Fidan Manafova

Fidan Manafova was interested in household waste upcycling and started a blog on social media when she was on maternity leave. She describes the DIY (“do it yourself”) concept as a storm of different feelings and emotions when you see the outcomes of your efforts. “Concrete pumpkins were the first items made based on the “recycle DIY” concept. I created them with my daughter at our country cottage. Later, we started sharing videos on the production of home decoration items using different types of household waste,” Fidan says.

Shortly after she became interested in producing decoration items using reusable materials, she got an opportunity to show her handicrafts to professionals. She joined the contest “Özün Yarat” (“Do It Yourself”) held by UN annually since 2021 to promote innova- tive solutions on household waste upcycling. Her work received an award in the category “The best wood handicraft” out of 250 entries. Fidan adds that the award greatly inspired her: “I understood that I should develop my work.”

“People are interested in this topic and want to learn more. I’m happy and proud when I receive messages from people saying that my works have motivated them to have the same hobby,” Fidan says. Fidan also trains others to upcycle obsolete items. Now, she is making plans to hold her own workshop, where people could learn more about upcycling.