Traditional long kabaslot outfit

The Krios are an ethnic group living in Sierra Leone. The Creoles have a distinctive language and cultural traditions reflecting that today’s creoles are descendants of different groups of formerly enslaved people. Four groups settled by the British in what was called the “Province of Freedom” came together to create a unique society. They came from London, Nova Scotia, Jamaica, and the Coast of Africa. They settled in Freetown between 1787 and 1885. The krio culture is therefore a mixture of different people from different parts of the world.

The Creole’s signature costume was the Kabaslot and Kotoku; a hybrid of Ghanaian and Victorian era clothing styles. Kabaslot and Kotoku in Akan means dress and sock. AfroAmerican, Afro Caribbean, and British Styles also influence the dress. The Maroons were descendants of Africans captured from the Gold Coast and enslaved in Jamaica. They were highly skilled crafts people, and even the Goombay music associated with the creoles was introduced in Sierra Leone by the Maroons.

The Kabaslot; a unique hand-cut embroidery fashion, was greatly influenced by the rich embroidered dresses of the wives of the slave owners. Slaves were given these dresses by the wives as an acknowledgement of their hard work. But the enslaved were resilient and tenacious to maintain their cultural identity. They transformed these gift dresses to reflect their culture. The burning desire to preserve the traditions of their forefathers challenged them to resort to using plant fibres, pigments and bark of trees in the production of their clothing. Historical records show the great involvement of enslaved people in the production of clothing and materials produced from cotton. Apart from planting cotton seeds, picking the fibre, spinning, and weaving, they made beautiful garments for themselves and their owners.

The Kabaslot is made from a specific cotton design with a unique hand cut embroidery design across the chest, pockets, and the back of the neckline. It is loose fitting, but the waistline is accentuated with a belt. It has a matching scarf. Sleeves are 3⁄4 or full length with ruffles around the cuff. It is normally ankle length. The base for the handcut embroidery was formally 100% cotton lace. Older women wore this unique dress style mostly.

The Kabaslot dress is worn with a petticoat and the layer of lace depicts affluence. The Kotoku is the drawstring bag. The ensemble also includes carpet slippers. The Oku lappa … scarf of cotton or slik; this also depicts affluence and material status. The matching head tie also depicts marital status by the position tied.

This is a long traditional long print kabaslot.