"I have always had a passion for creating art since I can remember, always picking up stones, twigs, leaves from nature, admiring the patterns of the great outdoors, which I have often put on paper. It was all on leaves, in the margins of notebooks or on napkins with coffee," she says.
A commercial artist by training, she always turned to creativity, took a drawing course, borrowed books by famous artists and spent long nights drawing and creating.
"Although I have no formal training in art, my work is the result of passion, dedication and years of experience. As a mother, I learned to appreciate the beauty in everyday moments and to translate this into your work. Every piece I create carries a piece of my soul and tells a story.I believe that true art transcends the boundaries of formal education and is born out of an inner need to create and express. My work is a reflection of this passion and the beauty I find in everyday life," says Špela Ravnikar with a sparkle in her eyes.
Alongside her full-time job, she registered her first business in 2009 and started making personalised New Year cards for companies, illustrating children's picture books and doing bespoke work, from paintings on children's bodysuits, to murals and on and on.
She also started making homemade pine resin ointments, lavender ointments, calendula ointments, natural soaps and deodorants for her own use. They weren't as popular then as they are now, but she says: "My ignorance of social media algorithms led me to the mindset of -. Everybody does it, no point in trying, the competition is too great! and unfortunately I didn't go into production of them, but they remained in the boutique range."
Her path then led her to family life and the creation of her own home. But the desire to create never fades.
She went to a meeting to rent a space for creative workshops, but instead found a full-time job. "For shihtin Zasavje, you might say," he says. "But I've clipped the wings of creativity again. The years flew by, but the colours didn't dry, they were waiting for me to clear my head and go into action."
And she went. It was as if this creative spirit was just waiting to shine in its glory again.
She quit her job and bravely embarked on her own entrepreneurial journey. She started creating unique plant terrariums, a beautiful product that brightens up the home or office - a piece of nature trapped in a glass bubble. "It was created purely by chance, out of a desire to keep this variety of beautiful plant alive. Does it do best indoors with no air intake?! It was a challenge for me to enclose the plant in a glass container, to give it the optimum conditions, the right materials and to turn an ordinary jar into a product that is beautiful, minimalist, elegant and bursting with life."
Thus, in retro glass pots on a solid oak base, small worlds grow - terrariums where every leaf and pebble blends into a balance. A wonderful gift to buy for someone on an anniversary, a personal holiday or as a token of appreciation.
The desire to place it on a tombstone led to the idea of the Memory range, where a real prepared rose with decor is captured in an elegant glass jar. A lasting tombstone decoration that says a thousand words in itself and pays tribute to our departed.
On holidays and special occasions, she also creates Arrangementswhose silence speaks louder than words.
But her creativity doesn't stop there.
"New products are being developed, most of them bespoke, which is my favourite thing. Then there's organising corporate gifts, flower arranging, baking sweet treats and banquets..." she smiles as she explains her work.
"I like to work in different ways, challenges are my passion," she says. This is also the reason why she recently joined the Catapult team as administrative support for startups and successful companies. "This is where I meet people who build reality out of ideas. Here I see the energy, the courage and the spark that I feel every time something is created. What tomorrow will bring, I let myself be surprised.
You never know, maybe sales will grow overnight and I'll need their help."
Wherever it goes, it will always be its essence - Creating. Whether with plants, colours or flavours. "It's my way of staying connected - to myself, to others and to life. Young people would call it ADHD, our generation calls it industriousness."
Find out more about Špela Ravnikar and her products at FB page MilArt.si >>
