Cassava paste, raffia and indigo: how Yoruba women make adire, and why designers have brought it back

Adire begins with a plain white cloth and a pot of indigo. What happens in between decides whether the finished fabric carries a pattern of circles, stripes or symbols.

Adire is the resist-dyed cloth of the Yoruba people of south-western Nigeria. The name comes from the Yoruba words for “to tie” and “to dye”. Abeokuta, in Ogun State, is the city most closely associated with it, and markets there have sold adire for generations.

How it is made

The idea is to stop the dye from reaching parts of the cloth. Adire makers use several methods. In adire oniko, the cloth is tied with raffia or thread into small bundles, knots or folds before dyeing, creating circles and patterns where the dye cannot reach. Adire alabere uses stitching, with patterns sewn into the fabric and removed after dyeing.

In adire eleko, a paste made from cassava starch is painted or stencilled onto the cloth. The paste resists the dye, and when it is scraped off, the pattern appears in pale blue or white against the indigo. Hand-painted eleko designs can include symbols, animals and scenes.

Indigo

Traditionally, the dye came from the leaves of indigo plants, fermented in pots. Cloth may be dipped many times to reach a deep blue. Synthetic dyes and other colours have become common, and modern adire comes in many shades.

Women’s craft

Adire production has long been dominated by women, who dyed, designed and sold the cloth. In the early twentieth century, adire became a major industry in Abeokuta and Ibadan, and cloth was traded across West Africa.

Revival

After decades of competition from imported fabrics, adire has returned to fashion. Nigerian designers use it for dresses, shirts, jackets and accessories, and the fabric appears on runways and in Lagos boutiques. Some state governments have promoted adire through festivals and support for artisans, with Ogun State among the most active.

Buying adire

Genuine hand-dyed adire shows small irregularities in pattern and colour, a sign of handwork. Printed imitations have perfectly regular patterns. Buyers in Abeokuta’s markets can watch dyers at work and buy directly from the makers.

The patterns carry names and meanings, passed from mother to daughter. When a designer puts adire on a runway, the pattern is often older than the fashion house.