What the Hands Know
Hands carry knowledge that rarely enters official language. They measure, cut, weave, polish, repair, remember, and give form to materials before they become objects.
A Bag of Stories is a magazine and cultural platform — by AFAR + Ayzoh! — exploring how we travel, what we carry, how we look, and the relationships we create along the way. Join our free newsletter and carry the stories with you.
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Editorial Sections
The Road Is Never Empty
Every journey carries more than a destination. It carries work, memory, weather, language, desire, and the quiet evidence of people who make movement possible.
Kaluwa, Made for the Rhythm of Summer
As we continue to build "A Bag of Stories", the AFAR magazine, we turn our attention to another design from the Raffia Collection: Kaluwa, a distinctive woven bag created in two sizes for the lighter rhythm of summer.
Keisha, in Three Voices
AFAR has a new online home and a new way of writing to you. From now on, our collections will arrive with stronger images, clearer information, and more room for the materials, people, and ideas behind what we make. We begin with Keisha: one generous shape, interpreted in three distinct voices.
Madagascar Raffia: What a Leaf Remembers
Raffia begins in wet ground, close to water, where the palm grows and each harvest must leave enough of the plant untouched for it to continue living. From Madagascar to Addis Ababa, the fiber carries the memory of landscapes, skilled hands, and decisions made with care.
Miles from the road
AFAR joins Ethiopian Airlines ShebaMiles, connecting Ethiopian-made travel bags with one of Africa’s great routes of movement.
A first look at the new raffia collection
The new raffia collection is coming in Summer 2026. Explore the lookbook now and join our newsletter for first access when the bags become available.
AFAR at The Bag Show: Raffia’s Addis Ababa Debut
At the tenth edition of The Bag Show, AFAR presented its first raffia collection in Addis Ababa. Made with fiber sourced in Madagascar and finished by women artisans in Ethiopia, the collection entered the runway during an evening supporting Our Father’s Kitchen.
