Modern African Batik and Adire- Why We Love it!

One of the main reasons we started Urbanstax was the love of Modern African Batik. Various African countries have their own style and resist techniques and often these techniques are shared. Some favour tie dye, while others the use of stencils. Some have the most vivid bursting colours, while others tend to a more muted palette. Whatever the case we love all of them! Adire is a favourite and what we will explore further in this post.

What is Adire?

Adire is the name for resist dyed cloth of the Yoruba people in Southern Nigeria. Traditionally, the cloth was folded, pleated, and tied before dyeing in Indigo to produce lengths of cloth which were then made up into garments. The fabric was predominantly produced by women. As techniques, trade and materials evolved, the resist methods came to include the use of stencils, starch paste and wax to produce even more interesting and detailed designs in brighter and wider ranging colours. Interestingly, resist dyed cloths are present in many different parts of the world, each with their own unique flavour and technique.

Tie-dye, Shibori, Adire, Batik are all dye resist methods which may sound familiar. We stock a selection of modern African batik and Adire and most of our fabrics are created using the tie, waxed and stencil techniques. A lot of our selection use the wax resist method where each line, motif, pattern you see is actually drawn by hand in wax and the fabric dyed several times to produce the beautiful layering of colours.

Adire Patterns

Some recognisable adire cloths were composed of small squares each containing various symbols and patterns which together represented a particular idea or was commemoration for a certain time, celebration or deity. These symbols are pictorial representations of a variety of objects, animals, plants, foods and so on. Some combinations have also come to represent proverbs and teachings.

The really cool thing to see is the modern edit of these fabrics. The ideas are the same but the designs, colours and techniques have been updated making them just as wearable and interesting as they have always been. The example below, though created using wax and stencils, pays homage to the traditional Adire Eleko.

Why we love it

There is such a rich variety of batiks and tie dye but in particular the reason we love it so much is its uniqueness. Due to the organic and somewhat unpredictable nature of the creation of the fabric, no two pieces are never exactly identical. You can in a sense see the ‘hand print’ of the person that has created a piece as they have either drawn the motifs by hand in wax or starch in the case of batik or tied and stitched every single line in the case of Adire or tie dye. Each length of fabric is like a piece of art in its own right.

Our Selection of Adire and Modern African Batik

Currently most of our batiks comes from Ghana and Nigeria and we update our stock regularly by restocking popular designs as well as trying new designs to see what might catch your eye. Most of our batiks are sold at specific lengths, either as a whole piece at 4.8 yards (4.4 metres) or as a half piece at 2.4 yards (2.2 metres). The designs are so elaborate that it would be a shame to cut them into anything smaller than these sizes. The pieces are also usually 45 to 48 inches wide. They are also 100% cotton making them ideal for dressmaking, quilting and many many other projects.

Modern African Batik Inspiration

We have had some of our customers make truly fabulous creations with fabric they have bought from us. From dresses, to cushions, jackets, pinafores and more, they are truly gorgeous. So here are a few from our Instagram feed to perhaps give you some ideas. If you have bought some adire from us, we would love to add you to our veritable hall of fame so do tag us on your Instagram posts or send us a pic or two by email.

I have to finish off with one of my most favourite things which is this stunning piece by Bisa Butler. If you are one of our regular blog readers, you would have seen it before but hey…. I heart it very very much so another excuse to show the work of this amazing artist. The backdrop is a beautiful purple marble batik. Love it.

Modern African Batik is a great choice of fabric if you want something bold and unique. You are sure to have a garment or quilt or cushion that is truly one of a kind.