The artistic soul of Magdalena Nowak-Trzęsiok – the interview she gave us sheds light on her life. She is co-owner of the luxury brand Novelle – Home Couture, which treats furniture like grand tailoring. In her artistic studio, filled with easels and samplers, extravagant and refined designs are born. We ask Magdalena Nowak-Trzęsiok how the artist is doing in the business world in an interview with GentleWoman.
Table of Contents:
- Artistic soul, photographer, fashion designer….
- “Remember such tables we have to create so that you can get on them and dance on them”.
- Interiors are like women
- First there is the vision
- Tailor-made furniture
- With my heart I am an artist, and I understand businesswoman
Artistic soul, photographer, fashion designer….
Patrycja Tomaszczyk: Her natural habitat is the studio, where you can see easels, material samples, unusual designs, and you would think that in a moment I would be talking to a photographer or fashion designer, certainly with a very artistic soul. In a way, yes, because fashion is very important in her work. How will she feel in front of the camera? That I don’t know, because it’s not exactly her natural environment. Undoubtedly, such an environment is the furniture world, the furniture world. She is an interior designer, furniture architect creates unique designs, is co-owner and founder of the Novelle brand, we will meet Magdalena Nowak Trzêsik in just a moment.
– Ms. Magda, before we talk about your daily work, about what your work is like, because I think that’s the word I can safely use, I’d like us to go back in time a little bit. We meet Magda a teenager who has been present in her dad’s manufactory from a young age, watching this daily work. When did you first feel that the direction practiced by your father, the family business was a place that would also be related to your profession in the future.
Magdalena Nowak-Trzęsiok: I think when I was a teenager, I was maybe 12/13 years old, when I really felt the need to change my environment. I was already paying attention to details at the time. I often rearranged the furniture in my room, as well as created models for my dolls and sewed dresses for them. That I wanted to work and follow my father’s path was something I felt as an older teenager. It was somewhere when I was about 19 years old. Once I graduated from high school, I had a lot of confusion in my head, because I was interested in photography and interiors and confectionary fashion. So it was a bit under the influence of my parents, however, that I oriented myself towards the interior, and it was a good decision. A very good decision, which really gives me a lot of creative joy and what I do, I create with passion and it absorbs me a lot.
“Remember such tables we have to create so that you can get on them and dance on them,” he said.
Magdalena Nowak-Trzęsiok: A tip I once got from my father was “Remember such tables we have to create so that you can get on them and dance on them”. To this day, our customers still come back and tell us that they would like to replace the furniture, because the new products are beautiful, but the old furniture does not want to fall apart! Probably if we were less reliable we would have more customers.
Patrycja Tomaszczyk: And how was the new Novelle brand created?
Magdalena Nowak-Trzęsiok: I and my siblings simply felt that a fresher name and a more worldly overtone were needed. The name itself comes from the French word for “new” and “she.”
Interiors are like women
Patrycja Tomaszczyk: On your website we find that interiors are like women.Unique, individual. Just like a woman, they create the atmosphere of the house. Is this the case?
Magdalena Nowak-Trzęsiok: He pays very close attention to details. He wants my products to have a distinct character. Probably like any woman, she wants to stand out and wants my products to do so too. I am inspired by the best designs, I want to refer to the old times and give them a new fashion costume.
First there is the vision
Patrycja Tomaszczyk: What do the backstage of your daily work look like?
Magdalena Nowak-Trzęsiok: First there is a vision, an idea in the head. It often follows me around for several weeks! Then I gather materials – pattern books, accessories, handles, staining. And I begin to create. I am a great aesthete. More than once the furniture is already ready to go for photo shoots, and I change something at the last moment.
Tailor-made furniture
Patrycja Tomaszczyk: To what extent can the customer influence the making of the furniture?
Magdalena Nowak-Trzęsiok: On the one hand, we show the client what is fashionable, while if he needs some changes or modifications, of course there is such a possibility. I personally check such unusual designs, accept it and make sure that good taste and proportions are maintained despite the changes.
Patrycja Tomaszczyk:Your atelier is reminiscent of the atelier of a great tailor…Is this also related to how the Novelle brand ultimately takes shape?
Magdalena Nowak-Trzęsiok: Novelle is relentless in its efforts to update classic designs and give them a fashionable costume.
With my heart I am an artist, and I understand businesswoman
Patrycja Tomaszczyk:Entering your office, we can notice framed maxims, which one is the most important to you?
Magdalena Nowak-Trzêsiok: I guess “Development is a survival mechanism.” We are moving forward, with the times, and this is the right way if the company is to be generational. I myself am such a proactive person who sometimes gets caught up. I’m pulling forward and mobilizing the rest of the team so that we grow.
Patrycja Tomaszczyk: Ms. Magda, if you were to think about it, are you more of an artist, designer, creator or businesswoman?
Magdalena Nowak-Trzęsiok: With my heart I am an artist, and I understand businesswoman. I am glad that this can be combined and enter the market as the Novelle brand.
You can read more about the decor in the article Interior in the hamptons style.