Local Fashion

First, make note that smiling too much is not in vogue. These lovely young ladies are my neighbors. The backdrop of a vehicle is no mistake, I'm sure. Cars are symbols of affluence and are owned by probably less than 5 percent of the population around here. The younger generation has an increasing western/global style of dress. Skirts for women and girls are most common all over Kenya and here, in rural Maasailand, pants are extremely rare. Any child in school, primary through secondary must have a shaved head. Women of all ages who are non-traditional in their dress, commonly wear wigs as the lady on the left.

Traditional male Maasai garb. The variety of socks and shoes is huge. The beaded cane is a nice accessory for men at parties. It is unclear where the fabric came from historically. Currently, the inexpensive fabric rectangles that form the dress are imported from China, as I'm sure are the beads. This man is a young community group member.

This community group member is demonstrating the wrap. Since it is an overcast day, he is fighting off the "cold". The jelly shoes are extremely common and are formed into a wide variety of styles from buckle sandals to tie shoes to slippers. Judging from the dusty feet, this man has probably walked many many kilometers to reach the festivities. 

One of my faves- the large rose print wrap for men.  Also, note the argyle socks. The stick is his "engudi". A man is often inseparable from this stick for guiding cattle or any animal or killing a snake. The model is a community group member.

The traditional dress for Maasai women.  Note the dressier shoes. Since folks often dress in this traditional uniform, shoes are a way of noting level of affluence and wealth. The heavy amount of beadwork around the neck demonstrates she's at an important social event. This lady is a community group member.

Women wearing hair, such as the lady on the right have had a baby within the last year. Mostly women and men shave their heads completely. A bandana as seen on the left lady is also a common hair accessory. For reasons unknown to me, some women wear panty hose to special events like the lady on the left.  Her teal colored canvas shoes are an extremely common shoe. A note on the right outfit- the bottom layer is a sewn skirt that has a slit in the front for walking, the rest is made of three pieces of fabric. Two of which are tied/sewn/pinned over opposite shoulders, overlapping in the front and heald by a belt. Over the whole thing is the cape wrap. Men are often seen with ear-loops such as our friend in the middle, however it is rare to see any adornment on them.