Products

+Collectie

+Kamba tribe - Kenya

These baskets are made by women from the Kamba tribe. Traditionally women work the land they are given when they marry, and are responsible for supplying the food to sustain the family. The harvests are transported with handmade sisal baskets. As droughts make the lives of these women very challenging, they rely increasingly on government initiatives to support their families. This is why they started investing more time in making baskets, in order to support their families.

More than 500 weavers of the Kamba tribe make baskets for home and abroad. Thanks to the making of baskets, the Kambas are less dependent on their agricultural yields and government initiatives. With the proceeds from their baskets, the women support their families, pay for their children's school and pay their medical expenses.

Shop onze Keniaanse manden:
>> XS 12 cm H x 15 cm DIA €29
>> S 18 cm H x 20 cm DIA €39 - €42
>> M 23 cm H x 25 cm DIA €49 - €55
>> L 35 cm H x 35 cm DIA €79 - €84
>> XL 30 cm H x 40 cm DIA €89
>> XXL 40 cm H x 40 cm DIA €99

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+Bolga baskets - Ghana

Bolga baskets are beautiful handmade baskets made in the villages around Bolgatanga, in the North-East of Ghana. The baskets are known for their beauty, durability and versatility.

The baskets are made from thick, durable elephant grass, dyed in vivid colours that represent the energy and enthusiasm of the people of Ghana.

First, a weaver has to travel to the market to buy their straw.

The weaver will buy different sizes of straw – some for the inside verticals (warps), some for the cross woven horizontals (wefts), some for coil that travels the circumference of the basket and some straw is purchased for the handles. The weaver then splits a piece of straw into two pieces. These two pieces of straw are dampened with water and are then rolled together over a person’s thigh using the palm of their hand – or over an old rubber sandal tied to the thigh (or a rubber sandal tied to a piece of wood) and this action creates one piece of straw. This is done so that the straw becomes soft and malleable.

Also during the weaving process, the weaver wets the straw to keep it malleable. When you receive your basket, you can do the same and dampen your basket, wait a few minutes for the straw to absorb the water and then shape the basket as desired.

After completing the basket, the weaver takes a razor blade and trim all the superfluous straw from the basket – or they will do this a few times during the course of the job. If you still see some pieces sticking out, you can use scissors to cut off these pieces.

Weaving 1 baskets takes from 2,5 to 5 days, including prepping the straw.

The sales of these baskets have allowed many impoverished farmers in the Bolgatanga region of Ghana to attain a sustainable way of living.

>> Shop our Moses baskets from Ghana

>> Shop our Ghanaian Baskets

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+Malawi

“Manden van palmbladeren zetten een eeuwenoude traditie voort”

Zoals in vele Afrikaanse landen, is de kunst van het mandenvlechten ook in Malawi ontstaan om zaken te transporteren. Vandaag gebruiken ze daar vooral metalen en plastic containers voor. Daardoor dreigt de kunst van het mandenmaken langzaam verloren te gaan.

Om hun vak nieuw leven in te blazen, maken ambachtslieden nu ook manden voor de export. Zo zorgen ze voor extra inkomsten en helpen ze een eeuwenoude traditie voortbestaan.

De manden van Malawi worden vervaardigd uit mulaza palmbladeren.

>> Ontdek onze manden uit Malawi