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OSTERAKTION

Von 27. bis 31. März gibts ab einem Bestellwert von €100,- automatisch ein Set mit vier Serviettenringen im Wert von € 29,90 als Geschenk dazu.

ABOUT ME.

CLARISSAKORK is my label and was born out of my passion for interior design, my experience as a textile designer, and the desire to pursue creative work on my own. I love beautiful things, high-quality materials and neat craftsmanship. All these things and all my passion go into every item of CLARISSAKORK - they should be with you for a long time and bring you joy. FIND YOUR FAVOURITE ITEM TODAY!

15 QUESTIONS FOR CLARISSA

1
WHAT DOES YOUR SON HAVE TO DO WITH YOUR PASSION FOR CORK?

My son was at times a so-called “spit-up infant”. Let’s just say his cotton crawling mat was often stained... On top of this, we have a cat who also liked the blanket, so the blanket was more in the washing machine than on the floor - not exactly environmentally friendly. And, when the mat was actually on the floor, my son tried crawling, but unfortunately it didn't work as crawling mats are usually not non-slip. This of course annoyed him. All this meant that my first prototype was an embroidered cork mat. I put it through its paces in the bathroom. As a mum, you take your child everywhere with you; in the bathroom, he lay on the cork mat and of course he threw up as usual - but one wipe and everything was gone!

Then I started to think about it more intensively. I realised that cork perfect for children in various other ways - it stays flat on the floor when they try to crawl, and doesn't fluff either, plus bacteria don't stand a chance with cork. This makes it more or less perfect - no other material can offer this many advantages.

2
WHAT WERE THE THREE MOST IMPORTANT STEPS TO GET TO WHERE YOU ARE TODAY?

The first right decision for me was to attend a college course for textile technology in Dornbirn. I learned a lot there that I am still building on, and I was able to develop both creatively and commercially. I probably learned the most at my first company – at the tender age of 19 I was looking after big clients in the sports and textile industries. I was given a lot of independence and took a lot of decisions on my own. My job was to take developments through the prototype and production channels and at the same time make sure the quality and price were right. I had to coordinate delivery dates with suppliers and sometimes bang on the table if the quality wasn't right. Later I worked in sales on a commission basis, a job that requires a lot of stamina and persistence - calling the same potential customer again for the next project even after the 10th “no”, but often this 10th time is the one that pays off. At many stages, there were all kinds of aspects which took a lot of effort. But they are important steps to learn as an entrepreneur. In any case, it was an exciting journey and fascinating to see how different people run their businesses, how processes work in different sectors - and also to see how one would not want to do it.

3
WHAT KIND OF ACTIVITY KEEPS YOU IN THE FLOW?

I love tinkering with designs; I forget everything around me and hours go by. I also like to go to my team in the factory and discuss product ideas with them, get their opinions and work on them together. In my private life, I love walks in the forest.

4
WHAT DID YOU DO IN YOUR JOB AS A TEXTILE TECHNICIAN?

I worked in many different areas, starting as a foreign technician in Bulgaria and then a product manager. As a product manager, I accompanied major outdoor brands with their garments from the development of a design through to production. This involved everything from the choice of fabric to the development of accessories such as embroidery, printing, zips, and much more. My main tasks were fitting the cuts and planning of time and cost aspects. Later, I worked for an underwear brand in quality assurance in China, where the ball was in my court when it came to discussing the collections and setting the quality standards.

5
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT YOUR JOB?

Coming up with ideas, whether it's a graphic pattern for embroidery or when I'm thinking about a product. I do have help with individual figures, but when it comes to themes, placement and colour values, I naturally do everything on my own. I often forget the time on my laptop and spend hours trying out colours, moving everything back and forth, thinking about where it would look best - for me it's all about millimetres and nuances. Some people lose their nerve just watching, but I love it!

6
WHAT WAS YOUR DREAM JOB AS A CHILD?

I was interested in many creative jobs, such as a goldsmith, window dresser or photographer. But my dream job was always a fashion designer.

7
WHAT THREE TIPS WOULD YOU GIVE TO 15-YEAR-OLD CLARISSA?

Don't take everything so personally, be self-confident; believe in yourself and don't listen to what others say. Do your thing and do whatever makes you happy.

8
DO YOU DREAM OF CORK AT NIGHT?

It's more the cork that sometimes doesn't let me fall asleep - because I'm always thinking about what kind of products I could make, how best to implement them, what pattern might look good as embroidery or what kind of topics might be exciting for children.

9
HOW DID YOUR PASSION FOR CORK COME ABOUT?

Einerseits fasziniert mich die Optik, es ist gefärbt sehr lederähnlich und dabei aber vegan. Was die Leidenschaft entfacht hat sind die vielfältigen Einsatzmöglichkeiten: Vom Schuh bis zur Couch, einer Pinnwand fürs Kinderzimmer aus Kork oder ein Tischset bzw. Platzset für Kinder ist alles möglich – der Fantasie sind kaum Grenzen gesetzt. Und was ich daran liebe: Es ist nicht nur schön, es macht auch einfach so viel Sinn Kork zu verwenden. Kork ist gelenkschonend, warm, antibakteriell, pflegeleicht und ein nachhaltiges Naturmaterial.

10
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVOURITE SUBJECT AT SCHOOL?

Drawing and handicrafts, of course, and later at Dornbirn Technical College, fashion design.

11
WHAT DID YOU LEARN FOR LIFE ON THE JOB?

Um ehrlich zu sein hatte ich viele Jobs in vielen Bereichen. Die Visitenkarten und Mail-Adressen, die ich hatte, könnten schon ein kleines Büchlein füllen. Aber ich hatte immer tolle Jobs und wenn es mal nicht so toll war: Gelernt hab‘ ich überall etwas. Man muss nur aufmerksam sein und schauen wo man was mitnehmen kann. Oft sind es eben die kleinen Dinge, die irgendwann wichtig sind – und sei es nur zu erkennen wo die eigene Schwäche liegt oder wie man in einem Programm den einen tollen Kniff lernt. Ich war in der Textilbranche in Bulgarien und in China. Zwei Mal hat es mich auch in Werbeagenturen verschlagen. Was ich dabei vor allem gelernt habe? Alle kochen nur mit Wasser.

12
GENERALLY, WHICH TOPIC DESERVES TO BE GIVEN MORE ATTENTION?

People should think about what nature gives us, and what wonderful materials we can use. For example, leather made from pineapple and cactus, or eating jack fruit instead of meat, or using straws made from glass. In recent years, people have gone for the easy option - far too many things have been made from plastic, even though there are alternatives such as cork leather, hemp, wood or other vegan materials.

13
WHAT WAS THE MOST FORMATIVE MOMENT IN YOUR PROFESSIONAL LIFE?

I started my first job when I was 18 and just one week after I was accepted, I flew to Bulgaria for the first time with a colleague of the same age. We were responsible for quality control there, more or less on our own. Soon after this I was often there all alone. There was a lot of trust placed in me, and it was certainly no walk in the park. Every day I had to stand up to resolute sewing room managers and insist on certain standards.

But it was also formative for me to see how people live and work in Bulgaria. A completely new world opened up for me. Bulgaria is a poor country, even more then than now. The contrast for a "Wälderschmelg" (Bregenzerwald girl) was huge and I began to appreciate my homeland even more.

14
WHEN WAS THE FIRST TIME YOU HAD CORK IN YOUR HANDS?

I held cork in my hands for the first time in February 2018; not so long ago, cork was almost unknown to me. Of course, I knew cork from wine bottles and as a 70s tiled floor.

It was more by chance that I read up on its properties; I was simply amazed at how a material can have such a wealth of properties. What I like best is that cork is antimicrobial and that it absorbs and stores heat from the air.

The fact that cork is made from renewable bark - and that this bark can be harvested in such a way that the tree does not have to die in the process - was also decisive for me to work with it.

15
IF YOU COULD CHANGE ONE THING IN THE WORLD: WHAT WOULD IT BE?

Especially in the area of food, much more should be learned from the ground up. Flavourings, sugar, flavour enhancers... we eat so much rubbish that makes us sick. Many people simply don't know this, and you only find out about it when you actively look into it. I think it would be good if this topic was taught at school.

Another issue that often concerns me is how the textile industry uses our resources, and that it is cheaper to scrap whole containers of returns. There is simply far too much being produced without the necessary demand. It is simply not acceptable for it to be cheaper to throw things away than to plan better in advance or put things back into circulation.