Specialising in contemporary African design, home furnishings and object d’art, Ashanti Design was founded by Robert Walker nine years ago. Ashanti hopes to create contemporary African design that is easy on the eye and easy on the environment. Both its bean bags and laptop bags are motivated by a wish to reduce the amount of discarded material contributing to landfills and inspired by a desire to transform damaging waste into objects of beauty.
Our products are made from…
Our fabrics are made largely from natural materials such as rattan, grass, wood and recycled cotton. Our signature fabric is rag woven on traditional African hardwood Hugh looms. Discarded cotton from Madagascar’s manufacturing industry is rerouted and upcycled, providing income for two rural villagers and empowering over 600 people along the way.
The cotton off-cuts are sorted into colours, pulled apart to provide thread for the warp and shredded using hand blades into narrow strips for the weft. Those strips are tied tightly together then rolled into balls, ready for mounting on the loom. Each stage of this process requires a separate set of hands.
And because they are handcrafted, each bean bag has a unique, inimitable thumbprint. No two are quite alike.
Our product ranges include…
The bean bags and laptop bags are our signature pieces, though we are constantly scouring Africa for products – be it vetiver root nest bowls or hand woven grass lampshades, to offer uniquely African items with global appeal.
We support…
Local communities… wherever our products are sourced, we strive to enrich rather than exploit the lives of local communities and to respect the traditions and crafts from which our products evolve.
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