30s Magazine

Last week I visited the chic flagship store from Dutch designer and artist Mariska Meijers. If her name does not ring a bell, her stationery line definitely will. It has been on the market since 2009, with new collections created each year. Mariska is known for her brightly coloured art and designs, which is also one of the reasons I was drawn to her work. But what also intrigued me is her story. A few years ago she decided to quit her job as a lawyer in the corporate world and pursue her dreams, and that is something I admire in people, especially women. Mariska Meijers pushes the envelope, and charts her own course. [continue reading after picture]

Her newly opened flagship store is ideally located in the center of Amsterdam in an old canal house. The bright colours immediately draw people in, and Mariska pays great attention to every customer crossing the treshold, giving detailed product information and telling her vintage products’ story. Her passion and love for the products were immediately very evident. [continue reading after picture]

Mariska first paints her designs in oil on canvas, and then has it digitally reproduced on textiles, birchwood, as screen prints (giclee on German etching paper) and as stationery. All textiles are produced in the Netherlands by a Dutch company that specializes in fashion prints and also works for brands like Dior, Paul Smith and Dolce and Gabbana. She prefers to work with silk which enhances the vibrant hues and captures light to then playfully reflect it. [continue reading after pictures]

Her designs differ, but they are all with an eclectic vibe, fresh approach and with bold colour combinations. She gets her inspiration from traveling and being exposed to different scenes, but also simply from a walk in the park. [continue reading after pictures]

I was especially taken by her SFC certified birch veneer trays and tray tables made in Scandanavia, her patchwork pillows, and a lovely and soft mohair and cotton throw from her 2009 collection woven by the Dutch textile museum, with a depiction of an owl. [continue reading after pictures]

The store also carries hand-picked reupholsterd vintage chairs in bright yellow and black, vintage furniture, lampshades and accessories that complement her designs, a beautiful art piece from Elizabeth Kleinveld, and copper wire bird cage lamps with multi-coloured birds from French designer Mathieu Challieres. [continue reading after pictures]

And as if her designs aren’t inspiring enough, she also has a floor to ceiling mood board in her store, full of gorgeous photographs, postcards and inspirational quotes.

The Mariska Meijers collections are sold in 15 countries around the world, including Neiman Marcus in the US. To find out more about Mariska Meijer, her store, webstore and sales locations, visit her website.