Hey there, thanks for stopping by to read about our story!
We are Mariana and Simon, software/robotics engineers by education and tinkers by passion. It all started as I, Mariana, realized I spend lots of time in my office job designing stuff (not work related) and then hurrying home after 5pm to sit on the sewing machine. I literally had a folder "private" on each workplace so far, which contained the projects that really interested me.
So that's how we got the courage to quit our computer jobs and jump into the wild. We spend half of the year handcrafting - Mariana is sewing mountaineering clothes from high quality merino wool (and much more) and Simon is creating beautiful wooden lamps (and much more). We haven't forgotten our geeky selves, and you can see that if you look behind the shenes - at Simon designing a new lamp stand in the 3D construction software SolidWorks, or Mariana cracking Inkscape (a free software for vector graphics) to make realistic pattern simulations.
The other half of the year we are living in the mountains, another dream come true. We are hut guardians in a little charming hut on 2428m in the Swiss alps (biferten.ch). It's wonderful up there, come visit.
If you wonder where the name "Nanka" comes from... it's how we used to call my (Mariana's) great-grandma in the local Rodophes dialect in Bulgaria. My gradma is my inspiration for sewing. As a child, I used to stare at her for hours, as she was sewing on her old, mechanical Singer machine in from of the dusty window in her sunny old house. I have my overlock placed on the same machine now!
The rest about us you will learn from the products we create, because me make things we wear and use ourselves and which we identify with. Natural, pure, simple, comfortable, useful but dreamy, beautiful.
Life is wonderful! Животът е прекрасен! Z'Läbä fägt!
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Reviews
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jonathon on Apr 28, 2026
5 out of 5 starsThe product is very warm and soft and comfortable. You can tell a lot of love goes into their product as well as when you open the box. Would buy from again easily.
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Sarah on Apr 10, 2026
5 out of 5 starsPerfect for my 1/4 mile, flat commute from home to ski lift. Great looking, streamlined design! Easy to install.
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Megan on Mar 22, 2026
5 out of 5 starsI love my hoodie and t-shirt. They’re a perfect fit and super cute!
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Catherine on Feb 28, 2026
5 out of 5 starsI am so happy with my lovely new hoodie - thank you so much!
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Vivian on Feb 16, 2026
5 out of 5 starsGorgeous handmade softest merino wool ochre onesie for our toddler grandbaby...simply adorable and so well made!! Great communication with seller and fast shipping! Our baby loves the softness and it is so easy to put it on. Thank you so much!!! You are amazing!!
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Natalie on Dec 14, 2025
5 out of 5 starsKeeps the little one super warm while also being lightweight so they can still move around! This will be worn everyday over the winter
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Giacomo on Nov 27, 2025
5 out of 5 starsBeautiful product, nicely crafted and awesome colors and graphics
About NankaCreative
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Here is Mariana in the sewing workshop of Nanka. Our baby Vera gets to help a lot :-) -
The joyful colors of the workshop -
If there's one thing you should know about us it's "We love mountains!" -
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The workshop is slowly expanding and now we have hired our first happy helper!
Shop members
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Simon
Owner, Designer, And Everything Else
Simon is a robotics engineer with a glint for mountaineering and talent for handcrafting and mechanics. As a child he was building legos and ships, and cable cars.
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Mariana
Owner, Designer, And Everything Else
Mariana has degrees in journalism and computer science, but what really lights her up is handcrafting & mountains. As a child she loved nailing together furniture for her sister’s dolls, making notebooks, and staring at her greatgrandma sewing.
Production partners
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Kukulinaz
Bulgaria
The prints on the tshirts are created by the talanted Rossi from Kukulinaz.
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