Fashion: Exclusive Interview With Fashion|Beauty Expert and Founder Of FashionistaFacts Blog - Marija Pavkovic.
OTSM: Hi Marija, Please fully tell us more about yourself and your personal background.
First of all, thank you for your interest in my work and the opportunity to present myself to your readers. My name is Marija Pavković, I was born on the 02.02.1987, in Zagreb, Croatia. I was born during the war and although I don’t have a lot of memories about that I can say that this definitely affected my childhood. I was fighting my personal fears and insecurities for many years. It was always all about gaining security in life. Like my profession. I was studying economics and finance and working for financial revisors until the day I decided to move to Italy. Italy was forever my dreamland and life here was like the dream come true. Italy thought me how life should be lived. You know what they say; Italians just do it better. In 2017, I started my fashion blog- Fashionistafacts.com and since then I'm trying to improve myself in the world of fashion.
OTSM: How did you develop an interest in fashion, beauty, and travel respectively?
I was a fashionista since I was 7 years old. It was just something I had naturally in my head. In elementary school, my class chooses me as the best-dressed student. Probably still my favorite achievement (winks) because it made me realize that others do see my talent. I was buying Cosmopolitan & Vogue since the age of 10 and then I would dream of wearing clothes from editorials. At my current age, I still remember how I was craving Sergio Rossi pumps.
OTSM: Where does your style-savvy come from, and where do you get your inspiration?
I think it comes from my passion. I have no other reasonable explanation. I can just lay in my bed and create millions of outfit inspirations in my head without any reason. This is how I relax. Sometimes I watch the other influencers to see how they would wear it but I never copy, it would be like betraying my soul. (Smiling)
OTSM: Fashionistafacts.com -is an amazing platform, When did you start blogging/ social media, and what was your motivation for getting started?
FashionistaFacts.com was the point I decided to make my passion real. It was a huge move for me. I was convinced I could never do fashion blogging for a living. It remained just passion for too many years. I had to battle a lot of my personal convictions to start the blog. The blog is a union of what I love the most. Writing & creating outfits. I started writing poems, lyrics, and stories when I was in elementary school. Some of my works were published in local magazines. And I still have that poetic dramatic way of expressing myself. If you visit my blog just to see images trust me you are missing the best part which is the -Stories.
OTSM: How have your blog and Instagram feed evolved over time? Any specific turning points?
I started using Instagram way before I start the blog so it was natural for me to use IG to promote the blog. It has been evolving since the beginning.
OTSM: What have been your keys to success so far?
My key to success is my enthusiasm. I really love to create fashion content. For me it's not a business or something I have to do, It's who I am. There were periods when I was really tired of social media, actually, I started to collaborate with a social media manager to liberate myself from the algorithm stress.
OTSM: Who is your primary audience, and what do you think keeps them coming back to your blog?
My main audience is women, who are already highly interested in fashion but mainly those who want to know when the best deals, discounts, and sales are on, my content also appeals to women who would love to boost their style -they follow my content to get some advice and ideas.
OTSM: How do you decide which brands to partner with, and how do you ensure that your fans are receptive to sponsored content?
It's simple, If I would personally wear it or use it I would sponsor it. I truly believe that you should never sell your convictions for sponsorship. Your sponsorship represents you and you represent them, I'm always honest about the products I present on my IG, and I always personally explain to every single follower if they ask me ulterior details. So many times I published products I love without being asked or paid for it. I just want to share with my followers something that improved my life and maybe it could help them.
OTSM: What is your biggest dream in life?
I dream about buying a villa in Tenerife and spending the rest of my life writing blogs near my pool wearing flip flops. Hahaha, I’m ready to retire. No seriously, I’m planning to move soon and probably my biggest dream is that everything works out as I imagined it. Wish me luck.
OTSM: Aw that's such a beautiful dream, I always say- Visualisation is Realisation. You got this Queen. Please tell us your favorite travel destination of all time?
Like I said before, I’m dreaming about the perfect island life. My second favorite place is definitely Venice. I visit Venice 5 times a year and it's never enough. It’s the most magical city on Earth.
OTSM: The best moment of 2021?
The best moment of 2021 was when my son Alexander (7 years old) won the Dante Alighieri award for his achievement in the Italian language and culture. I was so proud. As a parent, you are always doubting yourself and your abilities, asking yourself - am I doing the right thing? I have a different approach to parenting and this was like a signal for me to keep going in the way I know best because it is working.
OTSM: Favorite fashion and beauty brand?
I have several fashion brands, It's not easy to pick one, I'm also a huge fan of my local cloth stores, small designers and I would love to concentrate my collaboration's growth on them. With beauty, it's way easier, my favorite makeup brand is MAC, For beauty it's Pixi. I collaborated with both and I use both personally.
OTSM: How did the global pandemic affect you and your family?
The Global pandemic affected us strongly. Since we live in Italy, we had 2 general lockdowns and several partial lockdowns and quarantines. Actually even right now as I am responding to this virtual interview, I'm in preventive quarantine. It's exhausting. Mentally exhausting. Still, I have to mention that we used every single possible time to travel.
OTSM: In your own words, Please describe “Women Empowerment”.
Women empowerment starts from basic things, like having positive thoughts & words for the women close to us. We have to continue doing our job by empowering and encouraging them to believe in themselves, to create, to stand out for their ideas. Women empowerment is trying to encourage other women on social media, support their work and ideas. We are the only ones who can beat the patriarchal system and do what we have to do to stick together. We owe that to the next generations.
OTSM: Who or what is your biggest inspiration in life?
It may sound strange but the biggest inspiration in my life is my spirit. I'm a very spiritual person, I meditate, I talk to angels, I read about soul evolutions. I believe that my soul lived numerous lives, had amazing experiences in different dimensions, and although I admire people around me, my biggest inspiration comes from whisperings of my soul and my spiritual evolution. Isn’t that the reason why we are here?
OTSM: I agree with you, I describe myself as more spiritual than religious because I believe we are all spiritual beings having a human experience.
What’s your most-worn piece of clothing?
It's a pretty tricky question for a fashionista. We are not able to choose so easily. Well, I have so many hats and beanies, and I rarely go out without wearing a hat, so I can say that I have a mania for hats and I love the wear them. No matter what you wear at the moment you can try to match a hat to your outfit this will take your look to a whole new level.
OTSM: What is your daily health and beauty regimen?
I really take extra care of my skin, since I have had vitiligo for the past few years I take it more seriously to protect and nourish my skin. I always use a hydrating serum before makeup, and I always clean my skin well before bed. I use Vit. C concentrate ampules several times a year, Pixi Milk masks two times a week, and Elisabeth Arden Night Repair serum mixed with an overnight mask every night. It works for me. I also use MSM integrator and melatonin before bed. Sleep is everything. Astaxanthin & biotin I use in the morning. Obviously, this is working for me but everyone is different, what works well for me may not work for the next person so it's important to know your skin and what it likes.
OTSM: What does self-love mean to you?
When I wake up every morning I talk to my inner me. Self-love is all about appreciating who you are, and to do that you have to understand your emotions, your desires, your pain, and your regrets. You are a divine, limitless, multidimensional soul. That soul needs to be heard, that soul needs to evolute. Healing yourself is the biggest project of your life and it never ends. Every day is a new chance to reinvent yourself, to understand who you really are, to forgive yourself, and to try to do what resonates the most with your inner you.
OTSM: What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
One of the most life-changing pieces of advice I got from my spiritual coach Patty is: When life gives you a hard moment or situation, Take a breath, connect to your soul and ask yourself; What would my inner Master do now? What is the lesson I have to learn and understand from all this? This approach to life taught me to take control of my life because things don’t just happen. There is a reason why we live in this situation.
OTSM: If you had to give advice to yourself 5 years ago, what would you say?
I would say thank you for everything. You are courageous, you are a fighter and I’m so proud of everything you did. Believe in yourself just a little bit more.
OTSM: What advice would you give to aspiring fashion, beauty, travel, and lifestyle bloggers?
Maybe the most important thing I would say to them is to stay authentic. Be yourself. It’s a crowd in this business and you will find your true public followers and fan base by staying real. It's easy to start doing the same thing as everybody else and the trends are strong which makes it easier to follow them but reinvent them in your own way. Be patient. Success does not happen overnight, and sometimes success is the small things like struggling to fight your routine, to fight bad habits. Give yourself credit for every small achievement.
OTSM: What advice would you give to those interested in building a positive following online?
Instagram is really difficult to handle especially during these past few years. I lost a lot of followers in the past year but I also gained new followers I know it's not about quantity, it's not about big numbers its about true interest. Keep posting what you love and the right followers will come.
OTSM: What is your favorite thing to do outside of fashion blogging and social media?
I love to read about psychology, emotions, I love books about soul evolution, the law of attraction, and reading about angels. Discovering new ideas, truths about human spiritual evolution. I also love to go out with my friends.
OTSM: Any exciting 2022 projects that your fans should know about?
This year 2022, I will work on my professional growth. I plan to do the courses to improve my knowledge about fashion styling and I plan to offer my services in that area. I already did a lot of improvements in image consulting & personal shopping but I want to continue. It will all be revealed soon on my webpage so stay tuned, I will also offer something really interesting to improve your personal style. I know you all will love it.
OTSM: Anything else you’d like to add?
I want to thank you for this opportunity, I wish you a Year 2022 full of love, happiness, and joy, I wish you the world without pandemic but full of beautiful events, travels & new experiences. We deserve it.
Interviewed By- Linda O Bella (@lindaobella)
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