HERI: Natural and White Speckled Woven Laundry Basket
Description
Unique and hand woven, the HERI laundry basket boasts a stylish beige and white speckled design reminiscent of Kenyan sand and stone.
Created by one of the most experienced members of the women’s weaving cooperatives in the rural Eastern Region of Kenya, this lovely laundry hamper is hand woven from the indigenous sisal plant. The stiff leaves of this fibrous shrub are often used for producing rope and twine, and undergo a lengthy process of harvesting, rolling and dyeing - all by hand - before being carefully woven. Each laundry basket takes six days and up to forty balls of sisal to complete, whilst two skilled leather workers (known locally as ‘fundi’) produce the trim and handles.
Large and robust enough for storing your logs and kindling yet soft and supple enough to be used as nursery storage, your woven laundry basket really can be put to use all over the home.
Many members of the women’s weaving cooperative in Kenya are from farming families, largely relying on unpredictable rainfall and an unreliable income. Basket weaving has become a source of alternative income for these communities during the dry seasons, helping families meet their basic living costs.
Each laundry basket comes with a thank you card from the weaving co-operative that made yours. Want to know more about the people behind the baskets? Meet the weavers here.
Material: SISAL & LEATHER
Dimensions: 41cm H x 41cm DIA
Leather used is a by-product of the food industry.
Please note, as this is a handmade product, dimensions & colour may vary from those shown in the photographs.
FAIR TRADE & HANDMADE IN KENYA
Our journey into sustainable style began in Kenya, and the lion’s share of our woven baskets are Kenyan-made. Whilst every region of Kenya boasts its own rich natural bounty, each cooperative we partner with offers expertise in its own unique form of basketry. Weaving, dyeing and grass-rolling techniques differ across the regions as much as basket shapes, patterns and structures. These precious crafts are woven through the generations within families - passed along continuous thread from mother to daughter - protecting and preserving an art form as old as man.
Vast and colourful, vibrant and bursting with natural beauty and style, our fair trade baskets are as eclectic as their homeland and its people. From sisal grass to doum palm, banana leaf fibres to palm leaf, each weaving cooperative works with what is locally available and only what can be sustainably sourced, to produce beautiful baskets which are 100% Kenyan made, and ethically produced. All cow hide bag tags, straps, and basket labels are made from leather sourced as a by-product of the food industry. Natural dyes come from pounded roots, bark and vegetables of the region, whilst all synthetic dyes are sustainably sourced.
From the Kamba tribe to the camel-herding Ariaal pastoralists of Northern Kenya, you can read more about the lives of the Kenyan weavers we work with - and the wonderful baskets they produce - below.
Meet The Artisans
Who Made Your Basket?
United KingdomHappy customer
Amazing, Wonderful product,that arrived quickly with no hitches… My daughter had seen this basket at the Christmas Fair held at Daylesford …she was over the moon when she received it for Christmas
The Basket Room
Thank you for your review and shopping with us at The Basket Room! We're happy to hear your daughter is equally as pleased!
United KingdomHERI: Natural and White Speckled Woven Laundry Basket
Perfect. I always revisit The Basket Room when I need more storage. Products are always excellent quality. Highly recommend.
The Basket Room
Thank you for your review and continued support shopping with us at The Basket Room!
