A lamp-making workshop in Mbour is two hours to make your own handcrafted lamp and take it home. Three sizes are on offer, from the small 15 cm model to the large 30 cm one, and the materials are provided.

A lamp in two hours, in the size you choose

The workshop lasts two hours and is priced per person: each participant makes their own lamp. You choose between three sizes: the small 15 cm, the medium 20 cm and the large 30 cm. The bigger the size, the more room the piece takes up in a suitcase or on a piece of furniture, so keep that in mind if you are flying.

It is a creative activity, held indoors. The materials are provided and you leave with your creation, so there is nothing to buy before you come. The craftsman explains the making steps on site.

If you live in Saly, Mbour or Dakar, it is a creative outing that fits into half a day, easy to slot into a weekend to make a decorative object, or even a gift. If you are visiting, it is a souvenir that does not come from a market stall: you keep it because you made it.

Mbour, a town of fishermen and markets

Mbour is about 80 km south of Dakar on the Petite Côte, 5 km from the beach resort of Saly. It is the country’s second fishing port after Dakar: its beaches are lined with pirogues, its markets are busy, and horse-drawn carts still move through the streets. The workshop sits in this lively town, which is more rooted in everyday life than its seaside neighbour.

Things to do around Mbour

Once your lamp is finished, the town and its beaches, lined with fishing pirogues, are good for a stroll. For another approach to making things, other craft and skills workshops are available elsewhere in Senegal. Along the coast, Joal-Fadiouth, the shell island, is a classic excursion, while pirogue trips let you see the coast from the water.