Who is the Heart behind
Day MyLane?
My Dad writing a book around the evolution of the people, place and culture and history of my village into the present-day vibrant town in the Eastern part of Nigeria, and on the continent of Africa was his way of connecting back to his roots.
In helping him out with the typing (before he learned how to type on a computer) and reviewing multiple drafts of his manuscripts, the seed was planted in me to research and learn a lot about my roots.
Born to Nigerian parents and moving back to Nigeria from the USA, my parents were intentional about immersing all of their children in the culture. This showed up as a minimum of three trips in a year to my hometown in the Eastern part of Nigeria. Those experiences shaped my worldview on what it means to know my roots. The journey to my hometown, the birthplace of my forefathers, provided an opportunity for my siblings and I to ask questions about the people, places and cuisine.
Gathering around the open fire with the other grandkids in my grandpa’s compound to listen to folk tales, I have learnt that it is not just about where I am from but about the stories around who my people are that connects me to my roots. Through Day MyLane, I would like to share these stories with the next generation as it was shared with me and with generations before.
As a storyteller, I am an ambassador of my culture, and it is both a privilege and an honor to be able to capture the unique and rich stories that make up who I am and how I see myself. There is power in storytelling and I believe my experiences make for a great book, perhaps in the future, and all begins with sharing my experience through the Day MyLane blog.
Day MyLane helps you connect with your roots by giving you a say in how you choose to show up, through clothing, stories, cuisine, and experiences.
My desire is that one day, the next generation gets a taste of some of these exciting experiences or at a minimum, propels them to find out more about their roots.
No shaking! We got you!
A trained lawyer with a keen attention to detail and proficiency with research, Chika considers herself more a Chief Experience Officer which provides an opportunity to apply her life experience to her creative process. By combining her past with her passion, she creates wearable art filled with powerful messages, engaging subtext, and thrilling designs that celebrate with an African flavor and flair.
Kick Back and Relax. “When I’m not designing new items, I enjoy enhancing my knowledge through wonderful experiences or adventures. This includes assisting a trained chef, creating no-sew blankets for hospital patients, and volunteering at music festivals.”
As one who enjoys a variety of music genres including African Highlife, Afrobeats, contemporary jazz and invigorating Praise and worship music, she is also drawn to vibrant colors, textures and brilliant storytelling and this is reflected in her creative process and designs.
Visual Storytelling. Candid and macro photography have a special place in her heart and all it takes is one good shot to invigorate her. An ideal “kick back and relax” day would include subdued evenings watching Nigerian TV series and movies as well as good Korean cuisine and dramas or and spending quality time with friends and family.
“More than anything, I want to inspire a sense of a broader understanding of different cultures and experiences with a focus on our Pan-African connections.”
– Chika, Founder/CEO, Creative Director Day MyLane.
Q&A with Day My Lane’s Founder
What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?
No two days are typical. It could be responding to emails from the graphic designer to researching new products or researching Social Media for potential collaborators and or listening to a podcast interview or reading articles curated by my google alerts or watching YouTube videos to gain a foundational understanding of an unfamiliar topic or of other creatives to better understand how they are showing up as solution providers or valuable resources of information.
How do you bring ideas to life?
Some ideas have come to me while listening to a podcast or during the course of a conversation or in the middle of my sleep. In the past when these ideas came to me I would wait until I woke up to write them down. Now, I have several notebooks and my phone for scribbling notes or ideas down. I flesh them out as time progresses as I begin to gain clarity on the overall message of the design and how that fits in with the mission and vision of the brand.
I draw my inspiration from the different things: It could be the most minute of details of a painting or an arrangement of fresh flowers, the color composition, combinations, spatial layout, photography angles, the texture of a fabric or snippets of a random conversation that draw me in.
It is always exciting to see how fleeting ideas birthed in my mind’s eye translate into the finished product received by the customer. On projects where I collaborate with a graphic artist, I begin with providing a design brief with as much information as possible to best convey my initial thoughts. When the art is good to go, I go over colors, fabric and text color combinations with the printer and address any questions that come up before we go into production.
What is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
I should do it more, “Combinatory Play” I learn by trying out things that feed my mind in a positive way. This could be volunteering time towards a cause outside my area of expertise, taking a day trip to a nearby local festival or doing a walking tour of your neighborhood, The varied selection of activities can get my creative juices flowing.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Be more forgiving when I fail or fall short and giving myself and others grace knowing that things take time and will not always work out when and how I want it but eventually it comes together.
What is one creative solution or invention or innovation that you would like?
I call it the “Laundry and Declutter time meter” which is a device that can tell when last you wore a piece of clothing and alert you to items that are taking up space that have not been worn in a significant period of time and perhaps need to be repurposed or donated.
What does Day MyLane mean to me?
A legacy, a repository of valuable information for generations to learn, appreciate and be proud of their rich African cultural heritage and identity.
What is one takeaway you would like people to leave with?
Your humanity is your superpower. Treat the people you meet along the way first as human beings before anything.