MAHABA: Coral Fringed Raffia Hanger
Description
Bold and beautiful in organically-dyed pink and orange, MAHABA is a decorative piece of woven, kinetic art, designed to be hung either flat against a wall or as a floating mobile.
Designed by Nina Howard of FLOC and woven by groups of women in small cooperatives across remote regions of Uganda, these MAHABA hangers are handwoven from natural raffia, wound stitch by stitch around a small bundle of sweetgrass. This woven hanger features three woven half-moons in hot pink, fringed in fronds of orange and pink and hung from a central thread. A pink pom pom finishes the piece with a playful flourish.
Each section of this woven hanger moves independently, so it can be displayed in open space like a traditional mobile where its mesmerising movement can be fully appreciated, or hung flat against a wall. A hand stitched loop enables easy installation wherever you choose to showcase this wonderful work of African art.
Material: Sweetgrass and Raffia
Dimensions:
Length (excluding the string) 88cm, full 100cm
Width (widest part) 44cm
Please note, as this is a handmade product, dimensions & colour may vary from those shown in the photographs.
FAIR TRADE & HANDMADE IN UGANDA
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.
