Sev Dogru

On becoming a graphic designer…

I was into drawing since I was a little girl. My parents say that I used to draw portraits of our guests and I’d give them a portrait as a gift when they left. I won a scholarship to study at a reknowned art college in Turkey and I studied graphic design at university.

On inspiration…

Besides surfing the internet, I keep some books bedside, such as Thinkertoys by Michael Michalko and Six Thinking Hats by Edward de Bono. These books help me to break the pattern in daily routine and learn new thinking techniques to improve my creativity in so many aspects. 

On advice for those starting out in design…

Never give up: keep trying is the key. We didn’t learn walking straight away. We first crawled until we got confident enough to stand up and then the first stepped followed after a lot of falling down. Keep trying until you nail it.

On a favourite quote…

“Tell everyone you know: ‘My happiness depends on me, so you’re off the hook.’ And then demonstrate it. Be happy, no matter what they’re doing. Practise feeling good, no matter what. And before you know it, you will not give anyone else responsibility for the way you feel — and then, you’ll love them all. Because the only reason you don’t love them, is because you’re using them as your excuse to not feel good." - Esther Hicks

On sustainability…

I personally try to limit our waste as much as possible. And when I create I am always mindful of waste.I can’t tell you how much I am happy that New Zealand is going plastic-free. I hope this movement will apply on all type of packaging requirements. 

On her side hustle…

Seeds and Trees is my handmade designer brand. I make fun and creative products for kids and mums. Look out for my colouring-in soft toys with clips. My hand-printed and sewn selection of animals allows kids to personalise their soft toy, and to easily attach it to their bag.

On community…

New Zealanders support artisans and crafty folk. There are plenty of artisan/craft markets and small retailers - both places enabling you to show and share your products with the general public.

On immigrating to New Zealand…

To cut a long story short, my ex-boyfriend moved here in 2002 and I followed. We broke up but I had fallen in love with New Zealand.

On New Zealand…

New Zealand is a very unique country in so many ways. How the buildings are surrounded with green, even in city centre areas always amazes me. It was a very surreal feeling for me moving here – I felt like I was in the “The Trueman Show” movie set.  

On being grateful…

My husband Alper is the joy of my life.  My parents raised me with high confidence and let me choose whatever I believe is good for me. And Sevet Pekel, my spiritual teacher (from Turkey) who is into Tasavvuf philosophy (like Rumi). He showed me that the bigger picture in life is empathy, and in order to truly be empathetic, we need to jump from one perspective to the other.

On practicing gratitude…

Gratitude is part of my daily routine. When I wake up in the morning the first thing I see is my husband, Alper. I love seeing his face and I appreciate that he is willing to share this life with me. As I prepare for the day, I look at my beautiful house which I feel lucky to live in. And then I jump into my car and driving to work I see people so patient in traffic. I feel lucky to live in this country and think: I must be doing something right to live all these joys in my life. Gratitude is in every moment. 

On being involved with Great Full…

I know deeply what it is like feeling sick and need help as I went through couple of surgeries. When you’re sick, it doesn’t matter if you’re strong –  needing somebody’s help. Both unwell children and their parents who are looking after them should have access to the best help possible. If we can help people, shouldn’t we?