What sounded like a clear task quickly turned out to be a complex, deeply human and artisanal adventure \u2013 spanning continents, cultures, temperatures and very different production logics.<\/p>\n
For Diallo tissue tales, it is precisely this space between worlds that is central: where materials, knowledge and people come together without simplifying each other. This project was not outsourcing, but a dialogue on equal terms \u2013 and thus a living example of culture-connecting work.<\/p>\n
![\"Zweiteiliges](\"https:\/\/tissuetales.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Armande_Air_klein.jpg\")
Armande Yam\u00e9ogo, the artistic director of the project<\/p><\/div>\n
Together with my partner Armande Yam\u00e9ogo, founder of the Wobisi association, I tested, developed and adapted these patterns. We dyed, discarded, rethought and dyed again until the founder of KAYA, Ashley Jones, could really resonate with the patterns. Much of it was truly pioneering work.<\/p>\n
When craftsmanship actually wants unique pieces<\/h2>\n
Kokodunda is a traditional fabric. It thrives on the uniqueness of the play of colours on the fabric. Normally, batik dyeing produces a single cloth \u2013 with exactly that one moment, that one movement, that one mixture of colour, water, heat and intuition. That is precisely what makes it so beautiful.<\/p>\n
However, the Kaya label wanted something different: four designs that could be repeated and produced in small series. Not identical \u2013 but with the same expressiveness, the same energy, the same depth.<\/p>\n
That was the biggest challenge of this project. Because for each re-dyeing, it meant:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Re-mixing colours and fixatives in exactly the same quantities<\/li>\n
- Re-evaluating water quality and temperature again and again<\/li>\n
- Comparing fabric qualities, in the traditional way with the aid of scales for large quantities of fabric<\/li>\n
- Keeping patterns deliberately similar yet vibrant<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
We learned that:<\/p>\n
Reproducibility in handicrafts has nothing to do with copying.<\/strong><\/p>\n
All factors must be translated from a single fabric to several metres. There are a number of unknowns, especially when it comes to sourcing: how are the colour powders on the market put together, and what fabric quality does the dealer have in stock or can he procure in advance from a neighbouring country?<\/p>\n
Fortunately, Ashley Jones is familiar with the conditions in West Africa and approached us with a great deal of understanding for all the adversities. This, too, is part of fair and respectful cooperation.<\/p>\n
Not all yard goods are created equal<\/h2>\n
![\"Zweiteiliges](\"https:\/\/tissuetales.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Tanja_Armande_mitten-im-Stoff_klein.jpg\")
Fabric energy: Tanja & Armande<\/p><\/div>\n
In Burkina Faso, cotton fabric can be produced in two ways:<\/p>\n
- \n
- As coupons, industrially manufactured, imported from neighbouring countries such as Niger or China<\/li>\n
- In local weaving centres, hand-woven, high-quality, but also correspondingly expensive<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
For the Elements project, we had to make a conscious decision to use industrially manufactured cotton. Not because it is \u2018better\u2019 \u2013 but because it takes on colours more evenly and brilliantly. The hand-woven fabrics are beautiful, but they react very individually, which makes them even less predictable for serial dyeing.<\/p>\n
That was also a learning curve:<\/p>\n
Quality is not only evident in the material, but also in the interplay between material and technique.<\/strong><\/p>\n
The joy when a test dyeing works<\/h2>\n
![\"Zweiteiliges](\"https:\/\/tissuetales.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Collage_joy_klein.jpg\")
The fun after hard work<\/p><\/div>\n
There were many moments of doubt. And then there were those other moments: when a new test dyeing came out of the water, dried in the hot Sahel sun \u2013 and suddenly everything was right: colours, depth, rhythm.<\/p>\n
This joy was particularly palpable during the tests for a later artistic collection by Ashley Jones. Every time a fabric said \u2018yes\u2019, there was laughter, applause and photography.<\/p>\n
And as we bent over, applying the boiling hot dye to the wet fabric panels, washing them out and spreading them out to dry on roofs and railings, someone would always call out: \u2018Ashley!\u2019 Because Armande’s granddaughter, who helped with the dyeing, is also called Ashley. So her name echoed through the house and yard, was called out, laughed at, called out again \u2013 and incidentally became the soundtrack to this project.<\/p>\n
What remains<\/h2>\n
At the end of this intense August 2024, there was much more than just fabric:<\/p>\n
- \n
- a recipe card with precise details of the mixing ratios of the dyes, fixatives and information on fabric quantity and quality for future orders<\/li>\n
- valuable experience for the production processes of Diallo tissue tales<\/li>\n
- the material for a future artistic collection by Ashley Jones<\/li>\n
- and above all: a large order for Armande and her association<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Armande told me that Wobisi had never earned such a large sum from a single order before. This money will now go directly towards supporting her children and grandchildren.<\/p>\n
This is how West African handicrafts are given a platform in Berlin \u2013 and Diallo tissue tales remains what it wants to be: a space for encounters, translation and shared value creation.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/tissuetales.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/All-Elements_klein.jpg\")
All elements: water, earth, air & fire<\/p><\/div>\n
What happens next<\/h2>\n
As soon as the Kaya Elements collection is out in the world, the next blog post will follow here, of course. We will also keep you up to date on all social media channels.<\/p>\n
\ud83d\udcf8 The making-of this project will also be followed up \u2013 because these stories of culture-connecting projects need to be told.<\/p>\n
———————————<\/p>\n
100 Meter Pionierarbeit<\/h1>\n
Wie Kokodunda aus Ouagadougou seinen Weg nach Berlin fand<\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n