It’s all about fashion; a look at the beauty of East African fashion

BY KAHA G. – 15 YEARS OLD

In East Africa, lies a beautiful country named Kenya, filled with a vast variety of unique traditions, and better yet fashion. This article focuses mainly on their take on the fashion industry, such as: casual clothing, formal attire, the materials used, and more.

Kenya is a country with many different ethnic communities, each with its unique clothing. For example, there is a type of clothing called “Kitenge” which is a cotton fabric dyed with various colours. The Kitenge can be worn daily, during ceremonies, and private events. Additionally, the Kitenge can also be worn for many occasions such as: weddings, funerals, baby slings, and more! Another example of a dress that could be worn is called the “Kanga.” Similar to the Kitenge, the Kanga is decorated with a wide range of bold colours and beautiful patterns. Kangas are more suitable to wear during ceremonies, casual events, national celebrations, etc.

Now onto their day-to-day clothes. Most people in Kenya dress conservatively as it is a religious country (predominantly Christian). Fashion is viewed differently by everyone and it’s about respecting the values and beliefs of people who live there, which in this case means keeping shoulders, knees, chest and back covered. This results in men wearing long sleeve shirts and pants, and women wearing pants or skirts that cover the knees. As well no shorts should be worn unless in a private setting.

Some people might perceive dressing modestly to be boring, but that is far from the truth. For normal day-to-day clothing, it might be, but Kenyan fashion consists of bold and bright colours with the most intricate designs.

In accordance with bed wear for men, it is normal pajamas, or shorts, but for women, they wear something called a “Baati.” A “Baati” is a long dress a woman wears at home, or to sleep, and it is very comfy if I do say so myself. I remember my mom buying us numerous “Baatis,” and they can even be worn as home clothes.

The different fibers used are the base of our fashion industry. In Kenya, for normal day-to-day clothing, as well as the most common fiber used globally, they use cotton. A general description of cotton is a seed hair fiber made of cellulose.

Regarding an example of Kenya’s traditional clothing, they use something called Sisal. Sisal is a fiber that is removed from an agave plant, and they are one of the more durable natural fibers. It is integrated into most skirts. Sisal skirts are worn in dances and festive activities.

Additionally, the various vibrant dyes on Kenyan clothing previously used to be made by grinding bark, or specific trees, but in modern days most dyes are imported from China or Japan.

Now onto construction. The Kitenge is a very colorful fabric worn by women as a chest, waist wrap and even a headscarf. The printing is made by a traditional batik (dyeing) technique, which is wax print. So, that means the print on the front will be just as vibrant and intricate on the back. These days, wax prints are almost completely roller printed. For fancy prints it’s the complete opposite; they are rolled with designs less colorful and intricate on the opposing side. As well as every art piece made, they have meaning. Whether it be religious, political designs, or traditional tribal patterns.

The kanga fabric is like the kitenge but lighter. The first step is that it’s made using a fine paintbrush. Second, it is transferred to a computer where the different layers of the design are printed onto see-through, plastic screens. Thirdly, they are moved to rollers for printing, each one with a different color of the design.

Last but not least, the shuka is known as the “African blanket,” originally worn by the Maasai tribe, but nowadays worn by people around the world. They are made with cotton and are usually manufactured in Dar es Salam, which is a city in Tanzania.

Last but not least, sustainability. Sustainability in the fashion industry is a crucial part of creating clothes because it not only has to benefit us but benefit our environment. According to https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/kenya-textiles-get-second-life, 460 billion dollars’ worth of still wearable clothes are thrown out. This issue isn’t only a waste of material, but it’s adding to our climate crisis. So, you wouldn’t be surprised to hear it accounts for up to 8% of our greenhouse gas emissions. Thankfully, one of the members of UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme), called Africa Collects Textiles, has created a Kenyan start-up cycle that turns textile waste into: rugs, toys, yarn, and many other products.