From Professor to Artisan: Turning a Career Loss into a Passion

In Macedonia, there are many local heroes who serve as examples of how we should treat the environment and use recycled materials to create something unique, meaningful, and educational.

Today, we’d like to introduce you to another local heroine, whose creations are available in the Kajak.mk grocery store, and can be ordered with just one click HERE.

Veles is home to many local artisans, and among them is Tanja—the woman who creates small things with great significance for raising awareness among young people and future generations.

Tanja is a philosophy professor, a former ethics teacher, and today, an artisan and artist. Her creative works mainly include jewellery made from clay, paper, and recycled materials (plastic and magazines). She also creates jewellery and paintings using the quilling technique on paper.

The idea for these creations began during the pandemic when she was laid off from her job and started fully immersing herself in quilling as a hobby. From quilling, she ventured into experimenting with other materials.

Tanja says that the process of creation is sometimes a form of meditation for her, and other times, a challenge. As she puts it, things don’t always go as planned. But despite all of this, she enjoys the entire process because it is something that keeps her going in life today.

She shares with Kajak.mk that the greatest support she receives comes from her family, as well as from like-minded artisans with whom she is not personally acquainted and only communicates online. However, they are always there to offer advice and help her with sourcing materials.

She also receives immense support from the people who purchase her creations. She says there is nothing more beautiful than seeing smiling faces.

When asked about which creations are the most popular, Tanja says that the most in-demand items are quilled paintings of "The Kiss" (by Klimt), "The Little Prince," "Starry Night" (by Van Gogh), quilled images of cats and owls, personalized quilled pictures (designed based on customer ideas and wishes), earrings featuring Frida Kahlo, recycled jewelry, and personalized clay earrings with custom designs requested by the client.

The products are usually made to the customers’ specifications, which means that each creation requires about three days to complete. We are happy that, starting today, Tanja has her own stand on Kajak.mk, and we hope we've helped her succeed in selling as many creations as possible.

Don't hesitate to place an order. With your purchase, you'll make both the artisans and the people who receive your unique gift happy. You can place your orders with just one click HERE.