Sama: More than a Print

Sama: More than a Print

Each year at The Social Outfit, we collaborate with artists, designers and communities within Sydney to create prints that are exclusive to us. Prints that hold meaning, memory and the hands of many people behind them.

After the incredible response to our Spring Community prints Nour and Diya, we wondered: what would it look like to revisit this idea in a completely different way? A different colour story. A different kind of interaction.

That question led us to Sama.

Named Sama, meaning sky in Arabic, this print reflects serenity and openness. Featuring a delicate white base, turquoise pinstripes and floating ginkgo leaves, Sama is available in limited edition styles. 

The ginkgo leaf, a symbol of resilience, became the foundation of the design. And each leaf tells its own story.

Twelve women. Twelve leaves. One shared print

Every ginkgo leaf in Sama is an original artwork created by women from the Chester Hill Community Hub. Twelve participants, each from different cultural backgrounds, including Pakistan, Egypt, Colombia, Macedonia, Lebanon and Thailand, came together through a series of print workshops facilitated by The Social Outfit team.

“We were contacted by Anisha from the Community Hub and invited to join this workshop,” says Aisha, a participant from Chester Hill. “We had no idea it would turn out like this.”

Over four weeks, the group explored art-making step by step. For many, it was their first time participating in a creative process like this.

“At the beginning, Sonya came with Chatcha and explained how we could bring our imagination onto paper. It wasn’t easy at first,” Aisha shares. “But each week, she introduced us to different kinds of art-making.”

One week, Sonya brought a paper cut-out of a ginkgo leaf. The women layered the shape over their own artwork, choosing colours freely. Each leaf emerged completely different, shaped by personal stories, cultures and experiences.

“We even wondered how all these different artworks would work together on fabric,” Aisha laughs. “But when we finally saw the print… we were so surprised. The colours, the fabric, the way everything came together. It looks beautiful.”

Seeing the final Sama print was a powerful moment.

“We didn’t know we could achieve something like this,” she says. “But together, we made it. It was so moving to recognise our own work within the final print.”

From artwork to action

For many of the women, the experience didn’t end with the print launch.

Inspired by seeing their work transformed into fabric, and by the sense of possibility that followed something new began to grow.

“After the launch, we all got talking,” Aisha explains. “We didn’t know we could have achieved something like this.”

The very next day, conversations turned into ideas. Those ideas turned into action.

Together with Anisha, the Chester Hill Community Hub leader, Aisha helped launch Bloom & Loom, a local, community-led sewing initiative designed for mums.

“When you’re a mum, it’s hard to go to work because you’re looking after your kids,” Aisha says. “I wanted to create something where we could bring our babies and learn together. Learn about sewing, about fabrics.”

Inspired directly by The Social Outfit’s print project, Bloom & Loom began taking shape.

“Within two months, we have a business plan. We have a sewing machine that was donated by The Social Outfit’s wider community. Sonya has been answering all my questions as we’re new to running a business, but we’re taking it step by step.”

More than a print

Sama isn’t just a pinstripe with a motif. It’s proof of what happens when creativity is shared, when trust is built, and when women are given space to imagine what’s possible.

Every leaf holds a story. Every stitch carries connection. And sometimes, a single print can spark something far bigger than fabric.