Kirsi, Frenchic Brand Ambassador from Jokela, is being interviewed.

What is the story behind your name "Little Ray of Sunshine", and how does it reflect you?

"When I started my Insta account, of course I had to come up with a name for it. Many nice names were already in use, so "Little Sunbeam" comes from my daughter, who was a toddler at the time, and a real sunbeam.

Although the daughter is not really visible in the pictures on the account, the name is there for that reason. Nowadays, when my daughter is already a teenager, “Päivänsäde” is our meringue-yellow, mansard-roofed home, so I sometimes also use the name “Villa Päivänsäde” in different contexts.

What city do you live in and what kind of person are you?

"I live in Jokela, Tuusula, which is a small and rustic bird sanctuary. Jokela is usually remembered for slightly more unpleasant events, so I want to highlight my own home village in its positive meaning.

"I'm a down-to-earth and rustic introvert who enjoys staying at home and tinkering with tuning, painting, and gardening whenever I can. There's also a social side to me, but I love being able to do things by myself and listen to good music at the same time."

What music is playing in your headphones?

"I'm pretty picky when it comes to music, only heavy metal and heavy rock make me change the radio channel. I usually listen to music according to my mood; sometimes 80s-90s pop, sometimes Latin pop because I love and do Zumba, sometimes I listen to evergreen classics like Nat King Cole and classics from that era in my headphones."

I might also listen to the soundtracks of my favorite TV series while I'm painting furniture. Often a song culminates in a specific project that always comes to mind when I hear the song again.

Favorite Podcaster?

"I don't listen to podcasts at all. I prefer to listen to music than to speech. Listening to speech requires concentration, and I prefer to focus on projects and my own thoughts, so music works better as a background for these."

Do you have a background in any surprising professions or hobbies that have influenced your current creative work?

"I am a visualist, photo organizer and content producer by profession. So for my work, I am constantly dealing with interior design, colors and trends. Before becoming a visualist, I worked as an interior design salesperson and I can also assemble furniture, so I understand the nuts and bolts. These skills are useful when renovating and renovating furniture.

When I was young, I also loved dollhouses, putting everything small and lovely into them. I've definitely inherited the skill of seeing materials with new eyes and for a new purpose from that time. In a dollhouse, small bottle caps, pieces of wood and scraps of fabric take on a whole new meaning and life. I do the same today, just on a slightly larger scale.

How did you discover Frenchic products, and what made you fall in love with them?

"I was doing a small kitchen renovation after my divorce and needed the perfect green wall paint to go with my William Morris Pimpernel wallpaper.

My friend Kat had a shop in Jokela called Uniikkitehdas at the time, and she had Frenchic paints for sale. I borrowed some painted wooden sticks from her to take home and I modeled them in the kitchen, looking for the right shade. And I found the most perfect green in the world! The kitchen walls are now Green with Envy , and that's where my love for Frenchic paints began."

Could you tell us about a project that has been particularly meaningful to you and why?

"Actually, all projects are meaningful in some way. In every project, I always learn something new; about colors, techniques, execution, ideation, etc. The projects have given me the courage to believe in myself, my way and style of doing things, and of course have given me more new ideas. When I managed to sell the first chest of drawers I had made, it was a pretty amazing feeling, because someone other than just me liked my style and my handiwork.

Four years ago, when I divorced my husband, I bought our house from him and started renovating the interior to make it look my own. Room by room, I learned how to level, paint and wallpaper. Although my boyfriend helps me sometimes, I have done many of the work myself, and of course I chose the colors, paint and wallpaper. I am more than happy with the end result. And apparently many others like this style too, at least based on the comments on Instagram.

It's absolutely amazing if someone gets inspiration and courage to renovate their own home by seeing the color and material choices in our home.

A couple of summers ago, the municipality organized the "Houses of Stories" event in Jokela, where various homes opened their doors to visitors for a day, telling the story of their own house. We had over a hundred people visit us that day and it was wonderful to talk to them about interior colors, wallpaper, and style. An event like that also gives you a lot and I left a lot of nice memories from the day.

Which Frenchic shade best reflects your personality, and why?

"Definitely all the lovely green shades, like Green with Envy and Bradstock . Greens are calming and in winter they replace natural green when it's white and grey outside. Green is also a beautiful background for other colors. We also have a green front door painted in the Frenchic shade " Victory Lane ."

How do you balance creative work and other life obligations?

"When I want to blow my brains out and do nothing, I usually watch a movie or TV series. In the summer, I work outside in the garden. Flea markets and garage sales are wonderful places to forget everything else, except for the treasures hidden around me. Ideas and tinkering projects are constantly spinning in my head, which fortunately doesn't bother me.

Many tuning ideas mature little by little and at some point become a physical reality. And because people also need to move, my love of dance and music means hot Latin rhythms to the beat of Zumba a couple of times a week. When dancing, you have to focus only on the rhythm and steps, so your head is completely empty of everything else.

Do you have any special sources of inspiration or idols that you haven't shared with your followers before?

"In addition to Instagram, I also find inspiration from Pinterest, interior design magazines, films and TV series, or even the interior design of a restaurant. I often combine several ideas I've seen in different places in my mind and make them my own whole."

It may sound like a terrible herring salad to outsiders, but it works for me. And at the same time, very unique and different things are created for both interior design and projects. My latest “idol” is Jennifer Lanne, who paints wonderful landscapes that resemble old paintings on linen, for example, and makes them into background fabrics, pillows and bags.

"I follow several like-minded interior designers on Insta, who are full of ingenuity and ideas for recycling and repurposing. It's wonderful to exchange ideas and chat with Insta friends about anything."

Who are you following on Instagram right now?

"Although who! But if a few wonderful inspiration accounts must be mentioned from Finland, then

@wildwineinkatvee

@rollingfactory_1888

@stormkullan

I follow several foreign Insta accounts and there are all sorts of wonderful things on them that I can draw ideas from for my own projects, like the aforementioned Jennifer Lanne can be found on Insta @jenniferlanne.studio "

How would you describe your interior design style, and how is it reflected in your projects?

"The interior design style of our home is a mix of Astrid Lindgren's Marikki and The Little Mermaid, Carl Larsson's paintings and English cottage style. The colours are muted and soft, the wallpaper is patterned and the interior is maximally rich, full of old and vintage.

I like old objects, furniture and history, so it also shows in the interior design and the projects I do. I read a lot of fairy tales as a child, so all the related themes etc. are fun to implement in my own projects. For example, the Alice in Wonderland chest of drawers was wonderful to come up with ideas for and implement.

I also use a lot of color in my projects, I don't paint anything white, I just want the furniture to have expression and joy. I make my own "decoupage" pictures using artificial intelligence and attach them to the furniture. The only limit to decorating is your imagination! "

Tell us what you think is the next hot interior design trend.

"Definitely colors, colors and colors. I wonder if the white/gray/beige style will finally give way to colors. It's also wonderful to notice that abundance and coziness are starting to be trendy again. A minimalist and all-white home is boring and impersonal.

Of course, everyone has their own taste, but I personally swear by colors, vintage, and abundance. Recycling is definitely a permanent interior design trend that is here to stay, because the world is already drowning in stuff."

Do you have any future dreams or projects you would like to realize?

"I dream of having my own business in the field of home improvement and recycled interior design. A single parent can't just jump into the unknown, so I'm developing my idea little by little and waiting until the moment is right.

I also dream of a truly old house with an old stone barn in the yard, where I can build my own workshop/studio, as well as a shop space for my “business.” Among the smaller projects I have in mind are a couple of fun chests of drawers, for which I will use images made with artificial intelligence.

Painting an old upholstered chair with Frenchic chalk paint is also on the to-do list, as long as I can find a chair that fits. I've never painted fabric before, only lampshades, so this will definitely be a fun experiment."

How do you take ecology and sustainable development into account in your projects?

"I mainly use recycled and old materials in my projects.

Sometimes I have to go to the hardware store, but I try to find many of the parts I need for reupholstering secondhand. When I buy recyclable furniture for myself or for reupholstering, I try to find long-lasting materials, such as wood. I don't reupholster chipboard furniture except in exceptional cases.

I also make the most of the materials I use, and use the leftover materials in subsequent projects. So I save almost everything! I also get materials from my friends and relatives. I guess I really am the “Sweet Vilen” of my own life. "

What advice or motto guides you in your creative work?

""You can try everything at least once" ... you shouldn't be afraid of failures. You can always learn something from them. Everything can be dismantled, repaired, changed, repainted ... if the end result is not to your liking. Sometimes the craziest ideas are the best."

Do you have pets in your household? If so, who are they?

"We don't have any pets, but my boyfriend has a 13-year-old wire-haired dachshund named Ike. He's our bonus dog who occasionally spends time with us and requires constant scratching."

What surprising fact do your followers not know about you?

"I am a completely self-taught painter and tuner. I have not attended any schools or courses in the field, but have learned by doing and experimenting."

Is there a particular renovation project that you are particularly proud of?

"This isn't really a renovation project, but it was the first time I had upholstered an antique sofa myself. Luckily, the springs were in good condition, so for this project, I only had to replace the surface padding and upholstery. Luckily, I got consulting help from a co-worker who is an upholsterer by training.

"Not the easiest project and it took about a week of evening and weekend work, but it was finished! The lovely sofa, now upholstered in green velvet, is one of my favorite pieces of furniture."

Tell us a secret hack you always use in your own projects.

"Frenchic brown wood wax works almost anywhere. I use it to patina gold frames, decoupage pictures, furniture surfaces... You should always have a jar of brown wood wax in your cupboard waiting for a moment of inspiration."

Tell us what project is currently in the works or on the "planning table".

"In the garage, several chests of drawers and a small table are waiting for a new look and life. I already have quite clear ideas in mind for some pieces of furniture, while others are still brewing and waiting for inspiration. Usually, the piece of furniture can tell you what it wants to be.

The design language of the furniture often influences the style you choose to create. I want the furniture I customize to always have a story to tell, as if it were a page from a storybook. Next on the list is a coffee table with a carp swimming around in it!

Another, slightly "bigger" project is when I plan to turn the garage into a workspace for myself in the spring. Right now I'm painting and tinkering in the living room, or wherever. At the moment the garage is full of stuff, so there's still quite a bit of cleaning ahead of me before I can even decorate my new workspace.

Thank you, Cherry!

Follow Kirsi's colorful and inspiring account on Instagram here @Pieni_päivänsäde