Stories From Home

This month’s article on ‘Stories from Home’ features Lungi Mantshontsho and her group of crafters from Mathawu Pottery in OR Tambo District, Eastern Cape.  The OR Tambo District is named after the late Oliver Reginald Tambo and is home to the AmaMpondo (part of Xhosa speaking) people. It is also the birthplace of other well-known […]

I recently had the pleasure of spending some extended time with my dad who is retired and lives in the Eastern Cape.  He had visited for a routine health check-up and my brother Kaya graciously hosted him. It was such a joy to watch my brother, his young son and my dad spend quality time […]

Taking the Next Step Last week I was in tears as I heard the good news that Ntombizodwa, one of our crafters’ daughters in KwaZulu-Natal, passed her matric exams and will be going to study at the University of Zululand (Unizulu).  It was tears of joy – as I shared hers and her mothers’ excitement about […]

What better way to start off the year than with a note of thanks paying tribute to you as our customer for the critical role you played in sustaining and keeping us going in 2020.  Without your support and ongoing engagement through our different online channels we would not have continued to function as we […]

One Day at a Time Growing up as a child, my grandmother was a master storyteller.  It was always such a treat to listen to her fascinating stories – sitting by the fire at night roasting mealies.  One of my favourite was the story of tortoise and the hare.  I love the moral of this story […]

There is an African proverb which says, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”  During this time of lockdown and being affected by the covid-19 pandemic, creating community through collaboration is key to survival. And not just in business, but for households and families too. This is […]

Forging New Paths Today marks the 43rd day of our lockdown in South Africa, which has seen restrictions starting to be eased at the beginning of this week moving from level 5 down to level 4. One of the best descriptions I have heard as a mother, wife and businesswomen at this time is that […]

Staying Connected I am grateful for the technology that keeps us connected – the deployment of data coverage in rural communities, availability of affordable smart devices and applications that enable connectivity.  These have enabled us this week to check in and keep in touch with our team of artisans based in the rural parts of South […]

Seasons Greetings As we prepare to end off what has undoubtedly been a challenging year both in business and personally, I am glad to be able to take time out to reflect on the lessons learnt. Thank you for your valuable support, encouragement and feedback – and for being part of our growth journey this year.  […]

Happy Holidays! As we end off 2018 we want to take the opportunity to thank you for your valuable support – and for being part of our amazing journey this year.  We wish you and your loved ones a Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year! Till next year, Nomaswazi TinusFounder & DirectorAfrican Mamas Crafts

Clarity comes from engagement It is often said that clarity comes from engagement and we can attest to how true this has been for us in the last 6 months.  Earlier in the year, we were selected as part of the Trigaventures Accelerator programme – this has benefited us immensely in terms of clarifying and refining our vision […]

Seeds of Hope Last month we had the pleasure of hosting our annual gathering with our Kwazulu-Natal crafters.  It is always a time of huge excitement and anticipation for me when we get to fellowship face-to-face.  Off course there is always lots of discussion around family, food and work.  This year, I was even more […]

Making the Most of It Recently I was speaking to a friend who is doing something they really love and have wanted to do for a long time – and she was sharing how much she is enjoying the current work she is doing. Often we don’t think of work as something to be enjoyed – […]

Building Resilience It has been an interesting start into the New Year with our oldest son starting university and helping him settle in with registration and accommodation at Pretoria University.  Our youngest started High School so the last few weeks have been about adjusting to new routines and schedules. On the work front, we believe […]

Counting Our Blessings There is a childhood song we used to sing growing up which speaks of “counting your blessings, naming them one by one – and it will surprise you what the Lord has done.”  2017 has been a phenomenal year for us at African Mamas Crafts, not because of any ONE great thing – […]

As we are in the last mile of the year, I am reminded daily that I need all my energy to focus on the goals at hand and stay in the game. Every trade event, every customer interaction and feedback, every Facebook like, every training and learning experience, every word of encouragement  – and criticism has fueled […]

Happy Women’s Month One of the things I have come to truly enjoy with our business is the satisfaction of seeing a customer who is satisfied and content with their purchase. Whether this is something they buy for themselves or a gift for a friend; their look of contentment and satisfaction is priceless.  For some […]

Happy Fathers Day Having both our national soccer team Bafana Bafana and the rugby team the Springboks thrash their opponents so well last weekend – was cause for great celebration at home for my hubby and our two boys.  To keep the peace, I stayed far away from the TV remote and their man cave!  Their instructions […]

Happy Mothers Day Nothing is as special as a mothers’ love.  The love, praise and acceptance of a mom is like no other.  And no matter what we do or say, we can never appreciate or thank them enough for all they sacrifice for us. To all the mothers out there – Happy Mothers Day […]

One at a Time With the 1st quarter of the year done and dusted, it’s always a good idea to check progress on the goals we have set ourselves for the year.  Top of the list for African Mamas Crafts was finishing annual financial statements and submitting returns at SARS and CIPC.  As it turns […]

Going leaner to go further In June last year our family moved to a smaller home, having sold our house a year earlier and invested the proceeds.  We rented for 10 months before making the decision to buy a smaller place.  In the process we made decisions about what furniture, clothes, books and toys to keep […]

Happy Holidays As we wrap up 2016, we are very grateful to all those who have supported us in various ways this year.  Without you and your support we would not have made the strides we did. Thank You. Till next year, Goodbye, Salani Kahle & Totsiens, Nomaswazi Tinus Founder & Director African Mamas Crafts

Last month as we celebrated Women’s Month it was such a beautiful and powerful reminder that as women – mothers, sisters, daughters, wives – we have inherited a legacy.  One of standing together in support of each other against injustice and oppression.  This is true for all women, but especially so for us as South Africans as we remember the legacy of […]

Passing the baton to the next generation With the crafters we work with, beading is a skill that has been passed down from generation to generation.  For some it is a family tradition, whilst for others it is done in community groups for income and fellowship. Passing on the skill is an intricate process that requires […]

I can think of at least two separate occasions this past month where I consciously had to make the choice to move forward in the face of difficulty, remain where I was or to go backwards.  On both occasions, as I consciously thought about the choices before me – there was no doubt in my mind that […]

Keeping Momentum In his book, The 21 Irrefutable laws of leadership, John C. Maxwell says that momentum is a leaders best friend! And that many times it is the only thing that makes the difference between losing and winning.  He continues to say that “getting started is sometimes a struggle, but once you’re moving forward, […]

Supporting rural development through crafts Mark Twain says that the secret to getting ahead is getting started.  This was our year of getting started, the year that African Mamas Crafts was birthed.  Having kick-started the process by taking care of the necessary registration paperwork, we embarked on a journey to find rural crafters to work with.  What […]