~ my clothes are a chance to express myself and my headwraps effortlessly capture the essence of me.’ ~Manaka
MaNaka creative hands and beautiful human behind Manaka Handmade is our newest WrapStar Feature. Her names mean “possessing beauty” in Shona, her native language.
She was born in a small mining town in the Midlands of Zimbabwe but resides in the UK. About Manaka Handmande, she says “it is a growing collection of jewelry and accessories designed and handmade with love in a little studio space in the vibrant heart of London”.
She is known to wear some of the most vibrant, unique, and beautiful headwraps I have seen! She is a self-proclaimed free spirit, therefore, her personal style and her handmade products are reflections of that spirit. She says “my clothes are a chance to express myself and my headwraps effortlessly capture the essence of me.’
When I asked Manaka why she wraps her hair, she said: “…I always felt an inner fire and desire for all things Afrocentric. Growing up, I was fascinated by images of tribal women with tattoos, scarification and stretched ears.
A few years ago, I started creating jewelry and accessories and this is when my journey to claiming myself started. I suddenly felt an urge to express myself and with this came my headwraps and the start of my own body modifications… I guess I might say with my work as an artist, came my liberation.
Ann-Marie: So when did it start?
Manaka: “The wrapping all started one day when I took a piece of bright Ankara fabric that I had and wrapped my hair to see what it looked like… It felt like someone had put a halo above my head and I was glowing… I felt so beautiful and divine and since then, wrapping has become something I do most days without even giving thought as to why I do it… It just felt right for me.
Once I rejected society’s ideal of beauty, I slowly started to create my own self image of who I wanted to be as an individual… That’s not to say individuality is just about the clothes you wear or your hairstyle… Your social outlooks and ideologies too should set you apart.
On days when I am not wrapping my hair, I am rocking my dread locks. Going natural was a big part of my empowerment and liberation too.”
Ann-Marie: I have always noticed that you use a lot of different colors and often there are color-bands tied around your head wraps. I would love to know what inspires your particular styles of headwrapping?
Manaka: “People from countries all over the world wear wraps for different reasons but there is a noticeable difference in the way people wrap their hair among different cultural regions. The style I wear my wrap imitates the style I saw African women wrapping their hair as I was growing up so I guess it is also a way to pay homage to my African roots. Aside from that, this is the style that best accentuates my features.”
When I spoke with Ma Naka, I found it interesting to learn that she describes her headwraps as “plain”, where, on the contrary, I think they are equisite creations displaying her creativity and love of colors .
She says “Most of my headwraps are plain, some African print, some polka dots and I recently added to my collection some aboriginal prints I picked up whilst I was in Australia.
All my headwraps do have one thing in common though; they are all so bright and flamboyant representing (my) off beat and colourful style. I have no limits when it comes to colour. I have never met a colour I didn’t like!
I also enjoy the different styles and colour combinations possible when I wear my headwrap. My wraps enable me to add an extra splash of colour to my outfits as I can match my wraps with my clothes daily but I can not do this with my hair.”
I asked my long standing favorite question; “what challenges, if any, have you faced in regard wrapping your hair? How do you handle or respond to challenges?” To which Manaka replied: “my main challenges with wearing my wrap have been in trying to make sure it’s always looking perfect!
Trying to make sure it’s always pinned into place properly and also trying to make sure that I get my desired volume given that my hair is partly shaved. Sometimes I find it takes me less than 5mins to get my desired look and sometimes it takes me just a little longer and a few tries before I am content!
Ann-Marie: How do you get the desired volume with a partially shaved head?
Manaka: “To get my desired volume I use a longer piece of fabric to what other people might use… I try and use light fabrics to wrap my hair so that it doesn’t get too heavy.”
Ann-Marie: I see! What other challenges have you faced?
Manaka: “Another big problem that I had when I first started wearing my wraps, was forgetting to give my hair the treatment it needs to make sure it has enough nutrition and enough moisture whilst it’s under wraps. I have now learnt to protect my hair before wearing wraps so the fabric does not dry out my hair.
Ann-Marie: What is that protective routine?
Manaka: My moisturizing routine is not very complex. I simply mistourize my hair every other day and use fabrics that wont dry out my hair when wrapping.
Manaka also states: “living in London, I have faced no social challenges with regards to wearing my headwrap. Most people living here are so liberated and have an appreciation for individuality. Tattoos, dreadlocks, headwraps, stretched ears and extreme body modification; these things are all part of everyday life in London.
Manaka, thank you for allowing me to feature you on It’s A Wrap! Wrap on WrapStar!
Click on the following links to learn more about Manaka and her products: ?www.manakahandmade.etsy.com ?www.manakahandmade.tumblr.com ?www.facebook.com/manakahandmade
Manaka Handmade Accessories sold exclusively @ “Divine Canvas Tattoos”
179 Caledonian Road, London, N1 0SL, tel. +44(0)20 7502 7736
