slemslempike | (no subject)

I decided I wanted to get some fabric here as it's much cheaper than in Juba, so we went off to the market to find the kitenge shops. We visited every single one that was open, and most of the stalls, and I came away with more than the "one or maybe two" I was expecting to get. But such great patterns!

This is the only one I got 4 yards of, and it's going to be a nice big dress. It's the best quality fabric, thick but soft cotton, and I think it was about $7 for the whole amount.

I saw fabric with fans on in one of the shops and leapt on it, only to discover that it belonged to one of the customers and wasn't actually for sale. So when we saw it on a stall outside we snapped it up - $1 for 2 yards.

Umbrellas are nice, I thought, so I'll have some of that and maybe get a skirt made, and nice that they've varied it a bit and added... hammers??? Umbrellas and hammers it is then.

Rotary phones!

I thought this one was just a nice shape and colour (if looking a little like an ultra-modern sex toy), but it turns out it's clocks. Which I also rather like.

And then coffee pots in pink and purple. I mostly just liked the colours, and the patterns on the pots. No idea what this is going to be, it's quite thin fabric, and a bit scratchy. A lines skirt, perhaps. Or a tunic.

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I like the sex toy with a built in timer best. I wonder if anyone in the world has the phone number 646955.

Edited 2016-04-30 17:29 (UTC)

Google suggests that someone in Brazil might? I could use it as a decoy to give people a fake number, only I don't think I've ever been asked for my number.

Oooh - lovely!!

I wish I could sew so that I could make something lovely like you, but I think the tailor I use in Juba will do a good job.

That's supporting somebody who will value the custom. That's even better :)

They are all excellent, and the teapots are definitely the best.

They feel like they should be houseware or something, but since I don't currently have a house it seems silly to keep it. Also not sure what it would be.

Those are all very impressive. I hope that at some point you will be wearing them on the Antarctic station.

I think everything I would wear on the Antarctic station would have to be significantly more thermal than this. But maybe I could bring one along as a tablecloth? The Scott trip had a Sunday tablecloth.

So cool!

I love them, I wish I had all the room in my suitcase.

They are gorgeous and I look forward to the finished results

Me too!

Oh my god, those are amazing.

I love them so much- there were lots with animals on. I was focused on the fun patterns of actual things, but my friend got a beatiful swirl of colour that I'm now quite envious of.

Gorgeous fabrics. I hope you will be wearing at least one of them when next I see you.

For the thin scratchy coffee pots, could you get another fabric to use as lining underneath it? One that has another gorgeous pattern, like coffee cups (or trains, trains would do), that would show through.

I think probably a plain white or unbleached cotton underneath for the coffee pots. I think patterns underneath as well might be too much for me.

Umbrellas and hammers, and ELECTRIC FANS! And Phones and, and...

Superb!

The fabric here is amazing. It all comes from West Africa or DRC, so one day I'd like to go to the source.