THE ORIGIN OF THE BANANA CLIP GOES WAY BACK!
I would love to share an amazing story about how the name, The Mane, came about. My late mother was the one who started the whole banana clip craze in the 1980s by inventing The Mane, which she had a patent, #3998233. The unique swivel-hinge comb-barrette, nicknamed “banana clip” because of the shape, suddenly became so popular she wasn’t prepared for the demand! Many cheap inferior knock-offs were made overseas which flooded the market but couldn’t compare with hers, which were made of strong Lexan polycarbonate right here in the USA. Her patent has expired so anyone can copy the original design now, but the copies are only made overseas. Any original USA clip will have the patent number embedded in the plastic on the sides.
She actually thought of the clip in the 50s when the ponytail became popular because she didn’t like the way elastic bands were breaking the hair and causing it to fall out. After bending two plastic combs over the stove, she placed them in her hair and created a beautiful cascading pony mane affect rather than a pony tail! She went to every hair accessory company around but was told it would never sell. So, it wasn’t until the 1970s, when she finally had enough money for the mold, that she had them manufactured and sold some but not a lot. Then the 80s came along with the big hair, and the rest is history!
I am determined to continue her legacy by bringing back this incredible versatile barrette now that she is gone, and that is why I am on Etsy. There is a sad catch though. When these original clips are sold out, I won't be able to make anymore because the original plastic mold was destroyed years ago.
