In 2006, a creative couple by the name of Jenny and Daniel Healy decided to take their passion for quilting into the world. With thread in hand and African inspirations at the ready, they decided to put their lives (literally, their life savings) into the creation of a local quilt store in Gaborone, Botswana.

Kalahari Quilts was born.

Although they started VERY small, the business has expanded to an ever-growing family of passionate quilters from Botswana and beyond.

Although Kalahari Quilts is a business (not a non-profit organization), it is one that is enabling its employees and their families to be able to dictate their future. We teach valuable skills to our women that help them to be the strong, creative, capable individuals that they already are. While most Motswana women make less than $100 per month (that's about $3/day), our ladies at Kalahari Quilts are treated like family, including medical and educational benefits.

In May 2012, Kalahari Quilts took a huge step in its growth by moving to a beautiful, bright new store in Gaborone with plenty of foot traffic. All of the quilts that you see in our store are hand-made, on-site in this location. Local customers can even come and watch their quilt being made right before their eyes.

The mission of Kalahari Quilts is to illustrate the beautiful land and people of Africa, while also promoting future generations through our employment opportunities. As Kalahari Quilts currently does not make profit at its store, we hope that making the leap onto Etsy.com can help us to fund this dream.

Update. Jenny and family have moved back to Salem Oregon in order to relocate the kids for higher education. Jenny Healy is still making art quilts and designing fabrics in order to share her love of her birthplace, Africa. In a new adventure, Jenny is treasure hunting for nick-nacks, valuable vintage glass, jewelry and of course anything African to help increase the family income as the times change.

Thank you so much for stopping by our store and we hope to inspire you through our work and findings.