Kenyan Basket Weavers | Sisal Laundry & Totes

The talented women behind our sisal laundry baskets and sisal totes are members of a family run weaving cooperative in Eastern Kenya. The unique skills used to produce these basket bags are passed from grandmothers to granddaughters, and so each bag tells a unique story of craft and collaboration. 

The women in the weaving cooperative predominately come from farming families. These families rely on the production of crops - bananas, mangoes, oranges, collards and other fruit and vegetables that grow in the tropics. However, in times of drought which leads to bad harvests, the farmers struggle to make enough money to provide for their families. Weaving provides these women a substantial alternative income that they can rely on all year round. When these women aren't farming they are weaving, and when they are not weaving, they are dancing!

Once the weaving of the basket is complete, the basket is taken to a local artisan leather workshop where the straps are produced from cow hide and attached to the bag. The bags are then transported to Nairobi and then to us in Chipping Norton!