Africancraft.com, A Wonderful Resource!

The most interesting sites on the Internet tend to have something in common, in our opinion, and that is that they were built by a multitude of different people and reflect a variety of voices.

Our intention in designing the AfricanCraft.com web site has been to set up just such a site, where anybody with an interest, or business, in the arts of Africa can contribute information. The result, we hope, will lead to a site that reflects the great variety of ideas and techniques found in the arts of Africa - both traditional and modern.

We wish to provide a venue for all African artisans to showcase their work. Additionally we will showcase product designers whose work incorporates African materials or designs; and will provide information on books, articles and educational materials of interest. In the great linking tradition of the Web, we hope that this site will link together disparate sources of information - from the people who work in the traditional crafts and those who are influenced by them.

The most exciting prospect for the AfricanCraft.com web site, would be for it to act as a giant world-accessible bulletin board! Our job, as we view it, is to keep it running and to organize all the information on it so that viewers can easily find what interests them.

We invite submissions from artisans, product designers, scholars, authors, photographers, merchants, and all who simply have a passion for Africa's designs.

Most of our services are free to qualified individuals and organizations.

There is also a commercial area of the web site, the "Shops", where several retailers offer their product catalogs under a unified ordering mechanism which we maintain.

AfricanCraft.com is the main website of our parent company, African Crafts Online, Inc.

Fabric and Art.Com

FabricAndArt.com we are excited to be statrting a new journey, directing our entire fabric collection to a high quality, sustainable collection of the worlds finest fabric. Our focus is on natural fibers, that are manufactured in as low impact a way as possible.

The quilt fabric industry is slowly catching on to the movement of environmental responsibility, though we have a ways to go before we can truly call fabric manufacture sustainable. Therefore even though we have a large selection of quality quilt fabric, we are always searching for new, greener fabrics. Hopefully before long we will be able to offer more and more selection of sustainable fabrics

Proudly we've been on the forefront of offering Hemp and Organic cotton fabrics, and now have added soy and bamboo fabrics to the mix! These types of alternative fibers are an important growing industry.

We are also proud to offer fair trade fabrics. Handcrafted batik fabrics from Ghana as well as Vietnamese brocade and woven silk shantung from Cambodia.

As always our selection of Indonesian batik fabrics and Bali handpaints are a true celebration of the Balinesian ancient art.

We have a range of other fabrics including our most popular Japanese quilt fabrics and Aborigine-designed fabrics from Australia. Since India is one of the largest manufacturers of silks and cotton we are seeking sustainable, fair trade fabrics, please visit our pages to check on availability of Indian loomed cottons and silks.

We at Culture Den are dedicated to providing quality art and instruments at affordable prices, while bringing opportunity to enhance a better life for African communities.

Through our love and respect of African cultures, we have come to realize how important it is to bring the cultures of Africa and other nations together. Sharing the beauty and ethnicity of hand made products, while building a bridge of unity.

We believe in fair trade for all people. We do our best to make sure that all artists are paid well for their hard work, while providing Thank you! Culture Den

Bridge for Africa- Online Store

BRIDGE FOR AFRICA IS...

The idea for BRIDGE FOR AFRICA was born in 2003 when a Zimbabwean and an American met in South Africa and exchanged ideas from the two continents. This exchange sparked the idea that establishing a partnership between Africa and the U.S could be a winning combination to promote the dignity of work and self-sufficiency in Africa. Our director on the ground in Africa began to search for underprivileged artisan communities, establishing relationships with the various groups, and communicating ideas and product samples to the U.S. BRIDGE FOR AFRICA’s U.S branch focuses on marketing, distribution, education and channeling feedback on product development to Africa. Through this partnership, BRIDGE FOR AFRICA has realized the incredible potential for marking a difference in African artisan communities, by harnessing the outstanding artistic talent of African artisans to create marketable products for sale in the U.S.

At BRIDGE FOR AFRICA, our U.S and African partners collaborate in Building Resources to Inspire Dignity, Growth, and Empowerment. We currently work with artisans in Namibia, South Africa, Botswana, Kenya, Zambia, Rwanda and Uganda to design, produce, and market high quality handmade products. The proceeds from the sales of these products benefit the artisans and their communities, with at least 50% of the product price paid to the artisans groups, and the remainder of the proceeds reinvested in community development, job creation, and training initiatives.

Africa Direct: Online Store

About Us

Africa Direct, Inc. is owned by Elizabeth Bennett and Sara Luther. This is our twelfth anniversary in business!

African art, trade beads, and ethnic jewelry are both business and passion for Sara and me. Dr. Niangi Batulukisi, Lori Hamilton, Hiram Yates, Adam Line and Sean VanderVliet work with us. The artists, co-operatives, and African traders who supply us are an integral part of our company. We have a very large inventory of African art, trade beads, Ethnic jewelry, baskets, beadwork, masks, carvings, Shona sculpture, textiles, Tibetan, artifacts.

Sara and I started buying African art twenty years ago as gifts for our children, four of whom are adopted and are African American.

We had been active in anti-apartheid politics for some time. In 1994, when Mandela was elected, we took the three still-at-home kids out of school and moved to southern Africa for eight months. We bought a used food panel van, converted it into a camper, and traveled 15,000 miles through South Africa, Lesotho, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Swaziland.

We go on six week buying trips to Africa every three years, and bring back containers. We also have African traders in our driveway almost daily. We buy from more than 100 traders (including two women!) who come from both coasts, fly in from France, and send shipments from Africa. We care about supporting living artists, and buy from co-ops in South Africa, Zambia, Kenya, Uganda, Swaziland, and other places.