Susanna Vaara I was born in 1977 in the City of Vaasa, Finland. Presently I study at the University of Art and Design Helsinki (UIAH) for the Master of Arts degree. In the spring of 2007 I graduated as Bachelor of Art from the Department of Interior Architecture and Furniture Design. My way to UIAH was a long one. First I did finish my visual art studies at a Swedish University of Applied Sciences. My greatest victories in life have been achieving my dreams. The feeling of success in your plans gives a great feeling of wellbeing. One of these glories is my present institution of studies. I am evincibly determined. As in life, also in the design process I carry out things with heart and soul, I proceed emotionally. I strive to be myself and I try to make things resembling me. My furniture designs are straight-forward and distinct with characteristic details. I am most interested in combining materials, sculptural forms, harmony and contrasts. The continuous desire to learn new things creates the base for solving various problems. The passion for work is one of life’s greatest satisfactions. In addition to designing, I enjoy working with my hands and thus see my own ”autograph”. Surely every designer’s dream is to make a classic which will be remembered. It is also my vision. In the summer time my big amusement is rock-bending. I enjoy making large puzzles of rocks that follow nature’s forms. Nature is my greatest source of inspiration. By photographing, I collect a lot of close-ups from the nature. My hobbies, apart from photography, are cottage life all year around, picking mushrooms, snowmobiling and aerobic gymnastics.