Hey Everyone!

Lizzie here, director and designer of Mane Project,

I wanted to say a few things about last year and my vision for 2019. This is a little bit of an open diary entry so if you're not in the mood for it, don't read it! But if you'd like to get to know me a little more, the person behind the brand, read on!

2018 was a hard year! It was really good in SO many ways, but if I had one word to wrap the year up, it would definitely be 'hard'.

I had my second child in April and honestly, I was so stressed about how I was going to manage being a mum to a 4yr old and a newborn baby PLUS run my business! And it was just as hard, if not harder than what I had anticipated!

I'm so grateful for the help I had during that time with my husband and family, but also Helen. She was crucial part of the Mane Project team during this time as she was the one keeping everything ticking while I was giving birth, then breastfeeding and looking after my new bubba the months after.

It was just a tricky time because we did slump a little financially for lots of different reasons, some of them being my fault and others being totally unexpected costs along the way that made it pretty tricky.

We are on the incline out of that slump though so that's really exciting.

Because of the life circumstances last year, some of the things that mean the most to me about Mane Project didn't get the attention they needed. Like, our profile stories on those manufacturing our product; that information is so important to me to continue to gather for you as our customer so you can feel connected and know who's making your clothes! It's such an important part of bringing value back to your items, to be able to know the person who used their hands, skills and brain to make your item. It's such a special part of manufacturing to me. 

Although it was busy and mental throughout the year, I learnt that recycled cotton is far better for the environment than organic cotton as it uses far less water. This is an avenue I'm venturing down further and will update you as I find out more! I am really excited about it... I have to say, podcasts and driving simultaniously have been such a great tool for my learning, especially when reading is like a total luxury with two kids!

Collabs are another thing that are SO important to me, I love working with other artists and makers in developing something together. It's a huge part of creativity for me, working with others and melding our powers to make something epic that we both are proud of thats manufactured ethically.

In 2018 it was such a highlight to work with Necesse, Arowm and Our Place Tauranga - all amazing companies that I'm excited to work with again in the future. Very excited about some new potential collabs for 2019 that hopefully I can share with you all soon.

All of the above is a huge part of what I want to build on and focus on for 2019 as well as epic design, fabrics and prints for you too. I do want to know what you want though, so would you be so kind and leave a comment or flick me an email about what you want to see from Mane Project. Right from design and fabrication through to information we share. I wanna know. So give it to me!

 Love you all and I appreciate all of your support.

 2019 will be a stunner xx