.. Sites
to See!
Africa Direct: http://africadirect.com/products2.php?category=9&subcategory=30 Ghana's
Weavers of Dreams Textile
Information from the Web Sub-Saharan
African Textiles.
from MARLA MALLETT www.marlamallett.com/african.htm
South
Africa's Fashion
Week Africa
Fashion Our award
winning website is search leader for
Africa Fashion on MSN, Google and Yahoo
from 5 million entries.(Feb. 2005)
What
is Kente Cloth?
Basically, it's
an Asante ceremonial cloth that is
hand-woven on a horizontal treadle loom.
The looms we saw at the village near
Kumasi were out in the open air, although
in a grassy, shaded area. Cloth strips,
approximately 4 inches wide are sewn
together into larger bolts. Of many
colors, sizes and designs, Kente cloth
items, long scarfs in particular, are worn
throughout Ghana and its neighboring
countries, during most social and
religious occasions. The name comes from
the word 'kenten', which means basket. We
saw virtually every possible color and
pattern of kente cloth during the day-long
Durbar ceremony at Koforidua village near
Accra. According to Ghanaians, kente
depicts the area's history and philosophy,
its ethics, oral literature, moral values,
social and religious concepts.
Back
to Africa
Fashion Upbeat Page
Textiles
from 54 Destinations in Africa and
Offshore Islands.
by
Muguette Goufrani
It's
amazing! For the past five years, the most
popular section on this web site,
according to Webtrends, which charts our
page views day by day, is Africa Travel
Fashions. Since Africa Travel Magazine's
editors believe in giving readers what
they want, each new editiion of our
printed magazine contains additional pages
featuring the colorful clothing, designers
and fabrics of Africa,. In addition, there
are visitors tips on what and where to buy
Two years ago at the huge Merkato Market
(the size of several football fields) and
other unique spots in Addis Ababa, we were
in Shoppers' Heaven. The prices were
exceptional with our exchange rate and the
variety of items was endless.
We would need a whole web site or catalog
just to cover fashions, wearable art,
fabrics and shopping venues in Ethiopia,
let alone what I've already experienced in
Togo, Gabon, Cote d'Ivoire, Morocco,
Tanzania, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa and
various other destinations we've visited.
We're now considering a special edition of
our magazine devoted entirely to African
travel fashions with a gallery of color
photos.
Speaking
of Ethiopian Design, attractive,
multicolor scarves and shawls are very
popular with visitors. I bought several,
one to match each of 3 separate outfits.
Such an array to chose from, and they take
up so little weight and space in your
suitcase. The photo (right) by Robert
Eilets of New York, was taken at Lake
Tana. We visited a busy and bountiful
outdoor market there at Bahar Dar, a
lakeside resort that is sure to become a
major tourism attraction of the future
thanks to its historic setting and the
addition of an attractive new resort that
was nearing completion at the time of our
visit in February 2000. details
When myself and
the Editor of Africa Travel Magazine,
visited historic Kumasi with our guide
from Sagrenti Tours of Accra, Ghana, we
made several trips to the weavers village
which is located nearby. As in the big
city markets, were overwhelmed by the wide
variety of Kente cloth items available. Be
prepared to bargain - it's part of the
scene. The caps, shirts and other goods we
bargained for have since proven to be of
excellent quality - they never seem to
wear out. The question that arises most
often when other North Americans see us
wearing our African duds is -"What is
Kente cloth?"
Yahoo Top
20 search Sept. 2003
Adire African
textiles
gallery:
variety of styles. Some African textiles
such as adinkra, kente and bogolan are
becoming increasingly well known.
www.adire.clara.net/
Social
Fabric:
Exploring the Kate Kent Collection of
African Textiles. www.du.edu/duma/africloth/
Sandton
Convention Center, July
Fashion
Boutiques of Cape
Town
Capsule
on a variety of great little
shops
For
traveling, attending gala events,
meetings, or looking good for any
occasion, has been a number one topic
in Africa Travel Magazine and its
powerful website. We use
Webtrends to monitor our site,
plus the power of Google and Yahoo to
see how we stack up against other
media. You will be surprised. Below is
a link to my first article on the
subject of hats. I have a passion for
hats, as you will learn.
.
