Who are you as a designer?  

Charming to meet you! I am Siiri, a footwear and accessories designer from Finland aiming for whimsical elegance and inspired by historical romance. My designs are often characterised by knitted details, light pretty colours and cute theatricality, and are named after inspiring women like Anna Pavlova. Recently, I have become increasingly interested in fashion as activism. 

As a ballet dancer I am also fascinated by movement and bodies, which is why, my final thesis focused on utilising dancing as a creative design tool in traditional sketchbook work. With a help of somatic movement practices, the goal was to get rid of cartesian dualism and lead way to a more holistic design approach where body and mind are seen as one.  

 After graduating from HAMK in 2023 I have continued my research on bodies, their discrimination and divinity focusing on women’s bodies through a crochet rose project, rosomania. For rose – the symbol of love and romance – is also a symbol of woman’s body, its erotic essence and brutal objectivation. 

What are your strengths as a designer?  

I enjoy researching both practical and philosophical topics as well as designing with others. I am good at writing stories and love curating visual presentation of concepts. Furthermore, I still enjoy hand painting and was really good at playing with Barbies. I think I am a rather curious person. 

How do you work with sustainability?  

The short answer would be: sustainability is not black and white. However, here are two things that are especially important to me. 

1) When it comes to materials I love working with yarns and natural fibers, so trying to avoid plastic and leather as much as possible. For example, during my studies, I dedicated time learning how wool, mohair, mother of pearl and silk could be used in footwear, how they are grown, manufactored and what are the possible harms for the environment. Simply being aware of the different aspects of materials is a huge part of sustainability because knowledge will always influence better choices. 

2) Moreover, sustainablity also means emotional connection. That is when storytelling enters the picture. The world is full of sad, souless fashion with nothing to say or give and nowhere to belong to. These kind of items have no cultural value nor voice because they are unrelated to the world and dreams around us. If you want to make a product that people will treasure, I believe, it has to have a deeper message that takes shape in a well-thought, quality product. Maybe a small element of artistry needs to re-enter design? 

What do you want in the future?  

Peace, Paris and trees.  

Contact: siiri.pakarinen@icloud.com
Phone number:  +358 405016742
IG: @siiri.pakarinen
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