Blog feature - Merryroseberry

This is the first blog feature on my blog! :)
In this first blog feature I have interviewed Marja from MerryRoseBerry.
She is a very talented and creative fashion designer and seller from Finland and I'm glad to have her story in my first blog feature.Enjoy!! :)

Tell us a little about yourself.
My name is Marja and I'm 24 years old fashion designer from eastern Finland. I'm married to a man I've known since childhood and we've got 9 months old baby girl named Mimosa and four years old doberman girl named Nikita.

Dog plush small yellow checkered recycled

How did you get started working as a fashion designer?
In my Etsy shop I sell textile products decorated with the illustrations I have originally drawn as a little girl. I got the idea for my products about a year ago when my parents gave me a box full of my childhood drawings. They were funny and clumsy, being enchanting at the same time. They were so silly they made us smile, even laugh. I couldn't help the feeling that those twenty years old drawings had potencial, they might make other's smile as well. I had been plannig to make some kind of textile products, but I didn't know what could be the "thing" which would really make them something special. So the idea came up quite spontaneously.

Is there anything in particular that inspires you?
I get inspired of pop-culture: movies, music, art, fashion... Very often I get inspired when I see something lovely someone else has made. It can be anything I see, though, just some everyday thing: I might design a dress inspired by a traffic-sign or a garbage bag. I could say everything I see is somehow interesting. I seek inspiration from secondhand markets, it is lovely to give a new life to some old fabric or piece of clothing. When working with textiles my creative process is usually material based. The materials "tell" me what they want to be, if I give them enough time. I usually don't draw pictures beforehand. Also exhilirating and creative tv-shows like "Project Runway" cause me an inspiration rush.

Upcycled tote yellow tiger

What is your favorite item in your shop right now, and why?
I think my own personal favorite in my Etsy shop is the white pouch with spooky creature. The character is very unique, I don't even know myself what it is! I wish the four year old little me could tell me the story behind this weird fella. He looks kind of creepy and sympathetic at the same time.

Recycled pouch spooky creature

Is there another artistic medium that you would love to try but haven’t yet?
Beside textile crafts I'm interested in many mediums in the field of art; graphic design, photography, drawing... Every once in a while I stumble upon some lovely new technique I would love to try. One thing that has always fascinated me but will most likely never try is drawing tattoos :D

Do you have any upcoming projects that you want to share with us?
I would love to have more recycled shirts and other pieces of clothing with my childhood illustrations in my Etsy shop.

I also have opened a "secondary Etsy shop" where I'm intended to sell everything else than products with my childhood drawings. There will be upcycled clothing, textiles and maybe some other creations, too.

Do you have any goals for this year you would like to share, relating to your art or your business?
Right now my life is full of my baby, and I don't have the time and energy to put as much effort to creative activities and my Etsy shop than before. I'm looking forward for the time I will have a little less sleep debt, and a little moment for my creative hobbies every day. I really miss my sewing machine. So, my goal is to learn to combine my creative projects and motherhood.

Links
I have a blog about crafts, Etsy and clothing/fashion: http://roseberrystyle.blogspot.com/
And ofcourse my Etsy shops: PrettyRoseBerry & MerryRoseBerry

Green pouch funny creature

Coupon
Marja is offering a 15% off coupon code to all you readers, the magic word is MERRYDISCOUNT15

Thank you very much Marja for your time and the coupon!