TOMS Fashion: Bags that Create Big Change

I am bursting with excitement. I have had to hold on to this exciting news and it has taken everything in me not to share this news with the world, as it is a cause that means so much to me. TOMS has been known for footwear and innovating the one for one social business market. They started with shoes and since, have expanded to eyewear and coffee, helping millions of people around the world through their Giving Partners providing clean water and eyesight to those who need it most.

TOMS is taking it a step further. I was fortunate enough to get a preview of these amazing, high quality, men's and women's bags. From beautiful leather crossbodys, tablet envelopes, handy pouches and my favourite-an embellished colourful crossbody that can be transformed into an impactful fold over clutch(final photo).

The most meaningful though may be the gorgeous baby bag, that I mistakenly took for the most beautiful weekend bag I had ever seen, and any new mother would be proud to carry not just for it being stylish but beacuse for every single TOMS bag sold (Men's, Women's, no matter the size) TOMS will provide a safe birth for a mother and baby in need.

A safe birth is something we take for granted in Canada where we have universal health care but in many parts of the world it is a privilege. TOMS will be working with a network of Giving Partners to train local birth attendants and provide vital materials-like soap, gloves, gauze, a cord clamp, surgical blade and a clean surface-to help a woman safely deliver her baby.

This is why this partnership may be one of the most important endeavors TOMS has taken on:

1.Infection is the leading cause of new mother and baby deaths. (WHO 2011)

2.With clean birth conditions, over 1 million mothers and babies can be saved each year. (Blencowe et el. 2010)

3.With the training and the materials to provide a safe birth, mothers are 80% less likely to develop an infection and almost half of newborn deaths can be prevented. (Seward 2012 & Jokhio 2005)

4. 40 million women across the world give birth each year without the help of a trained birth attendant. (Save the Children 2014)

A safe birth should not be a privilege but a universal right. This simple along with the training provided by the Giving Partners will change the lives of women and have a chain reaction in their communities.

I love fashion and these bags are gorgeous, they offer a wide variety of colours and styles all of which are major must haves this season but what I love even more is that knowing that the purchase of one of these bags will help one woman in need make an important milestone of her life that much safer.

#Fashion