Ekilawuli Glass Works

Another initiative of the Afrikan Arts Kollective, Ekilawuli Glass Works is a glass arts studio in Kyebando, one of the world’s poorest slums in Kampala, Uganda. The glass studio’s mission is to provide art and skills training to the members of this community, where unemployment is a staggering 80%, and then provide use of the studio to them in their own entrepreneurial endeavors.

Recycling the abundant glass waste from the neighborhood, the women fabricate consumer goods, jewelry and art pieces and sell them at local markets and directly to restaurants, retail stores and collectors in Kampala. The studio currently serves as a fabrication site for over 30 artists who are able to support their families with their work.

After raising funds to help the studio stay open and even expand during the pandemic we have guided their transition into retail sales at glass markets throughout Kampala.

Nakivale Women’s Sewing Collective

During our first trip to Nakivale Refugee Settlement in March 2020, we met a group of industrious and creative women who were transforming the rather meager resources around them into a truly inspired and inspiring shoulder bag.

The body of the bags are constructed from the durable plastic of UN food ration bags distributed at the camp. They are then lined with cotton fabric and covered in a colorful yarn, hand stitched to trace the weave of the plastic, creating a colorful checkerboard pattern over the bag. The women then embroider the bags with bits of humor and wisdom, such as “STAY NICE” and finish them with a strap of twisted yarn. It’s a laborious process that produces something absolutely unique and personal. But there are just about no customers in the middle of a refugee settlement.

La Lona has worked with the collective to fine tune their process and find them customers in the United States, selling their bags to boutiques such as Blue Tree in New York after getting them a mention in Vogue’s online edition.

All funds from the sale of these bags belong to the collective. They invested money from their first sale into a sewing machine and have been able to expand their membership after working with La Lona. You can shop for a bag yourself in our store. Contact us for wholesale and custom embroidery orders.