2014 Season’s compliments & greetings – Tola Adenle

PHOTO CREDIT: Picture People, USA, December 2013. There’s no way to outdo Mandela whose words of wisdom and tenacity closed the blog yesterday but what better way to open the New Year than with the blogger showing off two of her favorite Yoruba aṣọ oke: a vintage Sanyan hybrid and another, a modern one, in […]

Yoruba Sericulture, contd.: The Akinkoye Collections (Male & Female) – Tola Adenle

FOREWORD Please note that to get old Yoruba silk clothes these days, one would need to search far and wide and, possibly on the web!  Another fact that needs being stated here for the benefit of non-Nigerians:  ALL CLOTHES that are called aso oke ARE HAND-WOVEN, not factory-produced.  Families in Yorubaland generally pass on the […]

Yoruba classic clothes at weddings: Sanyan, Etu & Alaari – Tola Adenle

The three Yoruba great classics are Sanyan [Sanyanmiran – I recently learnt is also a name for the 1st one, thanks to Reader, Mr. Tao], Alaari & Etu – in that order are worn for big occasions as shown here.  There are variations in weaves and colors but Sanyan is always khaki-ish plus white; Etu […]

Yoruba Classic Clothes – Tola Adenle

Front of the Book! Photo Credit:  Unknown.                       Book Cover Design:  Adejoke Adenle Adedeji, 2006.   The Basic Classic designs of which there are variations, especially the Alaari:   Number One:  Sanyan, the “king of clothes” – Photo Credit:  Depo Adenle, May 1, 2007.   Number Two:  Etu OR Olowu dudu – the black/indigo yarm Photo Credit: Depo […]

Yoruba and Sericulture: Yoruba classic clothes and textiles – Tola Adenle

FOREWORD (1) Herewith the Yoruba sericulture re-presentation.  It’s edited and the pictures are cleaned up, and also included in this essay where it belongs alongside the old – I’m assuming – Osolo, “iborun/shawl” of the Mississippi State University archival Sanyan. I know you will enjoy it for different reasons: the Yoruba, hopefully, for historical pride […]

Most Yoruba males complete their looks – most looks – with Fila – Tola Adenle

Oba Adenle sat for this portrait in which he wears an Abeti Aja fila style sewn from damask fabrics although he had the sanyan fila of the same aso oke.  Yoruba older men sometimes complete their outfits this way by mixing and matching the Yoruba fabrics with imported ones as fila.   The Abeti Aja – […]

Yoruba classic clothes at weddings: Sanyan, Etu & Alaari – Tola Adenle

Some Yoruba words to keep in mind Iro                                           A wrap-per.  Aso Oke requires from twelve to fifteen pieces of the woven material depending on woman’s size. Buba                 […]

Yoruba Classic Aso Oke (3 of 3, contd): Alaari [Ondo Variation] – Tola Adenle

As I promised, I’m posting two wonderful pictures from a wedding day sent by someone I know to add to the collection on Alaari, one of the three classic Yoruba aso oke or ofi, which I recently had occasion to point out is a generic name – like aso oke – for all hand-woven Yoruba […]

Yoruba Classic Aso Oke [3 of 3]: Alaari – Tola Adenle

This is perhaps the most interesting of the three great classics.  Yeah, interesting may be a vague word but it’s the only word that comes to my mind as I write this.  Pardon me, I’m going to take a shot at the pronunciation but it’s NOT going to be that accurate: ALA (both ‘A‘s are […]

Yoruba Classic Aso oke (2 of 3), comprising all previously written on Etu – Tola Adenle

Etu – pronounce the ‘e’ (as in the ‘e’ of ‘epic’ – and tu as in ‘too [e-tu] is considered by many as the Number Three among the three classics although many also consider it Number Two.  I’ve generally gone with my Alaso oke – the weaver – at Iseyin for calls on Yoruba cloths […]