In a small, sunlit, grass-thatched workshop based in Siaya Town, Teresa Akinyi Okidi, locally known as ‘Mama Culture’, carefully rolls strips of magazine paper between her fingers.
Through this, she converts the discarded pages into stunning beads, which will soon become necklaces, bracelets, earrings, braziers and even skirts. Her art work has been the source of income for the past 14 years.
The paper beads are all-round durable and an eco-friendly replacement to traditional beads made from glass and plastic. Furthermore, they are also light, flexible, unique and affordable.
Teresa makes her paper beads by creatively cutting magazine pages into thin strips, then carefully rolls them into tight beads.
She then holds them with glue and varnish, making them water-resistant and durable. Afterwards, the beads are joined together to create eye-catching necklaces, bracelets, skirts, braziers, key chains, earrings and curtain ties.
Mama culture makes the paper beads in different shapes, sizes and color, allowing her to modify her creation, which suits her style and preference.
The beads are then hung on the wall for better view and display for the clients.
She says that with paper beading there are no challenges at all since papers are easily available and not any paper but coated magazine papers, which brings out the beauty of her work.
“During my employment at Karen, the white men would bring me the magazines they had already read for me to use. I loved the geographical magazines since they had different colours, which was good for my art. I also used the Safaricom and Airtel magazines,” explained Teresa.
Teresa’s bead work helps reduce waste and conserve resources while promoting natural, handmade fashion. She has also promoted creativity skills to children and adults in the community by teaching them hand-eye coordination.
She not only creates paper beads from papers but also uses banana fibers to make baskets and skirts, papyrus reeds to make egg trays and papyrus books and watermelon seeds to make bracelets, anklets and necklaces.
For the egg trays and papyrus books, she makes them using papyrus reeds as the raw material; she tears them into tiny, small pieces, grinds them to form a pulp mixture and then adds water to achieve the right texture.
The pulp is poured into a frame shaped like an egg tray or a book, then excess water is drained and she puts it out in the sun to dry. Once dry, she carefully trims the rough edges and finally piles them for sale.
During cultural events such as the ‘Piny Luo Festival’, she gets the opportunity to display and advertise her work, thereby hiring the beaded skirts, braziers, anklets, bracelets and necklaces for cultural performances.
Her creation has caught the attention of local designers and many leaders, including the late President of Kenya, Mwai Kibaki, the former Governor of Siaya County, George Rasanga, the current Governor of Siaya County, James Orengo and the current President of Kenya, Dr. William Ruto.
For many years Teresa has managed her work by herself and she’s always living with the hope of one day finding someone to sponsor and boost her art work.
Her beadwork has empowered women and youths in the community. She has taught her daughters and granddaughters the bead work, which has given her ample time during beading.
By Cameline Odhiambo
