Our brand Tunik really is built from the ground up. That's what makes our collections & business special.

Our dear friend Melanie De La Reta, owner and creator of Beauty Tofu (https://beautytofu.com/en-au) natural skin products asked our founder & designer Marissa Ganino to write a blog about a story that felt important to share. Here it is...

When life gives you lemons….

It can be the nudge from universe that you were hoping for....

It’s a funny time to be writing this…about the inevitable situation I found myself in that led me to starting my women’s dress label Tunik. We are in one of the hardest eras imaginable for little businesses like mine. We live in a world full of noise…too much noise. And it’s hard to stand out, and find a reason to exist that justifies anyones attention. So I’m finding this piece quite cathartic to write. And regardless of this era, I’m still hopeful and inspired everyday. 

I promised Melanie, the incredible green girl herself that I may write something to do with Tunik. However in doing that I have to explain that my journey into motherhood, (my most important creation) and conjuring up Tunik began together. 

Neither have been easy and both have been a very similar experience. Fun and frustrating, exhausting and encouraging, lonely and rewarding all at the same time. 

The “lemon” I referred to was finding myself without a job after 20 years of working myself to the bone (it’s ok I was stressed, overworked and underwhelmed and needed a change!!). And my beautiful husband and I  had suffered a miscarriage and then countless failed attempts to get pregnant. 

We had just moved house and I found myself at home…alone and in new surroundings with absolutely no plan. I was excited but I was scared. 

All I new was that I wasn’t going to fail at something that mattered to me, because even attempting to lead a true creative life that I navigated for myself was all I cared about. It was time and I hoped the journey would be worth it.

And of course….bang….we were pregnant. 

Ok then….!!

I was about to try and develop two of the biggest and hardest things I’ve ever made at the same time. 

I must be insane. 

No I’m a woman….we got this Marissa. 

I got busy really quick…my timeline was that of the babies.

Sketching dresses.

Designing prints.

Stopping for a routine ultrasound.

Making dress patterns and seeing with a huge tummy and pregnancy back aches over the kitchen table all day (I was one of those giant pregnant balls of fluid retention….horrible!!),

And finally trying dresses on my girlfriends as I was FAR too huge!

Ok stop to have the baby now. 

Enter 3 months of baby bubble time…

 

Ok back to work. 

Let’s make the most beautiful things I can imagine and afford (yes we are just a self funded business).

And let’s call my favourite dress The Vivienne Dress. My daughters name and to this day it’s still my best seller.

My daughter Vivienne is the most beautiful thing in the world that I have ever create.

And my Tunik brand is dedicated to all of the amazing women and mothers out there that hustle everyday trying to do it all.

It’s hard. However if it’s something you love that inspires you…the universe will help you along or maybe even throw you a lemon. That I promise.

P.S.  the picture below is from 2019 and is of Vivienne and I in my then office, me feeding her and looking a little amused, in love and tired. She was always on the boob…for 27 months. They were special days.

 Love,

Marissa Ganino xx

 

You can also find this story on the Beauty Tofu website at https://beautytofu.com/en-au and learn more about Melanie and the amazing products she created herself for women. They are all natural, vegan and ethical which is everything we support and we use them ourselves too!

For the original Blog link and to find out more about other amazing women on our planet and their stories, you can follow this link https://beautytofu.com/en-au/blogs/eat-pray-tribe