Small, independent fashion brands make it easy for you to align your wardrobe with your values. You can add another product category to the way you’ve shifted your dollars to make choices that are better for the local economy, better for the environment, and better for women and other workers. Here are just a few ways […]
Your Values
Your why: philanthropy, social impact, sustainability, community.
Joy of Missing Out: Daylight Savings Time and reconsidering the moment
The time change for Daylight Savings presents an opportunity for reflection. Time is both circular and linear, discrete and continuous, subjective and objective. Sparkpluck Studio How can something that seems so structured and consistent, be so complicated by dualities? We never have enough, yet we waste it. We hurry up to wait. We watch the […]
Women candidates: Who made your clothes?
Politics and fashion don't usually mix well. Politicians of any stripe are not known for their style. Public scrutiny of personal grooming and style are familiar territory for women in the public eye. It's an unfair judgment levied disproportionately on women over men in every realm of public life. But what if we could […]
Walking the talk: Aligning your lifestyle and your values for fame and fortune
We're continuing our theme of starting fresh with #SeptemberisthenewJanuary. Last week I proposed a small fashion challenge to shake up your cool weather style. Now, we're diving right into headspace. The fame and the fortune are up to you, but certainly: peace of mind, balance, better relationships, better finances, maybe even happiness… I’ve […]
Clean slate, part 2: September is the new January
This September, we're exploring that "clean slate" feeling so many of us have at this time of year. It's your 2nd chance on New Year's resolutions, in a way. This month we're going to expand on this idea of maximizing the energy of seasonal changes, and I'm looking forward to your feedback. Author and […]
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Socks with sandals: authorized for transitioning to autumn
Socks with sandals is always a fashion faux pas, and pantyhose went out in the '00s. I dare you to do this don't. This footwear combo has shown up on the runway and in fashion editorials many times over the years, but it's been embraced and can be seen all over Instagram now. Photo […]
The space around the body: 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale
I was very happy to learn that two women architects are curating the Venice Architecture Biennale this year (through November 25). Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, founders of Grafton Architects in Dublin, are this year's directors. Their chosen theme, Freespace, has a lot of ideas and values in common with our work in Manuma: […]
Make plans: Summer of our best intentions
For us in the Northeast US, summer is entirely too short. Winter seems to last 8 months, autumn takes its sweet time, and spring lasts about 2 weeks. Plan your summer pleasure A few bits of considered advice have made their way across my screen lately, and it all boils down to this: we as adults […]
Shop with Manuma for World Fair Trade Day
Today is World Fair Trade Day 2018. Our Facebook shop is open, featuring a selection of handmade jewelry from our refugee artisan neighbors here in Hartford. You may also shop directly in our Shopify storefront, here. This partnership was formed to provide a wider market for our entrepreneurial neighbors. In that spirit of amplifying […]
A certain kind of woman: an unconventional Mother’s Day gift guide
An unconventional, but thoroughly considered, list of suggestions for wives, partners, girlfriends, stepmoms, grandmothers, aunties, moms. Mother’s Day gift giving is not terribly creative. It’s extremely gendered, even Victorian. We think we’ve put together some subversive suggestions to help you think outside the box. True, not every suggestion will suit every woman. But every woman […]