Rosecraft is a handweaving cottage industry which produces a variety of products from mohair, wool, cotton and silk, including carpets and rugs, cushion covers, shawls and jerseys using traditional methods.
Set on a farm in the Egebeni Mountains near Manzini, the Rosecraft workshop is owned and managed by Rose Roques, who started it in 1979. Rose had previously worked in a Saville Row showroom in London and began her weaving business as a hobby. Today, Rosecraft provides much needed employment for over 120 Swazi women from the surrounding local community who use the time-honoured looms and spinning wheels create the Rosecraft range of products.
The workshop is open to visitors who are encouraged to view the manufacture process. The products are also on sale at the workshop, as are refreshments. And for those who wish to stay there is accommodation available on the premises (see Rose Cottage and Weaver’s Nest). Day visitors are also welcome to hike in the farm’s indigenous forest and a special attraction for adults and children alike is the unique Sculpture Trail (see Sculpture Trail entry).
Rosecraft is only thirty minutes from Matsapha and Malkerns, and is well signposted. Note that the journey includes some dirt roads and these can be an adventure in themselves.
