

In such an event, while we would politely apologize, we would also point out that for years hardly anybody used it. We would add that our property used to be just another lonely farm, situated in the middle of nowhere, almost entirely forgotten. We would say that an old forgotten place was now becoming a place worth remembering! And add finally that the road maintenance program hadn't quite caught up with the change in traffic volume.

Well, the President's team (while working out the details of his itinerary) came to check us out about a week before the scheduled visit, and of course, it had rained & rained. The road could not have been worse, and we were sure that they would cancel the whole idea (cue images of  the Presidential motorcade getting towed out of mud by a decrepit tractor...). There was no way they would allow the President to be driven through that! We blew it, we thought. Damn that road.

But as it turned out, the President's team seemed to forget all about the mud once they were here. I don't know if Ea hypnotized them while I was out of the room, or what. But  the visit was on!

We were genuinely surprised, and then got genuinely worried, if it continued to rain we could have a real problem with a President stuck in the mud. But as we busied ourselves over the next few days fixing stone walls, cutting grass, weeding & cleaning,  the weather cleared, the sun came out, the road baked nice & dry & hard, and it looked like we would make it through OK. The Presidential shock absorbers might get a bit of a work out, but the motorcade would not get stuck.

Then the day of the visit came.

We wondered why we were having a quiet morning (the President wasn't due until later in the afternoon). And it turned out that the village road was all jammed up with a  busy gang of trucks that were dumping great mounds of gravel! The Kaarma roadworks roadshow was in town! Goodbye mud, hello aggregate. LOL!

Well, while the old road had rustic charm (you knew you were going somewhere exciting, off the beaten track), we were absolutely delighted about the upgrade. And as we cannot thank either the President or the local parish officially with regard to the road (as the roadwork was merely a coincidence involving routine maintenance), we will have to thank our Feng Shui lucky stars!

President Ilves is the first Head of State to visit GoodKaarma, and we like to think that he has started a trend! If not a road building frenzy, then the visit certainly did stir up local pride and it has invigorated community feeling and motivation to a great extent. The theme of his trip was to highlight the role of small scale entrepreneurship in vitalizing rural communities. And from our perspective, the President has proved himself an extremely effective partner in this mission.

Our thanks to the President, his wife & family, and to the President's team.

GoodKaarma,
Stephen & Ea Greenwood

Award winning Saaremaa souvenir soap now available

Saaremaa - handmade organic soap, with Juniper & Pine essential oils.

Great house to rent in Saaremaa

Kibuvitsa talu, Muratsi, Saaremaa

Suitable for up to 8 people! This brand new house in Muratsi village, Saaremaa, has a lovely setting among the Juniper trees, and is only 7 km from Kuressaare.  4 bedrooms, sauna, decks, satellite TV, 2km from the sea. Lovely friendly owner speaks very good English. GoodKaarma highly recommends!!!

Contact: Andrea +372 5293665  andrea.pajuniit(at)gmail.com

good photos, directions & rates here

more photos
and more photos

Teejuhised GoodKaarma Tallu ehk Aarete kaart.

Siit leiad hea kaardi GoodKaarma Aiakohviku ja Seebikoja leidmiseks.

Saaremaa tours, packages, itinerary management

"Heritage Tours" is a skilled independent tour operator based in Saaremaa.  The services range from personal guided tours to sophisticated group itinerary management. And they have a beautiful website too (English pages not yet complete). GoodKaarma highly recommends!

Pärimusmatkad