Friday, 27 August 2010

Batiking

So, the work begins...

The main focus of Global Mamas is selling 'Batiked' garments. Batiking is a traditional wax stamping and dying technique that produces bright, patterned fabrics. Having just taken the Batiking 'workshop', here's the Tim and Lydia guide to making Global Mamas products.

Begin with a plain white sheet of 'calico' (pure cotton)...


Using an image cut into a piece of foam, stamp (100% Paraffin) wax prints onto the cotton, as demonstrated by my beautiful assistant...


Now ask an experienced Batiker like Emma to mix the dyes to form the colour you're looking for, and to dye the cloth. This process is toxic, along with the dye and water, there's Caustic Soda and Hydrochloric Sulphate in that bowl. It doesn't smell good! Next hang the fabric out to dry. Look at those colours!




Finally ask a hard working young man (in this case Philip) to boil up some water and melt the wax out of the finished cotton...


Rinse, dry and you're done! (If only I had a photo of the finished garment). Lyd plans to have a dress made from hers, so once we've seen the seamstresses in action we'll show you the finished product.

Finally take a photo of some pigs near the boiling pot in an an attempt at artistic photography. Shame about the bin...

Sunday, 22 August 2010

1st days in Africa

We're here! We're staying at Renae and Dave's house in Accra until tomorrow when we head out to Cape Coast, 3hrs bus ride to the West along the coast.In our short time in the Accra area we've:
Been swimming in a very unique swimming pool...
Trained Ghanaian children to carry a kayak...
                                
Scouted out the area where we may build the new Fair Trade workshop...

Looked into buying a new set of wheels...




and made friends with the Renae and Dave's dog's, quite an achievement for Lydia who is really not a canine fan. The dogs have an amazing ability to drink water squeezed from 'water pouches' which is how drinking water is bought out here. You should see Lydia and I trying to drink from them...


All in all, an amazing first few days.