Karibu

Made by hand

Mikono means hands. We crochet animals by hand in Nairobi from recycled acrylic yarn.

Smiling woman with purple braids and an orange top holding a large crocheted lion at an outdoor market with kitenge cloths behind her

Woman in a striped yellow dress seated behind about fifteen crocheted yellow and cream giraffes on a teal blanket

Market table with a white heart print cloth covered in crocheted lions, rabbits, giraffes, rhinos and elephants

How it started

Mikono Creations was founded in 2019 in Nairobi by Leah Maina.

The longer story, in her own words, is not on this page yet. We would rather wait for the real version than guess at it.

The name

Mikono is the Swahili word for hands. Every animal is crocheted by hand, one loop at a time, so the name says what we do.

What we make

Crocheted animals such as lions, giraffes, rabbits and octopuses. They come in four sizes, Small to Extra large, and in many colours.

Crocheted from recycled acrylic yarn.
Zero plastic and nothing detachable, on our plain crocheted animals.
Easy to clean.

The women behind it

Through this work we support 25+ women. The makers page shows them at work.

Meet the makers See the animals

Where to find us

Our animals are sold through 7 outlets in and around Nairobi, and on this site through WhatsApp. We are on Instagram and Facebook as @mikonocreations.

See the outlets

Hands at work

Hands crocheting a yellow giraffe
Crocheting on a chair
Finishing a giraffe
Sewing a bear face

A market stall in motion

A market stall with crocheted giraffes, elephants and lions, filmed up close — Press play to watch. The video loads only when you do.

A short video from a market stall: crocheted giraffes, elephants and a lion on a table with an orange striped cloth. More photos are in the gallery.