Craft maker proud to have a hand in the promotion of Indigenous craft

By Michel Outridge 

FOR 65-year-old Beryl Domingo making Indigenous craft is her way of life since in her school days she practised until she mastered the acquired skill and today she is making a living from it.

This elderly woman takes the time to make her excellent craft pieces in the form of clothing, handbags, baskets, headdresses, hats and even car seats. Although she is a housewife, in her spare time she utilises the time to complete orders and does it all in the comfort of her home.

When the Pepperpot Magazine met with her, she was in the process of making a coloured brassiere to go with a tibisri skirt, which will be on sale at the village heritage celebrations this weekend.

“Depending on my orders, I make things because it takes time to make these things and to get the materials to make it from scratch,” she said.

Domingo reported that she is originally from Moraikobai and now resides in Swan Village where her life is simple and quiet.

She related that most of her products are based on orders and some go to a buyer in the city and other persons who re-sell it across the country.

Even though her craft-making is on a small scale, she stated that it is enough because she can work at her own pace without having to employ people to assist her but added that at times her husband would step in to lend a helping hand.

Domingo said tibisri is sourced from within the village in the backlands area from the ite` palm where the shoot is cut then stripped and boiled.

She added that it is then dried before use and it takes two days for this process to be completed and stated that the ite palm is also used to make house brooms.

“I does buy cotton and other materials but the feathers for headdress are taken from creole fowls here in my yard and painted while, buck beads are picked from the plant right in the village,” she said.

Domingo was one of the few women from Swan Village, who were at the In digenousVillage at Sophia to showcase and sell her craft earlier this month in observance of Indigenous Heritage Month.

She told the Pepperpot Magazine that she had some sales at the Sophia Exhibition Site but often end up selling her craft at a much cheaper price than she had set because people wanted to buy and some asked for a reduction in the price.

“Craft-making has turned out to be a hobby for me more than a job because I enjoy doing it and it has become a part of my everyday life,” she said.