Bright and Bold

A few months ago, a man came into Ferrill African Wear and said he needed something “low-key” to wear. Store owner and African clothes collector Shirley Ferrill welcomed him right in but laughed as she said, “You’re in the wrong place.”

She describes her Ferrill African Wear store as a representative sampling of African clothing and items from a variety of regions, which inevitably means there is little in the way of solid or dull colors. 

“African culture is bright, bold. There are so many patterns; I’ve always loved that,” she said. 

Still, Ferrill wants nothing more than to find exactly what someone is looking for, be it knowledge of African culture or a certain clothing item. She’s a store owner in the Ensley community known for her casual, nonjudgmental nature.

“People always asked, ‘Can you get this? Can you get that?’ For a long time, it was a hobby,” Ferrill said, one that she let fill most of her closet. It quickly became a habit to buy two of whatever African clothing item she found, then sell one to someone who really wanted it. Eventually, she started special ordering from Africa.

Though Ferrill has sold African wear since college, she only first opened her official storefront, Ferrill African Wear, last year after her retirement.

“[Making this store has] been like this is a community project,” she said. 

A year ago, she said, the building she bought was a complete mess, with roof troubles, spiderwebs, dust everywhere and no lighting or plumbing. Even in this state, she knew it was exactly the space she needed. With the months-long help of friends, volunteers, former customers and Ensley community members, the place was transformed to include six dressing rooms down a sweeping, naturally lit hall, a big clothing and display room, as well as a community room with a kids’ reading area off to the side, all books free for the taking.

Ferrill spent more than 20 years working as a social worker in protective services for children in the Jefferson County area. She said she often spent her time supervising kids across the state, which kept her constantly on the move and working late and irregular hours. After working for a bank for some years, she got tired of “doing the same thing over and over again,” and she knew that in her retirement, she needed a job that would keep her on her toes.

She now spends her time selling African clothes, fabrics and designs, including the now-popular wax prints, intricate lace wrappers, grand boubous, basket weave patterns, bright cotton skirts, mud cloths, hand-woven bazin, flowy caftans, traditional kufi hats, damsk headdresses and more, all of which she’d be happy to tell anyone about. She sells all kinds of African clothes for men, women and children, ranging from highly traditional formal wear to modernized designs. Often, people come in not only seeking clothes, but knowledge on the culture. 

“I’ve really enjoyed being here; people get excited and drive from all over just to get one piece,” she said. 

Ferrill has a calendar booked to do fashion shows and community events with organizations from all over Alabama, including colleges and venues in Huntsville, Tuscaloosa, Sylacauga and Birmingham. 

Although she doesn’t have money to pay models, she has more than a few customers and model friends who are ecstatic to put on her pieces and head wraps for a day. Oftentimes the organizations also provide models, or fashion show audience members get the opportunity to wear clothing from their African roots. 

“There’s a runway, African music and some commentary, so it’s a lot of fun,” she said. “One customer, she’s in her early 20s, she has a very dark complexion, one of the ‘darker’ girls, she has been modeling with me. Back then, we were supposed to be as light as possible, and she said the first time she came in here, she felt so empowered by the African wear.”

Ferrill said she tries to order her merchandise from the specific regions where women in Africa are trying to make a living selling their culture’s fabrics and clothes. 

“Part of what I’m trying to do is also educate our people that this is a part of our culture that was stolen from us, because we aren’t allowed to keep up with our own language, clothing, gardens, traditions,” she said. “People come in and say they feel ignorant, and they don’t know, and I tell them, ‘Then I’ll tell you, and you’ll know.’”

Most African garments for women come with a headpiece, she said, especially since many areas are predominantly Muslim, and the women in those areas are required to wear a headdress. They are made out of different fabrics and traditionally tied different ways to denote regions. She said she has customers come in all the time begging her to teach them how to do what they consider “elaborate” head wrap designs. 

“I always laugh because I have never tied any two head wraps the same way,” Ferrill said. “I come in here and get creative, and if you don’t like it, then we will recreate it. You know it’s done when it’s pretty to you, and it stays on your head.”

Although different colors reflect different regions, Ferrill is still learning the specific regions. It is common, however, for cultures from desert areas to reflect “desert colors,” like reds, browns and yellows. Cultures from coastal areas reflect “coastal colors,” like greens, blues and purples. Another common tradition is for families to dress in the same fabrics to identify as a “family unit.”

Ferrill said it isn’t unusual for her to have customers who aren’t from African descent. She welcomes everyone in, regardless of their race or culture, and is happy to talk about the clothing and sell them items. She loves for new people to learn about African culture.

“We need to get rid of a whole lot of foolish notions in our society. We tend to try to do it without talking about it and discussing,” she said. “We have to tell and share.”

She is expanding her shop to include clothing from more regions and will be present in the upcoming Caribbean Festival. Ferrill is also a spoken word poet, a one-woman show performer, actress and singer, and hosts different events at her store. For more information, go to Ferrill African Wear on Facebook.