ONANA: Yellow, Burnt Orange and Brown Sisal Basket

The ONANA is literally one-of-a-kind: a yellow, burnt orange and brown storage basket handwoven in rural Kenya. This colourful basket was produced by a highly talented weaver working within a women’s cooperative in South Eastern Kenya, to her own design. 

The Basket Room works with a Community Based Organisation (CBO) which represents these women’s groups, and financially empowers over 1,000 women. All of the profits from sales - as well as any other money received from donations to the CBO - are used only to offer support to these women’s groups. 

The meticulous art of basket weaving is passed along the female line in rural Kenya, and these most creative weavers work to their own original patterns and designs, selecting their own dyes and colourways and enjoying full artistic expression in their work. Sisal grass is hand stripped using wooden tools and the use of weavers’ feet, and then the fibres are hand rolled on the thighs to create a string-like material which is then woven using a traditional twining method. All sisal grass is hand-dyed in large vats of boiling water. 

This truly unique woven basket can be used as a stunning planter or flower pot for your indoor succulents and cacti, or it would make a stylish desk tidy if your work space craves a splash of colour. Pop your ONANA on the dressing table for keeping makeup and brushes in one place, or use yours in the bathroom for storing toiletries. 

Subsistence farming is the mainstay of these weavers’ livelihoods, but with crops suffering in the dry season – and the dry seasons becoming longer and more frequent -  basket weaving is a vital, income-generating craft for these women. By bringing home one of these baskets you play your own part in empowering women to financially support themselves and their families through the dry seasons. Meet the weavers from this region HERE.

Material:  SISAL

Dimensions: 13cm W x 13cm H / 5" W x 5" H

Please note, as all of our baskets are handmade, the dimensions and colour may vary from those shown in the photographs, adding to their charm.

HANDMADE IN KENYA