Interview with a star - Irina

Today we are sharing an interview with Irina who runs TomBjornDesigns shop on Etsy.

How long have you been creating? How did your journey in art and creativity begin?
I have been creating things ever since I remember myself. My grandmother was making amazing silk embroidery on those old mechanical sewing machines and I used to sit next to her and watch for hours. This is how I learn patience. When I crochet my necklaces or simply arrange my boxes with beads now I can be concentrated on this process for many hours in a row. Otherwise I am a very impatient person!

Last year I started making much more things than I could use for myself or give away as a present. So I simply decided to share things I make with wider audience. This is how my shop came to existence.

How would you describe your style?
My style is a happy style. There is some indie in it, some grandma vintage, and a lot of upcycled ideas!

I have so much more ideas on my mind! I write my ideas down and only if the future item seems to me colorful, happy, versatile, with option of using upcycled materials, then I will and create it.

This Happy tiny buttons versatile necklace is made of tiny buttons that I discovered in one of the second hand shops and I decided to give them a new life:



What inspires you?
I find my inspirations mainly in my colorful dreams, my memories of my grandma, shopping in vintage stores and nature, of course. I also love to look through the shops on Etsy, especially the ones which are using upsycled materials. Then I am coming up with my own ideas.

These earrings are made of upcycled wooden beads which I brought back to life by crocheting around them. I love this vintage feeling about them:


What items in your shop do you most enjoy making and why?
I can't help it, I LOVE making my versatile crocheted necklaces. First I decide on the color palette, then I start playing with amount of beads, and then finally the crocheting precess - oh, this is the best meditation I have ever had. I can sit for 5-6 hours in a row and just think about something or listen to an audio book while my fingers create magic with beads and cotton thread.

This is one of my favorite items - all the beads are equally round and it only adds to the meditative process. I can even crochet without looking now :)


What is the best reaction you have gotten from one of your pieces?
I love my customers! Their feedback is so important for my creative process.
Once I had a custom order of 8 similar necklaces for bride-maids - the bride (who was the buyer) loved the idea of versatility and thought that the bride maids will have similar necklaces, but they will wear them in 8 different ways. Several months later a bride has sent me a photo of all 8 girls wearing my necklaces (one wore it as bracelet and one even as a headband). I was so happy that my work contributed to the most important day in her life!

What is the day in your studio look like?
Ah, this is a hard question. I don't have a proper studio, I share an apartment and all my beads and threads are all around.


I study full time and do many extracurricular projects, so I don't have much time to actually sit and work on my items. I do them in the metro, on the lectures, coffee shops - everywhere.



and I love the reactions of people around me - they usually smile and some even ask what I am doing.

If I can make people smile - this is my best feedback and motivation to continue creating :)

Story by Irina (TomBjornDesigns)