Private classes
Learn wax, dye, and fabric in a focused private class shaped around your pace.
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Workshops
Small-group sessions with direct teaching, shared rhythm, and clear technique.
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Shop
Explore finished batik pieces and ready-to-order work from the studio.
Visit the shopThe craft
Each workshop moves from line and wax to reveal and finishing. The method is simple. The work stays exact.
Learn the processWe begin with line, motif, and composition. The drawing stage sets the pace for everything that follows.
Wax protects the chosen areas and defines the pattern. The hand needs to stay steady and deliberate.
Layers of dye deepen the surface and shift the tone. The cloth starts to carry its own character.
The final wash releases the image. Edges are cleaned, cloth is set, and the piece is ready to keep.
Upcoming workshop
Join the mailing list on the workshops page and we will write when the next dates open.
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The craft in motion
Short clips from sketching, cutting, heating, and dyeing on the studio floor.
Studio life
The quieter rhythm that happens after the dye work is done.
Shop preview
A full-length bubu cut in hand-dyed batik fabric, named after the Somali word for abundance. The silhouette is generous and unhurried — wide sleeves, a relaxed shoulder, and a fluid fall that moves with the body. Each piece is wax-resist dyed by hand in the Nairobi studio, meaning no two are identical. Wear it to a dinner, a gallery opening, or simply because the day deserves it.
A crossover between East African textile tradition and Japanese drapery — open-front, hip-length, with wide sleeves that catch light as you move. Made from batik cotton dyed in the studio using layered wax and pigment. Works as an outer layer over a slip dress or linen trousers, or belted at the waist as a standalone statement. A piece that earns its place in every season.
A two-piece co-ord cut in matching batik fabric — top and wide-leg trousers designed to be worn together or separately. The name draws from the Swahili word for freedom, and the fit honours that: relaxed through the hip, easy at the waist, with enough structure to look intentional. Made in the studio using the wax-resist method, each set carries the unique mark of the hand that made it.
The founder
Mariana Reyel is founder-led. The studio works slowly, with attention to fabric, line, and the pace required to make pieces worth keeping.
Read the storyTestimonials
"Mariana's pattern-making class completely changed how I see garment construction. I came in with basic sewing skills and left with the confidence to design my own pieces from scratch."
"I flew in from Accra specifically for the draping masterclass and it was worth every shilling. The studio environment is intimate, the instruction is world-class, and the fabrics she sources are unlike anything I have found elsewhere."
"I purchased two of Mariana's e-books and used them to launch my own modest wear line. The depth of technical knowledge packed into those guides is extraordinary — proper fashion school content at a fraction of the cost."
In their own words
Two filmed testimonials that let the people behind the work speak for themselves.
