MORE ON KHANGA

INTRODUCING THE BABY SLING

Me & my son in Khanga wear

If you will recall my earlier post regarding my native cloth called Khanga. This was an unfinished topic as I have more to talk about the many uses of this cloth which brings me to my second topic:  "The Baby Sling".

For a baby sling, one can use any rectangular piece of cloth; mainly cotton which also depends on the climate of the native location, geographically. In East Africa, khanga or kitenge ( a much heavier cotton cloth) is used to carry babies/toddlers on the back.

The following site refers to several types of clothing used for baby slings around the world
http://awareparenting.blogspot.com/2006/12/baby-carriers-cultural-history.html

Historically, for an African woman to leave their young in someone else's care was unheard of especially if it involved the mother being away from home for too long.  Naturally,  a baby is brought into this world as no one else's responsibility, but, the mothers. However, if the mother is at home and has relatives around her, i.e. grandmothers, sisters, aunties, and any other siblings, then yes; help is always at hand.

It is natural for a mother to bond with her child. Yet in Africa and other parts of the world, it is a matter of convenience to have a baby on your back. It is assuring for both mother and child and therefore,  peaceful. For those around you, this means the baby feels extremely secure and has the comfort of the mother, especially during feeding time.

Happy and Content!

Feeding time is a  big deal in any mother's mind; it is like a second heartbeat. So then the mother has much to consider i.e. whether it is okay to leave her little one with another person, whether she would be back in time to feed, let alone trusting the person who would take care of the baby. The answer will be 'what if' and that's where the khanga sling comes to action. Mind you, babies love this so much. The only time you will hear their voices is during feeding time. This intimacy between mother and child, ( I so definitely believe) has its physiological benefits for both individuals.

Not a care in the world!

We all know how hard it is to get attention from any child during combing, in this case braiding hair. The image below proves that the mother has succeeded by having the baby secured around her body and feeding at the same time....... easy whizzy!!!

Manipulated!

Tribal woman in Central Tanzania

Beautiful Himba Mother and Child from northern Namibia 

(child not happy of an intruder ...go away, stop following us.....)

Ashanika girl from central Peruvian Amazon carrying her sibling

Korean Mothers doing laundry

Modern Sling -The Inspirational Story

This Is How We Do It!

Source;

http://www.parentree
http://slowloveblog.blogspot.com

http://www.cringel.com/node/623

http://www.ecotribal.com/content/46.php
http://calinbleu.com/pages/Back-carrying-information.html
http://blog.babesinarms.com.au/category/babywearing-around-the-world/

Anna Luks
Web:annaluks.com
Twitter:@AnnaLukindo

Animated Illustrations with Attitude

Flashback on Christian Lacroix

 Where do I start???   A Quotation perhaps from the man himself.  "For me, elegance is not to pass unnoticed but to get to the very soul of what one is."

Briefly, Christian Lacroix no longer trades by his name after his fashion house went into bankruptcy in 2009.  Lacroix is one of designers who really inspire me and I think his work is amazing.

find out more .........

http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/news-features/TMG8274279/Christian-Lacroix-designs-for-Desigual.html

For those who are familiar with Lacroix, know exactly what they are in for.  If you are a "Bling" lover, you will agree with me.   His work is all about crazy embellishments, ornate beads, stones, sumptuous fabrics, laces, brocades, textures, vibrant colours and not forgetting chunky chains.  This is what sets him apart I suppose.  I would describe most of his designs as timeless and wearable although some of them are a bit dramatic and costumey influenced by his background.  His interest in sketching started at a very young age.  His mother took him to opera shows, theatres and ballet, where he was greatly inspired and motivated to start sketching historical costumes and fashion.

I have chosen a few of my favourite images to illustrate the point I am making.

Illustrations

From my point of view, Christian Lacroix's illustrations are not far from the the real images.  I can just see the animation of it already, from the images.  I think this is quite cool and genius.  What I like about his illustrations is, they just not charming, colourful but they also tell you a story or give you a feel of attitude of the wearer.

I love the way he splashes those colours all over the place. Fantastic.  

These illustrations also gives you a feeling that he just enjoys every bit of it.  The child like lines, the roughness,  imagination, and expressions, brings the illustrations to life.  I like that!

more article on Christian Lacroix here.....

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/29/business/global/29lacroix.html?_r=1&ref=global

http://desmitten.wordpress.com/2008/12/page/2/