A story that began with silence, a needle, and a piece of felt

Magaela did not start as a business plan.
And it was never meant to be “a brand”.

It started as a quiet escape.

In 2012, I was a university student. Most of my credits were already done by December, but January was always reserved for one or two final exams. I was never the kind of person who could study from morning till night.

I needed something else.
Something where my mind could rest while my hands stayed busy.

So I started to create.

When hands calm the mind

My first love was felt.
Dry needle felting.

That soft, crackling sound of the needle repeatedly entering the material had something deeply calming in it. It was rhythm. Silence. Focus. Presence.

Small earrings, tiny brooches, little handmade pieces began to appear.
Later, I started combining felt with sewn beads.
And eventually, the idea of hand-sewn earrings was born.

At the same time, I was working part-time in a flower shop. That’s where I learned the basics of floral arranging, composition, balance, colors, proportions. And one day, everything I had been doing separately came together.

I created my first floral hair comb.

It was 2013.
And that moment quietly started the Magaela you know today.

From small pieces to a world that began to grow

Over the years, Magaela has been through many chapters.

There were moments of pure excitement and moments of deep exhaustion.
There was a time I often call the “flower crown renaissance”, when hundreds of messages arrived daily from women dreaming of owning a wreath, a headband, or a floral accessory of their own.

In 2015, my husband Romi and I got married.
Romi has been part of Magaela from the very beginning.

The very first order I ever received was from him.
He bought earrings for his sister, under the name "Janko Hraško".
I only realized it when I started writing the shipping address. It was identical to ours.
At first, I had no idea who it was. And then… it clicked. 😊

Since then, he has supported Magaela and me countless times.
In the good moments.
And especially in the hard ones.

When success hurts and growth has a price

There were years when Magaela was thriving.
And years that became some of the hardest of my life.

I experienced a complete shutdown of the shop at a time when orders were coming in fast and expectations were high.
I went through constant changes in the team, people coming and going  and the never-ending challenge of finding those who wanted to grow with the brand, not just benefit from it.

Finding stable hands for production was my biggest struggle for years.
Only in the last two years has the team truly stabilized.

And yet, new challenges arrived.

When the rules of the game change

Algorithm changes.
Shifts in customer behavior.
New customs regulations for the U.S.

And on top of that, copying.

Our product photos started appearing again and again on platforms like Temu, Shein, and AliExpress, alongside cheap copies. Some customers began to believe that our work came from there, that we were simply reselling mass-produced items with huge markups.

The truth was exactly the opposite.

Aggressive advertising by global giants on Google and Pinterest pushes honest handmade creators further out of sight every single day.
And suddenly, you find yourself in a strange place, loving and hating the platform that once allowed you to grow.

I am deeply grateful for every beginning, every customer, every order from every corner of the world.
But living with the awareness that your shop can be closed at any moment is not easy — especially when you are trying to run a real company.
With employees. With rent. With taxes. With responsibility.

Why Magaela stands on its own foundation today

So I decided to fight.

To rebuild Magaela from the ground up.
Not as a perfect online store.
But as a world.

A world for dreamers, fairytale souls, and lovers of beauty.
A space that reflects my inner values, my sensitivity, and my way of seeing the world.

A personal e-shop, not just a place to buy, but a space where a long-term community can slowly grow.

We are at the beginning.
Every day brings technical challenges, learning curves, and new decisions.
It is not easy. And the year 2025 has taken a lot from many of us.

But I believe.

I believe there is still a place for Magaela.
That we will continue to bring women confidence, beauty, and a sense of inner strength.
That we can remind them of self-love and quiet magic.

And that this story is worth continuing.

With love,
Michaela