Oct 26, 2025
more things from @potato-lord-but-not !! beautiful print and the prettiest ocs! each character even comes with details about them,,,
seen from China
seen from China
seen from China
seen from Germany
seen from China
seen from Malaysia
seen from Germany
seen from Germany
seen from Malaysia
seen from T1
seen from China
seen from Chile
seen from Germany
seen from Malaysia
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from China
seen from United Kingdom
seen from United States
seen from Malaysia
more things from @potato-lord-but-not !! beautiful print and the prettiest ocs! each character even comes with details about them,,,
The Duchess of Sussex || Mayamiko
Meghan Markle (and Prince Harry) in Cape Town : For the first look of the royal tour, Meghan kept things ultra simple with a printed Mayamiko dress and ankle-strap Castaner wedges. Even though there isn't anything particularly interesting going on here, it sends the message of relatability which is exactly what they were going for.
“Love is Love” T-shirt // Mayamiko
“Unkha” Bow Front Dress // Mayamiko
“Zebra” Cami Top // Mayamiko
Level 5: Case Study
The background
In 2008, Paola Masperi established Mayamiko trust, a charitable trust dedicated to creating sustainable solutions to eradicate poverty and other social issues affecting low socioeconomic society. After extensive travel in Africa, Paola partnered with creative artisans in Malawi to create Mayamiko, a fashion-forward line of women's wear. Mayamiko is a collection of clothing accessories and homewares, ethically made in Malawi fusing together contemporary design with traditional African techniques. Ever since the trust has embarked on several life-changing projects and continues to support the people of Malawi towards sustainable living. The objective behind Paola's charity has always been to nurture skills that can be transferable to trade practices in the hope that these skills will one day lift people out of poverty towards a better future.
Moving forward…
In 2013, Mayamiko lab was established as an offshoot from their charitable project, The Mayamiko Trust. The lab was designed to provide training skills, education, nutrition, sanitation, entrepreneurship skills, self-belief and promote fairer trade practices. In Malawi, tailoring and sewing have been a widespread skill but often at a basic level. Currently, the project trains local disadvantaged women who are affected by the HIV pandemic or who are carers of HIV orphans. The Mayamiko fashion brand keeps graduates and local staff in employment adhering to their ethical promise. The Mayamiko brand also funds workshop activities and reinvests in the growth of their workshops, so that more people can be employed and lifted out of poverty. Mayamiko brand donates directly to Mayamiko Trust for each garment sold.
Their ethical standards include:
No forced labour
Safe and hygienic working conditions
No child labour
Living wages
No discrimination
No excessive working hours
Regular employment to be provided
No harsh or inhumane treatment
Training and professional development for all employees
A nutritious meal every day
Life skill sensitization and individual support
Support to set up independent businesses and cooperatives when desired
Financial education and access to microfinance, loans and grants
Pension scheme and gratuity
New Spins on existing products
Mayamiko lab operates a zero waste workshop, where each piece of fabric and cutting room waste is recycled into something new and beautiful. Some plans include design collaborations and the development of a unique textile design. They focus on efficient garment design and pattern cutting techniques, aiming to use 90-100% of the fabric when cutting. Mayamiko also donates some of their fabric to the community and holds workshops to teach each other clever ways of up recycling even the smallest piece of beautiful fabrics. They have created colourful and unique doormats, mops, accessories and even sanitary pads. The African print details and trims embody their zero waste policy.
Under explored area of fashion
Mayamiko stands out from the fashion crowd via their fashion forward looks in stylish and bold traditional African printed cotton, known locally as “Chitenje”. Their textiles are handpicked from the local fabrics market in Malawi as well as from the neighbouring African countries. They also work with a local co-operative of women traders to source the most exclusive prints and produce a very limited number of pieces. “Rebirth” is a fully recycled capsule collection, giving a whole new life to pre-loved reclaimed fabrics. Mayamiko believes that ethical production should not compromise the quality and design of the product and should add to its exquisiteness and value. The productions are of high-quality luxury ethical goods that are unique to the market. Gorgeous batik and tie-dye fabrics are hand-dyed by talented artisans at the Malawi Council for the Handicapped (MaCoHa), which employees and trains wonderful humans, differently abled.
How movements were created
Malawi is a nation of diverse wilderness, inherent optimism and radiant smiles. Unfortunately, many of the rural communities in Malawi, whose people are some of the poorest in the world, are also some of the most ill-equipped to deal with mounting social problems. Mayamiko purchases filter back into these communities of Malawi where it's needed most. It's thanks to the work of social entrepreneurs empowering women in these afflicted communities who are giving rise to a movement of change. According to UNICEF, the literacy rate in Malawi for women is only 50%. This education gap is one of the key reasons many women are inhibited in pursuing their own livelihood. To remedy this, the Mayamiko team started hosting workshops to empower these women with more in-depth technical training, entrepreneurship skills, financial planning and most importantly, to gain confidence. Their hard work has not gone unnoticed. As a member of the Ethical Fashion Forums ‘Fellowship 500,' and ‘I Prefer 30’movement, Mayamiko is at the forefront of the sustainable fashion movement. Mayamiko brand has been widely recognised as a "Brand to Watch" that's "Changing Lives" by various industry bodies and have also been shortlisted for Vogue Italia's Eco Talents Scouting 2013 showing their work at Dubai Mall. They adhere to the ethical trade initiative's principles.
New product categories
In 2015, Mayamiko launched a new range of Tee tops, fusing bold and plain prints. This introductory range offered a choice of bold African fabrics, subtle batik cotton or eternal plains, with a touch of organza, and unique details. Mayamiko introduced a mini yoga inspired range "The Namaste Collection" comprising clothing and accessories. The range of clothing and accessories was not produced using technical textiles, but their local woven cotton. The T-shirt included in the Namaste sets is made of 100% GOTS® certified organic combed cotton. Ethical and fair trade manufacturer “Mantis World” also produces it in Africa. Mayamiko also sources natural soaps from Chiyambi, where they are handmade using locally sourced ingredients. The soaps are produced near Dzaleka Refugee Camp. Refugees and Malawians make up the African textile packaging along with their disabilities or disabled family members. All profits are re-invested in community development. Mayamiko pays Chiyambi a fair price for each piece.
Only 10-15 pieces are ever made in their exclusive fabric. Unique through, this also means that as fabrics are often artisanal and handmade, fabric and colour imperfection are possible and they add to the uniqueness of the pieces, rather than representing a defect or fault.
Domestic market in the UK
The UK is currently experiencing a surge in the interest and development of ethical production solutions. By providing UK consumers with the choice to buy ethical goods and by offering designers the options of small ethical production runs, Mayamiko is working towards promoting growth and development of the ethical fashion industry within the UK.
Wholesale orders are shipped from the UK or Malawi.
Interesting new business models
Mayamiko has launched a new initiative where all trainees, graduating from the Fashion Lab, can take out a grant to fund the purchase of a sewing machine and a business starter kit to help them start their own business. Some graduates decide to start working independently, while others join forces to set up local cooperatives. Mayamiko asks that each applicant saves 25% of the required amount, and commits to funding the remaining 75%. Mayamiko also encourages people to sponsor a sewing machine and help trainees to become proficient in the craft of tailoring.
Charity
Mayamiko Trust has partnered with Sunny Money Malawi and Solar Aid to help bring light to communities in Malawi, starting from their immediate community in Chinsapo. The Chinsapo area has been facing an energy crisis due to a ban on charcoal production and the indiscriminate cutting down of trees in the local Dzalanyama Forest. The Dzalanyama Forest is a source of livelihoods and home to 10,000 households. Because of the ban, there has been a shortage of firewood for domestic purposes around Chinsapo. To add to this, most of the households under Mayamiko lab's project area do not have a sustainable source of energy such as electricity.
These households tend to use kerosene as a source of energy for light, which is hazardous to one's health and environment. To help solve this energy problem Mayamiko lab has embarked on a project to promote the use of solar power solutions through the sale and loan of affordable solar energy products to women in Chinsapo for their domestic use. Mayamiko has set up a revolving fund to support the initial investment of those willing to enter the reseller scheme, as well as individual buyers. Coupled with solar education training modules, the reseller scheme enables women to create their own business by selling solar lights to other members of their community, while educating on the financial, health and environmental benefits of using solar power and the dangers of excessive deforestation.
Bee keeping project
In 2016 Mayamiko Trust funded the training for 90 members of the Natural Resources Committee (NRC) from the village of Bamba to become beekeepers. The aim of the project was to give these people an opportunity to generate a sustainable and reliable income from the sale of pure forest honey. Upon completion of training, each trainee receives a certificate of participation, enabling them to apply for a microfinance scheme and set up their own bee-keeping business. Not only has this project changed the lives of the participants and their families it also paved the way for conservation too. By placing the hives on the outskirts of the forest they could slow down deforestation area as well as reducing the conflict between elephants and locals. It is interesting to note that the hive acts as a warning post to the elephants and elephants are scared by the sound of bees and will stay away from an area where bees resided in masses. This helps to keep the elephants deeper into the forest where themselves and the locals alike will be safer!
References
Aduna. (2016). Mayamiko: Empowering African Communities Through Ethical Fashion. [online] Available at: https://aduna.com/blogs/aduna-world/112791044-mayamiko-empowering-african-communities-through-ethical-fashion [Accessed 18 Jul. 2017].
Binkowski, K. and Binkowski, K. (2017). Creating An Ethical Fashion Brand: Paola Masperi, Founder of Mayamiko. [online] The Good Trade. Available at: http://www.thegoodtrade.com/features/paola-masperi-interview-mayamiko [Accessed 18 Jul. 2017].
Ethicalfashionforum.com. (2017). Ethical Fashion Forum. [online] Available at: http://www.ethicalfashionforum.com/source-directory/member/64 [Accessed 15 Jul. 2017].
Mayamiko. (2017). About Us. [online] Available at: https://www.mayamiko.com/pages/new-about-us [Accessed 15 Jul. 2017].
Mayamiko. (2017). bringing the light. [online] Available at: http://www.mayamiko.org/bringing-the-light.html [Accessed 17 Jul. 2017].
Mayamiko. (2017). Mayamiko. [online] Available at: http://www.mayamiko.org/ [Accessed 10 Jul. 2017].
Mayamiko. (2017). Micro-Finance Scheme. [online] Available at: http://www.mayamiko.org/micro-finance-scheme.html [Accessed 19 Jul. 2017].
Mayamiko. (2017). Our Impact. [online] Available at: http://www.mayamiko.org/our-impact.html [Accessed 14 Jul. 2017].
Mayamiko. (2017). Our Mission. [online] Available at: http://www.mayamiko.org/our-mission.html [Accessed 16 Jul. 2017].
Mayamiko. (2017). Our Products. [online] Available at: https://www.mayamiko.com/pages/our-products [Accessed 17 Jul. 2017].
Mayamiko. (2017). Our Story. [online] Available at: http://www.mayamiko.org/our-story.html [Accessed 15 Jul. 2017].
Mayamiko. (2017). The Bee Keeping Project. [online] Available at: http://www.mayamiko.org/the-bee-keeping-project.html [Accessed 21 Jul. 2017].
Solomon, L. (2013). Mayamiko Designed - Made in Malawi - SS13. [online] issuu. Available at: https://issuu.com/mayamiko/docs/mayamiko_designed_lookbook_ss13 [Accessed 17 Jul. 2017].
Uebergang, E. (2017). Creating Sisterhood In Malawi With Mayamiko - The Green Hub. [online] The Green Hub. Available at: http://thegreenhubonline.com/2017/04/17/creating-sisterhood-in-malawi-with-mayamiko/ [Accessed 19 Jul. 2017].
Wood, J. (2016). The New Ethical Fashion Brand to Know. [online] Marie Claire. Available at: http://www.marieclaire.co.uk/news/fashion-news/the-new-ethical-fashion-brand-to-know-65746 [Accessed 18 Jul. 2017].
Nothing makes us happier than a happy, beautiful, glowing customer! Even better if her baby is soooo incredibly cute 💖 #mayamiko #madeinafrica #Malawi #ethicalfashion #socent #fashrev #fairtrade #editorial #fashiondesign #ankara #wax #chitenje #kitenge #africanprints #textile #print #pattern #patterndesign #blogger #fashionblogger #ethicalhour #mum #baby #pink #dress #mom