Etsy Shop Fav : Mireio

La Boheme Papillon Napkins Set of 4 $28.00

If you're looking for a lovely & delightful place to relax and pamper yourself or your home Mireio @ Etsy is the place to be! Just browsing her beautiful spa pillows, hand poured soy candles, sachets, and linens are sure to take you away... some place serene, at ease, and of course, some place that smells wonderful! Mireio is also a great place to pick up the perfect gift for Mother's Day, which is creeping up pretty quick! Wende, owner & creator of Mireio, was nice enough to do an interview with me for the blog, take a look below to find out more about Mireio, Wende, and her fantastic products! Be sure to visit Wende's awesome blog Evidently and follow Wende on Twitter for her Weekly Twittercast The Best of Etsy!


Q. Your site & designs are so lovely! Tell everyone what they can expect to find when shopping at Mireio? What got you started selling on Etsy? & Which one of your own products do you find yourself using the most?

A. Mireio is all about Affordable Luxury. I'm a firm believer that budget shouldn't equal deprivation! So, I strive to provide affordable housewares that are not only useful and earth friendly, but beautiful too! Most of my items feature some sort of vintage component and I'm always looking for new ways to reinterpret vintage items. From photos to descriptions to the packaging of your purchase, shopping at Mireio is an experience in luxury. I started selling on Etsy as a Vintage seller. And I found the more I sold vintage, the more I really wanted a store that would showcase my own work. Eventually, Mireio was launched and I've been busy ever since! I can't keep my store stocked, which is a good thing! As for the item I use, that's pretty easy. I have a hard-core candle addiction. Product testing new fragrance blends gives me lots of reasons to indulge that addiction. However, I still use my own product exclusively. In fact, we have different scents for different spaces. My husband loves the Vanilla Sandalwood in the living room. It's such a universal fragrance. I always have a Tuberose candle available in our bedroom. It's soft and romantic and I think sets the mood!

Q.Are you a self-taught artist/crafter? Or have you had any professional training in art or design?

A. I am self-taught. My mother was a professional seamstress--but could not teach me to sew. Not that she didn't try! She could read patterns and was excellent at following those directions. I was more, "Hey, look, pretty fabric. I think I'll make something with that." For that reason, I draft all my own patterns. I'm useless with those store-bought instructions. I much prefer the trial and error approach--although, I'm not sure my husband and child appreciate listening to me "solve" my sewing issues. Ahem. Sometimes finding that solution can leak out of my studio and into the common spaces. They are extraordinarily understanding about my creative process, though. And they're my biggest fans, which is really cool!

Q. You have an excellent range of products on Mireio! Since you’re a multi-talented crafty lady…Do you work with any other crafty or artistic mediums that we don’t see on Mireio?

A. I'm an amateur photographer and a long time blogger. I abuse comma rules daily on my blog--is that a craft? In reality though, Mireio doesn't leave me a lot of free-time to do other crafts. However, I so adore to sew, it's ok. I do wish I could find some time to sew a dress for myself. But then, I start looking at the people who design on etsy and I think, "Ah, shoot. I'll just have someone make me something." I love handmade, and it doesn't have to be made by me to make me happy.

Q. Do you have any new & exciting projects in the works? For Mireio or otherwise?

A. I do! I do! I'm forever expanding the Mireio product line. I wish I could sew and produce as quickly as I dream! But I do have plans to move Mireio into the Bedroom next spring. Pillows, candles, linens, and lingerie. I'm in the planning stage and because I use so much vintage in my work, I'm busy collecting resources and supplies. As well, come this holiday season in addition to The Best of Etsy weekly lists (a Twitter cast I do ever Wednesday) I will also be putting up The Best of Etsy Gift Guides. You'll be able to come to my blog, Evidently (http://evidently.org) and find my choices for the holidays.

Q. I love how you tastefully incorporate vintage materials into your products…You also had a vintage shop on Etsy…Is there any Vintage items that you collect and/or can you tell me about a favorite vintage item from your own collection?

A. Would it surprise you to know I'm not a collector? I really don't have anything I collect. But my home is full of vintage items I use on a daily basis. Form AND function is the rule around here. But I do have this beautiful red reticulated metal tray that I bought at a garage sale 15 years ago. I paid nothing for it, but adored it. I had only been married for 3 years and we were still living on a futon. When we moved from Seattle a few years later, the movers didn't pack it. And my former land-lord couldn't locate it. I was crushed. Ten years later, I was window shopping in downtown San Anselmo, California. I saw something from the street that looked familiar--I rushed into the store and there propped up against a counter was my tray. Not a replica, but my missing tray. It had just been brought into the store, it wasn't even priced yet. I have no idea how it ended up in an antiques store 2 sates away, or how it found me again. Needless to say, I bought it! And since then, I've personally packed it for every move. It sits in my living room where it keeps remote controls when we remember to put them away.

Q. Where can we find Mireio’s products?

A. Right now, Mireio products are exclusively on Etsy. (http://mireiodesigns.com) I do sell to individual designers, so occasionally my work can be found in their showrooms. However I'm not accepting wholesale orders at the moment, so Etsy is where to find me!

Q. Just one question! Tell me 3 more interesting facts about yourself!

A. Oh wow, I find these questions hard. Ok, three things: 1. I have questionable taste in movies. If it was a hit, I probably hated it and vice versa. My all time favorite movie is The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension. "No matter where you go, there you are." 2. I'm really indecisive. The more choices I have the worse I am. I gave up eating Ice Cream because the freezer aisle in my local supermarket can stump me for hours. Really, whatever happened to just plain Chocolate, Vanilla, and Strawberry? Chocolate Mocha Almond Fudge or Coconut Banana Cream Surprise? What's up with that? Did we really need to go there? I don't think so. 3. I'm passionate about the color yellow, my husband, The Raconteurs (ok, anything Jack White does), Twitter, and Paris Tea. Probably not in that order, though.

Spa Pillow - Your Favorite Sweater $27.00

Bath Salts Sachets Vanilla Woods Set of 3 $10.00


Passion Fruit Soy Candle Vintage 50's Glass $25.00


Fine Art Photography Postcards Set of 5 Mireio Roses $6.50

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