With this post, I wanted to give you a little “Ankara 101” . What is Ankara, you ask? Well, apart from being the capital of Turkey, it also happens to be the name given to the fabric used to make the skirt pictured here. Ankara, also known as “wax print”, “dutch wax” or “african print” , among other names, is originally thought to be brought into Africa by the Dutch. If you know your history, then you know they occupied Ghana for a time. Known for its colorful patterns, it is a favorite by many Ghanaians and West Africans alike. I do have to mention though, that dutch wax prints are actually originally from Indonesia and started out as cheap, mass produced imitations of the original fabric.
I happen to especially love Ankara because I love to mix patterns and truly, you can never seem to make a mistake. It is versatile enough to be made into bags, earrings, blazers etc and as I have gotten older, I tend to gravitate towards it.
If you have been following my posts and or following on Instagram , you likely know that my mom was European and my dad is African. OK. If you are NOT following me on instagram, what are you waiting for? Stop what you are doing and follow me already, lol. My handle is @dee.diary . What was I saying? Oh yes, when it comes to clothing, I have always loved pairing those two influences. My love for color is immediately communicated whenever I don Ankara clothing and accessories. The fabric offers all the vibrancy and pattern clashing to my heart desire. If you are reading this thinking , “i want that fabric!”, well, my very awesome self is here to help. 🙂 Just keep scrolling.
I love to hear from my readers so drop a line below and let me know what you think of this post.
Photos by my BFF, Chinny, from the blog duo @enma_and_i
SHOP THE LOOK;
1.Fabric can be purchased here or … you could just fly to Ghana and pick up your custom order 🙂
2.Your one stop etsy shop for skirts, tops, dresses and accessories is here
3.Belts here
4.Bags here and here
Oohh my goood Dee you look like a Flamenco Goddess incredibly beautiful😘😘.
And by the way the next time you fly to ghana i wAnt an Ankara patterned bag like yours! I luv luv no sorry i am IN LUV with this colour! And you know babygurl i am turkish so there is a karma behind this😉
Yes! I love me some good karma. Girl I got you on the bag. I’ll bring one with me when I come to visit.