Manly Market

Another successful Manly market took place this Saturday. If you haven't been it's really worth a visit! We had quite a few funny moments with wind & umbrella's going flying everywhere, eventually we just took them down! When the sun came out though it was beautiful!

It was great to have a visit from 2 of my girlfriends, who both also made some Ikhaya purchases! They were there to help me pack up  the car at the end of the day so that we could sit down & have a lovely meal of fish & chips by the seaside! It was a great afternoon, thank you ladies!

This weekend is the Powerhouse market on Saturday, which is always a great day out. I have some beautiful new things to show you too - Kikoy sarongs from Kenya which have the most amazing colours & really do last forever. Also some beautiful Moroccan baskets - I have been dying to get these for ages & finally decided to go for it. They are perfect for the market, as you can fill them with all your beautiful purchases! I still have my good old favourite the Bolgatanga baskets from Ghana - very traditional & with so many uses! 

I am hoping to have my cordless eftpos machine this Saturday, its a very exciting new development which I hope will make your shopping experience that little bit easier!

I look forward to seeing you there!

Monkey balls!

These interesting little balls have become quite popular over the last few months. No matter what the design or colour you seem to love them all. I have attached a photo of the natural coloured monkey balls with a real African flavour. They look great in a bowl together & are a great talking point – not many people know what they are!!

The local name for this fruit of Ihlali, each monkey apple is individually decorated reflecting the themes of Africa from subtle siennas to rich terracottas and African carved designs. The fruit is picked by local people in rural communities, then dried. It is a sustainable resource creating employment for underprivileged people in Africa.

I am very excited about some new colours arriving in time for the market on Sat. They look great in my new Swazi baskets too – which I will have to tell you all about next time!!!

See you on Sat & make sure you bring a scarf & jacket, its getting pretty cold out there!!!

Manly Farmer's Market 21/6/2008

The weather held out & we had a fabulous market day at Manly! The Ikhaya spot was truly special with the water & boats behind us!

Manly Farmer's market

Jan Power is hosting another great market tomorrow in Manly on the esplanade. There is sure to be lots of activity & many early rises tomorrow to get there for the freshest produce & flowers. I am all packed up & ready to go - hoping for a bit of sunshine so that I can enjoy the beautiful view over the water & boats! I promise to post some pics from the day!

I look forward to chatting with you tomorrow......

Fashion for PEACE

A fantastic fashion event has taken place in the Nairobi National park to raise money for victims of Kenya’s post-election violence and show a different face to their continent.

The Fashion for Peace event drew mainly West and East African models onto a catwalk in a marquee under the moonlight in an area usually known for its lions and rhinos. I have picked out 2 of my favourite designs - the black dress is by Cameroonian designer Imane Ayissi as worn by supermodel Ajuma. The Gourd gown is by Nigerian designer Bayo Adegbe

Fashion for Peace is aimed at changing people’s negative perceptions of Kenya & Africa in other countries & is a call for peace.

Proceeds from the show are to go to the 300,000 Kenyans uprooted from their homes in fighting after a disputed December election. More than 1,300 people died.

Hi,

There are a few weeks off until next market day which is a blessing in disguise, there is alot of research to do for the internet shop. I have come across so many great websites. I even found an Eco shop in the UK that has a Facebook profile, they had 422 friends! Incredible! Who would have thought?

I have also become a particular fan of blogs - especially the ones with lots of pictures! Black & Spiro in Brisbane have a lovely blog called absolutely beautiful things - I love seeing what amazing pictures Anna Spiro has loaded up! I can only aspire to have such an interesting blog! www.blackandspiro.com.au 

I have been trying to source products for my website that are not readily available in Australia & in doing my research I have found so many quality African products - so hard to choose!

I want to make sure that the products are fairly traded & that the craft has created employment for the people who really need it. That is the real motivation here & I want to bring these stories to you. Appreciating the beautiful hand crafted products means appreciating the story that goes with it. Its about celebrating what this product has brought to the people involved.

I am very excited about a delivery that I am collecting from the post office tomorrow. I will be loading up some photos to hopefully inspire you too. 

Fair Trade Township bags

If you are looking for a feel-good gift for Mother’s day or something special for yourself, Ikhaya has just received these beautiful Township bags that have been produced by previously underprivileged women in the townships of Cape Town. These woman’s lives improve with every bag sold!

Township Patterns is a Fair Trade South African organisation that has a commitment to bridging the gap between poverty & the working class. They have an innovative business model & operate as a co-operative. Each co-operative has 8 to 10 women with full worker ownership & autonomous management. These women are paid fair prices & receive regular orders. In doing so they are able to bring home a regular & decent income. If you want to find out more about this exciting organisation, have a look at http://www.township.co.za/ & see the work they are doing.

There are 3 beautiful styles, all hand made & fully biodegradable. Also the bags cannot be bought anywhere else in Australia!!! They are exclusive to Ikhaya & available to buy at the New Farm Powerhouse markets this Saturday!

Of course I will have lots of other fabulous things from Africa, so do come by & have a look.
See you soon!
Lynne

Fair Trade Township bag - Mu Pori

Trendy foldable square bag in Hessian printed with black zebra, white zebra, leopard & cheetah. Gold thread finishing & local wood used as a fastener.
Available in a few variations of the pictured designs.
Price: $40

Fair Trade Township bag - Bokkie

Reversible African printed bag with natural Hessian lining
Available in black zebra, white zebra & leopard print
Price: $35

Fair Trade Township bag - Langa

Reversible bag made out of coloured Hessian with natural colour internal.
Price: $30

More about the Ndebele people

The Ndebele language is actually Bantu which is spoken by Ndebele South Africans. These people can be found throughout Gauteng in South Africa. The last consensus taken was in 1996 & it was then reported that there are approximately 500, 000 individuals in South Africa that are able to speak Ndebele.

This language is only spoken amongst people of the Ndebele culture and it is not taught at any schools, therefore the language is falling away and can only be carried through generation

The language of Ndebele was not considered to be an important language and neither was it considered to be necessary, so the children were taught to speak Zulu instead, as it was more common than Ndebele. Besides all this, the Ndebele families were still different from the Zulu families and this brought on their separation by the Apartheid government.

Ndebele got its very own radio station, which was simply named “Radio Ndebele” and then later renamed “Ikhwekhwezi” which means “star” in English. The radio station has played a big role in trying to keep the Ndebele language alive and to keep the pronunciation and vocabulary the same; however there have been a few Afrikaans and Northern Sotho words added to the language.

I love the two photos above showing the traditonal Ndebele dress & their very colourful homes!

Ndebele dolls

Last Saturday I had a few new additions to the range - Ndebele dolls! They are so striking & add a bit of quirkiness to any home! I have 2 types: Ceremonial (the tallest of the dolls pictured) & fertility dolls (the little dolls at the front of the photo)

There is a little story that goes with them & makes them even more special. Ndebele is the name of a small tribe in KwaNdebele. The dolls are handmade by Ndebele women who come from poor backgrounds & live in remote areas where there is little work. They work from their homes thus allowing them to care for their families & maintain traditional lifestlyes.

The tradition goes that during courtship a suitor would place a ceremonial doll outside a young woman's hut, indicating his intention to propose marriage to her.

The fertility dolls are made in secret for the bride by the maternal grandmother & the doll is ritually presented to her when she enters her new hut after the wedding ceromony.

Ah! Just lovely to have a little piece of African culture & tradition in your home!

Recycled Storage boxes

Beautifully made tin boxes made from recycled tin that is used for canned fruit and other foodstuff. They are useful lunch boxes, cd boxes and general storage boxes.

Recycled Bottle Top Baskets

There are so many uses for the bottle top basket but mostly they are just for fun!!! Below I have displayed a plant in mine, but you can use them to store almost anything - even your Ikhaya salad servers!!

Hello Stranger!

Hello stranger!

Yes I know it’s been a while but I have just had a fabulous holiday with my Mom who visited me from Cape Town. She absolutely loved Australia & especially the Farmers Market on Sat. It was a beautiful day & we really enjoyed all on offer. It was also a bit sad as we had to bid farewell on Sunday! On our trip we spent time in Sydney, Brisbane & Noosa which involved lots of lattes & shopping! We particularly enjoyed the walks on Noosa beach – total relaxation!

So now it’s back to work & all things African! I have some great new products in from Cape Town - storage boxes made from recycled cans - just beautiful! Also funky coke bottle-top baskets, just great to use for a plant or even cutlery!

I am working on a great new package which is a combination of recycled & traditional African - the two sit so well together! The race is on to get all stock delivered before the next market on 26/4! It's going to be a challenge, but always worth it!

Also some good news on the website, work is finally underway with an expected launch date of end July! I am truly thrilled to be working with Duncan Grant on this project! You can see his portfolio on www.duncangrant.com.au . There is so much research & background work to be done between now & the launch date so I guess I should get cracking with it!

Lynne
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