WIN WIN WIN: OROMO KIMONO JACKET BY CAROLINE NIJLAND
Caroline Nijland, the founder of Oromo Atelier, has worked in renewable energy in Sub-Saharan Africa since 1997, connecting one million people to solar electricity. While there, she fell in love with African textiles and, through them, developed her creativity. She founded Oromo Atelier in 2020 to merge her interest in sustainability with her love of craftsmanship and culture.
In her numerous trips to Africa, she felt in love with African textiles and found in them a thread to her creative interest and appreciation of the handcraft, fashion and artistic skills. Oromo Atelier merges Caroline’s interest in sustainability with her love of texture, tradition, craftsmanship and culture.
Image and image above courtesy of Oromo Atelier.
These yarns are also fair trade and organic and sourced in the most ethical way. They use leftovers from the couture studio of Marijke Bongers. She dyes her beautiful fabrics with local dye plants like onionskins, willow bark and hulls or seeds. Caroline Nijland works together with Marijke on a collection of home decoration, textile art and sustainable clothes with the aim to use the clothes and fabrics as long as possible. Marijke Bongers collaborates with Oromo Atelier with her artistic vision encompassing Haute Couture skills, sustainable textile, surface design, and eco plant-dyeing. Marijke works conceptually touching on issues of heritage, body positivity, and foraging and reusing. She is a thinker, using thread and texture to express change.
Image: Oromo Kimono jacket made from indigo-dyed organic cotton with sashiko stitches around the neckline and sleeve. Image courtesy of Oromo Atelier.
Especially for Selvedge readers, Caroline is offering Oromo Kimono jacket made from indigo-dyed organic cotton with sashiko stitches around the neckline and sleeves worth €650.00 to give away. Be in a chance to win this remarkable kimono and enter the prize draw:
www.selvedge.org/collections/competitions
3 comments
I hadn’t heard of sashiko stitches before (I only knew the kantha ones on saris) so am in admiration of their detailed patterns.
Your jacket looks beautiful. Indigo is my very favourite colour and the fabric looks chunky and lovely too.
This is beautiful work. I have looked at the Oromo Atelier website to see what else there is and am knocked out by the fabulous designs and work. The work Caroline is doing is fantastic. Long may she continue.