Outlook Mixtape: Cut from a different cloth

Sewing in zero gravity, secret knitting in Chile, a man hopelessly devoted to looms, indigo and independence, and a quilt that challenged authority – five stories woven around fabric.

Nigerian artist Mama Nike explains how creating traditional Adire cloth helped her escape poverty and an unhappy polygamous marriage. She went on to teach textile-making to other women, helping them gain financial freedom through their craft. She spoke to Tommy Dixon.

When astronaut Dr Karen Nyberg took a sewing kit to the International Space Station, she discovered that making a quilt in zero gravity comes with unexpected complications. In 2022, she told Jo Fidgen about the challenge of cutting fabric that won't stay put and how a handmade quilt block sparked a worldwide sewing project.

Vintage looms, missing parts and more than a few tears: what began with a single loom rescued from a Welsh barn became British craftsman Daniel Harris's mission to save historic weaving machinery and master a centuries-old craft. He shared his story with Outlook in 2017.

Drawing on a family quilting tradition, American quilter Nedra Bonds turned fabric into a form of protest. She created a quilt telling the story of a historic Underground Railroad settlement and took it to public meetings during a years-long campaign against plans for a landfill site, speaking to Jo Fidgen in 2016 about why quilts can be powerful campaigning tools.

The Chilean male knitting collective Hombres Tejedores, or the Men Who Knit meet regularly to knit in public, challenging assumptions about who gets to pick up a pair of knitting needles. Some learned the craft in secret as children before finding confidence and community through their group. Reporter Jane Chambers visited them in Santiago in 2017.

Presenter: Jo Fidgen
Producer: Hetal Bapodra

Get in touch: outlook@bbc.com or WhatsApp +44 330 678 2707

Photo: A transparent 60-minute cassette tape with a white label bearing the words: The Outlook Mixtape. Credit: Getty Images