The African Fabric Shop

New mud cloths: how large is large?

Bob has just photographed and uploaded a new batch of mud cloths from Mali - including a few exceptionally large ones. True woppers, these are.

Here’s an image comparing our two sizes of mud cloth.

• Standard size mud cloths are usually around 105 x 158 cm / 41 x 62 inches.
• Large mud cloths average around 160 x 220 cm / 62 x 87 inches.

Also, some of the large cloths are designed with a central motif surrounded by a border. This type of design is rare with standard-size cloths.

View and buy: Mud cloths from Mali

Indigo: can you ever get enough?

Of course not!

Like you, we really love our indigo cloths from West Africa. We have plenty to choose from:

• Hand-dyed indigo damask cloths from Guinea. Stitch resist indigo cloth on a subtle damask weave cotton. Traditionally worn as a pagne or wrapper by women in Guinea and elsewhere in West Africa.
• Hand-dyed indigo cloths from Mali. Handspun and handwoven strips of cotton sewn together into a whole cloth, stenciled to create a resist, then dip dyed by hand in indigo.
• Vintage handwoven Mossi indigo cloths from Burkina Faso. Up to 25 years old, these cloths have aged gracefully and have a lovely, soft feel.
• Vintage  handwoven Baoulé cloths from Côte d'Ivoire. Traditionally worn as a wrapper by women of the Baoulé tribe. Cotton yarn dyed in indigo using the warp ikat method, handwoven into narrow strips, then stitched together into a whole cloth.
• Hand-dyed indigo by Musa Jaiteh in The Gambia. Musa uses stitching, tying and wax stamping to create a resist before hand-dyeing with indigo.
• Tuareg indigo dyed tassled scarf
• Indigo scarf lengths

New Limited Edition packs online now

Get your new year off to a creative start.

Magie and Jenny have just put together a great new selection of our Limited Edition packs.

Each pack contains a carefully selected array of fabrics and beads:

• Handprinted and hand-dyed panels from Pam Stallebrass in South Africa
• Hand-dyed fabrics from West Africa and South Africa
• Handmade recycled glass beads from Ghana

Get creative: our latest Limited Editions online now!

How to choose your Bolga fan

First of all, remember that all of our fans are both beautiful and functional.

That means choosing your fan is pretty much down to personal choice.

Our advice is simple: go by colour.

We have plenty to choose from right now.

Tip 1: At the moment we have a few special 'black and white' fans - very subtle. These are quite rare, so be quick.

Tip 2: All of our fans have robust leather handles. Very strong, very comfortable, very beautiful. For our multi-coloured fans, the handles are dark brown with reddish-brown trim. For our rare black and white fans, the leather handles are in matching black and cream. Lovely!

View and buy: our latest selection of Bolga Fans

Janice Gunner Special Collections for Janice Gunner workshops

Did you know that our friend Janice Gunner is doing workshops at the Quilters' Guild AGM in April 2022?

We have just what you need for her stimulating class!

View and buy: Janice Gunner Special Selections