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Meet our Artists
A young woman, Lungi, is the brains behind the fashionable and innovative range of recycled newspaper products made by Back2Life. When she was a child, Lungi used to watch her grand mother weaving things using a traditional Zulu weave. After school, she studied fashion design, and so, using what she'd learned from her studies, and the weaving skills she learned from her gran, Lungi conceptualised the Back2life newspaper products. Because they're made by hand, they can be made by anyone, so are helping to create jobs. Because they're made from old newspapers and are covered in a biodegradable varnish, they're eco-friendly. Back2Life is run from a small warehouse in Woodstock, Cape Town, where Lungi now employs 14 people. She wants to to double this capacity during 2008. The process in making the newspaper products, is quite an involved one, and so she spends a lot of time focusing on training those working for her. The newspapers need to be sorted into piles according to colour, and then cut into strips. These strips are rolled into straws, and then are woven into large mats. The designs of the bowls , bags , etc are cut from the mats and stitched together. Woven handles are attached if they're needed, and then lastly, each piece is coated in a biodegradable water and heat-resistant varnish. Babazeka loves Back2Life's goods not only because they create much needed jobs, but because they're colourful, unique, and have the added value of being eco-friendly.
The word “lumela” means hello in the Sotho language. This business began in May 1995, its main goal being to create meaningful and sustainable employment for single mothers from previously disadvantaged communities. The business focuses on empowering these women from the surrounding townships of Orange Farm, Sharpville, Evaton and Sebokeng. Lumela Afrika is also involved in supporting a few children's homes. Their focus is on children who have been abandoned and also for those who are living with HIV. The business makes financial contributions, and also donates their products as gifts. Lumela supports the Angels Aid and The Right Now Youth Foundation. Every piece produced by this group of women is a work of art. Different
enamel products, like plates, mugs and bowls , are drawn on by hand, and
then painted on. A number of people work on each piece as it is
passed along the production line. Babazeka loves Lumela's crockery because of the colourful designs and the heart the goes into each piece.
This is a business that was started about 6 years ago in Menlyn, Pretoria. Ex-fashion designer, Ilze, who needed a change from the industry, decided to begin a business which produced handbags and cushion covers. At first, she employed a couple of women from the surrounding townships of Pretoria. She now has given jobs to 10 previously disadvantaged women as well as 2 men. Mongoose has grown from strength to strength over the years, and now sells a far wider variety of products, including bags , cushion covers , baskets, and Jacaranda plant holders, salad servers and ornaments. Not only has Mongoose provided jobs for people in the Pretoria area, but it also supports different rural communities around South Africa. A number of their products have been made using fabrics which are hand-printed or beaded by rural women. Mongoose also often uses hand-printed fabrics made by young South African fabric designers, such as the Design Team. Babazeka loves Mongoose products because of the way they shout “South Africa” in such an original and fashionable way.
Bethuel
lives in Gauteng, and works from the newly refurbished Bus Factory in
Newtown. The DTI and South African Craft Council are involved in
running programmes which help a number of previously disadvantaged
crafters who have large amounts of talent and original ideas, but who
find it difficult to access the consumer market. The clocks and wall
hangings which Bethuel makes, under the company name of Noko, were
seen as products which had a lot of potential and so Bethuel was
taken on as a trainee by the DTI and Craft Council. Each
item he produces has been drawn and then cut-out by hand. Everything
is made from bottle tops, pieces of plastic and wire. Some of the
plastic he uses is recycled, and some is purchased – depending on
the quantity and quality of the recycled plastic he can find. Babazeka loves the childlike spirit behind each item Bethuel makes. His products are fun, colourful and quirky, and we think they would add a bit of charm to any eclectic home.
Two
young women, Lyndsay and Gemma, moved from the UK to work in South
Africa's textile industry. When the company they worked for was
forced to close down, due to cheap Chinese imports (how sad!), the
girls decided to start their own company (we're glad!). The
girls noticed that many poor people living in South African townships
use waste products when building their homes. Inspired by this, and
using their knowledge of textiles, Gemma and Lyndsay conceptualised
the Ollymolly bags . Based in Paarl, the girls have trained women and
men at the Miglat Christian Community Centre as to how to weave the
products. Mis-printed
pamphlets and brochures are generously donated by printing companies
to the project. These are cut into strips, covered in a sticky
plastic and then woven together. Once the bags have been tensioned,
and the tops completed, handles and clasps are added. Each
week the girls check the products, and then buy the items from the
makers. This way the employees can determine their own wage in the
number of products they make. A percentage of the Ollymolly proceeds
are donated the support of AIDS orphans at the care home, Bowy House. Babazeka loves the Ollymolly bags, not only because they're made from waste, but because they're functional, durable and bit of fun.
Peta
Becker, an artist and book illustrator, runs Projekt – an business
which focuses on empowering women from Imizamo Yethu township in Cape
Town. As Peta says, “These talented women provide the energy and
inspiration at Projekt”. The
group uses crochet because it needs just one tool – a hook, can be
made anywhere,at any time. The
women involved in Projekt, are able to crochet the products at home,
and then meet with Peta once a week at the local community hall. Here
the women are encouraged to review each other's work and offer input
on the products. Projekt also offers ongoing workshops and lessons,
so their women crafters can produce intricate textiles , homewares ,
bags and scarves, combining colourful crochet with suede, cotton and
cotton-linen mixes. Babazeka loves Projekt's handmade items because of their simple, yet beautiful designs, their originality, and of course, their interesting mixtures of colours.
Tincity is a business which has been running for more than 6 years now. They have a team of 10 dedicated painters from Cape Town and Stellenbosch. Tincity's aim is to create permanent and meaningful employment for individuals from previously disadvantaged backgrounds. As the demand for their product grows, so does their need for painters. All
of Tincity's products are made from metal, and then painted by hand.
Each item passes through many hands before it is completed, so each
painter can add their individual touch. Babazeka loves Tincity's products not only because they're functional, but because of their tongue-in-cheek take on South Africa. If you've got a sense of humour, you'll also love them.
Wola
Nani is an organisation based in Cape Town which supports people
living with HIV. Wola Nani Crafts was established because the
organisation saw the need for unemployed, HIV-positive women to
generate an income. The organisation says that “through a
developmental, self-help approach the project’s members have been
enabled to take greater control of their lives and achieve a better
quality of life”. Their
crafts include beaded ribbons and bracelets, painted light
bulbs, as well as paper mache bowls and picture frames. The products
are sold nationally and internationally and have been endorsed by
“Proudly South Africa”. Babazeka
sells the organisation's shweshwe paper mache bowls. These have been
handmade from recycled paper, covered in the traditional Xhosa design
known as Shweshwe and then varnished. The crafters are able to
produce the bowls at home, so that they can stay with their families,
and then deliver the products to the organisation's offices once a week. Babazeka loves Wola Nani's bowls because they're eco-friendly, brightly coloured, and have a true African feel.
A couple who ran a fabric printing business in Zimbabwe, moved to South Africa to open a shop through which would sell their products. The couple then set up a printing factory in Cape Town, through which they trained quite a few Capetonians. It was soon after this that they decided to give a few of the local women, who worked at the factory, the opportunity to run their own business. This was the beginning of Zambane Printers. The
business is situated in Kommetjie, Cape Town, and employs about 12
people from the surrounding townships. The name Zambane was chosen because the word means “potato” in Zulu and this the tool used to
print the patterns onto fabric. Each
day designs are cut into potatoes. The cotton fabric
is dyed, and then carefully marked out so as to guide the
designs. Plain block potatoes are printed as an under-colour in many areas of the design. Finally, the intricately
cut potatoes are dipped into different coloured pigment dyes and
overlaid onto the fabric. The entire process is carried out by hand
and so, is incredibly time-consuming. In
purchasing a cushion cover produced by Zambane, you are supporting the
empowerment of women, as well the creation of jobs for previously
disadvantaged South Africans. Babazeka loves the products of Zambane Printers because each is a work of art, filled with colourful, contemporary African design.
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