Mabeoana Quilters - the Transformation Resource Centre

Mabeoana Quilters
The quilting group was established by the
late Queen Mother, M’e Mamohato Seeiso,
in an effort to provide employment opportunities
to local women in an area plagued by
high unemployment and poverty.
Mabeoana Quilters is a group of four
women who stand out with their fine quality
quilts, wall-hangings, bags and cushion
covers.
All quilted items are pieced by machine,
hand-quilted and/or appliqued. Many pieces
incorporate traditional scenes of Lesotho
life, such as the Basotho hat, rondavels, and
Basotho horsemen. The quilters use traditional Seshoeshoe, and
other all-cotton fabrics.
Mabeoana Quilters, P. O. Box 343, Morija 190, Phone 2700
5133, E-mail Mabeoana@ilesotho.com The workshop is located
outside the village of Matsieng, the home of the Royal Family. The
workshop is an a beautiful mountain setting just outside the village
on the road to Morija.
Basotho Women and Their Work
18 June to 1 July 2005 at
TRANSFORMATION RESOURCE CENTRE
QOALING ROAD, OLD EUROPA
WEEKDAYS FROM 9 TO 16.30
SATURDAYS 9 TO 13.00
ADMISSION FREE

Tapestries of Life
Basotho Women and Their Work
“Tapestries of Life - Basotho Women and Their Work” is the third
exhibition at the new TRC headquarters. This time, we want to
show the beautiful work that Basotho women do with local resources.
Their tapestries not only depict the many facets of life in
Lesotho - the tapestries of life - but the women also make a living
with their weaving and their families depend on the tapestry.
Due to limited space, this exhibition can only display a limited
choice of the best works of the women’s organisations and cooperatives.
Our aim is to show the large variety of different styles,
designs and colours. We hope that we can raise your interest to find
out more about the women’s work by visiting their design studios.
Motšeoa Senyane
TRC Director
Hatooa Mose Mosali
In August 1990 a group of 21
women established Hatooa Mose
Mosali. The women design tapestries,
floor mats and bags with village
scenes, floweres and geometric
patterns and they also knit.
Their raw material comes exclusively
from local suppliers and is processed
by the women by combing,
washing, dying, spinning, mothproofing
and finally weaving.
Hatooa Mose Mosali, Box 603, Teyateyaneng
200, Phone 2250 0772. The studio is a
sandstone building on the Main North on the
left side before you enter TY.
Mohair and Angora
Mohair is the yarn made from the long, lustrous hair of the Angora
goat. Angora is an old form of Ankara, the Turkish capital, which
gave its name to the Angora
goat and later the Angora
rabbit and Angora cat. The
hair is often loosely woven
with cotton, silk, or wool
to produce a fuzzy texture.
Lesotho is the fourth largest
mohair producing country in
the world. All cooperatives
and companies in Lesotho
produce with 100 percent mohair.

Elelloang Basali Weavers
Setsoto Design
The Elelloang Basali Weavers are a
partnership of Basotho women who
weave mohair rugs, tapestries, bags,
table mats, and knit mohair jackets.
The high quality weavings have been
washed, mothproofed, dyed, woven
and finished in the studio in TY. The
women are using local hand-spun
mohair.
Elelloang Basali have been established
in 1997 to take control of the
women‘s life and improve the life
of their children. The income from
the sale of their work helps paying
school fees and medical bills.
Their designs celebrate the Basotho
cultural heritage through the revival of Basotho Litema patterns
(originally drawn on the walls of traditional Lesotho homes), depictions
of the ancient Bushmen rock painitngs, and illustrate rural
village life.
Elelloang Basali Weavers, Box 449, TY 200, Lesotho. Phone
2250 1520. The design studio is a large can house on the right hand
side of the Main North after passing TY.
Setsoto Design was the pioneer in the
mohair weaving business in Lesotho.
having started in 1953. The oldest and
largest of the workshops at its peak
employed 100 weavers and 120 spinners.
The mohair, purchased from the
local farmers is comed to remove the
dirt and then spun into yarn on spinning
wheels. The spun yarn is then
washed, Miten mothproofed and dyed.
Over a hundred colours are available to the weaver and are colourfast.
Every step is done by hand so as to give as many jobs as
possible. The original designs are created by the weavers.
Setsoto Design, P. O. Box 114, TY 200, Phone 2250 0353. The
design studio is situated in central TY on the left before the Blue
Mountain Inn Hotel.

Helang Basali
Seithati Weavers
The cooperative started in 1999,
currently 11 women work in Helang
Basali. Their primary motives are
village scenes. The designs are created
by the women themselves. The cooperative
produces traditional tapestry as
well as bags and coasters from mohair.
The raw material is
bought from local
farmers around
Teyateyaneng. It is
combed, washed, dyed, spun and mothproofed.
Helang Basali, Private Bag X30, TY 200, Phone
5890 2261. The studio is next to St. Agnes
Church on the Main North at the right hand side
before entering TY.
Seithati Weavers was formed in April 1990
as a partnership owned and run by a group
of twelve Basotho women.
It‘s quality tapestries, rugs and bags produced
from 100 percent handwoven mohair,
which has been spun, washed and dyed,
then mothproofed for an exquisite long
lasting finish.
The main designs for their works show
village scenes, flowers and animals. In addition,
any design of customer‘s choice and
color is woven.
Seithati Weavers, P. O. Box 0167, Maseru
West 105, Lesotho. Phone 2231 3975.
The design studio is situated on the Main
South at Ha Nelese on the right hand side
of the road.