Africans have been producing handcrafted goods such as cloth, baskets, and ceramics for millennia to satisfy the utilitarian requirements of daily life. The handmade heritage of Africa is very rich, and this can be observed in the goods of Casabenico, which are examples of this richness in practice. Handicrafts like these are also representations of their creators' abilities as well as their personal, religious, and cultural tastes. Numerous are produced expressly for the purpose of selling them or supplying them to markets in other nations.

Many different types of baskets and mats are made by both men and women out of plant materials such as wood, palm leaves, reeds, grasses, roots, and other similar things. They embellish their workmanship with designs made of variously colored and textured materials, or they sew leather onto the basketwork to give it a more finished look. There are two fundamental methods for creating baskets. Plaited basketry is made by soaking strands of plant fiber in water and then weaving, twisting, or twining them together. Sewn basketry is made by coiling a small strip of continuous material, typically grass, around itself and stitching it together. Some of the baskets produced in this manner are so securely stitched that they are able to retain liquid.

Additionally, African baskets serve as a decorative and social accessory. Hats are often constructed of basketwork and embellished with fiber tufts, feathers, fur, and leather to give them a unique look. Aside from that, Africans use beads to decorate the bodies of their loved ones, their homes, and their graves.