Special Offer



SPECIAL OFFER, TODAY ONLY. Asymetrical brass bangle 50% OFF. Usually $40, now $20. Offer available instore or online. * Offer ends 7.30pm AEST 02/12/10 or while stocks last.

African Geography Quiz

It's Geography Awareness Week, so here's a fun African geography quiz. Click here to take the quiz!

10 Questions with Rik-E-Ragga and G9er

G9er (pictured above left) and Rik-E-Ragga (pictured above right)

Check our interview with X-Factor contestants Rik-E-Ragga and G9er - doing Mauritius and Australia proud! Click here to read the full interview.

Last episode of 'An African Journey'

Don't miss the last episode of 'An African Journey' - tonight 8.30pm ABC1! If you missed it, catch it again on ABC iView.

Late Night Shopping

We'll be open until 7.30pm tomorrow, and every Thursday up until Christmas. Don't forget we have plenty of free parking on the roof. Or shop online from home!

ABC1: An African Journey with Jonathan Dimbleby

Don't forget ABC1 8.30pm tonight - the second part of Jonathan Dimbleby's 'African Journey.' This time Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania. If you missed it, catch it again on ABC iView.

Grazia Magazine: Issue 114

Very happy to have some of our jewellery - a traditional Zulu choker from South Africa, and a Masai bracelet from Kenya - featured in Grazia magazine. With their bright colours and geometric designs, beadwork is the perfect summer/beachwear accessory! But do take them off before you go for a swim.

Model (below) wears traditional Zulu bead necklace and Masai bracelet.

Shop This: http://www.justafrica.com.au/product.asp?categoryID=26&productID=1001&catpage=3 and http://www.justafrica.com.au/product.asp?categoryID=24&productID=1130&catpage=6

ABC1: An African Journey with Jonathan Dimbleby

Watched a good programme last night on ABC1 - the first episode of 'An African Journey.' The series aims to show a side of Africa that is so often forgotten, but too important to ignore... we couldn't agree more! What do you think? For those of you in Australia who missed it, you can catch it again on ABC iView.

NEW ARRIVALS - Sisal Baskets

AMAZING new Gallery Quality sisal baskets from Swaziland! Shop This: http://www.justafrica.com.au/products.asp?categoryID=22

Sisal Basket by Busisiwe Tsabetse



Celebrate Africa Exhibition

Celebrate Africa
November 6 - 21

Celebrate Africa this festive season with a spectacular array of handmade goods from over two dozen African countries. Sourced directly by gallery owners Laraine, Cecil and Annwen Joffe, from Fair Trade co-operatives, rural communities and individual artisans, the collection is inspired by works that transcend traditional craft to become gallery art.

The exhibition showcases baskets from the Master Weavers of Southern Africa, exquisitely hand embroidered textiles, contemporary beaded animals, handmade jewellery, prints and soft furnishings, alongside traditional Tribal Art and original gifts for all.

Each artist contributes their own individuality to the designs featured, making this exhibition a unique and diverse window into the skill and creativity of modern-day Africa.

Purchasing from the exhibition supports communities in Africa and creates employment in areas where there are few job opportunities. Give gifts that give twice this Christmas.

Shopping cart now online!

You can now securely shop online, from anywhere in the world!

New Arrivals - Silver Plated Earrings

To see the full range visit: http://www.justafrica.com.au/products.asp?categoryID=25&page=1

New Arrivals - Adjustable Brass and Copper Rings

To see the full range visit: http://www.justafrica.com.au/products.asp?categoryID=25





The Mpumudde 4sq Church Worship Band from Jinja, Uganda

You can see a great range of traditional instruments in this video - African harps or Ngoni; box thumb pianos, ingenious shakers made out of recycled materials and a beautiful Ugandan drum.

Great new range of Greetings Cards just arrived!

For more details see our Gift Ideas page.



AfroCubsim

This specially made short film provides an exclusive look at the making of the most eagerly anticipated release in world music. This collaboration of the finest musicians from Cuba and Mali features Eliades Ochoa, Bassekou Kouyate, Djelimady Tounkara, and Toumani Diabate, and sees the realisation of the project that inadvertently became the Buena Vista Social Club.

Herald Sun - Sunday Magazine

Just Africa was very happy to be featured in a fashion shoot for the Herald Sun Sunday Magazine recently. Featured was our brass and copper geometric necklace.

Now stocking the Guide to Ethical Supermarket Shopping!

We are now stockists of the Guide to Ethical Supermarket Shopping. This handy 80-page pocket-size guide helps you avoid companies that are socially and environmentally unsound during your everyday shopping. Copies of the guide are $6.00 each.

World Cup Competition Winners!

Congratulations to the winners of our World Cup Competition! The following lucky people each win a Fair Trade Jinta Sport soccer ball worth $39.50.

Adam (Armadale, VIC) Cameron (Rowville, VIC) Carole (South Yarra, VIC) Justin (Melbourne, VIC) Maddalena (Armadale, VIC) Megan (Ryde, NSW) Michael (Oakleigh, VIC) Michael (Taylors Lakes, VIC) Michael (Malvern, VIC) Peter (Richmond, VIC)

The great thing about Jinta Sport soccer balls is that they are certified Fair Trade. No child labour is used in their production, and the purchase of these balls helps fund community projects in third world countries and sports programmes for Aboriginal children in Australia. For more information click here

SALE July 17th - July 31st

SALE

July 17th - 31st

30% OFF Heidi Lange artwork

Prices start at $101.50

30% OFF Brass & Copper Jewellery

All earrings $24.50; bangles start at $24.50, necklaces start at $35

20% OFF all other sale items

Baskets, Beadwork, Candleholders, Cushions, Dolls, Giraffes, Gifts, Jewellery, Stone Carvings, Textiles

10% OFF Moroccan Ceramics

Prices start at $21.60

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NEW STOCK

Kuba textiles from the Congo

NEW - Fluffy Necklaces

These beautiful necklaces are created from clusters of glass beads attached to a material cord. Available in a variety of colours, they are super comfy to wear. Some colour combinations are one-offs, so for the best selection, visit us soon.

World Cup Competition - WIN a Fair Trade Jinta Sports soccer ball worth $37.50!

The 2010 World Cup, featuring teams from Algeria, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, of course Australia, starts today!

Click on the image below for your chance to win a Fair Trade Jinta Sports soccer ball worth $37.50!

NEW - Trade Bead Bracelets

These bracelets are made from various beads, and each one features a small brass charm. They are strung on elastic, so one size fits all. For more information on African trade beads see below, or click here to purchase.

The use of beads as a form of currency originated in the 16th century, when the Venetian Empire spread its trading links to West Africa. At the time there was no standard form of value, as trade was generally enacted by barter.

The Venetians introduced beads made in Murano, Italy, that attempted to equate to a set system of value according to their varied sizes, patterns and colours.

The system worked well, and soon the beads were adopted as a standard form of exchange, enabling goods to be bought and sold at fixed, agreed prices. Thus gold was priced at so many beads, cocoa at so many, cloth at so many, etc. The standard measure for a string of beads was the length of a man’s arm.

Africans soon started to produce their own beads, thereby adding to the scale of available currency. Again, beads had a set value according to their type, and each bead type had a specific name.

The system of Trade Beads eventually came to an end after the 2nd World War, when West African countries achieved independence from colonial rule, and required coins and notes, in order to join the western countries in having the amenities of a modern state.

Today the beads still maintain their value, as collectors, jewellers and bead shops seek the variety and colour that are the hallmark of Trade Beads. It is not unusual for older beads to fetch a hundred dollars each if they are in good condition.

Stonnington Leader - News

Click on the image to read the full article

Fair Trade Fortnight

Fair Trade Fortnight is Australia and New Zealand's biggest annual celebration of all things Fair Trade.

Making the change to Fair Trade products can make a huge difference to the lives of people in developing countries – giving them access to fair prices and money to invest in everyday things for their communities, such as education and healthcare.

So whether it’s your daily coffee, afternoon cuppa, chocolate treat or even the Mother's Day gift you give – make the swap to Fair Trade and help create a better and brighter future for families across the globe.

Melbourne Weekly - See & Do

Evidence of the first modern humans in North Africa

Modern man inhabited North Africa 40,000 years earlier than previously thought. Archaeologists have made the discovery using new dating technologies - such as optical stimulated luminescence, which essentially measures the last time a grain of quartz saw the light of day. To read the full article click here

Magic Africa Exhibition

Heidi Lange

Magic Africa

April 24 - May 8

at Just Africa

UNESCO prize winner Heidi Lange is an artist who has succumbed to Africa's magic and now, in turn, enchants us with her artwork of an unspoilt Africa. Having lived in Kenya's beautiful Rift Valley for over 30 years, her romanticised and stylised work is inspired by a fascination with the African tribes and their cultural traditions.

This collection of silk screen prints shows Heidi's special affinity for the famous Masai, who roam the Serengeti plains; for the women of Kenya with their elaborate personal adornment, and for the bountiful animals and plants of the savannah.

Heidi is a UNESCO, UNEP, Festival due Mondi and Golden Minerva prize winner. She has Public Works at SIDA's headquarters in Stockholm, at the Seronera and Wildenstein's Lodges in Tanzania, and at Africana in Tokyo. She has exhibited world-wide, in places as diverse as Paris and Milan, to Cartagena, Colombia.

To see more of Heidi's work click here 

...or for any further information, contact Annwen on 9824 8750

Sydney Morning Herald - Essential Style

Featured above: Zulu Basket by Linden Jele SOLD and Dan Mask $790
Click on the image to read the full article

Grazia Magazine Feature: Issue 83

Featured above: Clip Bangle $35, Beaded Wide Bangles $39, Skinny Bangles $15. Also Choker $45 (not visible) and Necklace $49

Featured above: Earrings $35 and Cuff Bangle $45 

Featured above: Cuff Bangle $45 and Cuff Bangle $40

Telephone Wire Bangles - 20% OFF Special

(Picture source: dvf.com)

Diane Von Furstenberg's Spring 2010 Collection featured stacks of candy coloured telephone wire bangles.

We are offering 20% off all telephone wire bangles until the end of April (or while stocks last) if you mention this Blog.

Large 50mm bangles were $49, now $39

Medium 30mm bangles were $39, now $31

Narrow 15mm bangles were $29, now $23

To see our telephone wire bangles click here

Magic Africa Exhibition - Extended Dates

Heidi Lange

Magic Africa

18 March - 2 May

Matt's Bar @ Yering Station

We're pleased to say that the exhibition of Heidi Lange's work at Yering Station will now continue for an extended period in Matt's Bar (upstairs from the Cellar Door)

About 30 prints will remain on show. Admission is free, and a 30% commission from all sales are donated to the Leukaemia Auxiliary of the Royal Children's Hospital.

To see more of Heidi's work click here

Matt's Bar @ Yering Station 

(Picture source: yering.com)

Yering Station

38 Melba Highway

Yarra Glen

VIC 3775

(Melways Ref. 275, B6)

Opening Hours

10am - 5pm weekdays

10am - 6pm weekends

Contact Details

Savaad Felich

Exhibition Coordinator - Yering Station Art Gallery

(03) 9730 0102

Autumn Fashion Trend - Leopard Print

"Animal print is a key trend. We are showcasing leopard for autumn -
pieces in this print will update a look instantly"

Ana Maria Escobar - Creative Director, Oroton

(Source: Grazia: Issue 78 Feb 2010)

Gold Tiger's Eye Cut Out Bangle $40

Leopard Disc Necklace $55 
Matching earrings & bangle available

Asymetric Bangle $40 
Matching earrings and necklace available

To see more click here

Magic Africa Exhibition

Heidi Lange

Magic Africa

5 February - 14 March

Yering Station Art Gallery

Just Africa is proud to represent award-winning artist Heidi Lange in Australia. Over 70 of Heidi's works are currently on display at the Yering Station Art Gallery.

Admission is free, and a 30% commission from all sales are donated to the Leukaemia Auxiliary of the Royal Children's Hospital.

To see more of Heidi's work click here

Yering Station
38 Melba Highway
Yarra Glen
VIC 3775
(Melways Ref. 275, B6)

Opening Hours
10am - 5pm weekdays
10am - 6pm weekends

Contact Details
Savaad Felich
Exhibition Coordinator - Yering Station Art Gallery
(03) 9730 0102

Welcome to Just Africa's new Blog!