TERENCE MISELO writes
A woman’s pride is slowly moving away from the kitchen but extending to everything she is. This includes the clothes she wears, the hairstyle , the make up and even the job she has. For gospel artiste, radio presenter and activist Elizabeth Mwanza Mhlanga, her pride lies so much in staying African with a special attachment to head wraps famously known in Bemba as’ Chitambala’.
Elisabeth has been wearing head wraps since her teens and along the process she has leart the art of styling them to create a perfect look for a person wearing them. Her love for the head attires has prompted her to even organise an exclusive event dubbed the ‘ Chitambala Affair’ planned for February 9, 2019 from 14:00hrs to 17:00hrs.
This event will take place at Casa Portico in Longacres, Lusaka.
“I’ ve been wearing head wraps from the time I was a teenager (because my hair was too difficult to comb ). But even after I learnt how to take care of my hair, I fell in love with the look. So the art of wearing them has improved over the years,” narrates Elisabeth.
“As a result, many women have approached me asking me to style Head wraps for events and photo shoots. Many others kept on asking me to teach them to style their own head wraps. This gave me the idea to come up with an event where women can come and learn how to tie head wraps for themselves. I picked the name “The Chitambala affair”.”
She says the event is a get together for ladies who want to add some variety to their look.
“ Head wraps can totally transform a look, they have gradually started to take over as hairstyles (a great option for those “bad hair” days!),” she says.
This occasion will also involve some dedicated lessons on styling and preparing these wraps.
“We will also have someone to teach on how to tie the Nigerian Gele as well as a make up artist to share valuable information about beauty and make up,” adds Elisabeth.
But why insist on the head wraps?
“We grew up seeing our grand mothers and mothers wearing “ifitambala ” so this is not something new to Zambia. The Late Mama Betty Kaunda and The Late Mama Kankasa were notable people who embraced the Head wrap look,” said Elisabeth.
“The Head wrap style slowly began to die when many alternative hairstyles were available so I feel this is a chance to preserve a trend that our grandmothers and mothers introduced to us. A few people have the misconception that only older women can wear head wraps but with such a wide variety of colorful and beautiful chitenge fabric, anyone can rock a Chitambala.”
The event will be one of the many platforms for women to get fashion, beauty and make up tips that will enhance their God-given beauty.
